FOLLOW ME. That's what Jesus said. What does it mean? To the disciples then it meant to physically follow Him so they could learn. Learn what? What He did? No, not so much what He did, as how and why. A book with a three year list of where He went and what He did is not much help to us. What we need to know is how He did it. Then maybe we can repeat what He did. What we need to understand is why He acted that way. The heart motivation is what He wants that we should see. It is the heart of God that He came to show. That's why He said, "Follow Me." The list of things He did is immeasurable. The world could not contain enough books to record all He did. That's what the Bible says. So how can we repeat what He did? Not by the things but by the heart. The heart was always the same. By seeing His heart in operation in different circumstances we can understand what motivated Him. That's what He wants us to see! The Bible teaches us that a man can give even his life and still not know the love of God. So it is not the actions that count so much as the heart motivation of them. It's not how much money you give. Remember the widow who put in a penny. Jesus said what she gave counted for more in God's kingdom than the bigger amount put in by the rich man. So it is not the action, but the heart that guides it which we need to study. Actions are endless. There is a endless list of actions which we could never learn them all. But we can learn the attitude of the heart behind all those actions. A list of things a man did during his lifetime would take a world full of books. But the heart behind them all takes only one. That is how we come to know Jesus. By seeing just enough of His actions in different circumstances, and understanding His words we can see the motive of His heart. Then we can follow Him in the way that counts. That way is from the heart. We follow His heart by our heart. This is what God has given us. The heart of Jesus. When we say God is Love, we include all that He is in this divine concept of Love. To study out love would show us God. But we are human. We have limited comprehension except by faith. It is by faith we comprehend God. And He uses words to give us that faith. He shows us different views of His one and the same nature with different words. Then He even shows us how they blend together as the bone blends imperceptibly into the connective tissue which then changes slowly into muscle, but they are all one body. So I think it is with God. For He has given us the human body as a picture of what can be known of the temple of God and of God. (The things of God which can be known are clearly revealed in the things He has created.) So as we study out the Love of God we come to know these further words of Him. Love, mercy, acceptance, and reconciliation. Love says it all by itself. But unless we study it all we cannot comprehend that single word. Therefore we use more words while we learn. Finally to one who has learned it is possible to communicate the whole idea in a single word when speaking with another person who also has learned. But to say that one single word to a novice does not communicate the fullness of meaning. We must elaborate to make a novice understand. In the end, John writes the whole law is fulfilled in this one word, Love. But a novice reader cannot comprehend the significance. The word Love communicates to John the love, mercy, acceptance, and reconciliation of God toward us in all our salvation. Why? Because he had studied out the scripture, and reduced the equation down to its simplest form. Love is the simplest form of declaring God. Now we will endeavor to expand that word into its many parts of meaning so that even a novice can comprehend the meaning. Love, desires good things for the other person Mercy, forgives the sin and gives the help needed Acceptance, of all the person or situation, the good and the bad Reconciliation, works out the acceptance in mercy and love on earth as it is in heaven. Through faith and patience looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. In these four words, you can see the entire salvation of God. When you study them out it will be clear. There is no need for any further complication. But these four words can be understood in great depth. We spend our life time growing in their understanding. If you keep them as a focal point, you can always find your bearings in any situation. In algebra we can expand any equation until it fills endless books. In arithmetic we can say 2+2=4 or we can fill books with fractions adding up to the same thing. If you wrote something like this "0.0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001" plus "0.000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001" it would take many books full of pages of writing before you could finally say, the sum of all these parts is four. It's the same with words as it is with numbers. When a man who understands says a true word, it has a fullness of meaning to him. But it only means to the hearer what the hearer understands it to mean. That's why we study. So we can know the meaning when we say something in a simple way. These four words are like a top of a mountain full of meaning. The more we dig into their meaning, the more of that mountain we see when we say the words. The Bible shows us the rich depth of meaning for each word by the contexts in which each word is used. It's like a huge set of simultaneous equations. By running each sentence in comparison with all the others we find the key way in which they fit. You must let the Bible define itself in such a manner. Whatever you thought you knew, you must let go so you can learn from the Bible point of view. The Bible is perfectly true, and all its parts fit perfectly. To see that perfection requires letting the Bible define its various parts. Just as algebraic expressions define the variables, so the Bible contexts define the words. Not just one context, but all, taken together as a perfectly fitted whole. What the wise man of understanding can say to another in a few words must be said in many words to explain it for the first time to someone who has not learned. Paul preached Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Paul preached the cross. Not just the glory but the glory and the cross. The offence of the cross has caused many to turn away their ear from hearing, but the message of the cross is central to salvation, not just in that life which is to come but also in this present world. If we are to know our eternal salvation, we must know the cross. And if we want to know our present salvation in situations in which we find ourselves, we must know the cross. For it is by the cross that God worked reconciliation. For those whose heart already has many walls and barriers up against such hard words, please consider the scripture: Eph 2:16 He...reconcile...by the cross He slew the enmity by the cross. He overcame that which separated us by the cross. God used the cross to shed the blood of Jesus. The cross is the place of Jesus' ultimate sacrifice, willingly of His own life for our sake. The cross is where Jesus showed forth most gloriously the love of God. The cross is where by the power of love, the Son of God endured unto death. The cross is where He was lifted up and drew all men unto Himself. He drew us all with all our sin and pain and grief and agony of sufferings and killed it all, slew it all, overcame it all by nailing it to the cross unto death in His own body! As we comprehend the truth of these things we begin to see the power worked by God through Jesus nailed to that cross. As we see the power by faith we are enabled to receive what we know and believe. It is God who makes us see. In His loving kindness and tender mercy He enables us to see and know and consider and understand (Isa 41:20) all together the working of His mighty power. If these things are new to you then please seek a blessing from God for yourself by seeking out these scriptures and reading them reverently trusting God to show you His truth. Psa 110:2,3 22:16-18 1 Thessalonians 1:5 Philippians 3:9 Isaiah 53:all 8:14 Deut 21:22,23 Song of Solomon 1:4 Hosea 11:4 Mat 10:38 11:25 20:28 John 3:14-18 5:10,21,24 6:40-44 8:28 10:28 19:17 12:32 Galatians Gal 2:20 3:13 5:11 6:12-14 1 Tim 2:6 Heb 2:9 7:25 1 John 2:2 1 Pet 1:3 2:24 3:18 Eph 2:1,16 3:18-19 Col 1:7 2:13 3:3 Rom 1:16 6:3,4 8:10,11 9:32,33 14:8,9 Acts 13:41 17:18 1 Cor 1:18-25 2:2,14 3:19 2 Cor 2:16 4:3 5:21 1 Peter 1:3 The Shortest Summary of What You Can Learn Reading This What It Means To Follow Jesus When you understand you know you have received: eternal salvation for your spirit, soul, and body. situational salvation for all the affairs and details of your life Victory in Jesus is your Joy! Available from Larry Rice, 4908 George, Wichita Falls, Tx 7302 Hope to have it in book stores soon. Pray for me and for this word to go forth. Pray for a publisher to come forward as a servant of God to help in shining this light. FOCUS THE LIGHT, PLEASE! The goal of Christian education is Christ. Focus the Light, Please! is the title for a series of writings on our Christian faith. The name was selected for its representation of two ideas. One being a problem to be overcome and the second being a solution to the blurry, fuzzy picture. The problem is a kaleidoscopic, disjointed or unclear understanding that many have of their salvation. The solution is the focus of God. Christ's vision of the order and progressive revelation of God showing us salvation through scripture and the life of Jesus by His Holy Spirit. Like leaves on a tree is many people's understanding of faith. If the leaves are not seen as outgrowths of the seed, connected to the branch, and the trunk, and the root, and the seed in the new fruit, then there is incomplete or disordered understanding. Where fruitfulness or the joy of victory is lacking in a life, there is commonly an incomplete understanding. Rather than start with a collection of leaves blown in the wind and collected in a basket of doctrinal leaves that some have, I give you the seed of our Christian faith which is Christ (Gal 3:16). Then proceed on to show how it falls to the ground and dies to produce fruit. As I believe Paul understood all that he knew or taught came out of knowing the truth of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Jesus said, I am the root and the offspring. When you see the growth and development of a tree of righteousness beginning with the true seed, then you won't lose focus in all the leaves. You won't despair over the fruit, for you know that the whole complete mature tree and all its fruit is in the seed and comes forth from the seed as God pours out His Spirit and gives the increase. Focus the Light, Please! sets forth in order the different members of the body of doctrine of our salvation. This is the book that can give you a great and clear perspective from beginning to end, through cycle after cycle of the seed reproducing according to its kind, being fruitful and multiplying. It is the encyclopedia of Christian faith for which I looked in 1961 but could not find. Now it is yours. Everything in these writings is intended to be written in agreement with the apostle Paul. When the light is focused in your understanding, you can see more clearly by faith to follow Jesus in all the situations of your life and have more fruit. A brief outline of the theme is presented here for those who want to evaluate the worthiness of these writings for their time to read them and study them. For the writings are not small. They encompass the greatest theme of all, our eternal salvation. For the greatness of what is set in order, the writings are small and the reward is wonderful for taking the time to study what is offered to you now. As the chemistry of life is filled with checks and balances, safety valves and safe-guarding redundancies, so is the chemistry of words when explaining eternal life as God's gift to us. So please bear with some overlapping and redundancies as they seem necessary for understanding in many different yet related ideas. Many scriptures shed light in different ways on different topics, and so the same scripture is quoted for different reasons in different contexts. This is not written for one who already knows everything, but for those who must study to learn what they desire to know. I have endeavored to explain each key concept so the words have richness of meaning to the student instead of just being a lifeless terminology. That's why so many scriptures are given on the word 'truth' and 'mercy'. Some may think they know what a word means, but if they have no story behind their one sentence definition, how much depth do they have in their understanding? Stories make up for lack of life experiences to those who are learning. Richness of examples give depth to the meaning of common words that otherwise would be shallow and weak of life. When we think of mercy, we mean so much more than just 'to forgive' or 'forgiveness'. And so it is with most of the key words of our Christian faith. If you are looking only for books that entertain you and can be lightly read, this is not for you. If you are willing to pay a price of focusing your mind to see the interrelationships of truth, then dig in and enjoy. For this is strong meat in its entirety. When you have finished you will see a pattern in the salvation of God through Jesus Christ. And you can see to repeat that pattern by the faith of Him who lives in you. You can be, as surely as you are a vessel of His mercy, a vessel of His reconciliation. These topics could be covered in many sequences depending on the understanding of the reader. You may discover value in refreshing your memory on some topics while reading a new topic. The goal is not so much to minister salvation to one who does not yet believe, but rather to strengthen the understanding of those who already believe. To help you see the repeating pattern of salvation is the goal of this writing. For those who want pure milk there is a set called Grace and Milk. Please recognize this is not intended to be for milk. What follows next is a summary outline of coverage. Summary Outline The Goal of Christian Education is Christ, Not Just Filling Time Christ won eternal salvation for us. Christ won victory for us in this present world. What we don't understand, the enemy can rob. Focusing the light gives us a clearer picture to understand more Focused light makes us see the details of God's pattern in order. Focused light gives us confidence to walk with God. Where there is confusion, even the light is as darkness. Trees of Righteousness (Isa 61) We are the planting of the Lord Develops the idea of seed Reproduces after its own kind, according to the pattern seed Grows in truth Salvation Salvation is of God God is become our Salvation. Isa 12:2 Not just our helper, but He is All and All. Small Things Shows the importance of small things Points out the seed as a small thing Importance of small details of scripture How that which seemed least became the head! The Sunflower and the Works of God Seeks the face of God Grows by God's grace, not by works Consider the lilies of the field how they grow Peace in Your Soul Freedom from fear and torment Knowing what God worked through Jesus gives peace (Rom4&5) Peace with God (Rom 4&5) Peace in the valley of the shadow of death Knowing that you and your life situations are reconciled to God Doing the will of God makes you experience the peace He has given Follow peace and holiness A root idea of peace is being at one with, integrity, & wholeness Love God's love Love is all The Lost Brother Law and love John Moreland's book on love as emphasized by the apostle John is available from Foundation Ministries, Azle, Texas. Mercy The most directly instructed lesson in the Bible for us to learn. Jesus said, Go and learn what this means, I will have mercy Mercy is not just forgiveness, but more like the attitude of the womb forgives all, in love seeking good gives every needed helpful thing, in love seeking good in tender compassion and acceptance of love seeking the good The fruitfull green olive tree trusts in the loving mercy of God. Ps 52:8 So do all who are fruitful. Acceptance Is possible for any person or situation after applying God's mercy Accept one another as God accepted you for Christ's sake Accept your situation in life as God's eternal loving plan Common cause of failure is discontent through failure to accept Over-reaching, thinking too highly of yourself Lusting for more and greater Youth's comparing of selves with others Discontent with parents and many problems resulting Discontent or denial of status, current abilities Overcoming these problems by Confess the sin of denying the truth of a person, thing, or situation discontent, thinking too highly of your self reaching too high Confess the truth of God the lines of my life are laid out in a pleasant manner God's eternal loving plan is working my good Obedience is better, more fruitful than sacrifice, Contentment with godliness is great gain Things accepted can be reconciled. Things you reject or deny don't get reconciled Discontent causes excessive striving, reaching, overburdening Failure results from trying to compensate for discontent and denial. Reconciliation and godly fruit comes after acceptance Comfort and Peace for Your Soul The Blessings of the Womb Gen 49:25 Paul Called from the womb God gave you hope for milk even on your mother's breasts Ps 22:9 Righteousness Righteousness and Peace Have Kissed Righteousness Peace and Joy - three layers of understanding Righteousness of God Righteousness of God is His free gift to us by Christ Jesus Righteousness Grace and Faith of Romans 4 & 5, a holy triangle of ideas. Peace There is no peace to the wicked Doing the will of God allows you to know His peace The will of God is that you believe on Jesus as Savior and Lord Peace with God (Romans 4 & 5) by faith in Christ and His shed blood God is your peace. His name is Prince of Peace. Joy The Joy of the Lord is my strength With Joy shall you draw forth strength from the wells of salvation. Beholding Jesus, who for the joy set before Him,... The Victory is what gave Him joy and strength to endure it all Your Victory gives you that same joy and strength as you behold Him Victory is not just getting what you want. Four different ways of victory in Jesus 1. foresee evil and avoid 2. escape out of the midst 3. endure as on the cross and then the resurrection 4. overcome as Jesus overcame the temptation, conquer and win Truth- God's word is truth Speaking the truth in love we grow up into Him You shall know the truth, and be free Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God Love of the truth, desiring it for its beauty and holiness of life Faith Faith which works through love Heb 11:1,3 Faith as a child to believe the Father to understand His word Faithful and True, Fidelity Grace Noah Webster's definition in order of occurence in scripture the divine influence of God for most contexts loving kindness unmerited favor Obedience We are called to the obedience of the faith Jesus learned obedience by the things He suffered Obedience is better than sacrifice Baptism is our first God ordained action of faithful obedience of our faith He worked in us to believe He gave you grace to hear to be baptized. Now show yourself a true believer, go and be baptized calling on Jesus. Layers of the Pearl Irritations make the pearl Seed must fall to the ground and die for fruit to come Jesus learned obedience by the things He suffered Scriptures on suffering Priorities God's covenant with us is perfect, complete and ordered in all things. See that you do all things according to the pattern shown you (Heb 8:5) Nothing is perfect in this world so you must exercise mercy to accept either a person as he is or a situation His name shows order, Alpha and Omega, First and Last, Beginning and End The Kingdom of Heaven Is not meat and drink, but righteousness peace and joy. Seek not the things of this earth, but those above where Christ is Is as a grain of mustard seed within you until it grows Is spiritually discerned The Wise Masterbuilder's Plan (1 Cor 3) Milk of the word is what God has done for us in Christ Specific to the cross is that Jesus died for us. Meat of the cross is verses like Col 3:3 Strong meat of the cross is 'take up your cross and follow Me' Heart should be established in grace before given meat (Heb 13:9) Strong meat is reserved Butter is like 'for it is God who works in you to will and to do' Used for weaning from milk to meat Honey is praise and honor when due, recognition of growth, accomplishment. Affirming them, building up their confidence by affirming their growth. Reconciled by the Cross God Reconciled us to Himself In Christ by the cross (Eph 2:16 Isa 53:10) God reconciled all things unto Himself (Col 1:20-, Rom 8:28-) the rose even the thorns He put to death all enmity by the Cross (Eph 2:16) the flesh (Col 3:3 2 Cor 5:14 Rom 6:6 Rom 8:10 Rom 7:1) We get to experience the cross so we can live unto God by faith He did it. Now He works in us to manifest His work through Christ in us Root Faith For All Victory Instead of fighting all the thorns, destroy the root If Christ be in you the body is dead (Romans 8:10) Spirals of Life Repeating patterns of the seed (Gen 1: ) Christ is our seed (Gal 3:16) Four phase outline of the seed pattern zero degrees: recognizing the sin problem (John 3:14) 90 degrees: seeing God's righteousness (John 3:16) 180 degrees: faith learning His way for that situation 360 degrees: experiencing the victory SEED FAITH ELEMENTS OF SALVATION D.N.A. of the Seed Christ is the Head Christ and Him Crucified Christ is All and All The Good Seed Had to fall to the ground and die to produce fruit How can we expect any less than to have to die as He? The flesh does not want the cross, but it does want the glory The flesh and even the devil want the glory The way to the glory Jesus showed us is through that cross of His Forty-eight chromosomes in the genetic code of life Life Applications Planting the good seed in your situations of life A check list to see clearly what you have done and need to do Following Jesus in matters of Love, sweethearts, marriage/Fidelity, faithful and true Money, doing all things as unto God, not for money, but for Jesus Seek first the kingdom of heaven and all things will be added to you The Viking and the French Lady/ compatibility issues The sweetheart you left behind/ fidelity/ being faithful and true Grades/what the Bible says about learning/ how to study Jobs and employers/working as unto God/do all things as unto God Give yourself first unto God, then unto the God given authority in your life Serving your employer or supervisor as serving God Making Decisions/ Letting peace rule in your heart Colossians 3:15 God who is divine love, in His mercy as of the womb, for He knew us before the creation of the world, made us acceptable in the beloved. He worked out the reconciliation through Jesus and His shed blood on that cross. The love motivates the mercy. Having mercy we were accepted to be the people of God. Being His people we know the reconciliation of God. Though God is one, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one...", we see Him as through a glass darkly and we know Him in part. When that which is perfect is come we will be completely and perfectly transformed to be even as He. Then we will know Him as also we are known of Him. Our faith must be carried in love, full of mercy, accepting the will of God to see His reconciliation made manifest. Like cups fitting inside one another. Love has the cup of mercy, which has the cup of acceptance, which allows reconciliation in faith of God through Jesus Christ and Him crucified. ACCEPTANCE of who and what you are now in the love and mercy of God is vital to you being able to see the reconciliation of God in all the affairs of your life. God knows you are not perfect. That's why He sent Jesus. So quit trying to be. Let Jesus be your sufficiency. FAITHFULLY DO according to the truth of who and what you are now, and you will be free from the ungodly burden of trying to be something God has not created. The ninety pound weakling who tried to act like a strong man and tried to carry 200 pounds up the mountain failed. Why? Because he thought higher of himself than he should. Why? Because he failed to accept where he was at in his stage of growth. Every strong man was once a baby. Unless we live where we are, we will fail, for we cannot be other than God has created and designed. Be content with God's plan and live by faith according to His eternal loving plan for you in Christ Jesus, our Lord and our Savior. Does the mother resent giving milk to her baby? Some mother's might, but God never does resent helping His children and giving them every good thing they need for life and godliness. Does the mother expect her baby to wash dishes and work? Your heavenly Father only wants you to be where you are, what you are, and as you are. As the tree grows, so you grow day by day. We are not called popcorn, we don't happen overnight. We are called trees of righteousness. And He is patient for both the early and the latter rain. He knows the life and the growth of the full tree is in the seed which He has planted. He is faithful to finish the good work He has begun in you. Trust in the Lord, and do the good you know. So shall you be established and see His glory. SUMMARY Like discovering the elements of the periodic table we are now discovering the chromosomes of the human genetic code. Since the Bible clearly states that the things of God which can be known are clearly seen from the things He has created, we know we can learn things of God from what He has created. it is good to study the scripture in the light of what He shows us in all creation. Scripture will not contradict what God has created. Neither will His creation contradict His word. They will agree in one testimony to God and of God. We do study scripture in the light of creation when we understand the words male and female seeing what He has created. So I have not introduced a new idea here, but merely clarified a principle that is as old as scripture. In physics we learn the law of entrophy which states that all ordered systems tend to become disordered. To put it simply, all things run downhill, they deteriate. They die or decompose. They return to their simplest state. Man returns to the dust from which he came. Grass withers and dies. This demonstrates the sin principle of evil and destruction and death. This is just one example of how God's spiritual truths are demonstrated in the things He has created. The pages I wrote on this whole idea of God revealed in natural laws of His creation is old and lost as they were written in 1970. But many clear examples can be given if one takes the time. The law of cause and effect is equivalent to scripture saying you reap what you sow. The physical laws mirror the spiritual. The manifested Christ is the image of God. This brings me to a major idea of how to interpret the Bible. First, by the Spirit of God in faith towards Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. Secondly as seeing the Word being manifest in the flesh, for this is the purpose of His coming. The WORD as in the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit is our Salvation. Third, as always holding Christ Jesus as the Head, (Col 2:19) the whole point and purpose, the root and the offspring, and the fruit of any teaching or doctrine. Fourth, to know Jesus Christ and Him crucified as the root and the offspring, the source of all doctrine. That all truth Paul knew and taught came from His knowledge of Jesus Christ and Him crucified is a major point of understanding. So it should be also with us. (1Cor 2:2) In engineering using a slide rule many students err by paying too much attention to the decimals and forgetting the decimal point. Understanding what this means we can see the importance of keeping our main focus on the Head of the body, just as the engineer must focus on the decimal point to be any where near right. But what happens is that through pride or fear one will being to get lost in the minor things to show how accurate he is, and then forgetting the whole point will misplace the main significance of the decimal point, or the scriptural true interpretation. So keep Jesus as the Head of any body of doctrine you study. Jesus Christ is now seated in heavenly places at the right hand of God, and He gives us faith that He is ascended into glory; then He points us to the life He lived on earth as a man in mortal flesh and says, "Follow thou Me." And in another place He said, "I Am. The Way. the Truth. And the Life." His life while on earth is our example to follow. We gain strength to follow as we know the joy set before us just like He did. (Heb 12:2 tells us "Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.") We all know to follow Jesus. We know He told us to follow Him. We know He said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. But who can repeat what this means? How many are in a grey fog of understanding, thinking a vague picture of taking their Bible, going to church, praying, and worshipping God is the fulfillment. In so much as Christ is our sufficiency, that is the fullfillment. For He is our perfection and the Savior of all who believe. But we are also told He will make us to grow in grace and faith. Therefore He gives us to understand more of His truth, even as the David said, "the LORD made me understand in writing by His hand, even all the works of this pattern." in reference to the house of the LORD. Now our body is the temple of the Lord, and His life is the pattern. Even our soul is worked by Him. He has given us to understand His works as they pertain to the salvation He has given that we might by faith of Him do likewise. Surely He reveals His salvation to those who believe. And in His mercy, He has given us grace to believe. Praise His holy Name. Amen. My statement for this book is it will be a tool God can use to help you see a repeating pattern of our seed which is Christ. Not where He went and what He did, but why He went and how He did. Not a list of places and events for three years long; but a repeating pattern of heart attitudes and motivations of God. A cycle of love, mercy, acceptance and reconciliation that cycles time and again, accomplishing the will of God for salvation. As you see the pattern He worked in the eternal salvation of your soul, and believe the truth of Colossians 1:20-, you are enabled to exercise faith for that pattern to repeat in your life towards any situation you face. Surely that which is sufficient for the salvation of your eternal soul is sufficient, yea, more than sufficient for the reconciliation of any temporary situation that occurs in this present life. Did not God work it together for good that the Roman soldiers escorted Jesus to that cross! Had you not known, wouldn't it have torn you up to be there and see it happening? Yes, it would have if you did not know the truth. The truth is that God has reconciled all things unto Himself in Christ Jesus by the cross. That cross was part of God's plan. Man just didn't know it. The devil didn't know it, else He wouldn't have crucified the LORD. What you don't know can hurt you. God's people are destroyed for their lack of knowledge. So learn the truth that He has not only reconciled you unto Himself, but He has reconciled all things concerning you into His eternal loving plan. All things, whether they be things above or things beneath, or things present or things past or things to come,...they are all reconciled. (Eph 2:16 Col 1:20) Many have a strong faith for their eternal salvation of their soul. I hope and trust in God they will also now find that same strength of faith for situational salvation of their circumstances, whether it be people, places, or things; God has worked it all together for good. Indeed all the truth of Romans 8:28 hangs on the nail of scriptural understanding of Colossians 1:20! Without knowing a historical factual basis for Romans 8:28 that it is an accomplished fact, then a man is left to try to make it true by his own faith; and that is a very tiring thing to do. Beloved, the next time you need the comfort of Romans 8:28-, base your trust of its true manifestation in your life on the truth of knowing God has reconciled all things unto Himself. And if it is reconciled unto Himself then it is also reconciled into harmonious agreement with His eternal loving plan for your life! That cross which you have seen standing up in the ground, just take it and apply the heart motivations of Jesus to any situation you face. You will see the reconciliation of God! You knew you had salvation from above. Now you also know you have horizontal salvation for your situations in this present world. God bless you in peace and mercy and love as your faith grows to include ever more of His truth. He multiplies His blessings upon you as you multiply, repeat the use of His pattern, according to all the things He shows you (Heb 8:5) Though you be not perfect, Christ is, and He is your sufficiency, always in all things. And His covenant with you is perfect and complete, ordered in all things. You shall not die but live, neither shall you be defeated, but you shall declare the glory of God and give testimony to His name. For He has won the Victory for you. Christ is your Victory. He is become all things to us to believe. That which the builders rejected is become the head cornerstone, the nail from which all else hangs. Upon Him depends all things. And He has reconciled all things. Only believe, and you shall see the glory of God. To him that believes in agreement with God is nothing impossible. You will see the Roman soldiers of your life as a blessed thing instead of a curse. You will see all situations reconciled unto God even as He reconciled the situation up to and through the cross. In Jesus' holy, blessed, and pure Name, that Name above all names, Amen. Blessed be the Name of our Lord and Savior. Jesus is Lord. To build your confidence and increase your understanding so the enemy can't rob the seed from you, there is an abundance of scripture given for your faithful reading. These many scripture references give support to your faith from any angle which needs propping up. I have endeavored to leave no chink in the armour of your faith understanding. The birds of prey open the armor of oysters by sticking their beak in a break and prying open from there. To avoid such events, this writing has covered as many lines of scripture as apply to the reconciliation. It can be comprehended in fewer words. The rest of the words serve as armour and defence and support to the critical few words which are necessary. If I say Jesus and know not what it means, what have I said? I must tell you the story so you can know what the Name means. So it is with reconciliation. Beloved, you know I have loved you by the labor of this writing. Read in peace and be increased in your understanding by faith. By faith we understand...Heb 11:3 I trust in God this has focused the light more for you, and not only you but also all you tell. Focus the Light, Please! To write the book for which I looked in 1961 has been my goal. I wanted a book to show me the big picture of Christianity. Those leaders to whom I looked had vague ubiquitous answers to my questions. I saw confusion amongst the various groups of people. Disagreement, contention, and strife were rampant. Reasons for those differences were unclear and unexplainable. I looked for an overview of Christianity to put things in focus for me. To give me perspective. As when you look at a picture of a rock, you can not tell the size of it unless there is in it something you know. For all you know the rock you see in the 5x8 inch picture might be just a pebble. But if there is a man standing by it, you can tell how big the rock is. You need perspective to judge the weight of what you're seeing. These next words are hard sayings. They show a young man's perception of what people were telling him. They show what I understood then about what people were telling me. That was during the days when a national magazine had front page headlines telling the world that God and religion is dead. I never knew a church that communicated much life to me during those years of my life. And that was the experience of my friends. We could not find much. You can hear the old judgments of my heart against what I experienced in those days. All is now forgiven. I have wonderful friends among all Christian believers. Please realize that whatever a church does, it must communicate the word of God to new people. Not just doing things differently. Not just telling them, "This is how we do it. Come be with us. Our way is right." But telling them scripture. Give them the word of God. Then through faith in the word of God, the new believer can give himself first to God, and then to that body of believers whether they be Catholic or Lutheran, Baptist or Pentacostle. But let their faith stand on the word of God! Not just confidence in 'the way these people do it' but in the word of God. Take a searching soul to the word of God. Build their faith on the word of God. Not on how 'we do it.' Show them Jesus, not your church. Show them God, not your pastor. Show them the way of God, not the way of your denomination. How can their faith be in God unless they be shown God? That is the major issue that needs the light of Christ. As I grew through life hard times abounded for lack of knowing Jesus and the truth of God. Hard times are only expressed by hard words. Even if now my heart is mellower toward those who crossed my path in life without telling me about Jesus, just outward formalities, the story is not complete without admitting the judgment phase through which I strongly passed. That judgment phase judged not only what the people failed to do, but also the people. Today, I no longer judge the people. I have forgiven them. But God never delights in lifting up a denomination, or 'the way we do things'. He does not want people being led to a denomination, but to Jesus. Jesus Christ and Him crucified must be lifted up to all who seek. There is a difference between witnessing unto Jesus, and witnessing unto this denomination or that. That you might see how hungry a man can be and not be given any food to eat, here I expose my heart as that young man perceived. These pictures of what I perceived are perhaps more common that we realize. And I know there are good pastors and good people in each church who do the will of God, but hear my heart from those days of pain and searching. The Catholics wanted to make me a Catholic. But they didn't tell me any more about Jesus, just about a rosary and and how theirs was the oldest church. I was given a crucifix by one who loved me, for which I am eternally grateful. That was the closest thing to the pure truth I needed that anyone ever did for me. I needed to comprehend the love that empowered Him to endure the cross and despise the shame for me. I needed to have Isaiah 53 and Hebrews 12:2 explained to me. But no one had the time. Such heartache resulted as cannot be measured. I lost all I had, as God said, for lack of knowledge. I lost even the love of the one who gave me the crucifix. I don't want others to lose sight of true values God shows. It is painful and the cause of more grief than words can express. It is for the cause of helping others know what they need to know so their life is not destroyed by pain and suffering that all these words are written. To show a picture by thoughts of words so whoever will read can gain in a short time what it took me a life to learn. What else can I do but put it in words for someone else to read and learn in in a much easier way than it took for me. The Baptists wanted me to go to their church but they just kept telling me how to get saved each Sunday. For years all I knew was that after I died I'd get to go to heaven because I believed in Jesus. The Methodists wanted me to help out in the community and attend their social gatherings for fellowship and learn how to get along with people. The Masons wanted me to be a Demolay. Some scientists wanted me to be a free-thinking aethiest. The Christian Scientists wanted me to have faith in a universal goodness. The party people wanted me to go have fun with them. The Air Force chaplin spoke of psychology and morals. Norman Vincent Peal wanted me to think positive and have good success. And I didn't know what to believe or where to begin. I asked priests and pastors for a book or an encyclopedia to put things in perspective. I asked a priest for a collection of writings that surely after 2,000 years the Catholic church had a summary overview of Christianity. He told me to go to seminary for twelve years and then I would begin to understand. The Methodist minister told me they only accepted the very best qualified people in their seminaries. The Baptist didn't have time to talk about it. The goal here is to point out wrong things people do, now, yesterday, and until the Lord comes, so we can know what to quit doing, and start doing more things right. There is no condemnation of people in Christ Jesus, just a prayer for more doing of more righteousness. We need for each individual believer to be a witness unto Jesus and not unto some church or pastor. We need for each shepherd to leave the ninty and nine to go find the one who is lost, or to go help that one who is stuck. It is not the pastors job to guard the fort, it is his job to feed the sheep, to seek and to find those that are lost, wandering in the dark, to give them light. God will keep the fort. God is the fort. He is our strong tower. He is our shield. What He desires is willing vessels of His self-sacrifice. The world is full of plenty of people who can justify maintaining their own comfort in the confines of being the kingpin amongst many people. It's easy to fill up a schedual doing things with the righteous. May each pastor be free in Jesus to leave the righteous and all their activities of God, (He will keep them), and go help that one wandering in the dark and the one bleeting from the thorns. How easy it is to stay comfortable with those that are all dressed up and helping keep all the church wheels turning, and who will leave that for the dusty crevices and sticky thorns. Jesus paid the price. It is now our turn to follow, bearing His cross even as He. At U.T. I searched the churches as best I could. Finally joined a Methodist student group. We had a lot of social gatherings. Biology class taught me evolution. Stress of 18 hours of Plan II Pre-Med with three science lab courses wore me to a nub. That much pressure, and lack of sleep, stress of school, football games, people enticing you to fraternities, conflict at home over religion and fiance, many voices pulling on your mind, that all adds up to what the communists discovered as a way to brainwash people. Wear them out, give them more stimulus and stress than they can stand, and feed them what you want them to believe. That's what happened, except I didn't know what to believe. The devil had blown a smokescreen over any thing I used to think I knew. Doubt and confusion had entered my heart for lack of faith to keep it out. And pretty soon I was blowing in the wind, no roots, no faith in anything except that I didn't know much at all and I would have to find the best I could find from all the available sources. My life went to confusion and loss in a hurry. I lost every good thing I had, my high school sweetheart, my health, my vision for living. He kept me. Oh He kept me through it all. But there was much suffering and misery which was caused by ignorance of His truth. It was my ignorance and failures that resulted from that ignorance that caused the pain I knew. In bringing me out of such darkness He has also made me want to help others avoid so much pain. That's why I have written these things. I must tell what I have seen and learned, that others might be saved. This all happened to one who had received Jesus in the fifth grade during a revival. After asking Jesus to live in me while sitting on a back row pew, the preacher told everyone who believed to come to the front. I was very shy, but decided to go up front. When I got there I was sat down on a front pew and someone tried to talk with me, but I stuttered so badly we couldn't talk. So the preacher didn't know what to do with me or for me. I think he just said he'd talk to me later. And I understand why he could have been unable to cope with me, for I really stuttered terribly and was very ashamed for it and couldn't hardly look anyone in the face while I was even trying to talk. Walking out to go home, I saw the glory of God over the people standing on the steps outside the church as I was watching from the sidewalk. I marveled that no one else was aware.. I remember thinking, they're all just talking to one another. They don't see God over them. They're not seeing what I'm seeing. I wondered that they did not look up to see what appeared like a glory cloud just a few feet over their heads. We started walking home. Jesus appeared to me on the way walking home with my beloved grandmother May Ferrell. He stood just behind her when she stopped to talk to me, and He said, "Tell her I'm standing here. It'll make her happy." Well, I was a young boy who stuttered. I was very shy, and easily ashamed. I had many misconceptions about how people would react to me. I was as proud as could be and the thought immediately entered my mind, "She'll pat me on the head and say something like 'Oh, what a nice boy.' And I didn't want that. So I didn't tell her. See how messed up I was. I had just seen Jesus, knew it was Him. But had no comprehension to do what He said. That's a clue, folks, that we need comprehension. That takes understanding. That takes knowing the truth. That takes the word of God anointed by the Spirit of God to your heart. That is the grace of God. I had some grace, but I needed to understand more. I knew I knew Jesus. I knew I had asked Him into my heart. And I knew He had come. But I didn't know much of what that all meant. That next Christmas eve, I was standing by the irrigation canal outside grandmother's home. I was looking at the stars and the water. It happened like God showed me preaching the word to a huge crowd of people, bigger than I could imagine. But I still couldn't even read the Bible. And lots of folks around me said it was just a book messed up by man. And no one read it to me. And I didn't really know much of anything except what God Himself had showed me in a pretty direct way. That Jesus was real, and that He was real. Beyond that I was clueless. I hope you see my point. A man has to hear the scripture and have it explained to him. Jesus said for us to live by all the word of God. And I understood only the smallest seed. I had nothing to nurture my understanding. These are the reasons for my hunger and searching to put His truth in clear focus for all those out there who are searching for truth they can understand. I know the reality of God's way concerning miracles and revelation of His word. Though a man raise from the dead, if they will not believe the scripture, they still will not believe. I had been born again. I had seen the glory of God. I had seen the Lord. Yet I did not know what else to believe. Only the barest minimum had been made clear to my understanding. I suffered for years for that lack of knowledge and understanding. Then I worked for years to gain the understanding that would heal my life. God has graciously granted me to see certain things as I cried out from so much hunger and despair. That which He has given me is now yours in good faith and hope it will save many from years of unnecessary anguish in life. At the age of twenty-two in Houston, Texas, I heard a man witnessing to a couple in Denny's restaurant. He was talking about Jesus like he really knew Him. He was excited. He was zealous. He was on fire! He was alive, real, compassionately excited about God and the power of God even for us now today. When they got up to pay out, I followed and asked him to talk to me. He hesitated, (it was late at night) but he agreed. Then I went looking at churches again. By this time I was working for IBM as a customer engineer maintaining computers. I traveled from Texas to Minnesota to New York. Couldn't find a preacher who talked to me like he had more than intellectual knowledge of the Holy Spirit of God. Couldn't find a man who warmed at to the idea of God's power being with us now, today, the same as yesterday, today, and forever. I had no confidence in the bible. I thought it had been corrupted by man in the years since it was written. I hardly knew what I believed. But I knew I believed in God, in Jesus, and in the Holy Ghost. I really went looking. I investigated everything I could find. I found the Mormons, the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Unity people, the Christian Scientists, the occult, parapsychology and mind-control. Probably the reason I rejected the main denominations was my previous experiences led me to make typical street-awareness shallow judgments such as 1. some taught me about life after death by believing now 2. some denied the blood of Jesus and His return 3. some wanted much outward form and will-service and voluntary humility 4. some wanted a complacent predestination and presume upon grace 5. some wanted to believe in a universal christ 6. some wanted positive thinking, mind power, self-will exercise of man's faith 7. some wanted astrology and psychic power 8. some wanted strong emotionalism and signs 9. some wanted meditation as a means of spiritual growth 10. some wanted to cleanse my thoughts and my thinking patterns and emotions 11. some wanted to do drugs 12. all I wanted was to know Jesus. Nobody told me much of Him. So I followed nobody. In 1966, a white glowing Jesus appeared to me. It was just after that man from the restaurant had left my apartment. I had walked him to his car, and was returning to my apartment. Something made me stop and turn around about ten feet from my door. There was my Lord. He motioned with His hand, and I heard the words in my mind, "Come. Follow Me." I still didn't know what that meant. My head was too full of intellectual reasonings. I couldn't see the truth for all the other trees in the forest of my heart. At twenty-nine, I wanted to go to Lutheran seminary. But was told my faith in the things of the Spirit of God would probably cause me a lot of trouble there and I might not be able to finish for the opposition. Well, I didn't want to go any place where they would come against my new found faith in the gifts of the Spirit of God. So I just studied in the three room garage apartment. By the age of thirty-two I thought I was pretty strong in the faith of God. And in many ways I was, and in many areas I still had lots of digging before I reached bedrock. Now at fifty-one, I testify to having reached bedrock. Not that I have explored all the vastness of His bedrock, not that I know it all; but that I have seen Him set my feet on the solid bedrock that God is become all my salvation. It is no longer my faith in what He has done, but it is now Him in love and mercy doing all things. It is no longer a mixture or combination of what God has done plus my faith in what He did. It is all of Him. My faith is of Him. My life, in all its parts was ordained of Him. All has been worked according to His eternal loving plan. No, I am not as the hindu who says there is no reponsibility on my part. For God has given me responsiblity by His presence. I am responsible to Him. In that beautiful way that the word was made flesh in Jesus Christ, so He is all my salvation, yet it is me who believes. I am a new creation, one with God, as Jesus prayed for all believers to be. For years and years I studied and worked my way down through all the leaves, discovering first the twig, then the branch, trunk, and finally the root. Last of all He showed me the SEED which is Christ. It is from this seed that I now show you how all we know and all our growth and all the leaves of faith and all the fruit is of Him. It all grows from the seed. It is all in the seed even before it falls to the ground and dies. Even the good seed could not bear fruit until it falls to the ground and dies. What is easier for you to take hold of, a hundred bushel baskets full of leaves of faith so you can try to piece them back together into some kind of picture for knowing God? Or a single seed? Knowing that all grows from the seed, it is much easier to get the accurate big picture of salvation by understanding a single seed than a hundred bushels of leaves or fruit! This is my reason for writing all these things to you. It culminates my life. It seems to be the very reason for my living, to write these things. To bless you and save you from the hurts and pains of heart and soul that come from ignorance, these understandings are put in order. I asked someone to focus the light for me in 1961 when I needed help badly. I could not see the way to go. And no one around me could show me. God has lifted me up out the mirey pit into which I fell for my lack of knowledge. He has made me to understand the pattern of His Life. Though I do not see it all except by faith that Jesus is the sufficiency, I do see so much that my joy is uncontainable and I must try to express to you the things I have seen. In Jesus' name, God bless you and anoint your understanding of His Way and what it means to follow Him. Amen. TODAY YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE SALVATION OF GOD BY FAITH WE UNDERSTAND (Heb 11:3) It doesn't take twelve years of seminary before you can begin to understand. You don't have to be frustrated thinking it takes too long to get your life the way you want it. God will show you the way now. Now is the day of salvation, as long as it is called today. Salvation of your life, solution to your dilemma, an answer for your problem is all in Christ Jesus now. Hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. See the heart of God as Jesus endured that cross. Believe He is alive, resurrected from the grave by the power and glory of Eternal God. And know for sure that what God the Father did for Jesus, He has already done for you. Be baptized calling on the Name of Jesus and know that you are joined into the life of God. He has shown the pattern for you to follow. It is clear to see in the heart of Jesus. Study the root words of our Christian faith by the light of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Your understanding will grow, and your fruit in life will be good and sweet. 1. Eternal salvation of anyone who is searching for the truth of life. 2. Establishing the heart in grace for those who believe. (Heb 13:9) 3. To show a repeating pattern of nurturing and growth that you can understand. 4. To show the way of fruitfulness as connected to the root and the seed. 5. That you may have not only eternal salvation, but also know the victory in this present world as well. And this is the victory that overcomes, even our faith. Faith comes by hearing the truth anointed with God's Spirit. This presentation gives you the SEED upon which God will pour out His Spirit to make it grow and be fruitful and multiply. Blessed be the name of the Lord. God has given you the grace and faith and mercy of Jesus. The main volumes written to accomplish these purposes include The Seed, Reconciled by the Cross, Milk for Growth and Establishing the Heart in Grace, Real Life Examples of Applying the Seed Faith of Christ (ie tracts on every day living in reference to the heart attitude of Jesus Christ and Him crucified). Also Law and Grace, Law and Love, Strong Meat Is Reserved. Trees of Righteousness-The Planting of the Lord Jesus said as long as He was in the world in the mortal flesh, that He is the light of the world. Now we are the light of the world in His place, for He does live in us. Christ in you is your hope of glory. Please focus the light for others to see that they too might know Him. You can help get this word out to those who can be helped with your offerings to the work of His gospel. Until sufficient funds come in for a massive printing on a web press, the cost is high due to inefficiency of copy machines which are currently being used. I am praying for a publisher to step forth and promote this work. Written, typeset, printed and distributed by Larry A. Rice, 4908 George, Wichita Falls, Tx 76302 To the glory of GOD by faith in Jesus Christ, my Lord, my Saviour, and my Sufficiency always in all things. Glory be to His holy, blessed, and pure name now and forever. Amen. Focus the Light, Please! Acknowledgement of a contribution in the amount of $_____________ to help support the work of this ministry. Received from:________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________ Address: ___________________________________________ Comments and requests:________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Thank you for your contribution in support of ministering Jesus Christ through the printed word and especially a series of writings called "Focus the Light, Please!". If you want copies for your own distribution, how many would you like? ------- for myself and family _______ copies for friends ------- for handouts ------- for my employees It is my goal to get this material into the hands and hearts of students, This contribution is in support of ministering "Focus the Light, Please!" series of writings by Larry Rice to the graduating high school seniors. those students still to graduate, those at college, and those adults working and married who need more of Jesus. I know the suffering of life can be changed into good by true and complete faith of Jesus Christ. I know many people need more help to understand the things of God He intends them to know and believe. I know He has not only eternal salvation for all who believe, but also He has given us the victory of Jesus in this present world. And this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. Now to have faith, we must believe. And to believe, we must hear what God has said. And to understand, it must be explained. We are letting the light shine, and shine brightly and in focus so the people can see clearly to live by the faith of Jesus Christ. John 10:10 Colossians 1:20 Romans 8:28- 1 Timothy 4:8 Godliness in helpful in all things, not only in that life which is to come, but in this present life as well. God bless you for your faithfulness and trust in Him. Grace and mercy and peace be multiplied unto you, in Jesus' Name. Amen. Date:____/____/____ Received by Larry Rice:__________________________ Larry A. Rice, 4908 George St., Wichita Falls, Tx 76302 Phone 817-767-5125