Ed Christian's World

The Gravity of Sin…

Everything with mass has gravity and pull, and attracts other objects. The mass of the earth pulls us to its center. If we can break out of that gravitational field, we are free. We would have no more weight; we could float. Outside of gravity, there’s no burden.

Sin has spiritual gravity. First comes the pull of sin, then the heaviness and the burden of sin. How do you deal with sin? Like the law of gravity, you get far away from it as far as possible.

First get away from the actual sin and then away from the vicinity of it, the circumstance and the people that would tempt you, the suggestion, the situation, the shadow, the thought of that sin, the proximity to that sin.

How do you get away from gravity? Move in the direction of the heavens, closer to the Lord, to His word and His love, His activities, to the people and places of God, to the worship and the will of God.

Draw closer to God, and the pull of sin will release. Your life will become light and free, because in the heavenly places, there is no gravity.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:7-8

Surround yourself with God’s word, His people and His worship; so that sin has no pull on you and no temptation will distract you.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Bully’s Bluff…

To this day, historians are amazed at the rise of Adolf Hitler. He was an unsuccessful artist, a misfit, yet he ended up taking control of Germany, then Europe, and almost the world.

He had a tactic that he used from the beginning to the end – intimidation and bluffs. He continually threatened those who would stand in his way, and often his threats were bluffs. Had he been firmly challenged, he would have been defeated.

The people around him believed his bluff and they surrendered to him and the bluff became real. That is Satan’s nature and tactic against you. The deceiver will claim that he has more power than he does, and that you have less power in God than you do; that you don’t have the power to resist the temptation.

But it is not true unless you give in! You stand with God; you stand on His promises. You don’t give in; you fight him and overcome. For “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” Don’t give in, because no matter what it looks like, it’s ultimately a bluff–a bully’s bluff.

But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely. Psalm 59:16-17

Today, stand strong in the Lord’s strength. Do not panic when the deceiver threatens you. Stand and fight, take authority over all attacks that come at you.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Your Days of Niddah…

Zechariah 12 foretells Israel’s final Yom Kippur, the day of their redemption and cleansing. The Hebrew word for impurity is Niddah. It’s used to describe a woman’s uncleanness who can not be touched by her husband. Israel was meant to be the Lord’s beloved, and He their husband.

For two thousand years, Israel has been in Niddah – a state of ritual impurity. Her sin is against the Lord, and thus, He couldn’t touch her or redeem her. In the day she confesses her sin and repents before God in Messiah, her Niddah shall be taken away. She’ll no longer be separated from Him. She’ll be His bride, and He, her husband.

We as believers separate ourselves from God with a Niddah heart – a heart that stays far from Him, a heart of sin. The New Covenant means that our days of Niddah are over. There’s to be no more separation between you and God for any reason.

Be cleansed and be brought near. For the Lord is calling you close, to be cleansed, and freed from that impurity so you can be brought into His arms and end the days of your Niddah.

“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. Zechariah 12:10

Confess that sin that separates you from God today. Search your heart and draw nearer to Him with unending prayer.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Reality of Sacrifice…

In the Bible, the most holy day centers on a goat. A goat isn’t a high status animal. Yet on Yom Kippur, the most holy and sacred day of the Hebrew calendar, is centered on a goat called Lazazael – the Scapegoat.

This goat had to be sent away and disappear into the wilderness. Then the most holy day was fulfilled. The day became holy because a goat disappeared. When you look at yourself, it’s easy to see…a goat. The old self is pretty much a goat. You see all your faults – it’s not attractive – you see a goat.

Then, you must remind yourself that goats are potentially holy. They made Yom Kippur the most holy day of the year by making themselves disappear. When you feel like a goat, make yourself disappear.

Die to yourself, get out of the way, and stop dwelling on your faults. In the grace of God, you have the power to do that. Stop dwelling on that goat so you can start dwelling on the Lamb. It will become for you the most holy day – as soon as you make that goat disappear.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation  for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

Set this day for letting the old you disappear; forgetting about yourself; not dwelling on you; but getting lost in His goodness.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Simplist Name…

Moses at the burning bush asked God: “What is your name?” He was told, “I AM.” Think about that — I AM. You can’t get any simpler than that. It is like saying, “I am me!”

God’s name is so simple; it is just I AM. Some people think that the things of God are complicated, yet He used the simplest of statements to reveal Himself. That’s because God makes things simple for us.

It is man’s own human nature that makes things complicated. So, we try to complicate God. Religion is complicated, but the faith of God is simple. We complicate our lives, but God’s instructions are simple. Trust is simple. Goodness is simple.

Has your faith, your walk with God, your ministry become complicated? Then, take a cue from Moses and learn the great secret. Turn aside, turn away from the complicated, and get alone with God – with I AM.

Take off your sandals, stand on holy ground, and inquire of Him. Seek His Face. Listen for His Voice. And you too will find that the answer is simple.

I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. Psalm 119:15-16

Learn the secret of what happens when you spend time in God’s presence throughout the day. Be still and know that He is… I AM.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Johovah of Nazareth…

Why didn’t the apostles use philosophy or theology to prove the gospel? And why didn’t the Sanhedrin use philosophical or theological arguments to stop its spread?

The reason, is that the gospel was not based on philosophy or theological arguments, but on a real event in time and space: the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. This central truth of the risen Jesus makes the gospel unique among the faiths of the world because it is a real event, a historical fact.

Similarly, the primary evidence of the gospel in your life cannot be based on philosophy, theology or imagination, but on a real event — the change that takes place in you because of the gospel and your faith in the Word.

Just as Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God, so too has that same power raised you to a new life. It’s a historical fact. So, share your testimony in Jesus.

Let others hear about the changes that have taken place in your life. Let them see your good work. This is the miracle of God through flesh and blood faith.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Romans 1:16

Let people around you see the God that lives inside you; love more, forgive more, help more and shine for Him in all that you do today.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Shofar Generation…

Perhaps the most uniquely Biblical musical instrument is the shofar, the Hebrew trumpet fashioned out of a ram’s horn. The word “shofar” comes from the root word that means “clear”.

A shofar must make a clear sound; if there’s any obstruction, the sound will be hindered. You are called to be a vessel of God, an instrument of the Lord’s purposes. You are to be the Lord’s shofar and that means He has to be able to blow through you.

The word for “breath” in Hebrew is “ruach”. “Ruach” is also the word for “Spirit”. For you to be the Lord’s instrument, the Spirit of God must be blowing through you, but in order for the Spirit to blow through you, you have to be clear, you have to be free of obstructions.

Anything outside of God’s will, will obstruct the blowing of His breath. The Spirit of God will flow through you and for that to start happening you have to get those blockages out of your life.

For if anyone will cleanse himself from these things, he will be used of God, prepared for every good work, a vessel of honor.

And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame because I know whom I have believed and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day. What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. 2 Timothy 1:11-14

Look inside yourself for any obstructions such as sin, selfishness, fear that would keep you from being a clear instrument for the Holy Spirit’s will for you to be used.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Messiah of the Gentiles…

One of the biggest objections for Jewish people to accept Jesus is that they say, “If Jesus, Yeshua, were the Messiah, He would be accepted by the Jewish people not by the Gentiles.”

They believe that Jesus is of the Gentiles, so He can’t be the Jewish Messiah. In an ancient Jewish writing, not written by believers in Jesus, they wrote about the Messiah in the book of Enoch, Chapter 48. It was written to reveal who Messiah is.

It says this, “At the hour the Son of Man was given a name (talking about Messiah) He was called the Light of the Gentiles”. The Jewish Messiah, as they understood Him to be, was the light of the Gentiles.

Rabbis say that Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because of the gentiles. Messiah of the Jewish people must be the light of the Gentiles, light to the nations, just like it says in the prophet Isaiah. “He shall be a light to the nations.”

The Gentiles shall take refuge in the Messiah. Now, there is only one Jewish person in all history, and that is Yeshua Ha’Mashiach, the light of the world, the Glory of Israel.

But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18

You have the honor of serving the Light of the World and the Glory of Israel – serve Him with gladness, proclaim with boldness!

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Olive Harvesr…

There’s a beautiful symbol of Israel in the Bible. Israel is an olive tree. Paul wrote to the Gentile believers – as being grafted in to the Olive Tree of Israel. The fullness of the olive tree is linked to the coming salvation of Israel.

When does the olive tree blossom? In the Hebrew calendar, it comes in autumn, at the end of the sacred year – at the time of the Feast of Trumpets. So the Jewish people will come to the Lord at the end of the age – near the time of Trumpets – as in Revelation, and the Coming of the Lord.

Sharing with the Jewish people is hard, but there’s a reason for it. The stakes are high, when they come; He comes. So pray for them, share the gospel with them and keep planting the seeds.

The stakes are high, and the reward is great, so it takes more sustained effort. Great crowns mean great races. Those things that are most precious are worth the good fight, and the blessing will come in its time, just like the Olive Harvest.

Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Romans 10:1-4

Pray for the Nation of Israel, that every man, woman and child, wherever they may be, will proclaim “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord.”

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

What’s The Matter With You…

Imagine a penniless orphan beggar child on the streets, and a very wealthy king decides to take him/her off the streets into his palace and adopt the beggar as a child, as a prince or princess.

Then, he throws a huge banquet for the child, but the child goes around to each table, begging for food. And the king would say to the child, “What’s the matter with you? I’ve adopted you. Why are you begging for scraps? There is a banquet for you. It’s all yours.”

That’s exactly how most believers live. The Lord has taken us off the streets, out of spiritual poverty, taken us into His mansion, and adopted us as children of the King. But we are still living as if we were on the streets begging for scraps of acceptance, love, and joy, and we’re still clinging to these things in fear of losing everything.

It’s really God saying, ‘Why are you begging? There’s a banquet for you. I adopted you.” So stop living in fear; stop living in selfishness. You are not a beggar or an orphan. You are a child of the King. Start living like it!

You, dear children,  are from God and have overcome them because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 1 John 4:4

In what way are you still living as one who is poor, or needy, or unloved, or fearful, or a beggar. Start living as who you are in God, blessed and beloved.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed