Walking in Spirit, First Foundation

You MUST have a Solid Foundation.. 

What does it mean when people tell you, or you read in the Word, that you must Walk in the Spirit? Take Galatians 5:16-17 as an example..

"I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish."

What does that mean? Walk in the Spirit? Well, in order to do this fully and righteously, you must have three things. A Solid Foundation. The Right Mind. Perseverance. We are talking today about the Foundation. After all, how can you have the Right Mind if you know nothing of God, Jesus, The Word, etc? You truly can't. First you must have a solid Foundation. What does it mean Spirit? Who is God? Who is Jesus? Is this stuff real? Did Jesus REALLY rise from the dead? Without a Foundation you will never grow in Faith..

Jesus tells us that there are very few types of people. We all fall into one of these catagories. When giving us the Parable of the Sower of the Seed, He explained this....

"Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."
{Matthew 13:18-23}

As a Child of God, you are a Sower of the Seed. However, what were you before? You see, you will meet all these types. Of course, the Way Side people are those that don't have any time or desire to even hear what you have to say. Theses are the mockers, and theses are those that want you to just keep your "Religion" to yourself. These are those that fight to keep God out of public life. The sad truth is, they cannot hear God's Word because they are not of God. If you have your Bible, turn to John 8:42-47

"Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God."

They ARE there. These people are in your life. It does not matter who these people in your life might be. Sadly in a lot of cases, they are your Family Members and Loved Ones. They may be your Best Friends. They are in all our lives. Remember, when you first become a Child of God, those nearest you, remember who you were before. You Sinned right there with them. You used to do all the things they are STILL doing. Now you are a New Creature, but they are the same as they have always been. Some of them WILL come to hate you. I know I know. But they truly will come to hate you. Why? Because now they think, you think, you are better than they. They have no time for that "God nonsense." Jesus literally tells us that the devil himself comes and steals the Word away from them.

Then you have those that are the Stony Places, and the Thorns. Truth is, this describes many Christians and may even describe the way you were in the beginning. Many hear the Word and receive it with great joy. They get on fire for God. They want to go out there and tell everyone about Him and Jesus, and Salvation. But they know little. They have not set for themselves a Solid Foundation. They are like a Soldier that just becomes a Soldier and wants to go out into battle. So they put on their Helmet, and run into the battle. Problem is, beside that Helmet, they are naked. The do not have any other Armor. No Protection. No Weapons. No back up. Nothing.

These are those that will go out and attempt to tell others about God, but when the others confront them, and ask them questions, they have no answers and they themselves may become confused. Then, when they see this not workings, or they start questioning the "Contradictions" and the concept that the Bible was simply "written by man." they fall away. Or, the cares of the world, the love of money and stuff, come in and the little they had received dies.

If you are not well Founded in the Word, in God, in Faith, you are not being filled., replenished, you will fall away. Only with a Solid Foundation and Faith in God, can you be filled and grow in Faith. Only then, can and will you  understand that there are NO Contractions in the Bible. There are however many misunderstandings by some that read it. I could read a book on quantum physics, but I will not understand much of it. I have no foundation in that area. Get the point?

When you are a Child of God, there will be those around you who will test you. You know what another Sad Truth is? Some of them TRULY want to "free you" from this "nonsensical" belief in God. They love you and do not want you to be "foolish." Jesus tells us that along with the Good Seed, there will be Tares...

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.

So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?

But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn." {Matthew 13:24-30}

Have you ever wondered why God allows Evil people to be in the world? He does so because of His promise to Noah. He promised that He would not wholly destroy His Creation again. He will not totally wipe out everything because of His Love for His Children. Whenever you see a Rainbow, you are seeing a sign of that Convent. Why? Because if He did, He would be destroying the Good with the bad. Jesus explains this a bit latter 37-43..

"He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."

The importance of the knowledge of Truth. If you do not know the Truth, if you do not have a Solid Foundation, you will believe a lie. Truth is this, as long as something sounds right? A whole lot of people will believe it. You want to know one of the biggest lies straight from the evil one? "We are all God's Children." Sounds right? Sounds just? Sounds fair? "We are all God's Children. So who are you to judge? Let them alone. What is right for them, might not be right for you, but we are all God's Children. So just accept all, and love all."

There is no compassion in the acceptance of Sin. The only way you are a Child of God is through the Adoption of the Holy Spirit. The only way to be Adopted is if God calls you to accept Christ. As a Child of God, the only way you can be Righteous, is by doing the Will of God.

YOU build for yourself, a solid foundation. YOU do. God is not going to do it for you. YOU build yourself a solid foundation by reading the Word, and doing the Will of the Father. YOU build your house either on the Sand or on the Rock. Depending on what YOU do, decides what happens when the storms of life come. It is only by The Word, and spending time with God, allowing the Holy Spirit to commune with your Spirit, that you may build a solid foundation for yourself. The Word gives you peace. The Word answers all your questions. The Word gives you Hope. Romans 15:4 declares...

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope."

Do you want to be that "Good Ground" that Jesus tells us will bring forth a mighty harvest? Do you want to be at peace with whatever may come into your life? Do you want to be sure, that you can over come all things, and all your needs will be met? Do not run into battle wearing nothing more than a Helmet. Put on the WHOLE Armour of God. How do you do that? Build yourself a solid foundation.

Do you know Jesus as your Savior? Have you been adopted into the Family of God? If not, say this Prayer. Right now. Wherever you may be. Say it in your own words, and do not doubt in your heart. God will hear you. He will send the Spirit of Life to you. Let us Pray..

"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"

That's it. It really is that simple. Now go tell someone what you have just done. "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." {Romans 10:9} You need to find a Church that God leads you to, and be Baptized the way Jesus said to be. You are now a Child of God. A new Creature. You "have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him." {Colossians 3:10}

If you want to tell me, or comment, question, give testimonials, or just say "Hi," the Email is opntalk@gmail.com

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen. {2 Corinthians 13}

Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus IS Lord of all!