Image God’s Presence is Essential! — Part 1 of 2

Fellowship Restored

“From one man He has made every nationality to live over the whole earth…  He did this so they might seek God, and perhaps they might reach out and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.  (Acts17:26, 27 HCSB)

All humanity—every nation, tribe and tongue—descends from a “first couple,” Adam and Eve, the progenitors of all mankind. 

One of the most outlandish, anti-biblical hoaxes foisted on the modern world is the supposedly enlightened, “scientific” proposition that humankind is comprised of several “races.” Most adherents of such a belief system have built their notions on the intellectually bankrupt, long-ago disproven “theory of evolution.” Indeed, that dark deception, which is based on erroneous sense-knowledge, is refuted in the very first pages of God’s Word, the Holy Bible; for we are all “Adamites”—of one blood, descendants of Adam and Eve. 

No, there isn’t a simian ancestor in our “family tree.” And the fantasy that humanity is ascending toward a more perfected state of being through a process of “natural selection”—or divinely-guided spiritual evolution—is simply a foolish, modern-day fairy tale.

To discover the truth of our origins, all one needs to do is crack open a Bible and read the first few chapters of the Book of Genesis, the first book of the Holy Scriptures. In those pages, our Maker, Yahweh, reveals that He himself made our first ancestors—Adam from the dust of the earth and Eve from one of Adam’s ribs.

Furthermore, the first man an woman were exquisitely crafted by Yahweh; made in his “image and likeness.” Indeed, the Most High God breathed his very life, his supernatural presence, into Adam’s nostrils.

And what was Yahweh’s lofty purpose in making them? First and foremost, it was so that they would commune with him—to remain in intimate fellowship with their Maker. And that is what they did—until Adam and Eve fell into sin by disobeying God.

From that day onward, the sweet, intimate fellowship that they and their Creator had enjoyed was broken. Indeed, a dark spiritual pall came over Adam and Eve, as well as the Garden of Eden where they lived, and all creation. 

But the Good News is that Jesus Christ, our risen Savior and Lord, came to this earth to restore the fellowship that was broken by sin in the Garden of Eden. He has redeemed us by his blood through his willing sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. And if we will receive the free grace-gift of salvation—the completed work he accomplished by dying in our place for our sins—we can enter into what the Bible calls “newness of life”—and a restored fellowship with our Maker.

No matter how humble your circumstances or how messed up your life may be, God has made a way for you to fellowship with him.

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If you earnestly desire to know the One who made you and be able to hear his voice, which will open up the opportunity to fellowship with him, you need to become part of God’s family. To do so, He has made it quite simple: first, you must begin by wholeheartedly believing and trusting in the Lord and his son, Jesus Christ.

You don’t need to “get your act together” or clean yourself up. He will accept you just as you are. But you must come to him humbly and:

  • repent from your sins (that is, to not only be sorry for them but also turn from your sinful ways)
  • be willing to trust in and rely upon him and be obedient to his Word
  • pray (speak) from your heart to the Lord, telling him that you accept his son, Jesus Christ, as your personal “Good Shepard,” thereby making him Lord of your life

If you are willing to take those steps in faith, the Bible promises that you will be saved—that is,  be “born again” and adopted into God’s family. 

To those who do so, we offer our hearty “Congratulations!”  Welcome into the family!!

After taking those all-important steps of faith, please take the time to contact Dr. Peter at harvest.equippers@protonmail.com. We have a free gift waiting for you.

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Also, be sure to “stay tuned” for Part 2 of “God’s Presence is Essential!”

Until the next time, walk in the Spirit… and be a blessing!

Dr. Peter

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Being Spiritually Minded

Romans 8-6 +

For the mind-set of the flesh is death, but the mind-set of the Spirit is life and peace.  Romans 8:6

The mentality of this world is what Jesus called the “broad way that leads to destruction.” It’s a way of thinking and an approach to life that leads to failure, misery and heartache. The apostle Paul referred to it as the “mind-set of the flesh”— carnal thinking which relies on knowledge gathered by our five senses.

God’s counsel concerning sense knowledge is to come “out of our shell” of limitation and tap into the wisdom of his counsel—to “trust in him with all our hearts” and lean not to our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). In other words, He wants us to become far more than “natural” men and women, because what He has in mind is to bring us above and beyond that—so that we become all that we were meant to be—supernaturally empowered men and women.

Trying to accomplish anything of lasting value in this world through self-effort will, in the end, prove to be empty and futile. In charting our course through the unexpected twists, turns and setbacks of life, each one of us needs a greater measure of understanding than that which we naturally possess. Wisdom that is beyond ourselves is what’s necessary to be truly successful in any meaningful way. Hopefully you have already come to the realization that the “world” has little to offer beyond trinkets, glitter, empty promises and dead-end roads. But, what you need to know, if you haven’t understood it yet, is that the Lord offers each one of us a higher way, one leads to “life and peace.”

The entrance ramp to this higher road is humility. A person must be teachable, open to counsel from on high, to enter into a higher spiritual dimension. As the Scripture says of the Lord, his ways are higher than ours and so are his thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8,9). If you want access God’s way of thinking you need to open yourself up and allow him to show you his higher ways.

One thing I’ve learned over the years is that God never asks any of us to do what we’re unable to do—unless He provides a means—natural or supernatural—to do it. He wants you to be spiritually minded and He’s made a way for you to do just that!

First of all, you have to be born into his family. His provision for that is the “new birth”—being “born again” (see John 3:3-5). It’s a first, all-important, supernatural step in becoming spiritually minded.

Once you are born into God’s family the Lord gives you a precious gift—his Holy Spirit to lead and counsel you. Yet another provision He’s made is the written Word of God which is crucial to the spiritual growth of every born-again believer. But, if we are to become truly spiritually minded, we need to realize that the Bible isn’t sufficient in and of itself to bring about the necessary transformation in our thinking because, as the apostle Paul wrote, “…the letter kills but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). Indeed, it is “… those who are Phil 2-5+led by God’s Spirit [who] are God’s children” (Romans 8:14).

Our aim is to develop a relationship with the One who is the Wonderful Counselor so that we may hear and heed his voice. As the apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). Jesus’ thinking can be ours if we are spiritually minded. Let it be so!

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Until the next time, walk in the Spirit… and be a blessing!

Dr. Peter

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Further scriptures to consider:

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John 3:6, NASB)

For the natural man is not able to take in the things of the Spirit of God: for they seem foolish to him, and he is not able to have knowledge of them, because such knowledge comes only through the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 2:14, BBE)

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. (Romans 8:2)