Month: February 2013

Persecution of Christians


The news media doesn’t report this much, but it is still happening. Christians in many countries are being imprisoned and tortured or killed because of their beliefs. Christianity is not a popular religious belief in countries where Islam is the main religion. Converting to Christianity in those countries can get you put in prison or killed. The so-called “religion of peace” is not at peace with anyone.

Our faith in Jesus and in His grace gives us hope for a life in eternity with Him. Can any other religion give you eternity? Some claim to, but if you look closely at their claims it is a lie! Thousands of Christians have died for their beliefs since Jesus’ time, because they would not reject their beliefs or their faith in Him. They received their reward and are now in Heaven with Him. Few other religions, if any, can claim this truthfully.

To go to other countries and try to evangelize people with the message of Christ is our duty and privilege but it is dangerous in some parts of the world. Jesus told His disciples that they would be hated because the world hated Him and in many places that is still true today, even in our own country. Our country has banned prayer in schools and has taken any display of the Bible or the Ten Commandments from public buildings. In the media Christian principles are being challenged every day as well as in the courts.

We have to stand in our faith but we cannot be truly open about it or we get labeled as extremists. Any other belief, regardless of what it is, can be talked about and spoken aloud openly in the media and in public but not Christianity. Is it because no one wants to hear about a religion which has, as its base, truth and moral absolutes which no person in the world wants to hear about.

Moral absolutes are wrong by most people’s standards. We all ascribe to “personal or individual or even relative absolutes” or so the media reports. What is relative to me doesn’t have to be relative for you. For most of the past two thousand years there has been a standard by which the un-believers and the believers were judged and that standard was and is the Bible.

It is true that there have been wars and other atrocities over religious viewpoints as well as whether the church was the only authority in a nation or who could have access to the Bible itself but there are always opinions in our world. Opinions are going to differ inside a home, let alone on a planet where there are more than six billion people!

The point is that God has not abandoned us to our own devices and beliefs! He is still in control, although He is allowing our own choices to play out as they will. He doesn’t control us, but gives us the choice and the opportunity to see the Truth and to accept it. It is our own choice that will condemn us or save us because the choice is between living as if we are in control of our life or allowing Jesus to have control of it. One will allow your own desires and passions to rule your life and the other will change you into the person you are truly meant to be!

Many people don’t want to accept this change, they fear it. They don’t want to lose the life or the friends that they have. But, your life won’t change only your character and when your character changes, people will notice. Your friends may not like the change but they also may want to know what has made such a difference in your life!

Your witness about many things that you like or are passionate about is known to all of your friends because you talk about it and you tell them about it! It should be no different if you decide to follow Christ as your Savior  But in some countries, it is dangerous for you to witness to people, to tell them about Jesus. He will be with you to strengthen you and guide you through this, no matter what happens.

If you live in an area where persecution against Christians is normal, pray about it. God hears those prayers and He will send a comforter and a Helper. You are not alone. If you are considering becoming a Christian in a country where persecution is harsh, become one and then get on your knees and pray for strength and for help in your new faith. God is near you, when you ask Him into your life, He comes into your heart and is there always. You can make the choice to “kick him out” but that is the only way that you can “lose your faith” and it is your choice to do so!

He won’t leave you unless you force Him out and no one can take you from Him! Eternity is the prize that we strive for but the life that you will “live” in eternity is dependent on which choice you make while you live today, because once you die, the choice has been made. You will either live in eternity with Christ or you will be condemned to spend eternity away from God in a place only reserved for Satan and his fallen angels. It is your choice.

Can we live with Christ?


Our lives were created to be more complete with Christ in our hearts. The area that feels empty in our life, that you may have been trying to fill with something is the spot that was designed for Christ to inhabit. If He is not in that spot, then your life feels empty regardless of how much success you may have according to the world’s standards. So how can we be filled with Him and have a life that is truly meaningful? The simple answer is for you to just ask Him to come into your heart!

I know that sounds way too easy, but it is the truth. In our lives on a daily basis, we are confronted with many problems and different things that get in the way of our true lives, our life with Christ! I know that many people look at this and say “I don’t have a problem with Christ because I have Him already!” or “I don’t have a problem with Christ because I don’t want Him in my life!”

Many people think that because they have gone to church for many years, maybe even from the time they were children, that they are Christians and they don’t need to ask Him to come into their hearts. That is like someone living in a garage who thinks they are a car or truck. Just because you have been in church for years doesn’t mean that you are a Christian. You have heard many sermons and served as a deacon or Sunday school teacher, but unless you have asked Jesus to come into your life and change you into the person you were meant to be, you are not a Christian. You are just a religious person who attends church.

Can you get past the religious part of your life and just accept Christ into your heart? As I stated, it seems too easy and some people think it is a waste of time. But, that is exactly what the world and Satan want you to believe. If Christ and your belief in Him is a waste of time, why does the world and Satan try to keep Him out of your life? What is the point of pushing God away if belief and having faith in Him don’t mean anything?

Your life and mine are very short compared to eternity, so where do you want to spend it? I have heard all of the stories of how people will party forever with Satan in hell and they will have a grand old time. Nothing could be further from the truth!!

Hell was created to punish those angels who rebelled against God and followed Satan. It was not created for us at all, but if you don’t accept Christ as your Savior and follow Him, you are on the wrong side! Eternal punishment for simply not believing and accepting Christ is what you will get and it will not be a party!

Of course there are many people who have said that a loving God would not put you into an awful place like that. The truth is that He doesn’t put you there, you do! If you stole a million dollars from a bank and then were caught with it, what kind of punishment would you expect? Maybe a job at the bank that you stole the money from? If you killed an important person, would you expect to be given the responsibility of taking care of their children? NO! You would expect the punishment to be severe.

God looks at us as children, rebellious and un- disciplined but He also sees our potential if we come to know and love Him and His Son, Jesus. Our life will change, our outlook on everything will change because when your heart is Jesus’ home, you look at things around you the way He does. There are only two sides to life, serving yourself or serving Jesus. Life on one side can be hard, full of sorrow and pain and emptiness but on the other side you have Jesus’ strength and assurance and hope!

The life that we have here only lasts for a short time, but once you cross the threshold of death, eternity waits. Which eternity will you have to look forward to? One where you get to meet all of those that your life influenced to come to Christ? Or one where you get to spend eternity alone, in pain and torment because of the wrong decision, the one decision where you rejected the Son of God who came so that you would have eternal life, if you had  just asked Him into your heart?