The Challenge of God's Presence - Pt.2

Jesus ministered to and among people who wanted to kill him. (John 8:44)

He served them. He fed them. He taught them. He even healed them. They wanted to kill Him because they were blinded by the devil. They were too religiously blinded to see the obvious. They were too blinded by national and religious pride to recognize the visible image of the invisible God before their very eyes.

The savior of the world was working it out in the midst of the thorns, to bring about salvation for all men, and He did it so beautifully and so innocently that it keeps on amazing people out of their blindness up to this day. He conquered sin!

Jesus did what He saw the Father doing. The will of the Father took Jesus into places, doing things by the Holy Spirit that were incredibly challenging otherwise. The beautiful thing is Jesus surrendered to the will of the Father because He loved the Father.

He escaped from among them when He had to and He surrendered Himself into their hands when the time was right. He avoided going to public places at times and when the time was right, He went in to do the work of the Father very bravely. He moved into the knots, winning deliverance and victory for all men. He finally took up the cross and the penalty for the sin of the world. He surrendered to death on the cross and descended into Hades. He defeated death and rose from the dead. He made the victory known. He declared it to the disciples and sent them into the whole world before ascending to Heaven.

In the 21st century, people are still discovering the salvation and eternal life made available for them 2000 years ago. People are awakening to the treasure hidden in Heaven with their names on it. Some embracing it and others are being faced with the challenges which Jesus overtook. He overcame the world. All of this because He obeyed the Father in the flesh. He did that for us and in order to grant us the very same grace and power, not to redo what He did, but to move in the same authority and power to proclaim the Gospel all over the world.

The Gospel reminds us, encourages us and empowers us to take on these challenges with a brave heart sustained by the grace of God, driven by divine love. He didn't only accomplish it for us, but His humanity gives us humans the grace needed to conquer the consequences of sin and death, especially since He shed His innocent blood and made us holy and without blemish by it. We are today transformed from fallen to redeemed sons and daughters of God. We are light. We enjoy the grace and power to not fear persecution or the challenges of the world.

The Spirit of adoption which we received testifies to this eternal truth perpetually. He is everpresent in His children to manifest His glory in exceptional ways.

In this journey of life, as we find ourselves before new mountains every day and in every generation, God reminds us by His Holy Spirit that it is not by strength nor by might but by His Spirit that mountains are moved and made plain before our feet.

Friends, God invites us into His presence and to a marvelous unity with Him. I declare boldness and courage by the Spirit of God to overcome darkness and cowardice in our hearts. So that the same power that brought Jesus into this world and gave him the power to accomplish the plan of salvation, from among people who wanted to kill him all the way to the cross and to Heaven, may also work in us in the same pure and mighty way for the glory of our Father in Heaven, in Jesus name.