Tag: Devotional

“You can never take back anything that you do. You can be forgiven. You can repent of your actions and “make good” the harm that you have done; but every action that you take, every word that you say, is important for you to notice. It is the benchmark of the depth of your association with Me. Who you are - how deeply you care and what your priorities are - is proclaimed to others by your words and by what you do when you are under extreme pressure, faced with grave danger, or have loss of control.

"In the season ahead, I am stripping away false faces from My children. I am exposing dishonest hearts and improper motives. I am allowing base, carnal emotions to rise to the surface, so that they can be seen for what they are. It is My cleansing process before I move in power through My people. Great opportunities to repent will be available to those who will be My leaders and ministers. My truth is about to prevail.”

Luke 6:45-46 AMP

45) The upright (honorable, intrinsically good) man out of the good treasure [stored] in his heart produces what is upright (honorable and intrinsically good), and the evil man out of the evil storehouse brings forth that which is depraved (wicked and intrinsically evil); for out of the abundance (overflow) of the heart his mouth speaks.

46) Why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not [practice] what I tell you?

 

The Lord is requiring His church to actually be who we have said we are all along. Many “self-imposed” leaders have guided sheep right into a ditch with their false teachings and fake spirituality. Because of our blindness to truth and our unwillingness to seek God’s truth for ourselves, we dumb sheep have often followed them, emulating actions and mouthing lying words with the same wrong spirit.

I believe that the Lord is welding His church together. To do so, wolves in sheep’s clothing must be exposed for who they really are first, so that His sheep will know His sheep.  It is a bridal call to holiness in every area of our lives.

Thrown away friends, shots fired at wounded soldiers, and destructive, malicious behavior - one to another - is not representative of Jesus. His true ambassadors will begin to function as He would, say only what He wants to say, all in union with His heart.

Cleanse me, Lord,

Jim Corbett

“The time is coming when serving Me will cost you everything. The time is coming when even your movement will be observed. Freedom to praise Me will be non-existent. It will be a time when you will need to mention the Name of Jesus with a whisper or you will be in peril. What is of utmost value to you now will fall pale, as your quality of life decreases and others rob you of your freedoms. Who will you turn to if you are not in the habit of turning to Me now? How will you find the strength to endure then, when you are immobilized now if someone yells at you with his or her face?

"In that day you will wish that you had redeemed the time to grow in Me, while you had the opportunity to do so. You will regret the foolish ways that you spent your time, squandered your money, and trivialized My availability to teach you how to survive, even prosper. You need to take stock in your life now. What are your priorities? What are you learning? Who are you really serving? What are you doing with My resources of time, freedom, and wisdom? I have warned you; do not cast aside My counsel. Suddenly you will wish that you had heeded My Words.”

Isaiah 28:9-11 NLB 

9) They say, “Who does the Lord  think we are? Why does he speak to us like this? Are we little children, barely old enough to talk?

10) He tells us everything over and over again, a line at a time, in very simple words!”

11) Since they refuse to listen, God will speak to them through foreign oppressors who speak an unknown language!

Jeremiah 12:5  AMP

….. If you have raced with men on foot and they have tired you out, then how can you compete with horses? And if [you take flight] in a land of peace where you feel secure, then what will you do [when you tread the tangled maze of jungle haunted by lions] in the swelling and flooding of the Jordan?

John 12:35 NIV 

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while there is light, before darkness overtakes you.”

 

We have been so blessed in this land that we firmly believe that nothing can really change to the point of bondage and desperation, even when there have been so many warnings to the contrary. Throughout the Bible nations rise and fall, some because they were so decadent that God would no longer tolerate their sin.

In the last years, our Lord has warned those who would hear to be ready for anything at any time. The world is creaking and moaning, straining for the return of Jesus, and at the same time an unusual stillness has permeated our land. Business as usual is the order of the day while things are all heading in the direction of prophecy fulfilled. We as Christians should be working while there is light to work; instead, we are sleeping our way through them, consuming His grace and mercy on our lives. Our spiritual muscles have atrophied to the point that we can no longer stand, much less be a readied army. I believe that the Lord is heralding a wakeup call over and over again, and we are not hearing Him. We have been lulled to sleep.

Teach me to really hear what You are saying, Lord,

Jim Corbett

“Would you like to be given the same mercy that you are giving others? How would you fare? Would you be under the weight of intolerance, judgment, and condemnation? Would you always fall short of someone’s expectation? You need to learn mercy! Give it away freely. Jesus died so that you might be free. I now expect you to flood others with the same mercy you have been given.”

Matthew 5:7 NIV

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”

Matthew 5:7 AMP

Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous - with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy!

 

A heart of mercy always wants to forgive, even when forgiveness is not asked for, nor deserved. Mercy is our means to salvation. Without it, none of us would have the possibility of spending eternity with God. It was mercy that initiated Father God’s sending His Son (Himself) for us. To continue to receive mercy, we must give mercy. A heart of mercy will never focus on itself. As soon as it desires something for itself, it will lose the ability to be merciful.

The merciful heart always esteems others more valuable than itself. Those with mercy understand bankruptcy and place themselves at the center of the need. Mercy drove Jesus to the cross. Neglecting mercy cuts off the lifeline with God, because He always operates where mercy is demonstrated. God’s judgment, the separation of good from evil, is always an act of mercy. In His mercy, God reveals our sin for the single purpose of providing freedom for us. Truth with mercy always brings life. Truth without mercy brings bondage, death, and a religious spirit. The heart of mercy always desires to treat others as God would treat them…

Thank You for Your mercy, Lord,

Jim Corbett

“Can I help you? In these times, I am calling you to continually head toward a deeper relationship with Me. I am asking you to pursue in earnest the death of your flesh, so that you can take on the character of My Son, Jesus. I am telling you that soon your world will be turned around and will become almost unrecognizable as My Word is fulfilled in your lifetime. Everything that I am saying, you must realize that it is very important. You must take heed. With all of this coming your way, I sense your feelings of helplessness to change, probably because you see little change in you so far, even though you feel that you have been trying for many years.

"Sometimes I see you heading toward hopelessness. You are missing the point of My message. Your job is not to change; your job is to submit. If you really understood the concept of Lordship, you would realize that it is totally foreign to your normal way of thinking and acting. You could struggle all you want; but after all of the fussing and struggling is over, your heart would still choose rebellion - doing things your own way - rather than being in total submission to Me. I am not asking you to change; you can’t. Only I can accomplish the changes that are needed. I am asking you to acknowledge who you are not, so that I am free to make you into who I know you can be. I must keep encouraging you to be like My Son.

"The world needs to see Him in you. I must continually make you aware of the times and seasons that are upon you. I must make you aware of your shortcomings, so that you know that change is necessary. But I never said that you should do it in your own strength. That is foolishness. You can no more modify your heart now than you could change it by yourself in the first place. You just keep coming to Me. Let’s talk. I will bring forth the changes.”

Galatians 3:3 AMP 

Are you so foolish and so senseless and so silly? Having begun [your new life spiritually] with the [Holy] Spirit, are you now reaching perfection [by dependence] on the flesh?

I Th. 5:23-24 NIV

23) May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

24) The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.

 

Do you realize that a good number of people you identify with in the church are former reprobates? Included in the group of your best friends are murderers, con men, street fighters, gang members, prostitutes, liars, cheaters, and so on and so on. Whether or not we want to accept it, we are a group of the forgiven - not the elite. We are chosen, not for what we were - for not one of us was capable of being anything good in the sight of God - but for what our gracious Lord saw that we could be.

The only qualification for entering this sorry group of now lovable people was to have realized - at one time or another - our bankruptcy as we cried out to the Lord in hopelessness. When that happened, all the past covenant promises of God invaded our sin-driven lives and implanted a new spirit. He changed us from within.

Now, He has taken it upon Himself to bring everything else in line with the new heart that has been placed within each of us. Moment by moment, we are continually being changed to reflect all that He is and all that He wants us to be. The Word is at work, the Holy Spirit is at work; and all the promises of God are at work to bring everything together in proper order.

In the same way that we all cried out to the Lord for help to change us, it is necessary to cry out for all that we need to become like Jesus. He calls, notifies, and woos us.  We respond by understanding that who He is asking us to become is an impossible task for us to accomplish and that He must do the changing.

Needing Him to even train me to submit, cry out, and surrender,

Jim Corbett

“Is your life of eternal consequence to others? Are you affecting those around you in a positive way? When was the last time you sought My counsel about a small detail in your life? I know that you pray. I know that you seek Me when you are in need. What about the details of your life that still remain yours. You said that you will give Me everything. To Me, that means everything. What does it mean to you? Jesus never held anything as His own. That’s the kind of heart I require of you. I am looking for your absolute submission to Me. Then I can trust you to be part of what I desire to do in your circle of influence. I will direct you to a significant life for the sake of My Word and for the best interests of others.”

Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV

8) “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

9) “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Matthew 21:28-31 NIV

28) “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’

29) “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.

30) “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will sir,’ but he did not go.

31) “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”

Matthew 25:23 NIV

"His master replied, `Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!’”

John 4:34 NIV

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”

John 5:19-20 NIV

19) Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

20) For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does.”

 

A pure heart is in complete union with the heart of God and therefore comes to God for God’s reasons, and to facilitate only God’s desires. There are no personal agendas, no hidden motives, and no quiet longings for independence of any kind.

Prayer is never a laundry list of needs, but a quiet waiting to hear the desires of the Lord and a zeal to implement whatever is required. A person functioning with a pure heart never second guesses or questions anything the Lord does. He is completely satisfied with all things, knowing that his very personal Lord is in control.

Teach me to submit completely to You, Lord,

Jim Corbett