So they went up to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there.  Then David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand like a breakthrough of water.”  Therefore they called the name of that place Baal Perazim.           ~  I Chronicles 4:11  ~   

The name Baal Perazim means, “Master of Breakthroughs”.  Our God is a Master of Breakthroughs!  I believe the year 2012 is going to be a year of breakthroughs for us!  A breakthrough is defined as, “Removing or surpassing an obstruction or restriction.  Any significant or sudden advance, development, achievement, or increase that removes a barrier to progress.”  I don’t know about you but I’m ready for some breakthroughs this year. 

Here are two keys for your breakthroughs this year:  #1)  Don’t limit God.  Take all limits off what God can and will do in your life.  Forget all past limitations.  Don’t measure your future by your past.  #2)  Obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  Being obedient to the things God has spoken to your spirit is key to an outbreak of blessings.  Obedience is a springboard into your future.  So set your expectations high and expect the Master of Breakthroughs to give you some exciting breakthroughs this year!

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.     ~   Luke 2:11   ~      

Merry Christmas!  Who would have thought that just saying that would be controversial?  The world (actually it’s the devil) would love to take the Christ out of Christmas.  Even though the world, and even many in the Church don’t know what Christ means, the devil does!  The word Christ actually means, “The Anointed One”.  It comes from the Greek word Christos and translates in the Hebrew as Mashiyach or Messiah.

Christ is not Jesus’ last name, it’s His title.  He is God’s “Anointed One”.  Which is exactly why satan can’t stand us saying “Merry Christmas”.  He’d rather we tone that down and say “Happy Holidays”.  This is why he is doing his best to get the world to stop saying it.  Every time they say it they are saying “The Anointed One”.  Make no mistake, he knows Who The Anointed One is because The Anointed One stripped him of all his power.  Every time we say “Merry Christmas” he’s reminded of his defeat.  He knows there is only one Anointed One Who defeated death, hell, and the grave…..  JESUS !  And to that I say, MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!

• Genuine Faith Part 1
• Genuine Faith Part 2

By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand.    ~  I Peter 5:12  ~    

Peter talked about the true grace of God.  That must mean there can be false grace; grace teaching that doesn’t line up with the true grace teaching of the Bible.  We seem to have a rash of false grace teaching going on right now in the Body of Christ.  Bible teachers, even some on television, saying that while we shouldn’t live in sin, if we choose to do so we’ll still be okay because of the grace of God.  Is this what the Bible teaches?  Hey, I’m for whatever the Bible teaches.  Please believe me, I have no agenda of my own.  I’m not out to get anyone to accept my own personal doctrine.  I truly just want what God’s Word says on any subject.

So, what does the Bible say about these matters?  Well in Titus 2:11-12 it says, “For the grace that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age.”  So here Paul teaches that the grace that brings salvation also teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts.  Jude 4 talks about turning the grace of God into lasciviousness or loose living.  These are just a few scriptures, there are many others that teach us that after we are born again grace demands that we live holy lives.

While none of us are without sin the division line lies in the heart.  Do you have a heart that wants to please God?  Your salvation began in your heart when you believed with your heart in the Lord Jesus and it continues in your heart as you follow after Jesus with your heart.  Sometimes we may get tripped up by our flesh, but our heart is to please God so we get up from that sin, repent and determine not to let it run free in our lives.  So, don’t fall for the grace teaching that says it’s okay if you still live in sin after you’re born again because after all you’re saved by grace.  To me this is not the true grace of God.  It’s actually turning the grace of God into lasciviousness (loose living).  Don’t just take my word for it, read the scriptures.

And all nations shall call you blessed: for you shall be a delightsome land, says the Lord of Host.    ~   Malachi 3:12  ~    

We’ve heard a lot about stimulus packages the last few years from our government, but I’m not sure that any of them actually worked.  Here in Malachi God tells a nation how to be blessed.  It’s His stimulus package.  It’s called tithing.  If all the people of this nation and all the businesses in this nation would tithe we’d come out of any economic crunch.

I’ve heard that many of the great companies in our nation were started by people who were tithers.  I can believe that.  That may be the very reason they reached such greatness.  But after a while other people took over the leadership of them and started giving to charities instead of tithing to the Lord of Host.  Giving to charities is fine, but it can never replace tithing to the House of God.  It’s tithing that causes nations to be blessed by God.  The good news is that you don’t have to wait for our nation to begin tithing, you can start right now and begin to receive the blessing of God on your house!

Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.    ~  Matthew 15:6  ~      

When people think of certain diseases or certain problems their minds automatically go to the traditional way we have of approaching these problems.  Sometimes that’s a real problem in itself!  That’s because the traditional way may not be God’s way.  It may not be the way He would have you deal with that issue.  We must be watchful that we don’t just automatically go to the traditional way of solving problems.  The traditions of men make the Word of God of none effect.  Traditions have a way of nullifying the power of God’s Word in our life.  So the next time you face an issue, don’t just automatically go the traditional way.  Check God’s Word and check the leading of His Holy Spirit to see which way He would have you go.  His way is the only sure way to victory!

…..who through faith and patience inherit the promises.    ~  Hebrews 6:12  ~  

Faith and patience have been called the power twins for good reason; they need one another.  Faith without patience won’t last long, but patience without faith is just putting up with things.  Both need to work together if we’re going to see powerful results in our lives.

Patience is more than just putting up with something, it’s a powerful force that causes us to obtain the promises of God.  W.E. Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words defines patience as, “the quality that does not surrender to circumstances or succumb under trial, it is the opposite of despondency and is associated with hope.”

True Bible patience is hopeful and cheerful because it’s hooked up with faith, and faith will move mountains and cause the impossible to be possible.  In other words, patience is happy because of the company it keeps.  It hangs around faith.  And when you hang around faith you’ll be happy because faith is always happy.

In our circles we talk about faith a lot, but we can’t forget about patience.  Patience is one of the forces that faith works together with.  Many times all we need to do for the promise of God to be manifested is to endure in our stand of faith just a little longer.  Don’t give up on your faith.  Add patience to it and  you’ll come out lacking nothing!

And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom.   ~  Luke 16:22  ~    

Death.  Not a very pleasant subject is it?  Yet if the Lord tarries His coming it’s something we’ll all have to face.  Some people are so afraid of death that they are reluctant to walk through a cemetery at night because they say there are dead people out there.  Yet those are the only people who can’t hurt you!

The Bible tell us in the book of Hebrews that we believers have been delivered from the fear of death by Jesus.  Jesus faced death and He beat it.  That means we’ve beaten it too, through Him.  However, if you don’t know these truths, death will still be a fearful thing to  you.  The apostle Paul described death for the believer as mortality being swallowed up by life.  When you look at it like this it’s not really a bad thing.  Actually it’s a good thing for those of us who are in Jesus.  Mortality being swallowed up by life is a good thing.

Now don’t misunderstand me, we shouldn’t want to go before we’ve finished our race down here on this earth, but when the time comes we shouldn’t be afraid.  There’s three things for sure that will happen to us believers when that time comes.  Number one, you’ll be freer than you’ve ever been in your life.  There will be such freedom when you slip out of that mortal body into the life of God.  You may even look down on your body and say, “Thank God that part of my life is over!”  That’s because for us believers the worst hell we are ever going to experience is living down here on this earth.  From here on it just keeps getting better.  Number two, angels will immediately come and get you to carry you to heaven.  You talk about exciting!  Number three, Paul said, “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”  So you will immediately go to be with the Lord.

So when death, as we call it, comes, you’ll be freer than you’ve ever been, you’ll see angels, then you’ll see the Lord Jesus.  That doesn’t sound like something to be afraid of!

Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of thinks we hope for, being the proof of things we do not see and the conviction of their reality – faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses.   ~  Hebrews 11:1 Amp  ~    

The dictionary defines conviction as the state of being convinced or a firm belief.  Someone once said, “One person with conviction is a majority.”  That’s because a man with conviction can’t be talked out of what he believes.  When we meditate in God’s Word until faith comes no circumstances, no person, nor the devil himself can talk us out of the promises of God. 

The reason many are talked out of believing God’s promises is because they haven’t yet reached the point of conviction.  They’re not convinced of the reality of God’s promises, however His promises are more real than anything we see in the natural.  Heaven and earth may pass away, but not God’s Word to us.  Meditate in His promises until faith becomes the conviction of their reality to you.

But one thing is needful: and Mary has chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.   ~  Luke 10:42  ~    

This scripture refers to a time when Mary and her sister Martha were entertaining Jesus and His ministry team in their home.  While Jesus was teaching, Martha was busy preparing food for everyone to eat and her sister Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet hearing the Word.  This upset Martha because her sister wasn’t helping prepare the meal.  While feeding Jesus and His ministry team was important,  it wasn’t as important as hearing Him teach the Word.  Mary recognized this and chose to listen to His teaching instead of preparing the meal.  Martha decided Jesus needed to do something about this and told Jesus to tell Mary to come and help her, but Jesus said Mary had chosen the good part.

You see, you have to choose to put the Word first place.  It’s a choice!  And it’s a wise choice.  That doesn’t mean we neglect our other duties in life, it just means the Word is more important than anything else we do.  When we make this choice we’ve chosen the good part which shall not be taken away from us.  Here’s a very important statement:  “Don’t let anything or anyone have the place in your heart that the Word should have.”