|City on a Hill - Writings for Refuge

Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. 6For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Positivity doesn't equate to following Jesus. Positivity is a false "new age" expression of spirituality. It is anti-Jesus unless it is rooted in repentance. Repentance simply means change direction and "agree with God." Jesus is looking for weakness. Man was made to depend upon God. The original sin was walking contrary to this one truth. Satan attempts to "pump up" co...

There are three phrases of time that describe the duration of different aspects of the end time tribulation. These phrases refer to viewpoints of time relative to Israel, the church, and the world: 1. Time, times, and half a time: Daniel 7:25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time . 2. Forty two months: Revelation 11:2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months . Revelation 12:5The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for f orty-two months . 6It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, ...

Spiritual boredom is self-fulfilling prophecy. Those who think God is boring, will find Him boring and then begin moving to not be bored...over time, He just becomes more boring as they become more distant.  The main reason the church lacks holiness and power is because we see God as so small, and following Him not as fascinating as what the world offers. We slap His name on our quest for earthly relevance, riches, and power, and then wonder why no one seeks the Lord with zeal. We would rather win Him the world, not realizing we are forfeiting our souls. When we gather bored, when we bring it inside the Body, church becomes just another social gathering with plenty of open space for Satan to roam. We are good at pretending to not be bored, but few of us are just hoping for a few moments to just gaze in the beauty of God together and then let that beauty of humility, self control, generosity... The beauty of holiness... actually lead us to holiness. Psalm 96:5 For all the gods of th...

Increasing vision is the primary indicator of increasing holiness. Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. Having vision of what God is doing isn't Biblically reserved for conference preachers. Having vision is an expectation of everyone following Jesus. How can you follow who you can't see? In Jesus' scathing critique of the Pharisees who rejected him, the one attribute used over and over is "blind." Matthew 23:24 “Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Right now, deep darkness is increasing over the world. You need eyes like fire. You need light. You should know what Jesus is doing. You should be getting a more and more clear picture of the hastening moment of His return. What does Jesus want to do in 2020 for you, for your family, for your church, for your city, your country, and the world? These are questions every believer should be able to answer without hesitation. You don't want to solely run on the conferen...

John 5:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. This is the hope for the world. But, it's important to know that the Biblical concept of belief goes beyond the shallow Americanized definition of believing something.  Jesus defines this in the same teaching: J ohn 5:44 “How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? 45 “Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. 46 “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. 47 “But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” The belief salvation requires is a belief that changes our values and ev entually our behaviors. Believing Jesus exists, or even that He is the Messiah promised to world, is different than believing every word H...

I heard the Lord say this am that everything is wound so tight right now. We need to be careful to let Jesus unwind us. Even as we meet together with friends and family, this season can bring an extra measure of anxiety. I saw hearts breaking and people giving up because it seems hopeless. The hopelessness and tension and anxiety doesn't have to be our portion. Jesus came to bring some very specific things to Earth: peace and Goodwill! Luke 2:12 “And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” 15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Josep...

To be saved, we have to turn from our wicked ways. There is no salvation without this turning. 2 Corinthians 3:16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. When we turn to the Lord and admit our own righteousness is not enough, then He takes away the veil from our eyes. We see, not only is our righteousness not enough, but that His is more than enough to make us righteous. This, when met with a humble and repentant heart, creates a mourning in our soul to be like the One who is life. When we mourn this lack.... This difference between Jesus and ourselves, He comforts us by making us more like Him. The more we become like Him, the more we see how unlike Him we are... This, over time, causes us to cease...