Is this happening?

College? As a kid when I thought about college it seemed so distant, even when I was in highschool it seemed distant. But now... It is here whether I'm ready or not (And I'm ready!).  I'm sure my parents are hesitated to see how I do on my own; they are going to be thinking, "What did I forget to teach him?" or one of them will text me everyday just to make sure their baby is still breathing.

Ps 20:7 

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, 

but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. 

As I approach the unseen, unknown things in college, in scripture I'm told to trust in the Lord. Even the word trust, gives you the same feeling of the unknown. In the Psalm of David he is proclaiming that 'but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.' So remember when we say trust, the leaning, falling, has to lean onto or be caught by something. As Christians, we trust in the name of the Lord, which we will talk about later. Non-christians put their trust in other things, we call those idols.

When we put our trust in the name of the Lord our God, we our trust into who He is and what He has done, which gives me great joy!!! For us as Christians trust in the cross where Jesus gave it all for us. God promises us in scripture  "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Roman 8:28).  Reading scripture and learning about God's promises is a way the Holy Spirit builds trust. The unseen and unknown things of college vanish under the beautiful promises of God.

Psalm 10:4

"In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;'in all his thoughts there is no room for God." -Psalm 10:4

      Pride is one sin that everyone struggles with. I look at pride thinking I'm better than other people, and I also look at it like I'm good enough to make it to God's kingdom, but we are not. We have to constantly remind ourselves through the Holy Spirit that it is the shed blood on the cross and the defeated death that were are able to have life. The Psalmist is saying the wicked man is stuck in his pride; if your stuck is pride you can't see the wrong you are doing because you think you are right all the time, and you are human so you are not right all the time. Pride doesn't seek God; it's a great sin not to seek God. Pride doesn't even believe God is there. When will we put down our pride? If you live a life which is prideful you are ignoring God. But! This is a great but. But when we repent and return to Jesus, then our thoughts will return to the Lord. 

John 16:13

"...he will guide you in all truth..." --John 16:13

In John 14-16, Jesus is speaking to the disciples about the great comforter (the Holy Spirit) that will come after he ascends into heaven. I've been in church all of my life, and the topic of the Holy Spirit was rarely talked about, only in reference to the Godhead. Now I see the Holy Spirit as a person (Jesus) who dwells inside all believers. The Holy Spirit will guide you to the truth, he will never lead you against Scripture. Any good work you complete comes from the power of the Holy Spirit. The same power that raise Christ from death lives within you by the Holy Spirit. When you sin and go away from the teaching of scripture you have either suppressed or ignored the Holy Spirit's direction. God will never lead you into sin (James 1:13). As you are led by the Spirit, will lead you to become like Christ.

Mal 3:2,3

"...He will sit as a refiner's fire or launderer's silver..." -- Malachi 3:2,3.

All of us begin our lives dirty, and sinful. No one is able to escape the second death without Jesus. The image of Christ mining us from the ground and being refined, having all the impurities being taken away has been a breath-taking portrayal of Jesus in my mind. The process of refining silver, or any metal is a lengthly process for the metal to become pure. Christ who has begun to refine you will refine you to completion (Php 1:6). As Christians we can't refine ourselves because we are the ones who are in need of the refining. Jesus is the only one who has the power to refine you to the purest state. We know refining takes a lot of heat, please let Jesus refine you, so you are not burned in the fire forever.

Death No Longer

When Christ was baptized by John the Baptist, it was a traditional Jewish ceremonial washing in order to "to fulfill all righteousness." Christ had not sinned, making him righteous, the need of the washing was not needed because he was without sin. Christ baptism was to "purify the water" so others may be saved. 

When we baptize today we repeat the same saying since the beginning of the Church in Acts, "I now baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit so you may receive the gift of eternal life." 

Luke 3:21,22 

When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a (God's)voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

In this verse you have Jesus the Son, dove the Holy Spirit, and the voice as God; this is the only place in scripture where the Trinity is together. How amazing is it that we can look at our baptism as the coming together of the Father, Spirit, and Son.

We are baptized into Christ as well as his death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in the newness of life (Romans 6:4). We know from Christ being raised from the dead he will never die again; death has no dominion or power over him (Romans 6:9). By our baptism sin will have no dominion over us (Romans 6:14). Be rescued from death to life to righteousness.

Through Christ's baptism and resurrection, we may have death no longer.

Thanks for reading. Contact me Email, Follow on Twitter @JonSAdams. Your welcome to comment.

Why was Christ baptized if he was without sin? 

Last: Rain Rain

FAITH

As Christians we throw around a lot of words like repentance, glorification, sanctification, and faith. We have little understanding on the meaning of words like these, and how the words apply to our lives. In the next few months I am going to unpack these words, give you a biblical understanding, and how to apply it to your life.    

Faith is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8). Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see (Heb. 11:1). This definition of faith is often the same for the word believe. A belief is something we think exists. If we just believe in God, we are no better than demons (Jas. 2:19). Neither can faith be by itself, if not accompanied by action, it is dead (Jas. 2:7). Abraham had an amazing display of faith when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? Abraham knew killing his son Isaac would end the line of Jesus, but Abraham still choose to obey(action) God. Abraham's  faith and actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did (Jas. 2:22). Through faith you will be righteous (Ro 1:17). And faith produces works; that’s why the passage says “works of faith.” When we put our faith in Christ, God changes our hearts and desires so good works are actually possible (Philippians 2:13). If you have faith, works will be done, which have been prepared for you (Eph. 2: 8-10).

Do you just believe in Jesus or do you have faith in Jesus?

John Calvin, a preacher in the 1500s said this in his third book of the Institutes of Christian Religion within chapter 4, "This is so true that the term faith is often used as a synonym for confidence” (Calvin 148). In him(God) and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph. 3:12). God is faithful to all his promises (Ps. 145: 13). We tend to look at God’s promises objectively but not in our own experience. We must take his promises and embrace them in our heart, then our confidence through faith will come to life. A true faithful Christian is one that is firmly convinced he is reconciled to God. John Calvin talks about this in his book, “In other words, you can’t have strong faith in the Lord unless you are gloriously confident of being an heir to the heavenly kingdom” (Calvin 149). This is why Paul says, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Ro. 8:38-39). PROCLAIM the kingdom of heaven through the faith God has given you!

Are you confident to be an heir to the heavenly kingdom?

God you are so glorious, thank you for giving me faith, that produces good works that you have already prepared for us to do. Let us be confident of the gift you have in store for us in Heaven.

Thanks for reading. Contact me Email, Follow on Twitter @JonSAdams. Your welcome to comment.

Calvin, John. The Institutes of Christian Religion. London: Baker Publishing Group, 1987. 148-149. Print.

Traditions

       Traditions are very important to any family during the Christmas season. The biggest tradition is the Christmas tree. Whether you know this or not in a Christian household the tree represents the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Death is cutting down the tree, disconnecting Christ from God. The burial preparing the tree, as Jesus was prepared for burial. The resurrection is to reconnect Jesus to Father by putting the tree back up. Decorating the tree with lights and other things is Christ glory through his resurrection. What an amazing image of Christ!  

Why are traditions important? They bring families together, hopefully with peace. Traditions are something that the whole family decides on. Without traditions Christmas would not be as glories as it is. I appreciate the moments I have with my family, because life is short, we don't have much time left.  As a child, I made Christmas about me and what gifts I could receive. Now, I learned what the most important gift I given is when I look at the Christmas tree. Christ gave me his amazing grace, and the forgiveness of sin, to live with him forever. That is why I celebrate  Christmas.

Please comment and share. If you have any questions please send me an email. Email 

BACK_TO_SCHOOL

How Does God Want Us To Present Him At School?

I have SIX tips for daily life.

1. PRAYER

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. (Luke 9:16 NIV)

Pray before you eat, as a table (out loud). This really shows how serious you are about your faith. Lead the prayer first, then start ask others to lead. This act will not only bring blessing upon your food, but it will start conversations about Christ. This is the easiest way to speak to students about Christ.

At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. (Luke 4:42 NIV)

When I started being serious about my relationship with God, I would read my bible, but I would never pray. As I grew in His grace I learned that prayer is a valuable thing in our relationship. No matter how much you have to do. You always have time for prayer.

2. THE SWORD

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. (Luke 4:1,2 NIV)

Christ while in the wilderness studying God's word so that he may stand up to every temptation that the devil had for him. Make sure you study God's word to keep your sword sharp, to be able to fight off temptation.

3. MATERIALISM

What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? (Luke 9:25 NIV)

Don't worry about getting every achievement or new thing that will give you temporary joy. God will you give joy way beyond what things on earth can give you.

4. UNTOUCHABLES

Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" And immediately the leprosy left him. (Luke 5:13 NIV)

In Jesus' day when you had leprosy, you were cast from your town or village which you lived in. Has society cast some people out of there groups. Go and touch the untouchables like Christ did.

5. WARNING

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath. (Luke 6:7 NIV)

Jesus was watched closely, and you will be watched too. Be careful how you live, people are waiting to see you mess up.

6. BUILD UP OTHERS

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (Ephesians 4:29 NIV)

If you didn't read the verse please read it. This is HARDEST thing to live by. Pray that the Holy Spirit will only let things come out of your mouth that are a benefit to those who listen.


Thanks for reading. I hope this blog has helped you, and you will put these things into practice. Contact me: @JonSAdams , JonathanSpencerAdams@gmail.com. Leave comments!

Peru Mission Journal (3-2-12)

So I am starting this Peru Mission journal. This journal with capture everything that is going on with the mission trip, it will keep you up-to-date as well. I don't know if I will do blogs on the side but I will be doing a mission journal close to every week. Then when I am on the trip I will journal everyday , and take a lot of pictures. I will either post while I am there or when I get back. To always be up-to-date go to the top right hand corner of my blog. You will see a place to put your email, I recommend you put your email there so you receive a email of the journal whenever I post a blog.

More importantly I hope you stay in prayer for the mission trip. We will be leaving the states, June 15 and coming back June 22. Thank you for praying for the trip. Along with the journal I will post prayer requests.

Spiritual Growth

No where in the bible does is say "Spiritual Growth." Why did Christians come up with this concept? Before I go any further let's break down the words.

Spiritual- of, relating to, or reflecting the human spirit

Growth - the process of developing or maturing

So we can say that Spiritual Growth is the human spirit in the process of maturing. So the question today is, "How can we become Spiritually Mature?"

God's will for everyone is to become Spiritually Mature.

1. Age does not make you Spiritually Mature

Luke 2:52

52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.

1 Timothy 4:12

12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.

Yes, to grow in your relationship with Christ takes time, some are faster then others. Like Paul, he was one day a person that hated Christians, and in a few days he was preaching. You see in the verse above with Jesus, that it took time, but as he grew in stature he grew in wisdom.

Some young people are afraid to step up and set the example for the older. This includes me, I feel like that everyone that is older, is wiser then me, and most are. We need to get back to thinking about our relationship with God instead of comparing our relationship with everyone else's. Everybody's relationship is different.

2. Appearance doesn't make you Spiritually Mature

You know how some people just look Spiritually Mature? Now I am guilty of judging people's faith from the outside. It true, sometimes you can notice people body language.   Body language is the action of there faith. You can say there deeds. Now there is the other body language, it's the language you notice when people talk, like there hand motions, and facial expressions.

Now appearance has nothing to do with Spiritually Mature but your faith and deeds do.

3. Faith and Deeds make you Spiritually Mature

James 2:17

17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

You may never grow spiritually without having action/deeds. I am not saying it is impossible. From experience it is impossible, for my relationship with God. It may be different with you. I look at it this way. How i love God is by my Actions. Praying for God to open doors to be a Action-Christian. This will improve your prayer life.

James 2:22

22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.

The person they are talking about is Abraham and his son Isaac. Abraham was instructed by God to sacrifice his son. So Abraham took(action) his son to sacrifice him, then right as he is about to, God stops him. This shows how Abraham's faith and action were working together. What he did made his faith complete with God making him Spiritually Mature.

Another blog about how I grow more spiritual mature click the link Getting Back to Basics

Thank you for reading!! If you have any questions or comments, or you want to give me a topic or a verse to write about. Contact me: jman1424@gmail.com or on Facebook, Twitter @JonSAdams, by phone/text: (770) 533-2582

GOD WITHOUT RELIGION (PART 1 OF 3)

This is the 1st blog in the "God Without Religion Series." This series will take parts of the book God Without Religion - Andrew Farly, and I will break it down and show you how blessed we really are.

There are a lot of choices that we can make. The question the author asked the reader is this, "Can it really really be this simple?" This question is asking can we have God without religion. He points points out how we can have God without religion and he shows how simple this really is. In this book there are a lot of short stories and how some choices are going to change our life.

This is the first short story and it is placed in Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics. In this story the author points out how we are all on the downhill slalom. He saids that it is a rocky road down the hill. But instead of us on the starting line, Jesus is. He doesn't just go down the hill and make it, but he goes down the hill perfectly. Jesus will earn the medal, set an Olympic record, and then he will turn to us the people that would crash, and fail. Not even making it down the hill. Jesus would say, "This is your medal, your record." We should thank Jesus for taking our place on the mountain as he took our place on the cross. The author said, "We should respect the mountain, but have no business trying to survive its treacherous slopes."

If you have any questions or comments, or you want to give me a topic or a verse to write about. Contact me: jman1424@gmail.com or on Facebook, Twitter @JonSAdams, by phone/text: (770) 533-2582

3 Way Relationship (PART 3 OF 3)

            This is the third part of the "3 Way Relationship Series." We talked about loving with your heart, and soul; what that looks like with your relationship with God and also your earthly relationships.  Today/tonight we are going to look at the way with love with our minds and what that looks like.

Matthew 22:36-40

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

3. Mind

How mentally do we love God, and man?

Ephesians 5:15-16

 15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.

            This is one of my favorite verses because of how much it rings true in my life. Anything we think, do, or say comes from our mind. Let's break the verse down, be careful how you live. This is watching how you act, stepping back, thinking how you live your life, knowing what is the right thing and the wrong thing. Not as unwise but as wise, this is hard to understand but I will share with you how I use this verse and apply it to my life. Being wise is always asking yourself in every opportunity this question, "What it the wise thing to do?" If I do this how will it affect the outcome, will it be good or bad. Everything you think, do, or say is going to affect the outcome. Living wise is a great way to love the Lord and your friends with your mind.

What does this change about the way I love God and love in my relationships?

Ephesians 4:29

 29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.    

              Most of the time our mind is negative base, meaning that we degrade people and speak down to them; this is our sinful nature. Controlling your mind in thinking in positive, uplifting ways, to bring people up is hard. It has a lot to do with being humble and putting yourself below people. If you want to learn how to be more humble here's a link "TO PURSUE HUMILITY ". Positive thinking and lifting up people is a way to love your friends with your mind.

            With God, I see us loving him through, keeping a pure heart, staying sexually pure, how you study his word, and how you treat his people through your words and actions. Loving people how you want to be loved.

I hope you learned more on how to love with your heart, soul and mind!!!

Thanks for reading through this series, I learned a lot and I hope you did to!! If you have any questions or comments, or you want to give me a topic or a verse to write about. Contact me: jman1424@gmail.com or on Facebook, Twitter @JonSAdams, by phone/text: (770) 533-2582

3 Way Relationship (PART 2 OF 3)

            So this is part 2 of 3 in the "3 Way Relationship Series." Monday I covered on how we love with our heart. Also how loving with your heart will affect every other relationship.  Today we will cover how to love with your soul. How loving with your soul brings out the best out of relationships.

Matthew 22:36-40

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

2. Soul

Soul: the spiritual part of the body.

How do we love God with all of our soul?

            We love God with all our soul by our worship. True worship is being led by spirit and truth. This is how I know the worship is being led by the spirit and truth, it's when the worship leader and band members are passionate about the music and you see it in there body language and this makes for a spirit led worship. We love God with all of our soul through prayer another spiritual part. This is praying with all your soul,

Acts 1:14

They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

            Asking God to be led by the spirit can also be a way of loving with your heart. Pray for the Holy Spirit.

How do we love with our soul with our relationships?

Acts 1:14

They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

            I put the same verse because this will help with loving with your soul with your friends. Praying together is a way to love by the soul. Worshiping together is another way to love by the spirit. You notice that the same way you love God by yourself is the same with your friends. Praying for your relationships is loving with your soul.

            Everyone loves with there soul.

How are you going to love with your soul?

 Thank you for reading!! If you have any questions or comments, or you want to give me a topic or a verse to write about. Contact me: jman1424@gmail.com or on Facebook, Twitter @JonSAdams, by phone/text: (770) 533-2582

3 Way Relationship (PART 1 OF 3)

            I have been thinking about relationships a lately; how we interact, and how we treat each other. I have told a couple people about this idea that I have. I had something I call a, "Paul Moment," this is the moment you have a great idea from God (Sydney and Kendall, think this is a inside joke with myself). When I said relationship earlier I mean friendship, boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, father, son, pretty much any relationship you ever have, and even the most important relationship you will ever have. I am going to have one supporting verse and 3 additional points talking about the verse you are going to know exactly what I mean when I say, "3 Way Relationship." I am going to make this a 3 part series.  

Matthew 22:36-40

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

1.    Heart

So from this verse we notice that you love God with all your heart. What does this mean?

Your relationship with God affects every other relationship you have.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalms 139:23–24)

Loving God with all your heart starts with putting God first. I look at putting first like this, like a house there are many things to doing just like in life there is a lot of things to do. If you make God the house, it controls the many things that you do. Loving God with all your heart is more than just putting him first, it putting him first in everything.

 As Christ Followers this is very hard to do, I still and will always have the problem with not letting Jesus into a room I do not what him in. Meaning letting Jesus into every part of my life. I am trying hard to uncover the things that I don't see.

 Please tell your friends about the my blog here the link: www.adams-jonathan.blogspot.com. Thank you for reading. If you have any questions or comments, or you want to give me a topic or verse to write about. Contact me: jman1424@gmail.com or on Facebook, Twitter @JonSAdams , by phone/text (770) 533-2582