The Good Work Has Begun

Being confident of this , that he that who has begun a good work in you will carry it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 NIV

We are each a work in progress. All of us, who name the name of Christ from the heart, have embarked on a journey. God has begun a good work in us. At salvation, we have been given a new nature. We are new creations in Christ. Inside our spirits dwell the Holy Spirit and within us can be found the fruits of the spirit. Spiritual attributes such as love, joy, and peace are growing within us and affecting our lives as we yield to the Holy Spirit. We also have been given spiritual gifts. Some of us love to serve. Some are adept at spreading the good news. While others find their joy in showing hospitality. Some of the other gifts that the Spirit gives are prophecy, gifts of healing, and administration.

Our Lord wants us to grow in grace. He that has begun the work in us will bring it to conclusion. He is helping us to shoot closer and closer to the bullseye. Our Father extends his grace to us and enables us to grow. When we fall, he picks us back up. He is so patient with us. Let's cooperate with him in the growing of our faith. Let's allow God to use his fruit and his gifts within us to bring him glory. He will help us to hit the mark of maturity. We can be confident of this. Step by step we are getting closer, and although we will not reach perfection this side of heaven, when we do arrive at heaven's shores we will be entirely complete in him. Nothing will be lacking.

The scripture also says that we are complete in Christ right now (Colossians 2:10). This is referring to our standing in Him. This speaks of the work that Christ has done inside our hearts. We have, however, not arrived. Though we may be complete in our standing with Christ, that truth has not completely affected the living out of our faith. God is causing us to better reflect him day by day. He is helping to bring what's in us to the surface. He is changing us from glory to glory.

Jesus is committed to our maturity. He is in it for the long haul. He will be faithful to us even when we are not faithful. Let's entrust our lives to his care and commit to growing in grace.

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.” These are comforting words. We shall be like him on that day.

If you are struggling in your walk with Jesus, take heart he will help you if you reach out to him. You can also find help from a brother or a sister in the Lord. God is committed to enable you to win. Surrender to him and he will cause you to triumph.

With a Withered Hand

His twisted hand caught the Savior’s eye

Did Christ ridicule in reply?

He had the man stand before the group

But on the Sabbath day what was He to do?

The Pharisees held to the letter of the law

To heal on the Sabbath to them would be wrong

Jesus, with compassion, asked the man to

Stretch forth his hand

All became well at His command

Perfection overcame imperfection

Wholeness overruled disease’s insurrection

The Pharisees were outraged

At the freedom of Jesus’ faith

How could He heal on our holy day

They conspired to kill the Christ

Death verses Life

On this day when Jesus healed the man

With a withered hand

His Resurrection Power

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Romans 8:11

The same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in you, if you have trusted Christ to be your Savior. That quickening of His Spirit within us can bring healing to our bodies. It can heal us of inner wounds of the heart. It can set us free from bondages and addictions. We can put our trust in Christ to bring His deliverance in our lives. We are raised spiritually because He was raised from the dead.

Jesus died an awful death, but it was not without purpose. He was the propitiation of our sin. In other words, He took our place on the cross so that we could have our sin debt paid for. Jesus paid it all; we can truly be forgiven of our sins, if we will only trust Him for the gift of salvation. We will never be able to earn our way to heaven. The truth is we can never be good enough through our own efforts. We also cannot be disqualified for the prize of heaven because we sin too much. The thief on the cross found salvation in Christ, but he was not deserving of it. Jesus told him that today you will be with me in paradise.

When we rely on Christ's sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins, we die with Christ, and the Scripture says that we are also raised with Him. And there will be a day when our corruptible bodies will be transformed into incorruptible ones. We will be forever raised on that day.

Let's not just go through the motions this Easter holiday. Let's rely on the saving and resurrecting power of Jesus. Let's trust Him to quicken our mortal bodies. He wants to live in us and through us. The quickening power of Jesus enables us to display His character in our daily lives.

If You don't know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, won't you pray with me. Here is a simple prayer that when spoken from the heart, will bring Jesus into the center of your life...

Dear Father God,

I know that I have sinned. I understand that I fall far short of your holy way of living. I ask you to forgive me of all of my sins. I ask you, Jesus, to come and live in me through the power of the Holy Spirit. Come Lord, come alive within me. Quicken my body. Live your life through me. Deliver me from anything that displeases you. I choose to live for you from this moment on. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.

In Your Place

They lashed My back

With whips of bone and leather

Ripped hair from My beard

The sight was gruesome – all together

They beat a crown of thorns into My head

I bled and bled

Crimson poured down My face

I suffered in your place

They nailed Me to a tree

Can’t you see?

I hung in your place

For the sin of the human race

I died so you’d find life

Once and for all I forgave

Silence was My response to strife

I rose again from the grave

Those that trust me all go free

Their sin forgiven all because of Me

Born a second time to live for eternity

Born twice to experience

Life under the gentle rule of the King of Kings

Hearing the Shepherd's Voice

Dear Father,

What would You say to me?

My son, I have chosen you. I have called you. Rise up and be strong. Strong in my power. Strong in my might. My hand is on you my son. You are an ambassador for me. Tom, I love you, and my love is not based on your performance. I love you because you are my child. You have been brought back from the dead. You were dead in your sins, now you are are alive unto Me. Come and worship me. Come and receive my great love for you. My blessings are all yours - bought with My Son's blood.

You too can hear God's voice. It's not as impossible as it seems. If you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have the Holy Spirit living in you. He wants to talk to you. We have been given the Bible as our number one means of hearing God's voice, but our Lord also wants to have intimate conversation with all of his children. Jesus said, “My sheep know my voice (John 10:4). He also said that the voice of a stranger His sheep would not follow. Our Lord wants to speak to us, and He will help us to test what we've heard (what we hear must always align itself with Scripture, and it will always lead us to peace and not confusion).

One good way of learning to hear God's voice is journaling. Journaling is writing down our conversations with the Lord. Habakkuk 2:1-3 says, “I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.

And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.”

We can write down a comment or a question and then wait for His response. God's response to us usually comes in the form of a picture in our mind or a spontaneous thought in our heart.  He will not tell us all we desire to know but He does want to speak with us.  Sometimes we hear messages of affirmation. At other times He may compassionately correct us or give us direction. The Lord loves His children. It is His desire to speak to us. Another helpful scripture along these lines is 1 Corinthians 14:3 which states, “But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort. This is the spirit with which our Lord will always speak with us.

I understand that this may be a new concept for some of you, but I hope you will start the adventure of learning to hear the Shepherd's voice. Please let me know if you have any questions concerning this.

Blessings,

Tom Toya

Lesson from a Dandelion

 Here is a post from the past that I believe will encourage you to make a difference in the world...

“The sower sows the word.”  Mark 4:14

As a child in the summertime, I loved to pluck up dried dandelions – the ones that held the white seedlings set in the form of a globe – and blow.  I would watch the wind escort these seedlings to faraway places.  My father discouraged me from doing this, so I practiced this pastime away from our own yard.

I did not realize that when I blew these seeds into the atmosphere, I was acting out a principle of the word of God. Jesus said, “The sower sows the word.”  Like farmers we are to scatter the seed of God’s word all around us.  We are to tell others about the goodness of God. 

Each of us has a story to tell about how we received Christ into our hearts.  And directly or indirectly, someone sowed the word of God into each of our lives to bring about the miracle of salvation within us.

When I was a new believer, I would look at a crowd of people and feel guilty because I was not reaching them for Christ.  I am more grounded now in God’s love for me and I realize that I can’t reach everyone with the gospel, but I can do my part.  One of the things I have done is to create my own tracts.  I pass them out at restaurants and places of business.  I simply hand them out with a smile and say, “I’d like to give you this.  It is something I have written and I believe it will be an encouragement to you.” 90% of the time they receive it gladly.

Jesus told us to go and preach the gospel to all creation.  He wants us to be encouraged in the unique ways that He has made us.  We each have gifts and talents that God wants us to use to win the unsaved.  Won’t you pray and ask God to show you what your part is in the Great Commission?  He is waiting for you to draw near to Him.  He desires to use you to scatter the seed of God’s word in your sphere of influence.  Who knows, He may even use you to reach those in far away places. 

Grace Gets the Prize

As gentle as a wisp in the wind

Alighting on my shoulder

Grace like a perfect fitting coat

Lifted me from the mire

Untied me free from many strongholds

Set me high upon a rock

I return back to that foundation after many falls

When I rise to authority

It is Your grace that wins the medal

When I learn to succeed

Grace gets the prize

Praise be to Jesus!

Full of grace and truth