Wow! Joyce Meyers you totally rock! I love love love this message she gave today on TBN at 3:30pm. This message is SPOT ON! LOVE IT! I'm so glad TogetherInWorship posted these video's on YouTube so that I could share them with all of you. I have typed a transcript of this message for my international readers who need to translate. Enjoy!
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1 Corinthians 3:11-15 says, "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is already laid which is Jesus Christ." So He's the foundation of our life. It's on Him that we stand. "But if anyone build's on that foundation, whether it be with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay or straw." So you could build with a lot of different stuff. "The work of every person will become plainly and openly known and shown for what it is. For the day of Christ will disclose and declare it because it will be revealed with fire. And the fire will test and critically appraise the character and the worth of the work that each person has done. If the work which any person has built on this foundation any product of his effort whatever survives this test then he will get his reward. But if any person's work is burned up under the test, he will suffer the loss of it all losing his reward. Though he himself will be saved, but only as one who is passed through the fire."
So we don't go to heaven based on any of our works. Done with the right or wrong motive. Our salvation is based on do you believe in Jesus? Have you received Him as your savior? Have you repented of your sins? But there are rewards that we can have in Heaven. And I don't know about you, but I don't want a mansion out in the back of nowhere. That's one room that needs a paint job. I want the full load. I want the best one up there. And I want a good chariot and don't want Dave to drive it. I want to drive it. That's one of the things I've told him that I'm praying for because Dave even after all of these years he still likes to act like a race car driver. I'm just kind of tired of my neck getting yanked around. I'm asking God when we get to heaven that he never let you drive but ride with me. I want to preach with Moses and Abraham. I'd like to do a conference with Jesus. Really more than anything I just want to be able to hear those words that we all want to hear "well done my good and faithful servant." I want alot of people to be in heaven because the work I did here was a pure work that God could really annoint and use.
You need to ask yourself, "What am I doing with my life." You're not going to really be here all that long. The journey is short. So make sure that your trip here counts for something. Don't just be wasting your time trying to get more things, more position, more this and more that. You know it might be a good exercise to go sometime in the next week to a junkyard and have a look. Because what's in there used to be somebody's dream. People destroyed relationships over what's now in that junkyard. People didn't have time for God and never got around to accepting Christ because of what's now in that junkyard. Making sure you're sowing for ETERNITY and I'm not against having nice things, I'm just saying you better make sure they DON'T HAVE YOU. And whatever you do have you ought to use it to serve God and be a blessing to other people. Don't use people to get things. Use things to bless people. There is a big difference.
Now I think one of the biggest favors that God did me and He's done alot of great things for me. But these scriptures in 1 Corinthians 3 were some of the first scriptures that I remember really studying in the bible over 32 years ago when I first started studying the Word of God. And it got down in me and least part of the way in the beginning that God was real concerned about MOTIVES and that we need to know WHY we do things. It's not just what we do that impresses God. But it's WHY we do them. And far too many people do things that look good to other people but they're doing them for a totally wrong reason. They might be doing them to get attention. They might be doing it as a people pleaser. They may not even believe it's God for them to do it. But just somebody wants them to do it and really they don't even feel right about it in their own heart but they're doing it just to keep these people happy. Well guess what you can keep them happy but God is not happy. We do alot of things out of obligation and duty and there is a certain part of that that is right but if you take it too far it can become a real problem in your life.
So that helped me in the beginning. I don't know how long it was maybe 20 years ago. God spent a fair amount of time really teaching me the importance of the inner life. And I would venture to say it was one of the high points in my Christian walk. You know of course salvation was first and being filled with the Holy Spirit was wonderful. You know you have the Holy Spirit when you're born again. You receive the Holy Spirit when you're born again. But to be filled with the Holy Spirit, it's kind of like a time in your life where you surrender. You want God to use every part of you and you know that you need His power. Because even though your saved, you're not living in the victory that you know you should have.
Then the next thing that was really wonderful for me was learning the important of the presence of God and understanding that the presence of God is with us ALL the time. And that if we'll train ourselves too we can recognize that and enjoy that and learning how to SEEK Him for who He was and NOT what He can do for me.
And then the fourth thing I remember being a real spiritual pinnacle for me was learning about the importance of inner life that God really really really wants what goes on in us to be right and pure, our thoughts and our attitudes and our motives. You know anytime that I teach on motives it get's really quiet. That's okay. Because to be honest sometimes I don't think we get quiet enough long enough to even pay any attention to what is going on in us. We stay so busy trying to impress each other and we get so caught up in what other people think and how we appear and what our success level is. And we're just missing the whole point.
Turn to 1 Peter 3 verses 3 and 4. I've done all kind's of teachings on the mind. I've probably got more teachings series on the mind than anything else. I've done alot of teachings on attitudes. We just need to listen to that stuff all the time. Because it's so easy to get stinkin' thinkin'. So many people say well my life just stinks. Well you better check your thoughts. Because where the mind goes the man follows. If you don't like your life today, it's because of what you thought yesterday. And if you want a life tomorrow, you going to have to change your thinking today.
1 Peter 3:3 (AMP) says, "Let not yours be merely or only the external adorning with elaborate interweaving and knotting of the hair, the wearing of jewelery, or the changes of clothes." Now you know some people have taken that and said well you know you can't wear jewelery, you shouldn't braid your hair, can't wear makeup, can't wear any pretty clothes. And really that's not what it says at all. It's not really talking about that. Why in the world would God make color if He didn't want to see it on us. 1 Peter 3:4 says, "Don't let it be merely or only that stuff that concerns you. But let it be the inward adorning and the beauty of the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptable and unfading charm of a gentle and a peaceful spirit that is not anxious or wrought up but is very precious in the sight of God."
If we don't get in touch with what's going on inside of us then we're going to have all kinds of bad behavior and we're going to stay busy blaming it on everyone else. Let's take Mary and Martha for example. Is everyone familiar with the attitude that Martha had. It's in Luke chapter 10 if you're not familiar with it. Two sisters that Jesus knew quite well visited them often. He came to their house and boy Martha was the first to open the door and welcomed him in and Mary had sat down at his feet because she saw an opportunity she wasn't want to miss. But Martha was busy and distracted it says with much serving. And then she started getting upset because Mary was sitting there enjoying Jesus and she was doing all the work. So she went to Jesus and said, "Well aren't you going to make her to help me. It's not right that I'm doing all the work." And Jesus said to her, "Martha Martha." It could have been Fred Fred so don't think that if you're not a woman you get out of this because you don't. Not here or those of you watching on T.V. I see you out there Fred and Martha.
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