Soul Medicine

Devil Lurks Around Trying To Lure Us Away From Our Focus On Jesus 1 John 3:7-9 7Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. 9No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.

Committing A Sin Is Different Than Continuing To Sin. Live Life Desiring To Follow Christ 1 John 3:4-6 4Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. 5But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. 6No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.

Live Like You Are The Children Of God Today And Everyday 1 John 3:1-3 1See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, a we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

Don't Live In A Deficit Of Faith Or Behavior, May Both Be Evident In Your Life 1 John 2:28-29 28And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. 29If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

Place Your Trust, Rely For Guidance, Live According To God 1 John 2:26-27 26I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

Always Remember, Never Forget: Jesus Is God's Son And His Sacrifice Is Permanent 1 John 2:24-25 24As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25And this is what he promised us—eternal life.

Be Careful And Measure Everything You Against Scripture 1 John 2:22-23 22Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. 23No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

Jesus Is The Truth, Live Your Life For Him And The Truth Will Guide You 1 John 2:20-21 20But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. e 21I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.

Is Your Life Sold Out For Christ Or Are You Still Standing On The Outskirts? 1 John 2:18-19 18Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.

Let Nothing Stand In The Way Of Your Love And Devotion For God 1 John 2:15-17 15Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father d is not in them. 16For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

Does Your Maturity In Christ Match The Stage Of Life With Christ? 1 John 2:12-14 12I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. 13I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 14I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

God Loves Those In The World So Therefore We Need To Love As Well 1 John 2:9-11 9Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister b is still in the darkness. 10Anyone who loves their brother and sister c lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. 11But anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them.

Stand Tall For Jesus; Think, Act, Live, Love Like Jesus 1 John 2:7-8 7Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. 8Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.

Our Steps Leaving His Print 1 John 2:3-6 3We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5But if anyone obeys his word, love for God a is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.

Christ Stands Before God As Your Advocate. No Greater Place To Be While Here On Earth 1 John 2:1-2 1My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

Confess To God So You Can Enjoy The Maximum Joy And Fellowship With Him 1 John 1:8-10 8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

We Love God And Court Sin; We Must Love God With A Desire Not To Sin 1 John 1:5-7 5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all b sin.

Encouragement Is Important; Read The Word So You Can Be Encouraged 1 John 1:1-4 1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this to make our joy complete.

Be Careful Of Partial Blindness And Loss Of Hearing Isaiah 42:18-20 18“Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! 19Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one in covenant with me, blind like the servant of the Lord? 20You have seen many things, but you pay no attention; your ears are open, but you do not listen.”

God Loves The World; Share His Love With The World Isaiah 65:1-2 1“I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.' 2All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations—

Draw Closer To Jesus So You Can Be Prepared To Stand For Him In Any Circumstance 2 Peter 3:17-18 17Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

Live Out A Life Of Grace By Serving And Living Out A Life Like Jesus 2 Peter 3:15-16 15Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

What Would YOU like To Be Doing When Christ Returns? Live Like That Everyday. 2 Peter 3:13-14 13But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. 14So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

Develop What Will Last For Eternity While You're Here On Earth: Your Christlike Character 2 Peter 3:10-12 10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. 11Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.

Don't Just Sit On The Bench Waiting For Christ's Return; Get Up And Share His Love 2 Peter 3:8-9 8But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Don't Listen To The World That Scoffs At God. Have You Found Yourself Doing That? 2 Peter 3:3-4 3Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4They will say, “Where is this ‘coming' he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”

Allow God's Word To Stimulate You To Wholesome Thinking And Living 2 Peter 3:1-2 1Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. 2I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.

Don't Turn Away From The Only Way 2 Peter 2:20-22 20If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” g and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”

Be Careful Of What The World May Say And Follow Only The Way Of God 2 Peter 2:17-19 17These people are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. 18For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. 19They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”

God Loves The World But Saves Only Those Who Believe In Jesus 2 Peter 2:4-6 4For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, a putting them in chains of darkness b to be held for judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;

Measure Everything You Read, Watch And Hear Against Scripture: It Must Fall In Line With It To Be Legit 2 Peter 2:1-3 1But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

You Can Trust The Bible Because God Wrote It 2 Peter 1:16-21 16For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” b 18We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. 19We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation of things. 21For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Remain Focused On The Fundamentals Of Faith 2 Peter 1:12 12So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have.

Let's Do IT, Because HE DID IT! 2 Peter 1:8-9 8For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

Are You Eager To Live For Jesus? If You're Not, Why? 2 Peter 1:10-11 10Therefore, my brothers and sisters, a make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Faith Is More Than A Belief; It Involves Action And That Takes Desire And Focus 2 Peter 1:5-7 5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.

We Have A Choice; One Leads To Life And You Guessed It; The Other Leads To DEATH Deuteronomy 11:26-28 26See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— 27the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; 28the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known.

Place Nothing In Front Of Your Focus On God Deuteronomy 11:16-17 16Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. 17Then the Lord's anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you.

God Will Deliver You; Trust In Him To Do It Exodus 14:15-16 15Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 16Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

We Have God's Devine Power Living Within Us. 2 Peter 1:3-4 3His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

To Know Him Takes Desire And Dedication In Spending Time With Him, In Reading Scripture and in Prayer 2 Peter 1:1-2 1Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: 2Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

Reach Out And Encourage! It Makes A Difference! 1 Peter 5:12-13 12With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. 13She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. 14Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

May God's Promise Carry You Through The Storms And Struggles 1 Peter 5:10-11 10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Trust God Fully And Remain Vertically Focused: Eyes And Heart Fixed On Him 1 Peter 5:7-9 7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 8Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Everyone, Young And Old, Walk Humbly With The Lord 1 Peter 5:5-6 5In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” 6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

Lead By Example Not By Force 1 Peter 5:1-4 1To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

Admit Sin Sooner, Focus Vertically Longer, Trust God Always 1 Peter 4:17-19 17For it is time for judgment to begin with God's household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18And, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” 19So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

Suffering Should Be Spirit Induced And Never Self Motivated 1 Peter 4:14-16 14If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.

Keep Your Focus On The Victory Through Christ As You Suffer In What You May Be Going Through 1 Peter 4:12-13 12Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

Every One Of Us Has Talents, Find Yours And Use It For His Glory 1 Peter 4:10-11 10Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. 11If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Live Expectantly Of Christ's Return 1 Peter 4:7-9 7The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.