Effie Darlene Barba

John 3:

¹⁶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Luke 22:

⁴⁰ And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

⁴¹ And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

⁴² Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

⁴³ And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

⁴⁴ And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

⁴⁵ And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow,

⁴⁶ And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

The hour had come and the human flesh which Christ had taken upon Himself cried out in agony.  He knew the pain and suffering He was about to endure.  He knew that He would be beaten, rejected and hung on the cross like some murderer or thief.  Yet, He knew also that He would face His own greatest temptation.  The Prince of the Universe would endure the pain of this, knowing that any second He could call down a legion of angels and say, "Stop, I won’t do this".  He knew that He must take upon Himself the guilt and the punishment for all the sins of mankind.  To do that He would have to feel the full wrath of God against sin flung against Him and for a moment in time, He would feel the wrath of His Father while the Holy Spirit also withdrew His comforting strength.  He would be all alone in this human body.  Could He withstand the temptation to end it forever?  He knew He must in order that I might be reconciled before a Holy God.  So, He did.  He withdrew to pray with great agony and pain deep within His soul.  Yet, part of that prayer, as recorded in John was one in which He prayed for me (and for you whom believe in Him as Your Savior and all who will believe in Him).  John 17:  "²⁰ Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;

²¹ That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

²² And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

²³ I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

²⁴ Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.

²⁵ O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.

²⁶ And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."

How can I ever understand such love for me?  How could I ever doubt Him?  How could I ever let the circumstances of this life ever cause my eyes to turn away from Him for even a moment?  How could I ever disgrace Him by getting caught up in my own petty frustrations?  I bow at the foot of the cross and my greatest desire is to give Him my life, my heart to do with as He will to bring Him the Glory.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IbWUc4h8WU

 

Ephesians 2:  ⁴ But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

⁵ Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

⁶ And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

⁷ That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

⁸ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

⁹ Not of works, lest any man should boast.

¹⁰ For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

¹¹ Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;

¹² That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

¹³ But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

¹⁴ For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

¹⁵ Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;

¹⁶ And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

¹⁷ And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

¹⁸ For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Perfect Righteousness demands perfect Justice.  I remember a Muslim friend who once told me, "at this point in my life, I can never pray enough; nor perform enough good to undo the sins in my life."   He was a doctor and by worldly standards had not been considered evil; but, he had realized that by the standards of perfect righteousness, he had failed.  Light had shone into the darkness of his heart revealing every selfish, covetous thought.  Have I ever hurt or injured anyone by thoughts of jealousy? Have I unjustly ever injured someone else by words spoken?  Is there within me some pride-filled desire to be exalted above someone else? Have I ever gotten angry unjustly?  When the light of God’s Righteousness shines into the darkness of my heart, I too, would cry out " I can never do enough to undo the sins in my life"  Justice demands that I be sentenced to death eternally.  Yet, there at the foot of the Cross; Perfect Justice and Perfect Love met to give forth Mercy to someone like me and you. 

So in His diverse excellences, He (Jesus Christ) is perfect judge—respecting every law and carrying out the just penalty of the law with all its wrath and fury; while at the same time being perfect mercy and grace by accepting the full power of God’s wrath toward sin on Himself so that those who would accept His gift would be made righteous through faith.  He is God in all his Holiness, Power, and Might. Yet, He chose to leave heaven with all its beauty to obediently come to earth in poverty, knowing that he would be rejected and ridiculed.  The sea and the wind obeyed His voice.  He raised Lazarus from the dead, healed the lepers, drove out demons; yet, He chose to die a cruel, humiliating death without opening His mouth except to ask the Father to forgive those who nailed Him to the cross. He was a man of great sorrow; yet, filled with Joy.   He who “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made.” John 1: 1-3.  This same Christ bowed down in reverence and obedience to the Father.  He was royalty who chose to live in poverty among the “untouchables” and outcasts.  He was perfect wisdom, who taught and still teaches with great patience a bunch of slow learners such as ourselves.  He hated sin and all its effects on man; yet, He loved the sinner enough to offer to take His place.   On this subject, I could go on writing for a lifetime and never complete the list of diverse Excellencies which are found in Christ Jesus.  There was never one so worthy to receive only good; yet, so willing to patiently endure suffering and pain for our sake.  excerpt from Ultimate Inspiration God’s Plan of Love

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NkzxwpQlXA

Matthew 25: ³⁴ Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

³⁵ For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

³⁶ Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

³⁷ Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

³⁸ When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

³⁹ Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

⁴⁰ And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

⁴¹ Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

⁴² For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

⁴³ I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

⁴⁴ Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?

⁴⁵ Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

⁴⁶ And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Are we listening?  Do we hear the cries of those suffering whether it is from a natural disaster or it is your neighbor?  When those of us in healthcare enter the hospitals where there is so much suffering, do we really hear the cries of patient or their family?  Have we become so concerned about the ever decreasing healthcare dollar that we only want to deal with the easy, quick patient so we can move on to reach numbers?  Do we hear the voices of the mentally ill lost in their world of psychosis or do we want to just sweep them under some rug and walk away? Are you willing to live a life without those luxuries you thought you deserved, so someone else might have hope tomorrow?  Will you hand your lunch to the man on the corner?  Will you be the voice for someone who has lost theirs?  Jesus Christ had told His disciples this following the parable about the talents.  Of course, the degree in which one can give is dependent upon what you have been given.  I am not saying, sell all of what you have and live in the streets; but, I am saying to listen very carefully to the whispering voice of God that says "Give to this one", "speak up for this one", and "stop to listen to this one."  Can you take the time to give a piece of your time to encourage someone?  Or can you stop to fight for someone who is mentally ill when no one else hears them?  So my question is, "Are You Listening?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZrPcyyWRzI

 

Galatians 6:

¹⁴ But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

This is my prayer, I want you to love Jesus more because you have known me.  The greatest gift I can give each person I meet is Christ.  He is my greatest love, my joy, my hope, and my Savior.  As I look back over my life, so many times I have failed to represent Him as I should.  I have at moments gotten caught up in my own petty desires and wishes, I am so sorry for those moments.  But let me tell you about a gentle, loving Savior who left all the Splendor of Heaven where the Father’s love engulfs Him while the angels sing His constant praise to come to this earth where He was rejected, beaten and hung shamefully on a cross to die and pay the penalty of sin for you and me.  Oh, that I would die to all those self-centered thoughts long enough that you might see His face shine through me.  Is there anything more important for me to do?  So, if one day God calls me home; I hope that when you hear my name, you think of Him.  I have never deserved the Grace which He has so freely poured out in my life.  I never want to forget for a moment that fact and for that reason I must display that same Grace to those who are around me.  Whatever the cost, I cannot get so caught up trying to impress them at work with "numbers" so that I ignore the opportunities when the Lord is tugging at my heart to compassionately remind a patient that is hurting of the love God has for them.  I want my family, my friends, my co-workers, and my acquaintances to all remember a glimpse of my Glorious Savior and Friend–Jesus Christ when they remember the moments they spent with me.  So dear Heavenly Father, let me die to me; so a world might see You.  I know that so often You, Father have even taken my failures and used them to Your Glory;.  I realize that if I have done anything Good it has been Your work through me.   Guide me each moment of each day that all the Glory goes to You.  Oh, Father do not let my mind wander or forget.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwXZZLwXvh4

 

 

Below are links to Artwork that will inspire you.   I have these portraits hanging on the wall over my computer where I write for you this morning blog and they stand as reminders of God’s Grace in my Life.

 

 

Good Morning,

Below my signature you will find icons to my business sites on Facebook, Twitter, Fine Art America, and Zazzle. Please feel free to like or follow my pages and send my store links to anyone who maybe interested in these items.

I greatly appreciate the references.

Sincerely,

Ronald Barba