From the Heart by B.Demaere

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power.  Let heaven fill your thoughts.  Do not think only about things down here on earth.  For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.  And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. I have a question:  Is he talking to an individual or to a whole church as a gathering?  The letter is clearly to a church. Maybe he is also talking to individuals. Our focus should be always on Christ and on the realities of heaven.  How often do we consider our lives here on earth as the real life because we can see it and feel it?  We are not to think only about earthly things but also about our real life with Christ in heaven.  This is the life of surrender because we died with Christ.  Our thought patterns and desires are all devoted to Christ lik

Promises to Keep Devotional by B.Demaere: I want you to know how much I have agonized for yo... : I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other friends who have never known me perso...

I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other friends who have never known me personally.  My goal is that  they will be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love.  I want them to have full confidence because they have complete understanding of God's secret plan, which is Christ himself.  In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I am telling you this so that no one will be able to deceive you with persuasive arguments.  For though I am away from you, my heart is with you. And I am very happy because you are living as you should and because of your strong faith in Christ. The historic background of Paul's life is that he was probably born in 5 AD and became a believer at the age of about  28-30 years.  Here in 60 AD when he writes this letter he is around 60 years old and agonizing in prayer for people he had known only while living in Ephesus. My question is then, how much more stronger must

Promises to Keep Devotional by B.Demaere: The "incredible" god of Spinoza vs God : Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.  He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation.  Christ is t...

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.  He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation.  Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth.  He made the things we can see and the things we can't see---kings, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities.  Everything has been created through him and for him.  He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together. I originally was going to speak about the following epistle after Ephesians, but decided to go with the epistle to the Colossians. Then someone had send me a post on Facebook about Einstein, one of the most intelligent man that ever lived.  The article spoke about Einstein being asked by his students, if he believed in God and he would answer that he believed in the god of Spinoza, who was a Dutch philosopher.  The god of Spinoza was an imaginary god who spoke self-denying words of what the real God could have said.  Interesting! Let's see what wo

Promises to Keep Devotional by B.Demaere: Warfare Settings (Ephesians 6:13-18 : A final word: Be strong with the Lord's mighty power.  Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all ...

A final word: Be strong with the Lord's mighty power.  Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.  For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood.  But against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. Use  every piece of God's armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil. so that after the battle you will still be standing firm.  Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth, and the body armor of God's righteousness.  For shoes put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared.  In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  Pray at all times and every occasion by the power of

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.  It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain. Well, I hope you had a great day yesterday and today. The foundation of the Word is faith.  Jesus is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2 NLT) "We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish" (the KJV says the Author).  Faith can be translated or interpreted to be Hope which in the Epistle to the Hebrews is described as an anchor.  An anchor is what keeps a boat in the place you want it to be, steady even in the storm.(Hebrews 6:19) On that foundation of faith we built. There is a thread running through the Bible, it is red and it represent, blood.  The blood of Jesus that was shed for us.  That thread appears in the book of Joshua as Rahab puts it by her window (Joshua 2:17-21).  It's there as a sign of salvation to her family.  The family of a prostitute, a Gentile and a descendant of Jesus.  The way to

Promises to Keep : The Downfall of Thoughtlessness (Ephesians 5:17-18) : Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your ...

Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life.  Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you. The downfall of thoughtlessness, it's rapid in today's world.  People speak words they don't even understand because if they did and if the understood the impact they have around them they would care more about them than the clothes they wear.  Words can be building bricks or they can be throwing bricks.  We seem to use them most often to throw at people.  Let's build, shall we? What is in a word?  Either thoughtfulness or thoughtlessness. We come out of thoughtlessness to understanding when we stand on God's guidelines which are the foundations of a restful and trusting faith.  Peace is always a good guide into understanding God's will.  Does it give you and the people around you 'peace', true peace. Now thoughtlessness here can progress into drunkenness.  Ha