to think and do “like God”...

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So, always put your trust in God, the Lord
of all the gods, for He is a great rock!
And now to go beyond (you are implored)
the basic message of the Christ of God:

the ruler of the universe, the boss.
Authority, above all others/ else.
With no capacity to be, or to get, lost;
and yet he gives away his life and self.

And now's our chance to follow up this Christ,
to true maturity, and forward move.
For the foundation’s laid, & it’s suffice
to build, & live, upon, for us to prove

by turning from our dead works and, dead "life"
and power structures that “enable” our
dead selves to keep on growing, bringing strife
into God’s world. And start to use God’s pow’r!

And still to trust his way, when hope “seems” dead.
To trust the great Creator who is Love.
Who takes on suffering for us instead
to teach us to now follow him, not shove!

Not push & pull, and “make” them go “a way”.
But learn from him how love will serve & woo.
“For our rebellion, He was pierced” they say,
He doesn’t crush folk for their sins as do

the rulers of this world, who know just force.
For he himself was crushed for ou-r sins
So we could be healed, he gets whipped and more
so, he will truly help those "in the bins"!

The one who made the heavens and the earth,
is glad to be our helper! (Do you hear?)
He’s been with us since way before our birth,
the love of such a parent’s always near.

So if you think that Jesus is the Christ
of God, the leader who’s hand-picked by him;
your attitude, I hope you’ve realized,
should be a kind like his, & not more dim.

He always had the nature of this God,
but he did not think that by force he should
retain, to still remain equal and nod
as though he were the boss, and so he could

not live under authority, but do
his own will, as if it’s “the will of God.”
Instead of this, his own desires eschewed,
he’d do what brought God’s smile, and then his nod!

He took the nature of a servant, and
appeared as in Dan’s dream, just “like a man”.
He humbly walked the path to do, as planned
by God - obedience to God’s will, again,

& even if that leads to death — (and shame);
his death by crucifixion is the kind
that made some people pillory and blame,
but he himself’s determined that he’ll find

forgiveness for his enemies that came
to castigate and make more fun of him.
And God who seemed to let them run away
had let them show their colours were so dim,

just now has raised him to the highest place
above, and given him the name beyond,
- much greater, and above any that trace
authority & ancestry. He’s fond

of him. And so, in honor of his name,
the name of Jesus, anyone at all
in heaven, & on earth, else-where the same,
before, or after, on their knees will fall.

For ev’ryone will openly proclaim
that Jesus Christ is Lord - is Lord of all!
And to the glory of the Father’s shame
this is the way that he would rise, and fall!

When you reflect him in your lives on Earth,
your lives light up the world, and others see
God’s light of love and truth for what it’s worth
as clearly as a hill - un-der city.

And who on earth (in poverty like us)
would light a lamp then hide it right away?
And don’t we put a light on to save fuss,
to save folk falling over in dismay.

So do not hide your light! But shine it in
this dark world, in the place God’s got you parked!
And help folk to make sense in all this din,
to save them from their stumbling in the dark.

This lighting up of places doesn't serve
the self, so it's commendable to folk,
and they will see that you have kept your nerve,
your work’s with God’s own healing, not a joke!

And they will lift their hearts & praise the King,
your Father who’s in heaven all this while.
So, keep supporting & encouraging
each other, & you’ll multiply his smile!

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Always put your trust in The Lord, for He is an everlasting rock!! Isaiah 26:4 (PM Version)
Now is the time to progress beyond the basic message of Christ and be taken forward to maturity.
The foundation has already been laid for us to build upon, turning away from our dead works
to embrace faith in God!! Hebrews 6:1 (PM Version)
He was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole. 
He was whipped so we could be healed. Isaiah 53:5 (PM Version)

So he said to me, ‘This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty. Zechariah 4:6 NIVUK

My help comes from The Lord, who made heaven and earth!!  Psalm 121:2 (PM Version)
The attitude you should have is the one that Christ Jesus had:
He always had the nature of God,
but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God.
Instead of this, of his own free will he gave up all he had,
and took the nature of a servant.
He became like a human being
and appeared in human likeness.
He was humble and walked the path of obedience all the way to death—
his death on the cross.
For this reason God raised him to the highest place above
and gave him the name that is greater than any other name.
And so, in honor of the name of Jesus
all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below
will fall on their knees,
and all will openly proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5-11 (PM Version)
"Your lives light up the world. Let others see your light from a distance,
for how can you hide a city that stands on a hilltop? And who would light a lamp
and then hide it in an obscure place? Instead, it’s placed where everyone in the house
can benefit from its light. So don’t hide your light! Let it shine brightly before others,
so that the commendable things you do will shine as light upon them, and then
they will give their praise to your Father in heaven.” Mathew 5:14-16. (PM Version)
Keep encouraging and supporting one another, just as you have already been doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (PM Version)

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