Jesus commanded us to make disciples in all the world. If
what you have read has been a blessing to you, please share this discipleship
training blog with everyone you know!
Don’t you think that the blind, deaf, lepers, crippled, sick,
and demon possessed have just as much right to be healed by Jesus today as
those He healed 2,000 years ago? Don’t worry, you may not feel like you
are ready for that yet. I will help get you ready. Want to join
me? It’s not like you have a choice. God is calling you. It’s
not by chance you are reading this. Nobody can do this like you can with
the help of the Holy Spirit.
Again, what works did Jesus do? The Holy Bible says He
raised the dead, cast out devils, cleansed the lepers,
healed every type of sickness, and more. Jesus said in John
14:12 [Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the
works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than
these, because I am going to the Father.] Whoever includes
you!
Do you understand why I said that Jesus’ method was the most
efficient and fastest way to spread the gospel? When Jesus raised the
dead and healed the sick, it drew very large crowds of people. They came
to Him to hear His message. Then, they saw the miracles which proved what
He was telling them was the truth.
Then, He duplicated Himself so that the disciples he made went
everywhere doing the same things he did. Because the Holy Spirit of God
that was performing the miracles through Jesus was in them.
Religion will not save a single soul from hell. Yet, there are
billions of people deceived by the devil into following a religion. Some even
make following Jesus into a religion. But what everyone of us needs is a
spiritual heart transplant. And the only spiritual heart surgeon in the
whole universe is Jesus! But He returned to heaven!
So, He needs you and me to be His feet to go! He needs you
and me to be His mouth to preach, to command the demons out, and the dead to
rise! He needs you and me to be His hands to heal! He needs our
eyes to see the needs! He needs our ears to hear their cries! He
needs our arms to embrace humanity! He needs our knees to kneel to pray
for all to come to know this loving God who died for the sins of the whole
world!!!
See, Jesus is and was God, and He came to live His life as an
example for us to follow. Listen to what He said in John 14:10 [Don’t you
believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say
to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in
me, who is doing his work.]
Then, He said: As the Father has sent Me, I am sending
you.
Remember: God is spirit. Romans 8:14 says [For
those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.] Again,
Jesus said in John 14:12,13 [Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will
do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than
these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever
you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.]
Know that when Jesus said: “You will do greater works than He
did,” He didn’t mean more powerful miracles, but more of the same.
Because Jesus said in Luke 6:40 [The disciple is not above his master: but
every one that is perfect shall be as his master.]
And, when Jesus said: (You shall take up serpents) and (you
shall drink any deadly thing and it will not hurt you), He means if you
accidentally get bit by a snake or accidently drink poison, beyond your
control. Because, Luke 4:12 says [Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not
put the Lord your God to the test.'”] So, avoid deadly snakes and
deliberately drinking poison, or it will not end well for you.
Understand that to do the works that Jesus did, you must live
holy like He did. That means free from sin. Even most believing
Christians think this is impossible, thus the lack of miracles today! Now
you know. But I will get into how this is made possible.
As I touched on previously, know that God does not hear the
prayers of sinners. It is impossible to get Jesus to perform a single
miracle through you if you have any sin in your life. You can forget
it. In fact, you will lose the anointing by sinning. Jesus said:
Follow Me. That means live like He did, holy and free from sin.
1 John 2:6 says [The one who says that he abides in
him must live the same way he himself lived.] 1
John 5:3 says [Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments
are not burdensome.] 1 Peter 1:15 says [But just as he
who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is
written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”]
Remember: Jesus said the crowd is going to hell, and only
a few ever find the narrow way that leads to eternal life. 1 Peter 4:18
says [And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the
ungodly and the sinner appear?] What does that tell you? That means
ignore the voices of the majority! Don’t listen to anyone who says you
cannot keep God’s commandments.
Because what they don’t know, is the fact that you are not the
one keeping them. The point is, God is the only one perfect
who can keep God’s commandments. Again, Jesus said in John 14:10 [Don’t
you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I
say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the
Father, living in me, who is doing his work.]
Jesus said this to show us an example how we must follow
Him. What Jesus essentially said in the above verse is this: “I am not
the one keeping the commandments, raising the dead, healing the sick, cleansing
the lepers, casting out devils, and making disciples. Rather, it
is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.
Then, Jesus said: “Come follow Me, and I will send you out to
fish for people. As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.” (Matthew
4:19, John 20:21)
To better help you understand, listen to the following
conversation Jesus had with His disciples. But keep in mind that Jesus is
God. God is three in One (Father, Son, Holy Spirit.) And Jesus came to be
our example to follow, so the way in which He speaks to His disciples teaches
us how we too must relate with God as we follow Christ’s example.
Jesus said in John 14:15-15:11 [“If you love me, keep my
commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to
help you and be with you forever– the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept
him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives
with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as
orphans; I will come to you.
Note here: Jesus had already told His disciples that He was
going away to the Father. But the Father would send them another
helper. Then Jesus said, “I will come to you.” So, obviously Jesus
is the other helper in the form of the Holy Spirit. Keep in mind that God is 3
in 1. But that is what the Bible calls a mystery, which we may never
fully understand until we see Jesus. So, it is pointless to debate over
that.,
1 John 3:2 says [Dear friends, now we are children of God, and
what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ
appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.]
The apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:13 [I can do all things
through Christ who gives me strength.] But he said this after Jesus
Christ had already returned to heaven to the Father. So, how did Christ
strengthen Paul on earth? And the answer is, by the help of the Holy
Spirit of God — which is the same way the Father helped Jesus in the flesh.
To better help you understand, let’s continue the scripture
reading where Jesus is speaking to His disciples:
Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see
me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize
that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever
has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me
will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to
them.”
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you
intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus replied, “Anyone
who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will
come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love
me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they
belong to the Father who sent me.
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the
Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to
you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as
the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
“You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.‘
If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the
Father is greater than I.
I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does
happen you will believe. I will not say much more to you, for the prince of
this world (Satan) is coming. He has no hold over me, but he comes so that the
world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my
Father has commanded me.
Note here: What did you just read straight from the pages
of the Holy Bible? You should now be able to answer the question:
Why did God put the devil on earth? The answer: Jesus
said: So that the world may learn that I love the
Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me. Well guess what,
the devil is still here on earth. Why? So that the world may
learn that we love the Father and do exactly
what our Father has commanded us.
The devil is here to give you and me a choice. Love is not
love unless love has a choice. To love means, you must choose one over
the other/s or even yourself. Deuteronomy 6:4 says [Hear, O Israel: The
LORD our God, the LORD is one.] And that means there is only one God, and
you are not it. Thus, you must not obey your body or the lusts of your
flesh. You must obey God.
Let’s continue the scripture reading where Jesus is speaking to
His disciples:
“Come now; let us leave. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
[Note- A synonym for remain is abide. And as we have previously learned, the Bible says: they that abide in him do not continue to sin. Jesus said: "Remain in Me...neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me." That means, we have a choice: to remain or not to remain.
Those who remain bear fruit and are able to live like Jesus, heal the sick, etc. But those who choose not to remain or abide in Christ will hear Jesus say to them on judgement day: "Depart from Me you who break God's laws" even after they had performed great miracles while they remained.]
Scripture continued...
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you
remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can
do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is
thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and
burned (that’s hell friend). If you remain in me and my words remain in
you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for
you.
This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing
yourselves to be my disciples. “As the Father has loved me, so have I
loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain
in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his
love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy
may be complete.]
Note here: In the above scripture, Jesus said: “Just as I
have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love,” means
it is possible that you can keep God’s commands too with
help like Jesus had help! That is what He means when He said: “Just
as.” Do you see it? God help you see it, because even most
people who believe the Bible don’t see it! But this is the very thing
you must be able to see in order to remain in Christ!
Jesus can keep the commandments for you when you trust His Holy
Spirit who lives in you! God has given you salvation.
God has gifted you His righteousness. Jesus is our righteousness (1
Corinthians 1:30, 2 Corinthians 5:21). Now, you must put on the Lord
Jesus. Put on His righteousness! You must die and stay dead!
The Bible calls it resting. And, let Jesus live perfectly in you and
through you!
Paul said in Galatians 2:20 [I have been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The
life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me
and gave himself for me.] Then, Paul said follow me as I follow
Christ. And that means we too should be telling others to “Follow me as I
follow Christ.” But only if you are following Christ like Paul did!
The reason why you can keep the commandments is simple. Because
the one who kept them before, being Jesus, lives on the inside of you.
Philippians 4:13 says [I can do all this through Christ who gives me
strength.] Romans 8:13 says [For if you live according to the
dictates of your flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you
put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.]
1 John 4:4 says [Greater is He that is in you than
he that is in the world.] Colossians 2:9 says [For in Christ dwelleth
all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.] Remember I said, according to the
scriptures, that God is three in one consisting of the Father, Jesus the Son,
and Holy Spirit.
God became flesh and dwelt among us in the person of Jesus
Christ. But God is spirit. And, once you become a believer and
confess Jesus as your Lord, God, who consists of 3 in 1 comes to live in
you. 1 Corinthians 3:16,17 says [Don’t you know that you yourselves
are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? God
will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you
are that temple.]
And this will be the fate of all who follow the devil in
rebellion against God, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Hell is a
real place. Here is how the Bible describes it: Revelation 14:11
[And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no
rest day or night.] Luke 13:28 says [There will be weeping there and
gnashing of teeth.] Matthew 8:12 says [outer darkness] Revelation 9:2
says [Bottomless pit.] Mark 9:48 says [where “‘the worms that eat them do
not die, and the fire is not quenched.’]
Here is a bone chilling story that Jesus shared about a man who
was damned to hell found in Luke 16:22-31 [“The time came when the beggar died
and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was
buried. And he went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Abraham
in the far distance with Lazarus at his side. So, he called to him, ‘Father
Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water
and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you
received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is
comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and
you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here
to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.”
He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family,
for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to
this place of torment.'”Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets
(Holy Bible); let them listen to them.’ “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said,
‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “He said
to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets (The Bible they
wrote), they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the
dead.'”]
The Bible says that God created man for His good pleasure and in
His likeness, as a spiritual husband to His spiritual bride to live as
one. Just listen to the prayer that Jesus prayed in John 17:1-26
[After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed:
“Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. [Note - Do you see from that last verse above that by us finishing the work He gave us to do is how we bring glory to God on earth?]
5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the
glory I had with you before the world began.
Jesus Prays for His Disciples
6 “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out
of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they
have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything
you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me and
they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they
believed that you sent me. 9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the
world, but for those (elect) you have given me, for they are
yours.
10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory
has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they
are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by
the power of your name, the name you gave me (John 8:58, John 14:10), so
that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them
and kept them safe by that name (Isaiah 9:6) you gave me. None
has been lost except the one (Judas Iscariot) doomed to destruction so
that Scripture would be fulfilled.
13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. [Note -Is there anything in this life better than having the full measure of His joy? If you want it then follow Jesus. Instead of yielding to the lusts of your flesh, endure every temptation to sin. That means you will have to endure the nagging urges of your flesh every day and make sacrifices to seek and serve Him. This is how Jesus lived for all His life.]
14 I have given them your word and the
world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the
world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you
protect them from the evil one (Satan/Devil & his minions acting as one) 16
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the
truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent
them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly
sanctified.
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who
will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one,
Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that
the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the
glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in
them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then
the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have
loved me.
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I
am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me
before the creation of the world.
25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know
you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and
will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be
in them and that I myself may be in them.”]
Again, the short story of what you will learn from reading the
truth of God’s Word written in the Holy Bible, God purposefully created man
with a body given to lust. James 1:14,15 says [But every man is
tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and
enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it brings forth sin: and sin, when
it is finished, brings forth death.]
Plus, we have the devil and his minions who take advantage of
our weakness and so places the bait on the hook and dangles it right in front
of our noses in hopes that we will lust with our eyes, lust with our
flesh/body, and lust with our hearts in pride — in order to bring death upon
ourselves. So, when we sin or break God’s laws, we essentially give the
devil the right to steal from us, kill us, and destroy us (John 10:10,
Ephesians 4:27, 1 John 5:18, James 4:7.)
Keep this in mind: An underlying theme in the Bible is
this: The essence of what is Pride says, “I can do this all by myself
without God’s permission or without God’s help.” The essence of what is
Humility says, “I can do all things through Jesus Christ who strengthens
me.”
CAUTION: If you fail to read sufficiently now, you will
most likely NEVER see what you have been missing ALL your life.
Keep reading and allow me to finish putting all the pieces of
the puzzle together for you, so you can finally see the potential of who God
has created you to be and what He expects you to accomplish for His glory.
Please advance to Part 8