“Our Daily Bread” http://odb.org
The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie http://www.harvest.org/devotional
Written by Bruce R. Mills for “Gods group” @ www.Godsmanforever.com
“Allow the Holy Spirit to set your heart “ON FIRE for the Lord BEFORE Communion”
1 John 1:9… If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (NKJV)
My friends, I wrote about the importance of understanding and invoking 1 John 1:9…in the life of the believer, with this absolutely most important piece of opening scripture for the “born again” Christian… There are at least 5 circumstances we as believers should be participating in on a regular basis… And before each of these, we should be right with the Lord, to allow the Holy Spirit to work in our heart and life… These 5 circumstances are: A) before we pray…B) before we read scripture (to have it illuminated by the Holy Spirit)…C) before we open our hearts and minds to hearing a sermon in Church on Sunday… D) before we share our faith with someone who has not yet been saved by God’s grace alone…and E) especially before we take part in Communion at Church… You can read about these in the link found in Reference number 1. below
Today I am going to focus on Communion, and why we MUST be right with God, “with God first in our lives”, before we partake of Communion at Church…
I emphasize that God MUST be “first in our lives” before we partake of Communion…or we are risking God’s chastisement (Hebrews 12:6-11), or worse, God snuffing out our life…if we take Communion as a “born again” Christian in an unworthy manner…
The Apostle Paul tells us about this when he wrote about the institution of the Lord Supper, and our need to examine ourselves in…1 Corinthians 11:17-32… [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+cor+11%3A17-32&version=NKJV]
1 Corinthians 11:27-29… Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. (NKJV)
The Apostle Paul goes on to tell us this, in…Corinthians 11:30… For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. (NKJV) When Paul pens “many sleep”, he means God takes their lives early, because they continued to take Communion in an unworthy manner… I believe this warning is a VERY IMPORTANT part of Communion… I have heard this from a few Pastors… Failure of the Pastor to share this warning, and urge every member to be sure God is first in their lives before taking Communion…is doing an injustice to the congregation, because many don’t understand that their very lives could be in jeopardy if they partake of the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner… We all sin, but I am thinking of someone living in willful unrepentant sin, that is NOT going to stop…but still takes Communion…
When the Apostle Paul tells us to “let a man examine himself”, he wants us to ask God to forgive us of our sins to be right with the Lord before Communion… But God’s Word also teaches us, that God won’t hear our prayers if we have iniquity in our heart… (Psalm 66:18, Isaiah 59:1-2, John 9:31, and 1 Peter 3:12) My friends, if God is not first in our lives, we are living in the worst sin of all !! The sin of omission, as penned by the Apostle James, in…
James 4:17… Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin. (NKJV)
We know as “born again” believers, that God wants us to love Him first with ALL of our heart, mind, soul, and strength… This is Jesus’ first, and most important Commandment, found in…Luke 10:27… If we want God to hear our prayers, and He is not first in our lives, we must FIRST pray to God to forgive us of this most drastic sin, and for Him to take back control of our lives, to allow the Holy Spirit to have total control of what we say and do… With this MAJOR sin confessed, repented of, and turned from…we will be able to examine ourselves to confess any and all known sins to God, before Communion… But I like to ask the Lord to search my heart, and show me any hidden sins…because our hearts are deceitful above all things, as we see in…Jeremiah 17:9… God promises that anything we ask in His will He will hear us, in…1 John 5:14… Of course God will show us any hidden sins, if we ask Him with a heart filled with the Holy Spirit…
When we are right with God, with all sins confessed (1 John 1:9) and our heart is filled with the Holy Spirit…we are able to worship the Lord with our hymns and spiritual songs as we see penned by the Apostle Paul in…
Ephesians 5:18-20… And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (NKJV)
I believe this use of 1 John 1:9 before any Church service begins, with the Pastor urging the congregation to ask God to search their hearts for any hidden sins like King David, did in…Psalm 139:23-24…and to be sure God is First in their lives, will allow and the Holy Spirit to convict the hearts of many church member to put God first… It is indeed the power of the Holy Spirit that helps keep hearts and minds focused on the Lord, and on the Pastors sermon… Lives will be blessed and God will be glorified with the Holy Spirit is active and alive in the hearts of the church members !!
Gracious God and heavenly Father, I pray all eyes who have read today’s post, will understand the importance of confessing their sins (1 John 1:9) any time the Holy Spirit convicts them that they have sinned… I pray Father, that Your living and powerful Word (Hebrews 4:12) will cut right to the bone and marrow of anyone who is a believer, and is now living with known unconfessed sins in their lives… I pray You set hearts “ON FIRE” by the power of the Holy Spirit so that lives will be molded and conformed by You into the image of Your Son Jesus Christ…Romans 8:29… I pray for any believers not living with You first in their lives, will be changed by You today, in the sweet name of Your Son Jesus, and for His sake…Amen…
Blessings in Christ, bruce
P.S. When there is no other place to turn…turn to God !! If you’re not a “born again” Christian, is the Holy Spirit urging you to open this link ?? Here is the truth for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… https://godsmanforever.com
To my brothers and sisters in Christ, please feel free to share this message of the cross with those in need…
You say you are a “born again” believer… But are you “ON FIRE” for the Lord ?? If not, open this link – https://godsmanforever.com/2020/08/01/are-you-a-christian-in-gods-eyes-and-on-fire-for-the-lord-or-not/
REFERENCES:
- 5 reasons for invoking 1 John 1:9 writing – https://godsmanforever.com/2020/09/24/the-importance-of-1-john-19-for-the-born-again-christian-9-24-2020-written-by-bruce-r-mills-for-gods-group/
God's group 
Thanks for sharing this
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