John Cliver

[Judy Harder]

John Cliver 9:53am Oct 27 
"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12 NIV . One reason many do not like to read the Bible is that it is too incisive. It tends to point out problems and difficulties we would just as soon keep hidden. But Jesus knows our hearts. He is that Word that is alive and active in our world. And he speaks though his written word to let us know what he wants us to know: mainly that he loves us and wants to bring us back to God. He sees you r heart and knows your motives and yet loves you anyway.

[Judy Harder]

 7:47am Oct 28 
"For, 'All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.' And this is the word that was preached to you." 1 Peter 1:24-25. Nothing, not even government programs, last forever. Everything dies, everything gets old, everything goes away. That is, everything but the grace of God and his love for us. He is eternal and all he is is eternal. When we put our trust into something, we put it into him. He is the only lasting thing.

[Judy Harder]

 4:02pm Oct 29 
"And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him." Romans 12:1. In the church, we are the sacrifice. But we are also the altar and the priest who offers it. The fire is the Spirit of God that burns us and the aroma of the fire is our praise that reaches all the way to the throne room of The Almighty God. When we praise, when we live, when we work for him, when we offer ourselves to him, that is our sacrifice.

[Judy Harder]

 9:21am Oct 30 
"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it." Ephesians 2:8-9. His grace saves us in spite of ourselves and in spite of our own weakness. That is why it is called grace, unmerited favor. God gives salvation, we cannot earn it. If we could, it would be of our own doing and would not be grace. The Bible says again and again that we are not saved by what we do, we are saved by who we are. Our names are in the Lamb's Book of Life if we are his and that is what saves us.

[Judy Harder]

 8:44am Oct 31 
"Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are." 1 Peter 5:8-9. Evil works by trickery. It makes you think things that are bad are good, and things that are ugly are beautiful. That is why the phrase "ugly as sin" never really works. The roaring lion makes sin look beautiful. He is trying to trap you and take away the good you have in your life. There has to be an awareness of this without falling into fear. After all, God is greater than the devil and he has already given you the victory. We just need to watch out to keep from falling into the trap.

[Judy Harder]

 9:42am Nov 1 
"I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance." Ephesians 1:18.

Light comes from hope and that is the truth. Hopelessness makes a certain darkness in your soul. But that hope comes from the grace of Jesus, the glory of God. It makes us his people, people in line for a marvelous inheritance: that of not just eternal life, but eternal life in glory. God took away the Tree of Life because eternal life in your sin and despair would be horrible. But he gives it back when we accept him and let him cleanse us and our hearts. And that is our hope that floods us with light.

[Judy Harder]

9:28am Nov 2 
"But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9.

The people of God. That is what we are. We are the ones he sent his Son to die for. We are the ones who responded to his love and his goodness. we are the ones who are the citizens of spiritual Israel. And that love and goodness shows through our lives so that others can be called to him by it. There is no need to walk in the darkness of sin or despair. He gives us light and he gives us love by his calling.

[Judy Harder]

A Christian believer needs a church, just as a candle needs a candlestick, a tree needs soil, and an electric light bulb needs a socket. Without a candlestick, a candle cannot stand; without soil, a tree cannot grow; without a socket, an electric bulb cannot shine. Neither can you. Without fellowship, a Christian can neither stand, nor grow, nor shine. God bless you. (REINHARD BONNKE)

We need more evangelists today

[Judy Harder]

8:31am Nov 3 
"Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God." Romans 13:1. In the middle of this election season, remember that President Obama, whatever you may think of him and his policies, is still ordained of God and we have the responsibility as Christians to respect him. Otherwise, we are sinning. Vote how you want. Change when you can. But the office of President is one that God said to respect and submit to.

[Judy Harder]

7:26am Nov 4 
"He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life." 2 Corinthians 3:6.

In the new covenant, we are not saved or lost by what we do or don't do. We are saved or lost by who we are. When God writes our names in his Book of Life, we are saved. The things we do under this new covenant are because of his love, not in order to gain his love. He recognizes from the beginning that we cannot do enough to warrant his salvation, so he makes us righteous. And he fills us with his Spirit. It is that Spirit within us that gives us life. This new law is written on our hearts and lived in our lives.