Sermons by Archbishop Foley Beach

Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)

Marriage and the family, in current decades, have been under attack to the degree that marriage is now losing its value in our culture.

In Mark 10:6-9, Jesus speaks to God’s plan for marriage: “But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.’”

In our culture’s attacks on marriage and the family, we see ten ways in which marriage and the family have been and are being perverted: 1) US Supreme Court’s decision on same sex marriage – as followers of Jesus, we don’t believe the courts have the right to define/redefine marriage as established by God; 2) sex before marriage is becoming the norm; 3) sex outside of marriage has become acceptable; 4) the prevalence of divorce; 5) acceptance of cohabitation; 6) birth of children out of wedlock; 7) multi-spouse marriage; 8) escalation and the acceptance of pornography; 9) the acceptance and practice of abortion on demand; and 10) the acceptable “choosing” one’s own gender by some people. These perversions of marriage and the family are chipping away at the value and importance of marriage and the family in the US – even among Christians. Too many of our Christian young people don’t know why they should get married -- this diminution of marriage’s value is a failure, mostly, of the Christian Church.

Many Christians, today, are being deceived and led away from God’s Word by the Evil One (e.g., John 10:10). Therefore, we need to read and understand God’s Word, especially as it relates to His plan for marriage that Jesus posits in His quote from Genesis in Mark 10:6. Throughout history humans have corrupted God’s beautiful plan for His Creation. In Mark 10:7, we see God’s pattern for marriage. In Mark 10:8, we are provided with God’s purpose for marriage; and the product of this “one flesh” is children. By becoming “one flesh” in marriage, the man and women become a “new trinity” – husband, wife, and the Lord. In this “marriage trinitarian relationship”, each child is brought into this family relationship in the same way that we, as followers of Jesus, are brought into our personal relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit through the Gospel. In Mark 10:9 we see God’s expressed permeance of marriage.

God’s design and plan for marriage, as presented by Jesus in Mark 10, is ideal for us as humans, our nation and our culture; but His plan is being increasingly perverted. Therefore, what should we do, as followers of Jesus, about these “attacks on marriage”? We can: 1) stand up, speak up and speak God’s truth – Christians need to stop be trampled upon by this divergent culture; 2) model good and Godly marriage and family life to the culture; 3) you teach your children, you not the church/school/government, about God and His plan for marriage and the family; and 4) pray and ask God to intervene in these attacks and to support our seeking to achieve His plan for our own marriage and the family – prayer does change things, and it brings the power of God.

We are blessed to live in an incredible time in history, but the plan and fabric that God designed to keep us together and thriving – marriage and the family – is being perverted. However, we, as followers of Jesus, hold the key to stopping this perversion though getting our own family and marriage in line with God’s plan and then witnessing and voting to stop this perversion – the time is now.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).

 

Scripture Reference (ESV): Mark 10:6-9; John 10:10; Genesis 2:21-25.

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

The Upper Room Part 1: The Promise of the Spirit (Apostles Anglican Church; Knoxville, TN)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Upper Room Part 1: The Promise of the Spirit (Apostles Anglican Church; Knoxville, TN)

In John:14, Jesus is on His way to the cross, and He is arrested – it is the night of the first Holy Communion and the washing of feet. Jesus and the Apostilles are in Jerusalem, and their activities begin in the “Upper Room” and move to the Garden of Gethsemane. In this text, Jesus promises us the Holy Spirit; and He tells how the Holy Spirit will work in our lives. Also, Jesus reminded the Apostilles of His prior teachings and that they should “let not your heart be troubled”.

In John 14:23, 26: Jesus is telling the Apostilles about the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit’s role: “Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him . . . But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.’". Subsequently, Jesus tells the Apostilles that they “must be born again” of the Spirit to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

After twenty-one centuries, how should we consider the Holy Spirit as followers of Jesus? We should consider that: 1) the Holy Spirit is very important for us as we follow Jesus because, like God, we are triune beings – body, soul, and spirit -- with our worship and communication with God conducted through our spirit enabling us to be “filled with the Holy Spirit”; 2) the Holy Spirit brings the presence of the Father and the Son to be both with us and in us; 3) the Holy Spirit helps us to live our Christian life – our “helper”; 4) the Holy Spirit is our teacher to teach us to understand the Bible, how to pray and to acquire the other knowledge that we need to follow Jesus; and 5) while we may want to be filled with the Holy Spirit and our “pilot light is lit”, our “furnace is not engaged” to bring the Holy Spirit into our lives.

It is one thing to know Jesus in our lives, but it is another thing to love and obey Jesus in our lives. In other words, are you willing to let go of controlling your life and turn your life’s control over to the Holy Spirit – God’s will not your will be done? God does not force His will on you. You must seek Jesus to follow Him, and you must follow Jesus “in truth and in {Holy}Spirit”.

Therefore, the question becomes not “do you have the Holy Spirit”, but “does the Holy Spirit have you”?

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – Am I Ready to Pray? (Grace Church; Bude, Cornwall, UK)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

Scripture Reference (ESV): John 14:23, 26; John 3:3-8; John 4:24; John 7:37-39; John 14:15-17; John 15:26; Jon 16:4-14; Ephesians 2:1; John 14:16-17; Genesis 1:2; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20; Ephesians 5:18.

Jesus Appears Again

Message Summary:

Repentance is a turning away from evil.

In Luke 24:15, Jesus appeared again after His resurrection: “While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them.". Most Christians around the world see Easter not as one day but as the Season of Easter, lasting fifty days. During this Season of Easter, Jesus appeared many times to many people, including several encounters with His disciples and the Apostles along with an appearance to a group of more than five hundred people. On the fortieth day, Jesus ascended into Heaven. After Jesus Ascension, He appeared to Saul, who became the Apostle Saul, on Saul’s trip to Damascus.

Beginning in Luke 24:36 (“Luke’s Great Commission”), Jesus opened the Apostles minds spiritually to the Gospel; and the Gospel is summarized in “five truths” – the Gospel is a: 1) “double historical event” – Jesus death and His Resurrection, which really happened; 2) “double proclamation” – repentance (the Gospel demand) and forgiveness (the Gospel offer) of sins will be preached in His name; 3) “double reach or focus” – the preaching of the Gospel was to begin in Jerusalem with the Jews, but it was to be extended to all nations; 4) “double validation” – validated by the prophecies of the Old Testament and the Apostles’ witness through their writing of the New Testament; and 5) “double sending” – Jesus promised the sending of the Holy Spirit to His Apostles, and the sending of the Apostles to the nations of the world in the power of the Holy Spirit..

If Jesus was speaking to His Apostles in Luke 24, what is He saying to us, His modern-day disciples, about two thousand years later? Jesus is telling us, today, the same thing that He told His Apostles in Luke 24!

 

Today’s Affirmation: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Praying with Perseverance (Fowery Parish; Cornwall, UK)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

Scripture Reference (ESV): Luke 24:36-49; Psalms 119:18-20; Romans 1:16; Acts 1:8.

Surprise – Jesus is Not Dead; Jesus Is Alive to All Who Accept Him in Faith

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Surprise – Jesus is Not Dead; Jesus Is Alive to All Who Accept Him in Faith

Surprise effects people in different ways. When Mary Magdalene entered Jesus’ tomb looking for Jesus after His crucifixion and death, she was surprised in John 20:15-16: “Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned and said to him in Aramaic, [2] ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher).".

Jesus was dead, but He did not remain dead. Through Jesus resurrection, He arose from the dead as was seen after the resurrection by Mary Magdalene, the Apostles, and many others over the forty-day period until His Ascension – all were surprised when they saw Jesus alive after His death on the cross.

Today, two thousand years later, many people are surprised to learn that Jesus is not dead. It is not until we come to Jesus in personal faith that we realize that Jesus is alive – our realization of Jesus immortality is not from an intellectual awareness, but our realization of a living Jesus comes through a personal, experiential faith-based relationship with Jesus in our lives.  Evil and sin are all around us sinners; and as Paul tells us in Romans 6:23 – “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.". Therefore, without a living Jesus, our eternal death is the only outcome. Also, societies attempting to function without a living Jesus are on a pathway to “pure evil”.

Easter changed all this for us who come to Christ and follow Him. Jesus is alive for us. For those of us who believe in Jesus, things happen to us personally in our lives: 1) our sins are forgiven – part of Jesus’ resurrection is the power we are given over our sins and sinful nature, as Jesus tells us in Matthew 26:28: “for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”, some of us are surprised that our sins are forgiven with our faith but without our performance of some “works”; 2) eternal life is made available to us – having a personal relationship with God for eternity is eternal life; and 3) Jesus is with us in the surprises that life throws our way – we have to come to Jesus in repentance and faith, however, too many of us live our lives as if we believe that Jesus is dead.

Christ is risen! Is Jesus resurrection a surprise to you? If so, ask Jesus, through your faith, to come into your life right now; let a living Jesus and not the twists and turns of your life surprise you.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S EASTER VIDEO – “Easter -- I Am the Resurrection – (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 20:11-18; Romans 6:20-23; John 20:1-10; Luke 24; Acts 10:39; 1 John 2:1-2; 1 Corinthians 15:16-19; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Psalms 103:12; John 17:3; John 3:36; 1 John 5:11; Hebrews 13:8; Hebrews 13:5.

Contemplating the Mighty Acts – Palm Sunday and Holy Week (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Contemplating the Mighty Acts – Palm Sunday and Holy Week (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)

To understand Holy Week and Palm Sunday, we look to the beginnings of Passover and how it had evolved until Jesus’ time. 

While we were still sinners, Jesus died for us. It is through Jesus’ death and Resurrection that we are able realize God’s Grace of Salvation from our sins and to gain our Eternal Life. Holy Week is all about God’s Grace; Jesus’ death on the cross; Jesus Resurrection; and our Salvation. All sinners need what Jesus did on the cross for us.

The message of Palm Sunday, of Holy Week, is that the Passover Lamb, Jesus, has entered the city of Jerusalem, just as prophesied in Zachariah 9:9 more than five hundred years before Jesus’ birth: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.". The lambs brought into the city for Passover would be inspected, for any blemishes, by the Levites so that the perfect lambs for the celebration of Passover could be selected. At the same time, Jesus was being “inspected” by the various Jewish and Roman “inspectors”, including the Levites and Pharisees, during the week leading up to the Jewish Passover celebration. As prophesied, Jesus was the perfect Passover Lamb, the Lamb of God, to be sacrificed for the sins of the world for all time.

On the Monday of Holy Week, Jesus reentered Jerusalem and cleansed the Temple. As told in Mark 11:17, Jesus drove from the Temple the sacrificial animal vendors who had booths in Temple’s Courtyard. This Courtyard was set aside, when God had established the Temple, for the Gentiles to pray so that the Temple was the place for all to worship: “And he was teaching them and saying to them, ‘Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.’”.

Tuesday and Wednesday, of Holy Week, were days of both doctrinal challenges and teaching for Jesus – further “inspections” for the perfect Passover Lamb, Jesus.

Thursday, of Holy Week, is the day which Jesus washes the Apostles’ feet and eats the Passover meal, which is when Jesus institutes our Sacrament of the Communion. Also, this is the day that Jesus gives the new commandment of “Love one another”. The Apostle John expresses Jesus’ love and His role on our behalf in John 15:12-14: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.".

Also on Thursday, Jesus has His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus prayed, in the Garden to God, to have the responsibility of His Crucifixion, death, and His separation from God, as Jesus took on the sins of the world, be taken from Him. However, Jesus prayed to God (Matthew 26:39): “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’”. Additionally, Judas betrays Jesus; and Jesus is arrested – we refer to this Thursday, of Holy Week, as Mundey Thursday. On Mundey Thursday, we begin a period of prayer and mourning.

On the Friday of Holy Week, we come to Jesus’ Crucifixion and death on the cross. On Friday, the Apostle Peter denies Jesus three times; and Jesus has three trials. After His death, Jesus was buried; and His tomb was sealed and guarded by the Roman soldiers.

On the Saturday of Holy Week – the day of rest, the Jewish Sabbath – Jesus is bound by death and in the grave – Jesus is dead.

On the Sunday of Holy Week – the day of Jesus’ Resurrection, Jesus arises from death as the Passover Lamb, “the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world!”.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Exodus 12:1-25; Zechariah 9:9; Luke 19:30; Matthew 24:1-2; Luke 19:41-44; Mark 11:20-25; Matthew 21:33-46; John 15:12-17.

The Upper Room Part 2: The Promise of Forgiveness (Christ Cathedral; Kampala, Uganda)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Upper Room Part 2: The Promise of Forgiveness (Christ Cathedral; Kampala, Uganda)

Jesus the Christ died on the cross for our sins. Through Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead and God’s Grace, sinners like us can have Eternal Life if we confess our sins and have faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

After Jesus Resurrection, Jesus appeared to many people, including a group of more than five hundred, over a period of forty days. The primary messages of the Bible’s New Testament Epistles are Jesus’ death, Resurrection, and the power of Jesus’ Resurrection. From John 20:19-25, we learn that Jesus appeared to the Disciples in a locked upper room. The Disciples were afraid; but when they saw Jesus, their fear changed to joy. Jesus began His conversation with the powerful greeting of: “Peace be with you.”. In addition to His Peace, Jesus gave the Disciples the Apostolic commission of Go, make disciples, and to teach while communicating the Gospel; and Jesus told the Disciples and us how to “Go”. Additionally, Jesus gave His Disciples and us the power, through the Holy Spirit, to do the mission of His Commission: “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” (Matthew 28:18-20).

The Gospel is a message of both forgiveness and of judgement. With God’s Grace and our faith comes our forgiveness and our Eternal Life. In John 5:24, Jesus tells us that we not only have Eternal Life after our earthly death; but we have Eternal Life from the moment we accept the Gospel and Jesus as our Lord and Savior: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.".

In Romans 8:38-39,we are given the message to communicate as we “Go”: “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.".

We have the eternal life-changing message of Jesus’ death for our sins, Resurrection, and our forgiveness. However, are we living this message in our lives, and are we delivering this message to others starting with our family and our neighbors – if not us, then who? Today is the day of Salvation!

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 20:19-25; Luke 24:46; John 5:24; John 1:12.

The Upper Room Part 3: The Promise of Belief (St. Thomas Anglican Church, Athens GA)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Upper Room Part 3: The Promise of Belief (St. Thomas Anglican Church, Athens GA)

A primary component of Jesus teaching methodology was to ask questions. Most questions asked regarding Christianity are directly answerable. However, it is not “doubt” that constrains people from believing and following Jesus; but it is their “resistance to giving up their sins” that constrains their belief and acceptance.

Important questions were asked by Jesus in His several appearances after His Resurrection from His Crucifixion and death. In the first reference in John 20 to Jesus’ appearance to His Apostilles, the Apostille Thomas was not present. Therefore, when Thomas was told of Jesus’ appearance, Thomas said that he would not believe in Jesus’ Resurrection until he could see and feel Jesus’ wounds from the Crucifixion. Jesus, knowing Thomas’ disbelief without physical evidence of His Resurrection, in John 20:24-29, asked Thomas to feel His wounds. Afterwards Jesus asked Thomas the implied question of Thomas’ “belief”, and Thomas answered with an answer that has resonated throughout the centuries: “My Lord and my God!”: “Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.’ Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’”.

Jesus went on to affirm Thomas’ belief in the face of compelling physical evidence, but Jesus acknowledged the power of the belief and faith by those of us who follow Him without physical evidence. So, for us who do not have the physical evidence of Jesus’ death and Resurrection, Paul tells us, in Romans 10:17, that: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”.

Do you believe?

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 10:19-30; John 11:15-16; John 14:5-7; Romans 10:17.

The Interior Life – Part 5: The Conscience (Holy Trinity; Madison, MS)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Interior Life – Part 5: The Conscience (Holy Trinity; Madison, MS)

INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERIOR LIFE -- The Psalmist, in Psalms 1:3-4, describes a person with a fruitful Interior Life: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.". Our Interior Life, typically, does not call out for our attention until, usually, it is too late. Our Interior Life does not call for our attention or scream for help. However, if our Interior Life is not maintained or nurtured, our spiritual life can come crashing down.

Our Interior Life can be viewed like a savings account in a bank. Like a savings account when we make deposits, our Interior Life grows, draws interest, and becomes strong, thereby, giving us a balance that can see us through life’s tough times. However, if we are not making Interior Life deposits and our life circumstances need to draw on our “savings”, we may find that life has put us in an untenable situation; and we go spiritually bankrupt. Paul, in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, describes the characteristics of the Inner Person and the maintenance of the Inner Person: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.". Paul describes us as being comprised of body, soul, and spirit.

Our Inner Person, or Our Inner Self, is all that relates to our soul and spirit. The Interior Life is critical for our abundant life – the part of us that is private not public; the part of us that no one sees or knows but us and God. Too often, we focus our personal care on our bodies and not our soul or Inner Person. Paul, in Ephesians 3:16-17, addresses or “inner being”: “that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,".

EXERCISING YOUR CONSCIENCE AS A PART OF YOUR INTERIOR LIFE -- We need to focus, today, on a portion of our Inner Self’s soul that includes “our conscience” – “the power of our mind”.  Our conscience is that part of our soul that brings our hearts and minds into knowledge of God’s requirements and expectations for living a Godly life. In 1 Timothy 1:5, the conscience is related to love: “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”. Do we have a clear conscience before the Lord?

As an example of “conscience in the Inner Life”, King David was a righteous man that gave God credit for all His successes; but David, like us, was a sinner. He lusted after the beautiful wife of one of his generals. After David got the general’s wife pregnant, David’s sins, like most of ours, cascaded into the murder of his general to protect his secret affair with the general’s wife. Subsequently, David’s conscience rose to the top of his Inner Self in Psalms 51. While David confessed and repented of his sins to God, David was forgiven by God; but the consequence of David’s sins was enormous – David’s family and kingdom were disrupted; and his son, born of the adulterous affair, died.

There are three aspects of our conscience: 1) the part of our person that knows right and wrong within ourselves – our moral compass; 2) as Christians, our conscience becomes God’s moral compass within us; and 3) a reminder that we have sinned against God or our neighbor. The Holy Spirit deals with conscience first and not our intellect or emotion.

What happens when we ignore our conscience: 1) we begin to dumb down the power of our conscience to speak into our lives; 2) even though our conscience speaks to us all the time, we begin not to hear it; and 3) our conscience becomes polluted by the world – a defiled conscience. Ignoring our conscience leads us towards self-deception and depravity.

How do we keep a clear conscience: 1) confess our sin to God as instructed in Hebrews 10:22-23: "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.", and in 1 John 1:9-10: "We confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."; 2) make a confession of our sin to a Christian friend; 3) sometimes, confess our sin to a minister; and 4) sometimes, we need to make restitution to those to whom we have sinned, when appropriate.

Our conscience is a mighty gift to us from God if we listen to it and keep a clear conscience. However, we will never have a clear conscience in our Interior Life unless we, like King David, confess and repent of our sins to God and lead a new life in Jesus.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalms 51:1-19; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Ephesians 2:1-8; 1 Timothy 1:5-6; Job 27:6; Acts 24:16; 2 Corinthians 1:12; Matthew 6:22-23; 1 Corinthians 8:7; 1 Timothy 4:1-2; Titus 1:15-16; Psalms 36:1-4; Hebrews 10:22; 1 John 1:9; Romans 8:1-2; James 5:16; Proverbs 27:17; 2 Samuel 12:13; Luke 19:8; 2 Timothy 1:3.

Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {Emotional Maturity: Exercising the Mind)

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Interior Life – Emotional Maturity: Exercising the Mind – Part 4 (Christ Church; Atlanta, GA)

INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERIOR LIFE -- The Psalmist, in Psalms 1:3-4, describes a person with a fruitful Interior Life: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.". Our Interior Life, typically, does not call out for our attention until, usually, it is too late. Our Interior Life does not call for our attention or scream for help. However, if our Interior Life is not maintained or nurtured, our spiritual life can come crashing down.

Our Interior Life can be viewed like a savings account in a bank. Like a savings account when we make deposits, our Interior Life grows, draws interest, and becomes strong, thereby, giving us a balance that can see us through life’s tough times. However, if we are not making Interior Life deposits and our life circumstances need to draw on our “savings”, we may find that life has put us in an untenable situation; and we go spiritually bankrupt. Does the life description, provided by Jesus in John 7:37b-38, describe your life: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”?

Paul, in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, describes the characteristics of the Inner Person and the maintenance of the Inner Person: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.". Paul describes us as being comprised of body, soul, and spirit.

Our Inner Person, or Our Inner Self, is all that relates to our soul and spirit. The Interior Life is critical for our abundant life – the part of us that is private not public; the part of us that no one sees or knows but us and God. Too often, we focus our personal care on our bodies and not our soul or Inner Person. Paul, in Ephesians 3:16-17, addresses or “inner being”: “that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,".

EXERCISING YOUR MIND AS A PART OF YOUR INTERIOR LIFE -- We need to focus, today, on a portion of our Inner Self’s soul that includes “our mind” – “the power of our mind”.  What gives us the power to steer our lives in the direction that we want to go and, in a manner, that God expects of us? The mind gives our Inner Self power. Too many of us are wasting our minds – most of us are not exercising the power of our minds.

To exercise our minds, we must: 1) discipline our mind to mind – mental discipline; 2) take charge of what we let our mind dwell upon – what we think, we are; and 3) learn to think from Christ’s perspective – as a Christian, we must intentionally learn to think from God’s point of view; for example love neighbor rather than diminishing or fearing your neighbor.

To intentionally exercise your mind, you can: 1) read; 2) study; 3) memorize; and 4) meditate – reflect upon an issue. 

Jesus was asked, in Luke 20:25b-28 to reveal the key to eternal life; and Jesus responded: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the Law? How do you read it?’ And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’ And he said to him, You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.’”. To position your Inner Self to think from God’s point of view, your mind must be exercised through the love of God and others.

The mind, as a Christian, is a terrible thing to be wasted by your Inner Self; therefore, you must endeavor to stop wasting your mind.

You need to develop the power for gaining control over your will and directing your mind toward a spirit-filled life in Jesus. Your life is to be driven by the Holly Spirit through your Inner Person to yield your life to God’s will. The Holy Spirit enables you to do God’s will in your life – your Interior Life’s deposit for the future.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalms 1:3-4; John 7:37-38; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Ephesians 2:1-10; John 3:1-8; Ephesians 3:16-20; 1 Peter 3:3; Mark 7:21; Proverbs 23:7; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Philippians 2:5; 1 Corinthians 2:16; Romans 12:2; Philippians 4:8; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 5:16-17.

The Interior Life – Exercising the Mind

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {The Interior Life – Exercising the Mind – Part 2 (Camp House; Chattanooga, TN)

INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERIOR LIFE -- The Psalmist, in Psalms 1:3-4, describes a person with a fruitful Interior Life: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.". Our Interior Life, typically, does not call out for our attention until, usually, it is too late. Our Interior Life does not call for our attention or scream for help. However, if our Interior Life is not maintained or nurtured, our spiritual life can come crashing down.

Our Interior Life can be viewed like a savings account in a bank. Like a savings account when we make deposits, our Interior Life grows, draws interest, and becomes strong, thereby, giving us a balance that can see us through life’s tough times. However, if we are not making Interior Life deposits and our life circumstances need to draw on our “savings”, we may find that life has put us in an untenable situation; and we go spiritually bankrupt. Does the life description, provided by Jesus in John 7:37b-38, describe your life: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”?

Paul, in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, describes the characteristics of the Inner Person and the maintenance of the Inner Person: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.". Paul describes us as being comprised of body, soul, and spirit.

Our Inner Person, or Our Inner Self, is all that relates to our soul and spirit. The Interior Life is critical for our abundant life – the part of us that is private not public; the part of us that no one sees or knows but us and God. Too often, we focus our personal care on our bodies and not our soul or Inner Person. Paul, in Ephesians 3:16-17, addresses or “inner being”: “that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,".

OUR MIND AS A PART OF THE INTERIOR LIFE -- We need to focus, today, on a portion of our Inner Self’s soul that includes “our mind” – “the power of our mind”.  What gives us the power to steer our lives in the direction that we want to go and, in a manner, that God expects of us? The mind gives our Inner Self power. Too many of us are wasting our minds – most of us are not exercising the power of our minds.

To exercise our minds, we must: 1) discipline our mind to mind – mental discipline; 2) take charge of what we let our mind dwell upon – what we think, we are; and 3) learn to think from Christ’s perspective – as a Christian, we must intentionally learn to think from God’s point of view.

To intentionally exercise our mind, we can: 1) read; 2) study; 3) memorize; and 4) meditate – reflect upon an issue. 

Jesus was asked, in Luke 20:25b-28, to reveal the key to eternal life; and Jesus responded: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the Law? How do you read it?’ And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’ And he said to him, You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.’”. To position our Inner Self to think from God’s point of view, our mind must be exercised through the love of God and others.

The mind, as a Christian, is a terrible thing to be wasted by our Inner Self; therefore, we must endeavor to stop wasting our minds.

We need to develop the power for gaining control over our will and directing our minds toward a spirit-filled life in Jesus. Each of our lives is to be driven by the Holly Spirit through our Inner Person to yield our lives to God’s will. The Holy Spirit enables us to do God’s will in our lives – our Interior Life’s deposit for the future.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 Peter 3:3; Mark 7:21; Romans 12:2; Philippians 4:8.