For any true believer, the fact that light and darkness do not mix could hardly be more evident than today. Every day as believers, we are forced to deal with an influx of evil around us in our lives. What does the Bible have to say about it and how do we deal with it in our personal situations on a daily basis?

• 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 

 
The Bible may be over 2000 years old, but it is still totally relevant today. Dealing with the push of evil is not a new thing. Noah had to deal with it over 4000 years ago. And not only did Noah have to deal with it before the Flood, but he was alive when his descendants had the rebellion at the Tower of Babel. We learn from that era, that man, after the fall in the Garden, became inherently evil.

• Genesis 8:21 And the LORD smelled a soothing aroma. Then the LORD said in His heart, "I will never again curse the ground for man's sake, although the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.

 
Noah was mocked but he held on to his faith. Thankfully, he was spared of God’s wrath, even if those around him thought he was crazy. Over and over throughout history, God’s people have had to deal with times where evil was in power or the righteous outnumbered. That is why we need to understand what the root of evil is and how to overcome the situations when people hurt us directly, or indirectly by their decisions.
 
Knowingly or unknowingly, evil people are directed by the father of lies, the deceiver, who motivates and manipulates unbelievers into doing his will.

• Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

 
The kingdom of darkness has a hierarchy, and they use the people who do not have Jesus as their Lord and Savior. We were all born as sinners and only by the new birth through Jesus Christ can we be reconciled with God. Every human being has to deal with the lies and deception of the enemy but for unbelievers without godly discernment, they usually do not even realize where those thoughts and impulses come from. And even when they do, they may fight against it for a while, but eventually they give in, because they do not have the authority that comes from the lordship of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit within them, to overcome sin. It takes the transformation of the inner-man to become a good, loving person. There are unbelievers that seem to be moral and nice people, but only they know how many things they keep secret, because they could not overcome and fell into sin. True victory comes only from the Lord living in us and ruling our lives. This is why unbelievers’ decisions, words and actions can be so evil and hurt us so deeply. But when we realize that the devil and his demonic forces are behind people, it is easier to forgive them and pray for their salvation.
 
Realizing that we have an unseen enemy and how he works, can help us deal with others daily, by seeing the bigger picture. There is no real communion with light and darkness. We interact with each other because of work, school, family and many reasons, but who we serve truly determines how we handle life’s issues. When possible, Christians should choose other believers to marry, do business or work with, etc. because sooner or later, conflict will arise and there will be no real unity. Sadly, many churches do not bring this subject up, but it is of the most utter importance.

2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?

Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.  And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” - Matthew 24:3-6

The disciples asked Jesus about His return and the end of the age. The answers and exhortation that Jesus gave them are helpful to us too. And today, almost 2000 years later, many of us believe we are on the threshold of the coming of the Lord.

• Luke 21:9-11 “But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately." Then He said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven.”

 
As Christians, living in the age we are in, we cannot do it being lackadaisical or half-hearted. This is a time in history like no other. This is a time where the enemy knows his days are numbered.

• Revelation 12:12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time."

 
To be victorious over an “unseen enemy,” who uses demons and manipulates people under his direction, that has great wrath, requires diligence of us.

• Revelation 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

 
Those who will overcome and endure victoriously to the end, will do so by, 1) the blood of the Lamb 2) the word of their testimony and 3) not loving their lives unto death. Many overlook the third part of the verse. Jesus said that those who try to save their life will lose it and those who lose their life for His sake and the Gospel’s, will gain it (Mark 8:35). We have to lay our lives down to the Lord to be saved and also when enduring through the worst of circumstances. Those who think only about physical preservation, will not save their souls (Galatians 6:8). Also, remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it (Luke 17:32-33).

Is it enough just to be saved by the blood of the Lamb? Is that what the first part means? The blood of the Lamb is all powerful. The devil cannot even handle one drop of Jesus’ blood. We must be cleansed by it and covered by it and live in the power of it. That blood has bought us kingdom authority. Many misunderstand what it means, but in studying God’s Word, we can see the authority Jesus has given us over the enemy. Does it mean that we never suffer because we have such authority? Look to Jesus, who had all authority. There were times He did not let the enemy do as desired and there were other times, when He did. We need the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us and show us about such things.

They will have been victorious through the word of their testimony, not their parents or grandparents testimony. It will have to have been their own personal testimony. This means that they were able to speak victoriously and not back down. There is a huge factor needed to make this possible, and that is to have the Word of God working in them, and spoken by them without fail. This is not done by shallow believers or Christians in name only. This is the result of strong faith by determined believers, knowing their God and knowing His Word, and having it applied and working in their hearts and lives. The testimony of the Word of God in us will save us. And there is nothing else that can. Our bodies can be killed, but the eternal us will never die. And those who stay true to His Word, do not have to fear.

And they did not love their lives unto death. As mentioned before, remember Lot’s wife. How deep is your commitment unto the Lord? Do you love Him even if it costs you your physical life? There are many in the world today, in the Middle East and China for example, that becoming a true believer can cost them their livelihood and even their life. And yet they come to the Lord wholeheartedly. History shows that people were fed by the Romans to hungry lions and other beasts, for not backing down and denying Jesus Christ. What gave them the strength? Why not just give them lip service and still claim the Lord in their hearts? Because that is not how it works.

• Matthew 10:32-33 "Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.”

 
It is only “wishful thinking” that a person would think they could deny the Lord and still make it to heaven. It says that he who endures to the end shall be saved. Never deny the Lord, not by works or speech. In our daily walk and entire life, Jesus must be our Lord.

• Mark 8:34-38 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."

 
In conclusion, as we see and hear of wars and rumors of wars more often, and the other signs spoken of happening before Jesus comes to take His bride away, we must be determined believers, living the kind of life Jesus died for us to have. Let us not just be casually good people who randomly read the Bible as a duty, but the kind of diligent believers who study the Word of God and apply it, having the truth of it set us free and keep us free, sharing our faith with others by word and deed and not being entangled by the cares of this world, but rather being eternally and prayerfully minded, living life to the fullest under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In so doing, we will endure to the end, and we will make it!!
 

Happiness is the state of mind that many people desire to have all the time. How many times have we started the day happily, but how long did it last? Until we remembered something unpleasant, or what a hard day was ahead of us, or it was enough to see or hear something unpleasant and our happiness was replaced with frustration, annoyance, disappointment or even anger. The Oxford dictionary defines happiness as “the state of pleasurable contentment of mind; deep pleasure in or contentment with one's circumstances." Deep contentment is very difficult to achieve, and looking back we remember having such moments. But how many of us can say that we have had long periods of intense and complete contentment, without dissatisfaction or other negative feelings? Without the Lord and continuously choosing to be happy, no one can have the abundant life that we have through faith in Jesus.

• James 1:2-3 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
  

 
We are urged to consider it all joy while going through various trials. These verses do not tell us to rejoice because we are suffering, but because of what the results will be. No person with a right mind can rejoice in suffering, nor does James 1:2 tell us to do so. The original Greek adjective translated "all," is "pas" and means even more than all, “it signifies the highest degree, the maximum, of the thing which the noun denotes" (according to "Strong" Dictionary). While happiness is a more fleeting emotion, joy is a more long-lasting state of being, characterized by contentment and satisfaction with life overall. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit and when we have a deep relationship with Jesus, we fully trust in the Lord's help and the fruit of the Holy Spirit manifests freely in our daily lives. Joy as a fruit of the Holy Spirit is constant, it does not depend on circumstances, nor fluctuates according to the successes or failures we have nor because of what those around us do. But we have to choose to allow the joy that we have all the time in our spirit united with the Holy Spirit to manifest in our soul. When we are happy, we smile, we forgive easier, we seek peace and through our words and actions we positively influence those around us.
 
When we have a positive attitude and we sincerely trust our Lord, the trouble does not seem so big or without solution anymore. The original word translated “testing” is "dokimion" and means "that by which something is tried or proved, a test." In other words, when we decide to grow in faith, to live according to the Lord, to trust in His love and help, the devil does not believe that we are sincere, and he tests our faith through trials. Unfortunately, many Christians begin to doubt God's love when they go through suffering of any kind. Even though we've reacted this way in the past, it doesn't mean things can't change. As many times as the enemy provokes us with various troubles, if we know that they are only tests and we trust that the Lord is on our side, we will not only pass the test, but we will also experience spiritual growth. Whatever the enemy intends for our harm, through firm faith in Jesus, we can change it for our good.
 
The verse goes on to say that the testing of our faith works patience. Actually the original word "hupomoné" means more than being patient. "Strong" dictionary explains it by "steadfastness, constancy, endurance; in the New Testament the characteristic of a man who is unswerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings." So when the source of our joy is the relationship with our Lord and we choose to set our minds on things above, not on things on the earth,” because we know we died and our lives are hidden "with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:2-3), we pass the tests and experience spiritual growth.

• James 1:4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
  

 
We already know that the word translated “patience” is more complex and so are the words for "perfect, complete and lacking nothing." By explaining the words in more detail, we can see how wonderful and profound verse 4 is, which we can paraphrase as follows:
 
But steadfastness, and ability to endure and not be diverted from the purpose and loyalty to faith and piety even by the greatest trials and sufferings, must do its work completely, totally, perfectly, that we may be perfect, whole, free from sin, as man was created before the Adamic sin, and to lack nothing, to have everything complete, being as God created us to be.
 
So why should we consider going through various trials as great joy? This is valid for various attempts, of many kinds, so not of a certain type. This means that all trials we are going through meet the conditions of this verse. No matter what the cause of our suffering, if we keep our hearts pure, choose to trust in the Lord, and keep our peace instead of despairing, we will overcome. When we have thankful hearts and choose to rejoice in Jesus and in what perseverance and firmness of faith work in us, we change and become more like Jesus. We are in a continual process of change while we live in these bodies. Therefore, let us choose to spend as much time as possible in the presence of the Lord, to seek His face, and to want to change what He shows us that He does not like in us, so that we can become as our heavenly Father created us to be. Living in this way, the joy that faith gives can be a constant, and gives us the strength to overcome trials more easily.
 
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. - Romans 15:13

• ... God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. - 1 John 1:5b-9
  

 
You may have heard the following verse quoted many times, 1 John 1:10, "If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." Unfortunately, most of the time it is misquoted and out of context, by claiming that it is normal to sin, because a Christian is only a forgiven sinner. But what is the true contextual meaning of this verse? Upon closer analysis of the verses above and below this verse, we see that it does not say that we are helpless sinners who cannot stop sinning. John was the apostle of love, but he was also one of the sons of thunder (as Jesus called him in Mark 3:17). He loved people enough to be firm in correcting them. And because he also loved those who deceived themselves thinking that they were Christians, the apostle harshly corrected them. This correction also applies to Christians today who think they are righteous when in fact they are living in sin. Because God is light and in Him there is no trace of darkness, whoever lives in sin does the works of darkness and cannot say that they have fellowship with the Lord.
 
The original Greek word translated fellowship is "koinonia," and it means "contributory help, participation, (b) sharing in, communion, (c) spiritual fellowship, a fellowship in the spirit” (according to Strong's Concordance"). So our relationship with God is one of sharing and communion in spirit, a relationship with the participation of both sides. The Lord wants us to open our hearts completely before Him and reveal to us who He is, because He wants us to want to know Him intimately and to be known by Him in the smallest details. Our heavenly Father knows everything about us, but only after we are willing to give Him all our emotions, thoughts, feelings, experiences, dreams, desires, all our past, present and future can He step in to heal, restore and guide us. Why? Because our Lord does not override the free will He gave us.
 
Let us look closer to verse 1 John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” The original word "allēlōn" can be translated as singular or plural, and its meaning in this context is singular, that is, "one with another," meaning “one person,” and not "one with another," meaning “others.” It is about fellowship with God, not with fellow believers. How could fellowship with other believers lead to the washing away of our sins through the blood of Jesus Christ? But fellowship with God, which takes place in the light, that is, in pure living, pleasing to the Lord, means intimacy, communion in the spirit and this close relationship gives us righteousness, cleansing us of every sin we have committed, through the sacrifice of Jesus. When we enter into the presence of God, who is holy and pure, we feel urged to ask Him to forgive us for every sin we ever committed. We may seem clean compared to those around us, but compared to the Lord, none of us is righteous. Every person needs to realize that they need Jesus and the forgiveness that can be received only through faith in Him and His sacrifice. God knows how weak our fallen human nature is. That is why He sent His own Son to pay for our sins, so that we can be reconciled to Him and be saved. If we admit that we have sinned and sincerely ask for forgiveness, the Lord "is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." The following verses show the motivation behind what was written:

• 1 John 2:1-6 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. 3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

 
We are called to stop sinning, and to be holy in all our conduct, as we also read in 1 Peter 1:15. This means to be "set apart for God," separated from the world, to be people of integrity with a pure heart. Only by separating from the values ​​and works of the world can we fully belong to God and live in His light. Holiness is the result of being born-again and continuing the process of being transformed through the renewing of our minds through the Word of God. We cannot be holy by our own strength, no matter how hard we try. Holiness comes only by sincere faith in Jesus and in His sacrifice by which He freed us from the power of sin and death. This means that we live by having the righteousness of Jesus. But it is up to us to reckon ourselves "dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:11b).
 
To know Jesus, we must spend time with Him. And in order to enter into His presence, we must have His righteousness, that is, asking for forgiveness when we sin, so that we can benefit from the effects of His sacrifice. When we come to really know Him, to understand how much He loves us, how good, merciful and just He is, we want to be like Him and obey Him. As we get to know Jesus better, we understand more deeply how much He loves us and our love for Him grows also. When we know the dimensions and depth of His love, we become filled with all the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:19) and know that we are fully His. That is why when we sin because of the pressures of those around us, the suffering or the problems we go through, we quickly ask for forgiveness and we want to return to being in right-standing with our Lord.
 
In 1 John chapter 4, it is abundantly clear that if we know Jesus, we love one another and when we love God and others, we are free from sin. When we seek to grow in God’s love, we become more caring of others and sin less. And if we choose to do the works of the light and hate the works of darkness, we become more and more free from ourselves. As a result we seek to spend time with God's children in spiritually clean environments and avoid those who live in sin and the places they prefer.
 
Let's take the time to study the Word of God and analyze the verses in the context they are written, in order to believe the truth. If we base our faith only on what we hear or read from other sources, without verifying what the Bible says, we do not have a firm foundation and may not even believe the truth. God wants to reveal the mysteries of the Scripture to all of us who love and follow Him, but in order to receive His revelation, we must spend time studying the Bible and seeking His presence. Only in this way can we truly believe that we are no longer under the bondage of sin but are free and saved through the righteousness of Jesus. Hallelujah! We are meant to grow more and more in the likeness of our Lord. Our heavenly Father wants us free to make right choices and live fulfilled lives through the righteousness of Jesus. He made His Son “who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
 
Thank You Lord for Your forgiveness, for the new life we ​​have in You. Because You have loved us, we can love You in return and even love others. Through the Holy Spirit we became born-again and because we died with Jesus, we were also raised with Him and we no longer live, but Christ lives through us, if we let Him do it. It is up to us to stop following the lead of the lusts of the flesh, and let Jesus truly be on the throne of our hearts.
 
Carmen Pușcaș

Even though we don't like being discouraged, oftentimes we expect it to happen to us. Some have been through so many disappointments that they find it is easier not to expect anything good, so that they don't suffer when things don’t go right. But the Bible teaches us to strive to be like Jesus Christ, to follow His perfect pattern of faith and behavior. Nowhere in the Bible do we read that Jesus woke up upset, that He was having a bad day, or that He expected something bad to happen. If it would have been so, He could not have always comforted the broken-hearted, healed the sick, raised the dead, nor given the teachings He did. And Jesus didn't just help people occasionally, or when He was having a good day. People were constantly coming to Him wherever He was, and He took the time and helped them.

• Matthew 4:24 Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.

 
Scholars who have carefully studied the four Gospels say that of the 3 1/2 years of the Lord's ministry, we only have information of about 50 days. If from such a few days, we learn about so many miracles of the Lord, how many did He really do in total? Especially since many times large crowds of sick people came to Him and He healed them all. The truth is that Jesus' life was full of healing miracles. Jesus could not be discouraged or depressed. He is the God of all comfort and hope!
 
Discouragement is most often the result of our unrealistic expectations. When we imagine that someone or something must be a certain way, or that a certain situation will be resolved as we wish, without a biblical basis, and without the Lord having spoken something specific to us, we are prone to discouragement. When faced with reality, we are discouraged. But if we choose not to give time to negative feelings and pray to the Lord to show us what we should do, we can quickly free ourselves from discouragement and learn to be more realistic about the future.
 
It is mainly up to us to start our day right. If we make rigid plans that we believe cannot be changed, we may face many disappointments. Those around us also have their own plans and most of the time they involve us as well. As a result, we often end up doing what they want and very little of what we had wanted. If we let this trouble us, or make us angry, we have little chance of having a good day. But if we choose to see the good side of what has intervened and changed the course of our day, we can still have peace and even get done some of what we have planned to do. Let's choose to be thankful from the time we wake up, so that we start our day well. By doing so we can have the hope and joy that come from believing that the Lord is doing something good for us. If we don't expect good things to happen to us, it is more than likely that they won’t. Why? Because the enemy is just waiting for us to believe his lies and be discouraged, so he can accomplish his evil plans. Unfortunately, some Christians are so pessimistic that the devil and his minions that are assigned to torment them, can take days off. Why? Because the pessimists keep themselves in the pit of hopelessness and depression by their own will and choices.
 
When it is hard for us to rejoice, it is time to analyze our hearts. Why are we sad, what is stressing us, what is the cause? What direction is our life going? Are we still in God's plan, on the narrow path that leads to heaven, or have we strayed from the right direction? What do we build upon the foundation of faith that we have in Jesus Christ? Gold, silver, precious stones, or wood, hay, and straw? Whenever our thoughts, motives, decisions, and reactions are opposed to the fruit of the Holy Spirit, we know that our hearts are not right with God. Then we must analyze what we feed our hearts with. If whatever we read, watch, or think about is of demonic origin, we have given the enemy access into our lives. The Bible calls Satan, "the prince of the power of the air," in Ephesians 2:2, and we should not be surprised that he has so much influence through television programs, Internet, publications, applications, or social media such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, etc. When we realize that what we are chasing is polluting our hearts, keeping us discouraged, and causing us to sin, it is time to do some true "house-cleaning." We must remove from our lives everything that is not pleasing to God. Let's stop saying, "God why do you allow this in my life?" This question does us no good because it is wrong in itself. We have free will and we are the ones who open the door to the enemy through our actions and the choices we make. God wants to help us change and get rid of what hurts us, but we must want to change and ask God for help. Only then, the Lord will light the fire of purification and help us to become free and happy.
 
Let us remember the three young Hebrews from the book of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego (Daniel 3). Because they refused to worship Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue, they were thrown into the fiery furnace. Did God stop the fire? No. The furious king even demanded that the fire be seven times hotter than normal. He had his mightiest soldiers bind the faithful young men and thrown into the fire that was so hot that those who threw them in were burned alive. As most of us know, the king even saw the three Hebrews walking free from any bonds and unharmed together with a fourth man, "and the form of the fourth was like the Son of God!" (Daniel 3:25). Even though the Lord did not stop Nebuchadnezzar from throwing them into the fiery furnace, He was with them in the fire, protected them from its effects and they were loosed from their bonds completely unharmed. And all those present "saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them." (Daniel 3:27). Jesus was with them in the fire. He does the same for us when we trust in Him and live according to His will. When God is truly Lord over our lives, He is Lord over the fires we go through, and if we allow Him, He will do what is best for us, no matter how hot the fires may get.
 
Fiery trials expose our motivations and true colors. The devil knows that at the slightest pressure he can coerce us to show the truth of how real our faith truly is. Trials reveal the truth of who we really believe the Lord is and if we are really living for Him or not. And if the trials make us lose our confidence that the Lord loves us, is with us and will do what is best for us, we will end up being discouraged, unhappy, frustrated, or depressed and some might even forsake the Lord. But we can learn from our mistakes and choose to truly believe and live out our faith that the Lord is in the fire with us and will see us through.
 
Let us not forget that it is up to us to make the right choices, study the Word of God desiring to know Him and spend as much time as possible in His presence, so that we become more like Him. Only by doing so will we be able to live the abundant life that Jesus wants us to live (John 10:10b) and overcome discouragement with true godly encouragement.
 
Here are some verses that teach us to rejoice. If we meditate on them, we can make the right choices and be happier.
 
Psalms 32:11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous; and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
 
Psalms 33:1 Rejoice in the Lord, o you righteous! For praise from the upright is beautiful.
 
Psalms 68:4 Sing to God, sing praises to His name; extol Him who rides on the clouds, by His name Yah, and rejoice before Him.
 
Psalms 97:12 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
 
Isaiah 44:23a Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it! Shout, you lower parts of the earth; break forth into singing, you mountains, o forest, and every tree in it! ...

Isaiah 49:13 Sing, O heavens! Be joyful, O earth! And break out in singing, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted His people and will have mercy on His afflicted.
 
Romans 12:12 Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;
 
Philippians 3:1a Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord…
 
Philippians 4:4-9 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice!

​The devil's character is totally opposed to God's character and so are his actions and modus operandi. We are most frequently attacked by thoughts and implicit feelings that can make us be mean, judge others harshly, and make excuses for ourselves. The enemy wants us to believe that only ourselves matter, and no one else is as important as we are. It urges us to seek only our personal gain, no matter what the cost. It tells us that we deserve the best, even if we have to step on others to get what we think we deserve, because we don't have to care about those around us. And the biggest deception is that God is a harsh master who only has demands from us, without loving us or wanting anything good for us, and we are better off away from Him. When we act this way, we act like the devil and are the opposite of what God created us to be.

• Romans 6:16-17 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.
  

 
So when we are hurt or offended, it is easier to give in to the temptation to sin or take revenge. The deeper we sink into the pit of pain and self-pity, the more time and effort it takes to get out. Jesus said very clearly, "'Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.'" (John 8:34). This means that the evil one is on the throne of the heart of the one who lives led by sin, and not Jesus. There are people who believe they are Christians because they prayed once for Jesus to become the Lord of their lives, but continued to live as they always did, in the same sins, without changing anything. The truth is that after a sincere prayer of repentance and the desire to become a true follower of Christ, the new birth occurs. But for Jesus to truly reign in our hearts, we must draw close to God, study His Word, ask Him for help in understanding it, and do what He teaches us. By studying the Bible we renew our minds, replacing the worldly way of thinking with God’s truth, and as a result we begin to change (Romans 12:2).
 
As we understand the truth about who God is, what He is like, what He likes and what He doesn't, we begin to more easily identify thoughts that come from the enemy or from our own sinful nature and oppose them with the truth of Scripture. Only the truth defeats a lie. Jesus said to those who had believed in Him:

• ... “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” – John 8:31b-32
  

 
We cannot know the Word of God if we only make "short visits" to it in moments of crisis. We must remain in the Word as a daily practice, not out of duty as if to check it off a list, but with a heart to truly know the Lord and learn how to live according to Him. The study of God’s Word increases our desire to communicate with our heavenly Father through prayer, to tell him what troubles us and to listen for His answers.

• John 1:1,14 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [...] And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
  

 
To be disciples of Jesus, we must learn from Him. And how can we learn if we do not study the Word of God? Only through the study of the Bible and through fellowship with the Lord in prayer and worship, can we know Jesus and learn from Him so that we can follow Him.
 
As we grow in the knowledge of the truth, we will become truly free. Why? Because the truth of Scripture renews our minds and frees us from the yoke of wrong teachings and sinful desires of the fallen nature and especially from the deceptions and lies of the devil.

• Romans 6:6,11-14 Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. […] Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
  

 
At the moment of being born again we were united with Jesus, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us, and the old man was crucified together with the Lord. Because Jesus died to sin once, we must know that we died to sin when we were born again. But we must know the truth that the carnal nature, the old man, was stripped of its power. We must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Jesus Christ, as we believe without a doubt that we can refuse to sin.
 
We were all born with Adam's sinful nature and were sinners before we spoke our first word or committed our first sin. Only after Jesus paid through His sacrifice for all the sins of mankind, was our reconciliation with God and freedom from the bondage of sin possible. That is why every man must be born-again, to become a child of God and be free from the dominion of sin and the author of sin, that is, Satan (John 8:44).
 
Before being born-again, no one can live completely clean, because the sinful nature is stronger than man's will to do good. Even the most moral people have sinned because of being under the bondage of the sinful nature.
 
But praise be to the Lord, through Jesus we are freed from the bondage of sin, and as we renew our minds, we can master it. The more often we choose to think about how much God loves us and the truth of Scripture regarding all that tempted us in the past, and we realize that the devil has lost his right to rule over us, we renew our minds and make the right decisions, through which we live right, according to God’s will.

• Ephesians 3:16-19 teaches us that in order to be overcomers and filled with all the fullness of God, Jesus must dwell in our hearts by faith, we must be rooted in His love and know it as deeply as possible. But to get there, we pray to the heavenly Father to strengthen us with might through His Spirit in our inner man,
  

• 1 Corinthians13:4-7 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
  

 
We can be sure that any thought, desire, or feeling that is contrary to the definition of "agape" love does not come from God and is of carnal or evil origin, and if acted upon, it costs us. Everything I listed at the beginning of this blog is the opposite of God's love and character. Through Jesus all these no longer have the right to rule over us, but it is up to us to choose whom we serve and to make the right choices.
 
A renewed mind chooses to think about what the next verse says.

• Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.
  

 
The more we manage to think in this way, the more often we will overcome the temptations of the devil, make the right decisions, have the peace and joy that comes from pleasing the Lord, and as a result we are able to speak and act according to His will. Let's keep our hearts grateful and full of praise to God so that we can hear what the Lord is leading us to do when we go through trials and are tempted. Such behavior is the recipe for a fulfilled and truly happy life!

• Hebrews 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

 

• Hebrews 7:26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;

Only someone sinless could qualify to be the sacrifice that would definitively cleanse the sins of mankind. The final cleansing was to be done in the Most Holy Place in heaven, at God's throne, and there the blood of animals and birds of the fallen world could not enter. That is why the sacrifices brought under the Old Covenant, under the Mosaic Law, only covered the sins of those who brought them, therefore when they died, they could only go to “Abraham’s bosom,” which was part of “Sheol” (the place of departed spirits), and not heaven.
 
After being resurrected, Jesus went to the Father, and in the evening of the same day He appeared to the disciples. This means that the visit to the heavenly throne room was short, and had a specific purpose, which involved the presence of Jesus (John 20:17-19). Father God and Jesus were and are always in contact, the only exception was when the Son took upon Himself the sins of mankind. If He just needed to talk to His Father, there was no need to go up to the heavenly throne room. But the Lord had to go personally to the Father, to bring the perfect blood of His sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins to become effective (Hebrews 9:12, 24). Let us remember that the Old Testament is the foreshadowing of the New, and in the Mosaic Law, the High Priest had to sprinkle the mercy seat with the blood of the atonement sacrifice, brought for the sins of the people (Leviticus 16:15). The mercy seat covered the ark of the covenant that was in the Holy of Holies, and there God met with the High Priest to give him the commandments for the people (Exodus 25:22).
 
Only the perfectly pure blood of Jesus was able to enter into "the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation." (Hebrews 9:11b), to cleanse the sins of mankind forever. Jesus who never succumbed to sin in any way was able to die for the sins of mankind, and could be resurrected, because He had never sinned. His blood was pure and perfect as God wants each of us to be. That is why we must be born-again, and without it no one can be saved. The new birth is produced by the Holy Spirit, who restores our spirit to its original, pure, perfect state, as it was created by God in Adam before sin. It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can return to what God created us to be and through the cleansing of sin through the sacrificial blood of Jesus, we are reconciled to God. The sin that separated us from the heavenly Father has been erased, the accusations that Satan brings against us have no basis anymore, we are truly clean, righteous, that is, without sin! The charges have been cleared! Hallelujah!!!

• Romans 3:25 Whom (Jesus) God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,

 

• 1 John 2:2 And He (Jesus) Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.

 
If you still haven't reconciled with God yet, and you want to, it's not too late. Forgiveness of sins becomes real for all who believe in Jesus, love Him and live for Him. In the article "Salvation - the eternal salvation of the soul" you will find the biblical basis of the steps to salvation and the verses that will help you understand how you can become born-again.

• Romans 6:6, 17, 18 Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.[...] But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

 
Jesus did everything for our forgiveness, His sacrifice was offered once and for all. It is up to us to understand that after the Holy Spirit has convinced us that we are sinners and we have sincerely asked for forgiveness, we have died to sin and are no longer under its bondage. This means that as we renew our minds with the Word of God, we understand more and more who we are in Jesus and what we have in Him, and as we desire more of what God wants for us, we are transformed becoming more like Jesus. God is love and as we grow in our love for Him, we change and start to love ourselves as our heavenly Father wants and implicitly we will love people as our Lord asks us to do in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
 
God is the most wonderful example of love. He gave His Son to die for our sins so that we can be redeemed from sin and become His children. That's how much He loves us and wants us to be His! When we understand how amazing God's love is for each of us, and receive it, we can truly love Him and others too. No matter what we go through, God's love is perfect, His love does not change towards us, and if we choose to trust Him, we will see how He cares for us and how He uses evil for our good. When we love others, it is easier to forgive, harder to be offended, and as a result we have more peace and enjoy our lives more. If we accept that we are truly forgiven through the sacrifice of Jesus, and adopted by the heavenly Father, we desire to live as His true loving children, and we are really free from the bondage of sin. And when we err, we ask for forgiveness, and we know that God "is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9b).
 
Let us never forget that Jesus,
 
„… went once for all into the Holy Place [the Holy of Holies of heaven, into the presence of God], and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, having obtained and secured eternal redemption [that is, the salvation of all who personally believe in Him as Savior].” - Hebrews 9:12 (AMP)

How do we behave in times of testing, when we are going through the wilderness? Does the fire of trials make us behave like the children of Israel, who because they rebelled and did not believe that the Lord could accomplish what He had promised them, wandered 40 years in the desert until all the rebellious adults died, or do we behave like Jesus during the 40 days of fasting, when He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11)? You may say that Jesus is God and was able to overcome temptations. But the verse Matthew 4:2 says about Jesus that, "afterward He was hungry". While He lived on Earth, Jesus needed food, water, and sleep like any of us. Here are just a few verses that show that Jesus lived as a man: “Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said...” - Mark 14:18a; “A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, ‘Give Me a drink.’” - John 4:7; But as they sailed He fell asleep...” - Luke 8:23a.
 
What drives us in life determines whom we belong to and where we will spend eternity. We make countless choices every day, and the quality of the life we live and the path we walk on, depend on the nature of these choices.
 
Romans 8:5-6,9-11,16 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. [...] But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. [...] The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
 
We cannot live like the world does and call ourselves God's children. Since the fall of Adam and Eve, the world belongs to the evil one and is ruled by sin. That's why friendship with the world, and fulfilling the desires of the carnal nature are not pleasing to God. The Holy Spirit is the witness of belonging to the family of God. When His fruit of love, joy, peace, and all that is good manifests in us, in situations where we would normally feel the exact opposite, it reconfirms to us that we are saved.
 
And the apostle James explained very clearly that we cannot be friends with the world and believe that we belong to God at the same time.
 
James 4:4b-5 Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?
 
The Holy Spirit lives in the heart that is fully surrendered to Jesus and wants us to belong completely to the Lord. And only when we belong fully to God can we be truly happy.
 
1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.
 
Jesus did not pretend to be human, He was born a human and lived in a human body just like us. Jesus renounced His attributes as God while He lived on earth, and His behavior was, is, and will always be, the perfect example for each of us. He performed miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit and showed us the importance of prayer and an intimate, constant relationship with the heavenly Father. He taught us to desire to do only the will of the heavenly Father, not to seek personal good at the expense of others, not to love the things of the world, and to hate sin and everything that is connected to it. To be able to live this way, we must fully love God and our neighbor as Jesus said in the next verse.
 
Luke 10:27 So He answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”
 
To be able to love God with all that we are and all that we have, we must know that we no longer belong to ourselves, but to Him who redeemed us by paying with His own death for our sins. When we have surrendered everything to God, it means that we also surrendered our desires and plans for the future. Only then can we delight in the Lord, are happiest in His presence, and seek to spend as much time with Him as possible. As a result, our hearts are full of the joy and peace of Jesus, we think of the things above, not of things on the earth (Colossians 3:2), and we no longer desire what the Lord does not want for us. When our desires are pleasing to the Lord, He fulfills them:
 
Psalms 37:4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.
 
What is the foundation of our life of faith? If one came to Jesus only to solve their problems, heal their sicknesses, give them prosperity, do them justice, and fulfill their dreams, they cannot have a joyful, peaceful life. But those who came to the Lord because they understood that He first loved them and died in their place to save them, live to please the Lord, not themselves, and they enjoy the abundant life through Jesus Christ.
 
Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
 
Let us realize that we cannot live as the devil and think that we are saved simply because we believe that Jesus is the Son of God! It is amazing how many Christians believe that God must solve all their problems, save them from all their suffering, and fulfill all their desires and when it does not happen, they get disappointed and after a while, some even forsake the Lord. Whoever really studies the Bible and gets to know Jesus, understands that He was not exempt from trials and sufferings on earth. And if He who never sinned suffered because of the wickedness of evil men, why would we think that we should be spared? Those who belong to the kingdom of darkness make everyone around them suffer, including us. God is love. He never harms us, but He is with us in the trials and uses them to transform us, so that we can become more like Him. Let us stop loving the values of this world, and seek godly values and heavenly blessings.
 
1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
 
We cannot mix a life led by the Holy Spirit, with the lusts of the flesh. We cannot serve two masters and love them both at the same time. No one gets to heaven because they once chose Jesus to be their Lord and then lived led by the desires of their flesh. We cannot be carnal Christians. Whoever is led by the flesh, must be born-again, so that they can be led by the Holy Spirit.
 
During the Babylonian captivity, the three young Jews, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, preferred to be burned alive in the furnace of the emperor Nebuchadnezzar, than to sin before God, by worshiping the king.
 
Daniel 3:17-18 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”
 
We would have expected that God would not allow these strong believers to be thrown into the furnace, or that God would have stopped the fire. But the emperor who thought himself as being god, infuriated by the young men’s disobedience, ordered the fire to be 7 times stronger than normal. The young men ended up in the furnace, but Jesus was in it with them, and all were untouched by the fire, “the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them” (Daniel 3:27b).
 
The Lord is with us in every trial we have to face. He never forsakes us if we choose to be His, and He strengthens and equips us with everything we need to face any trial! Glory be to our God!
 
John 16:33b “… In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
 
Jesus has overcome the world, but how many Christians are still overcome by worldly thinking and a worldly outlook on life? Through Jesus we can overcome selfishness, self-centeredness, and the values of the world. By loving what the Lord loves, having the right perspective on earthly and eternal life, and living to show the world the love of the Father, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!

Peace is one of the most desired and beneficial feelings. But is peace just a feeling or is it more than that? True peace that is deep and profound, is found only in the relationship with Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. There are many factors that influence how we feel, and that is why in order to have peace, it is not enough to believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died for our sins. The peace of Jesus dwells only in those He is Lord of. And our relationship with the Prince of Peace must be close, intimate, and deep in all the areas of our lives. Such a relationship is not possible if we are not totally surrendered and submitted to God.
 
But to have real peace and joy is quite complicated to achieve. Why? Because we are influenced by many factors. A very important one is how much we truly trust in God. Do we really know that our Father God loves us, takes care of our needs, and protects us? When we worry and fear, we lose our peace and joy. But when we know for sure that we belong to our heavenly Father and that He is in us, with us and for us, no matter what we are going through, we can regain our peace and have full joy (Matthew 6:25-34, Philippians 4:6, John 16:24).
 
Self-denial, which Jesus speaks of in Matthew 16:24, is a requirement to be able to follow the Lord and to implicitly have peace. When self occupies second place, we want to obey the will of God more than to follow the lusts of the flesh, and this is evidence that we are being led by the Holy Spirit. What follows this change? We can have peace and joy even when what happens to us is contrary to the desires of our nature or when those around us do the opposite of what we want them to do.
 
Another important factor is how we think. If we change the way we think, our emotions and feelings will also change. This means that our behavior will change too. Therefore, the more we think in accordance with God's Word, the more peace we can have. Keeping our peace, makes us happier and as a result, our behavior will be more pleasing to God and those around us. You may say that no matter how hard we try to do what is right, we cannot control circumstances and what others do. It is true, but we can change how we react. If we ask the Lord to help us keep calm in all situations, and to help us choose to react as Jesus would, we prepare our minds for the right reaction. We must be determined not to give in to anger, worry, fear, panic, and even depression when things don't go our way, or we don't receive what we pray for, when and how we desire.

Romans 8:5-6 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
 
Man has been created in the image and likeness of God and to live led by our spirit, that connects us to God. God wants us to be in constant fellowship with Him, know that we are precious to Him and He loves us dearly. When Adam and Eve chose to ignore the commandment of the Lord and obeyed the devil they died spiritually. Jesus came to reconcile us with our heavenly Father and get us back to where we are in His image and likeness, living led by the spirit, not by the soul. When we truly understand that we are in this world to return to the original purpose for which we were created, we will be able to live in complete peace. Only if we live this way can we reign in life through Jesus Christ (Romans 5:17) and not allow the behavior of those around us steal our peace.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
 
If we stop after this verse, we might say: “How God? How can I be happy all the time when I go through life’s trials and tribulations?” But when we read the following verses, we find out what we have to do in order to be happy.

Philippians 4:5-8 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.
 
Gentleness is the opposite of cruelty, wickedness, ferocity, and that is why, if others consider us gentle, we are certainly not the opposite. A gentle attitude calms any tense situation. Gentle people have more peace, are less stressed and happier than others.
 
Worry is the opposite of trusting in the Lord and is often accompanied by discontent. When we choose to pray about what worries us and thank the Lord for the help and protection that He has already provided for us in similar situations, fear will turn into confidence and as peace settles in, joy follows. We do not solve anything by worrying, on the contrary, negative, toxic thoughts, fear and anxiety can have negative effects not only on the way we feel but also on our physical health.
 
Scientific studies show that about 85% of our worries are not real and never happen. If you're the type of person who worries about everything, like I used to be, you already know this is true. When I realized how absurd these kinds of thoughts were and that they were stealing my peace and joy, I decided that I had to change. But we cannot truly change in our own strength. We need the help of our Lord to do it and renew our minds with His Word. It is a process that takes time and effort and even if in tough situations, we are tempted to get back to our old bad habits, we must choose not to fall prey to worry and fear. We need to sincerely pray to our Lord to help us trust in Him no matter what and not focus on what happens in the natural realm. The Holy Spirit lives in us to help us become more like Jesus and teach us everything we need to know about our Lord, His Word, the Kingdom of Heaven and how to live pure and holy lives, so that we can enjoy true peace.

Romans 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”