AWAKENING!

PRAISE OUR ALMIGHTY GOD TODAY!
PRAISE HIS NAME ON HIGH!
PRAISE HIM FOR HIS MERCY!

LET US SING, "AWAKE MY SOUL, LET YOUR WILL BE DONE IN ME!"

Romans 13:11
11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

"AWAKE" - Introduction

By Robert Bailes

IT IS HIGH TIME TO AWAKE!
As newly married couples join hearts and hands in marriage, there are far too often those who feel they have the privilege of offering their two cents to the couple, even before the wedding reception is over. The traditional quotes and riddles with hidden meanings are passed on by those who have fallen asleep at the helm of their love boat, so to speak.

Most of those couples who have been together for years will tell them that the honeymoon will soon pass and reality will begin to sink in, so get ready! Isn't that a wonderful thought to leave a couple with right after they have married? The reason that this goes on generation after generation is because these couples have fallen asleep at the helm of their love boat.

They no longer feel like they once did because their love boat fuel tanks are empty or running on their last gallon of fuel. When the waves come and rock their boat around, that last little bit of fuel is still there but isn't quite enough to keep the motor from sputtering. The tank is very large and could hold hundreds of gallons of fuel, but that last gallon is swished back and forth past the fuel pump, allowing only enough fuel to barely keep their love boat running in the storm. So they share their experience with the newly weds as a forecast of days ahead in their relationship, almost as though it is normal and to be expected.

The facts are that this type of relationship between a husband and wife is not what God intended and there is a clear and decisive way for couples to avoid falling asleep at the helm and allowing their tanks to run dry. There are clearly defined principles to apply to our lives that will prevent a couple from finding themselves stranded and at the mercy of the storms in their lives. Instead of just hoping for the storms to pass, they will have the fuel and the navigational equipment necessary to move through the storm. When they come out of the storm, they will be on the same course that they were on before the storm and will have also made some progress along the way.

You might be thinking to yourself, "How can I tell if I have fallen asleep at the helm?". Most people, awake or asleep, think that they are doing alright in all of their relationships, but take heed! Paul is talking to believers in the book of Romans when he gives us this warning to "Awake" and this series of messages will show us just how our lives will change when we wake up; at home, at church and in the community around us. I have learned first hand, the things that I will share with you in this series and how applying the principles that Paul teaches us in the thirteenth chapter of Romans will bring a change in your relationships at home, in the community and even in your worship with God.

Romans 13:11
11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.


Now it is HIGH TIME! That means that the HOUR is here and the time is NOW. People just roll over and go back to sleep in relationships all to often. I must agree with the apostle Paul when he says, "IT IS HIGH TIME TO AWAKE FROM OUR SLEEP!" Verse twelve says,"The night is far spent", that means it is later than you may think! I want to tell you that it is later in this age than you may think! I believe that Jesus Christ is at the threshold and I believe that the trumpet is about to sound and Jesus Christ is going to come soon and it is only the restraining hand of Almighty God that has kept the floodgates of evil closed as much as they have been. It may be later in your life than you think! You only have so many more days or hours left to serve the Lord Jesus. James 4:14 says,"What is your life but a vapor that appeared for a little with and then vanished away"!

It's later in the day of opportunity than you may think. We have opportunities now that are unparalleled to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus said when he was here on earth in John 9:4, "I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day, the night cometh when no man can work!" There are allot of things you can do here on this earth, but there's one thing we won't be able to do in heaven and that is to win souls to Christ.

There are several things that I pray that everyone who hears this message will do, that the apostle Paul urges us to do in this passage and the first one is to "WAKE UP"!

God's alarm clock is going off all around us!
A young man asked his pastor one Sunday if there was a good prayer that he could pray whenever he came to the service and his pastor said,"Yes, Now I lay me down to sleep".

It's time that we wake up. So many times we are like Sampson, asleep in the lap of Delilah. When we wake up and go out to shake ourselves, it's without the spirit's power. How do we wake up? Not by hitting the snooze button; we have to wake up and get up! Get busy doing the things that you are purposed to do in your life!

Wake Up! Get Up! Husbands and wives, grab the wheel of your boats and get ready to fuel up and apply the principles we will find in the series of messages I have titled "AWAKE!".

IT'S HIGH TIME TO AWAKE! LET'S GO!

HOW CAN I DESCRIBE MY GOD?

TAKE TIME TO ENJOY THIS VIDEO TODAY ABOUT THE AWESOME GOD WE LOVE & SERVE!

"CLICK HERE TO BEGIN"

AS YOU WAKE UP EACH MORNING, MAY THE PEACE OF GOD DWELL IN YOUR HEARTS!

COMING SOON! A new series of lessons on relationships entitled "AWAKE!".

"Oh Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble"

Your Faith Will Give You Testimony - Continued


By Rob Bailes



John 9:16-18
16 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keeps not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.
17 They say unto the blind man again, What say thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet.
18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.

I believe that John made a point in verse sixteen to let us know that there was a division among these people. I can guarantee you that there is going to be some kind of division between the people in a congregation where the leaders are proud and hold strong to their own opinions. Please take notice that I said, "their own opinions"!
Jesus and his disciples had been teaching His followers to not be proud, but rather to humble themselves and love one another. Is it really possible to love someone else while looking down on them with criticism? I find it very hard to feel love and compassion for others when I am the one who is judging them. Let's read where Luke documents the words of Jesus concerning the matter of us judging one another.

Luke 6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

Chapter sixth of Luke gives so much guidance in this matter of love, compassion and mercy towards others. As a matter of fact, Jesus gave a parable about a blind man leading a blind man in this chapter. That parable was teaching us about being humble and why we shouldn't judge. Isn't it interesting that Jesus used the blind leading the blind man; symbolic of one who is proud and judgmental of others? Someone who is telling others what to do with their life when they themselves ignore the teachings of Jesus is like a man who sees the mote in his brother's eye and offers to pull it out, but he isn't aware that he has a beam in his own eye!

Jesus says, "Thou hypocrite, cast out the beam that is in your eye first and then you'll see clearly to pull the mote out of your brother's eye." Keep this in mind, my friend, when someone begins to point out the faults in your life and you begin to feel defensive. It's easy for us to fall into the same trap of judging others when this happens. We feel that we need to defend ourselves or our family when someone points out faults, even if it is true. Keep the last sentence of Luke 6:37 in mind when this happens! "Forgive and you will be forgiven!" I know that Jesus spoke these words many years ago, so that we would apply them to our lives today and remember not to fall into this trap. Once the judging and criticism starts, it is very hard to stop.

Even in marital relationships, the fault finding and judging can get started and it will continue to fester and escalate until someone humbles themselves and is willing to ask for forgiveness and to forgive their spouse for the things that were said out of pride and defence. Maybe this is happening in your home, even today between you and your spouse or between you and your teenager! If so, go to Luke 6 and let the words of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ guide you today!

Let's go back to our main passage in John and look at the next thing that happens when the Jews called the blind man's parents,

John 9:19-22
19 And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? how then does he now see?
20 His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind:
21 But by what means he now sees, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.
22 These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.

Isn't that absolutely amazing, my friend? The parents of the blind man acted as though they were ignorant of what had happened to their son. Yet they knew he could now see! They had seen him and knew it was their son! They could now testify that he was blind since birth but now he could see! Why then were they afraid to tell the truth about the one who had healed their son?

Look at verse twenty-two and you will see that what they feared was that they would be put out of the synagogue; AND FOR WHAT REASON? The Jews in their pride had judged Jesus and they agreed together to put any man out of the synagogue (temple) if he confessed that Jesus was "Christ"! Another words, they had their own opinions and didn't accept the truth and would punish anyone who stood up for it! If you have ever found yourself being silenced or getting picked on for speaking the truth found in God's Word, it is likely that you are being judged by those people who have become arogant with pride in their heart rather than love and mercy. Just remember though, that Jesus told us to condemn not and to forgive in Luke 6:37! Don't go on the defence, but rather love, forgive and show mercy to those who judge you. It may sound totally absurd according to the world's rules and according to some of the success or positive speakers of our day, but it is the guidance given us by our true Shepard, Jesus Christ!

There is no religious organization or person that will keep me from declaring that Jesus is Christ! People can judge me; take away my membership; turn their back on me; fire me; ridicule and criticise me; point blame; remind me of my past mistakes; abuse and torture me and even threaten to take my life if I claim Jesus as my Christ, but I cannot DENY MY LORD as CHRIST! Jesus gave His life for me that I may have Life and have it more abundantly!

In John 10:9-11 Jesus says,
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief comes not , but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.

I pray that you will always share with others the testimony that Jesus is your Christ and what He has done for you! If you haven't ever come to the place in your life when you have confessed Jesus Christ as your Savior, but you would like to receive Him right now as your personal Savior, God will forgive your past and receive you as His child in the family of God. Don't let your foolish pride keep you from the most wonderful thing that God offers us all; eternal life in Heaven one day and His Spirit to live in you and care for you on this earth. Talk with God right now and tell Him what's on your heart. It's very simple.

Repent of your life of sin in the past; tell Him you want Him to be YOUR Savior from this day forward and believe that Jesus is God's son who was raised from the dead after giving His life on the cross to pay for the sins of our world!

Once you have prayed this prayer and received Christ, I would love to pray for you and send you some helpful information and resources that would help you learn more on your own. Just email me: rbailesnc@yahoo.com or call me at (919)621-9930. I look forward to hearing from you today! God bless you.

"NO DOUBT, IT'S A MIRACLE!"

"Your Faith Gives You Testimony" - Continued

By Rob Bailes

How could someone who truly believes in Jesus find fault with a person who displays living proof that Jesus truly has radically changed their life? Why would anyone question this new believer when they have claimed that Jesus gave them the Truth and New Life?

Let's look at what the people said to the blind man when he came back to town!

John 9:9-11
9. Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he.
10 Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?
11 He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.

Theologians could write many different lessons about this passage alone. But today, let's apply what has just happened in this passage to our own lives and how we treat someone who has received Christ that has been labeled by the sin in their lives.

I'm not talking about someone who has broken a rule every now and then. Ordinarily, the "law keepers" or the "good guys" are easily accepted into the church and falls right into place among the believers following conversion.

Instead, let's think about the unsaved teen who has been on the church prayer list for years or the unsaved person who has been hooked on drugs or alcohol for years.

Let's think about the unsaved person who has covered their body with tattoos that symbolize the destructive desires of the flesh or the unsaved person who you have seen walking the streets in town late at night selling drugs or even their own body.

Let's think about the unsaved woman who has a reputation for their involvement in the porn scene online or the unsaved husband on your church prayer list who is hooked on Internet porn or gambling.

Let's also think about the unsaved men and women trapped in the cycle of homelessness who ride the bus to your church from the mission downtown. Those people who show the signs of stress and exposure to the elements in their sad faces when they try to smile and say hello as everyone is greeting each other.

Yet you may have turned away quickly to avoid contact with this person who has come seeking what you claim to have already found by the grace of God alone.

You see, my friend, we are all just a day away from any of these situations! The events that take place in our lives before we receive the Spirit of God could easily lead us into a life of destruction; just like all of those above that I just asked you to think about.

If you had lost everything; if you had been abused; if your parents had been hooked on any of the addicting substances; if someone had seduced you; if someone had convinced you try the perverted acts of fornication or adultery; if you had been used by someone who didn't care about you in ways that would effect the way you felt about yourself; if you had been verbally abused by someone that was dear to you. If any of these things had happened to you, you may have very well been in that person's shoes today.

Maybe it has happened to you and you have walked in that person's shoes; maybe you are still struggling to break free of the past. This is exactly what we see when we read this passage about the blind man, because the people who knew about his past really didn't believe it was possible for him to instantly receive his sight.

He had been blind all his life! How could he possibly have such a radical change take place? That is exactly what those who knew him were going to ask.

Isn't that what happens sometimes when someone receives the transforming grace and mercy of God into their lives? Those who remember them the way they were cannot understand how this change is possible, so they ask questions and they keep asking questions, because they have a hard time understanding how Jesus could perform such a dramatic change in someone with such a history of sin and sickness.

Have you ever been at a church meeting when someone leaned over and quietly informed you of the past sin of someone else at the service who had recently been converted to Christ? It is at this moment that we begin to see them as these people saw the blind man; that is with doubt and disbelief. It's our nature and we have a sinful nature that prefers to judge others; to place labels on others, so that we feel better about ourselves.

Jesus Christ told us to love our enemies and pray for those who despitefully use us! Jesus tells us that when we believe in him, our life will produce the Fruit of the Spirit described in chapter five of Galatians.

Is your life producing the Spirit's fruit today? Better go and read this chapter if your not sure!

John 9:10-12
10 Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?
11 He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.
12 Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.

The people who knew him asked him "HOW" his eyes were opened? They didn't ask who, but rather how! They wanted him to explain the supernatural and we often expect the very same thing when we quiz a new believer on "how" they were transformed, even when it is evident that they have become a new person!

The Pharisees questioned miracles, initiating doubt and taking away from the glory of God.

Let's watch ourselves when we see someone who is radically changed by God, that we don't do or say anything that will cause doubt and give glory to our spirits. Just as young children are easily swayed, so are the young believers easily swayed until they become grounded in the Word of God. This is a time to nurture and protect them from the outside influences of satan's attacks.

I love what the blind man said to those who asked him "How?". He courageously gave HIS TESTIMONY! He told his story of exactly what had happened! No, he didn't know "HOW", but he knew "what" Jesus had told him to do and he did it in obedience and faith!

I suggest that we go back and read verse eleven before we move on!

The next thing we see happening is the people began to ask him where they could find Jesus. Let's look at what is said in verses twelve through sixteen of the ninth chapter of John's gospel.

John 9:12-16
12 Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.
13 They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind.
14 And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes.
15 Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see.
16 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keeps not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.


They wanted to see for themselves who had done this wonder, but the blind man had no idea where Jesus had gone. So some of the people decided it was time to pass judgement on him since he couldn't produce the evidence they needed to prove his story. Hmm? Does this sound a little familiar? When something amazing happens to someone you know and they share it with you, how do you react? Are you excited or sceptical? Do you trust that it is real or do you start prying with doubtful questions to find a weak point in their story, so you can discredit the ability of a miracle in their life?

I know you don't like me asking all of these provoking questions today, but it is just as true in my life as I write this lesson, as it could be in your life. Let's humble ourselves, as we think back on the times when we have had the opportunity to rejoice over the divine transformation of someone trapped in a life of corruption and perversion; someone who came to receive Christ.

Did you rejoice? How long did your rejoicing last? What did you think about that person the next time you saw them? Did you ever doubt they were truly and miraculously changed by God's Word and His awesome Spirit?

Remember my friend, the fruit of the Spirit is just that!

Not by our power or by the power of our minds, but only by the power of the Holy Spirit can we produce love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, temperance and meekness!

I had planned to conclude this lesson today, but God always seems to give me more than I plan to write, so we will continue this again tomorrow. I had been out of town this past week helping my father who had eye surgery and I apologize for the delay in posting the messages. I plan to continue a daily posting on this devotion site for the glory of God and your blessing!