HIS DOCTRINE IS LOVE

John 6:29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

As I sit here at my kitchen table I am confused.  You see when I read this verse I see one very simple statement that has been lost in religion.  This verse has been disregarded by some.  This verse has been hidden by doctrine.  This verse has been shrouded by good deeds and covered up by rules and regulations.  Am I the only one who sees this?  The thing is we lost the true meaning of this verses in our denominational rules and rituals.  The doctrine that fills our play book and separates us also confuses us.  Rules and regulations take the place of the truth that is in God’s word. 

Jesus did not come to this earth and die for a certain brand of religion.  Jesus never once called His Disciples Catholic, Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, Episcopalian, Protestant or any other brand of religion.  Heck He didn’t even call them Christians.   They were called disciples.  There were no rules to follow, no regulations that had to be met, no requirements for them to meet in order to become a disciple.  He picked people who had no real education and no head knowledge.  If Jesus had wanted to tie Himself to a certain religion, He would have picked the Pharisees and or the Sadducees.  If He had wanted to continue on with a list of rules and regulations and laws, He would have picked men who wrote them and enforced them, but He didn’t.

Rules, regulations, doctrine …. all cloud the vision and purpose for Jesus’ coming to earth.  These man made laws hide the truth of Jesus’ purpose here on earth.  They separate us, they divide us and they cause quarrels and bickering among believers.  Seriously?  Do those of us who bicker really read the Bible?  I doubt it.  Because Jesus’ laws and regulations and doctrine seem very simple and straight forward to me.  This law doesn’t confuse me, it doesn’t make me seem weighed down, it doesn’t seem very hard to keep.  LOVE!  Jesus’ message and doctrine were simple, LOVE! 

Luke 10:27 “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.” 

Why is this so hard for us to believe?  Could it be we like to complicate things?  Could it be that this seems way too simple?  Surely Jesus must have made a mistake by listing all the laws and rituals and regulations that the Pharisees and Sadducees instituted?   So instead of obeying Jesus and loving God, loving each other and loving who God created us to be, we have created our own doctrines and list of rules to follow depending on our religion? 

What is wrong with us?  This is ridiculous!!  Religion is not important, relationship is.  Doctrine is meaningless, love is the law.  Rituals are pointless, belief is necessary.  It’s not complicated people.  It’s really rather simple.  Love, faith and belief.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE

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Matthew 5:16  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven

Why do we try to diminish our sparkle?  Why are we afraid to let our light shine?  Why do we hide our sword (God’s Word)?  You know what I’m talking about, right?  I know for me personally; this has always been a struggle for me.  I like sparkle, I like glitter, I love the light. I love God’s Word.  But to be bold enough and confident enough to let my sparkle, my light and my sword be seen and heard by others, well that’s just a little frightening.

I mean I may offend someone or tick someone off.  Someone may ask me a question I don’t know how to answer.  What if someone confronts me, what will I say?   These thought of fear and the lies of the enemy make me want to hide my light under a bushel basket.  These fears and lies keep me from letting my sparkle shine, they diminish my light and they keep my sword hidden.  FEAR!  LIES!

Darkness for me is scary.  It is something I dread.  When I was little I always slept with a night light on, still do.  Am I the only one?  I doubt it.  Call me weird, call me strange, call me childlike.  I truthfully don't care.  I do not like the dark.  Never have, never will.  The thing I have begun to realize is even though I don't like the darkness, I have been hiding my light and diminishing my sparkle and burying my sword.  The reason this has happened is because I allowed the enemy to scare me.

The funny thing is that the enemy is scared of what I have within me.  You see I do not live in darkness; I live in the light of Jesus Christ.  I have the Holy Spirit of the Living God living inside of me. I have the Word of God (a sword) at my fingertips. I have my sparkle, which is the uniqueness God created me with. So if I have my sword, and if I have the Holy Spirit, and if I have my sparkle (my uniqueness) than darkness cannot diminish the light of Jesus Christ, unless I allow it to.  Unfortunately, I have allowed the darkness to speak to me for way too long.  I have listened to the lies and fears of the enemy to influence me.

Me, a woman who knows better.  Me a woman who has read the Word of God.  Me a woman who has read countless books on who I am in Christ.  I am human and there are times I fall victim to the lies and fears that are not real.  I know I am not the only one.  That is why I have changed the name of this blog and the description of it.  Oh I am still a Jesus girl on a journey, but I am picking up my sword, renewing the Holy Spirit in me and shining up my sparkle.

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Jesus Christ came to give us a full and happy life.  He came to bring light to our lives and remove the darkness from our hearts.  He came to set the captives free.  He came to bring sight to the blind.  He came to heal the lame.  We are the only example of Jesus some people will see.  If we do not let our light shine, if we do not continue to sparkle, if we bury our swords and do not allow the Holy Spirit work in us and through us, how will others ever know who Jesus really is and what He can do for them?  We may be the only Jesus people see.

I am raising up my sword, the Word of God, and I am armed and ready to do battle with the devil.  I will no longer allow him to steal my sword, destroy my spirit or kill my sparkle.  When we hide our sparkle, there are people who may never experience Jesus through us.  When we allow our spirit to be destroyed, there is someone who may never hear Jesus through us.  When we allow our sparkle to be killed, there is someone who may never see Jesus through us. 

Raise up your sword (the Word of God)!

Renew the Holy Spirit inside of you!

Dazzle up your sparkle!

Let your light shine!