"Necessary Things"

 "Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise." (John 21:13 KJV)

  "Even in the womb, Jacob struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God. Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him - the LORD God of Heaven's Armies, the LORD is his name! So now, come back to your God. Act with love and justice, and always depend on him." (Hosea 12:3-6 NLT) 

 Last night's message was rather interesting, as there were a few things I needed to take note of, in my notes! In case you don't get that, I take notes always, but not very often do I take notes in my notes. But there is some things Pastor Byran said last night that I needed to regurgitate. First of which was the difference between happiness and joy: "Joy is a decision; happiness is something that happens." The second thing, I am still chewing on: "Not a Believer, but a Knower!" 

 The text was in 1 John 1, as John is explaining how they were with Jesus: not just in just, but that they hung out with Him, ate with Him, touched Him, and knew Him, not just as "the Word of life," but as a friend! We live in a really crazy time, as it is, most of the younger generation have friends that they really hardly even know. They spend so much time on Facebook, Tic-Tok, and whatever else, thinking that is where friends are made, and the more the merrier. At the end of the day, they find themselves alone. 

 As to the verse above regarding Jacob, he was a man that had do many things for himself; even in the womb, he had to try and fight for the chance to be first. When he wanted his brother's birthright, he bought it with the stew that he made, as his brother was hungry. When he wanted the blessing, he had to pretend that he was his brother, tricking his father into blessing him. 

 And then he met his mother's brother, Laban; it's pretty obvious which side of the family his trait to be a deceiver came from! Yet, Jacob outwitted him in the long run; fleeing from him and being caught alone with God, wrestling with Him all night, having thought that he won, God touched him with a finger, and he was changed forever! 

 Just because we are forever changed, does not mean that we are perfect; at least not here and now! But we are perfect in the eye of the Father, who sees us through the blood of His Son! This is the change that matters, which comes from knowing Christ; not just knowing about Him, but knowing the love He represents, the justice that the Father created with Him, and just how much we depend upon Him, to be perfect in Him...

"For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus. God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take any credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:6-10 NLT)