Category: All in or not

What life do you want?


Sometimes you see on social media sites where people seem to be wondering about their lives. Of course, most of us are not philosophically minded so the topic doesn’t go very deep. We feel that following this line of thought is just a waste of time and energy, so we drop it and mostly forget about it. But..if you look at it from a spiritual point of view it really does take on a different tone altogether.

Religion and being religious are good, but you can be religious about playing golf or fishing or any number of things which have very little to do with religion. Having a life of contentment and being content with your life regardless of your wealth is another way of looking at and living your life too. Neither one of those actually has anything to do with your salvation though.

Yes, I am steering the conversation back to the saving grace of God through Jesus His Son. Why do I do this? Because it is my job to do so. I am a pastor and a follower of Jesus the Christ and He did give His followers the command to “go into all of the world teaching the gospel“. That includes all of His disciples and those of us who have recently come to know Him as Savior and Lord as well.

God loves you and me and anyone who may be reading this and the life that you live is important to Him. Living it as a disciple of Jesus is sometimes hard and it can be dangerous depending upon where you live. But it is a very rewarding life. I am not speaking of getting rich from “love offerings” or from being paid a salary at a mega church. I am speaking of the rewards which come from being His servant in all that you do!

God has given each of us gifts to use in our lives. Some of them are for our vocation in life and some are for spreading the message of His Love for us. Some of these gifts are for taking care of others, like the gift of mercy. Some of these gifts are for encouraging others when life beats them up or grief wears them down. Some people have more than one gift and some only have one, but all are useful in living daily with Jesus and walking according to His ways!

Why are they useful in our world when people don’t want to hear about Him? Because even if you don’t speak about Him to others, many will see Him in the way you live or carry your burden through this life. Regardless of what that burden may be, give your life to Jesus and live as He would as much as possible for us, being human. Yes we will fail on some points and we will fall on others, but read His Word and live like it says in all ways. Pray that you will have the strength given by His Spirit to be able to walk in His ways daily because it is only by His Spirit that we can do this.

VineandBranchesOur own strength and power is just not up to the task of walking in the steps of Jesus. Regardless of what your coach tells you or your family tells you, we just don’t have it in us to be like Jesus without the Holy Spirit giving us that strength and ability to do so. I am not putting anyone down by saying this but Jesus says that “you can do nothing apart from me“. Seek Him in the Word of God, learn about Him from its pages and make sure you are in a Bible teaching church so that you can grow in your faith.

God is here every day


Some people know this for sure and many more doubt that He even cares, but He does. He loves us and gives us grace and strength for each day and the problems which come to us on a daily basis. How do I know this? Because there are stories in the Bible about Him being there in the fire with the three men in Babylon when they were thrown into an oven because they would only worship God! He is with us during our trials too!

It doesn’t matter what kind of trial we are going through or whatever problem we are having, He is there. Even when there is more going on around us than we can see or imagine, He is there. Why am I reminding you of this? Because of the times which we live in today. There are some tough times coming and some which are already here, but by leaning on Him every day, each of us can get through those troubles.

In today’s world, many people from their teens on up to their thirties are addicted to a game called Pokemon GO. I am sure that you have heard about it, if you haven’t bumped into some of them playing it. Anyway, I was wondering why we can’t get our church members involved in chasing after Jesus in the same way?

behold i am with you alwaysWhy? Because, Jesus told us to take the gospel into all of the world…so what better way to do it than to tell others about Him as you go about your day? Why do we, as Christians, decide not to tell others about our Lord and Savior? Is it because we are afraid of what they may say about us being so pushy with our faith? Probably. In today’s society we are so caught up in being tolerant and politically correct until we barely talk to each other at all! We message each other on Facebook and Twitter, occasionally we will have a sit-down talk with someone over lunch or dinner, if we can put our phones down long enough.

We don’t talk to each other anymore and that is one of the drawbacks of our cellphone crazed culture today! Me message each other even when we are sitting at the same table! Relationships are being torn apart because of this and it seems that nobody is even noticing. It isn’t news because it isn’t bloody or it doesn’t involve a gun, but it is causing our society to fracture and come apart. If the same thing were happening to the ice in the Antarctic people would be rushing to find a fix for it!

I am not going to place blame here, but it does fall squarely on our media-intensive phones, regardless of the make or model! If we were stuck with “old phones”, such as a flip-phone, things would be a little better because they weren’t media phones. But, those don’t sell to a younger crowd, they sell to older people like myself (even though I do have an Android phone).

God is present in your life every day, whether you acknowledge Him or not. You are breathing because of Him, you are alive because of the function of your heart and your lungs and because of His Grace. So why can’t we give Him praise every day? In our life and in our walk through this life, at work, at home, at play, on vacation, we should be seeking Him in all of the things which we see around us and in what we are doing. Why? Because He is there and in your heart, if you belong to Him!

Don’t leave Him at the church or in the Bible after your study time, take Him with you so everyone around you can see Him too.

What more can be done?


CallofDutyIn today’s society, whether it is in America or Europe or the Middle East, many prophecies are coming to pass or have come to pass in the last century. Some of them have been noticed for what they are but many of them have not. The wars which began in Europe and ended in the Middle East in the first couple of decades of last century began the fulfillment of the prophecies concerning the Jewish people.

This year, we are in what was foretold to be the last Jubilee year for the Jewish nation before the Messiah comes. Which coming are they speaking of? Will this be the True Messiah or will it be the antiChrist claiming to be their Messiah? Will this Messiah show up this year or will it be in the next seven years? Truly, nobody on Earth knows for sure.

According to the Bible, there are few prophecies left to come true before the Second Coming of Jesus. Some of those things which are to happen are the apostasy or falling away from the faith and a global war. These may begin to happen prior to the calling away of the church and those who have died believing in Jesus or it may not. We just don’t know the timing of this exactly.

The fall feasts or Holy Days of the Jewish people give some clues but they aren’t concrete. So…what more is there to do? Keep watching and studying the Scriptures. Looking for signs which point to prophecy being fulfilled or even some of the judgements being carried out which happen in the first few chapters of Revelation. We, as believers, should keep a close eye on the news with our knowledge of God’s Word as a filter so that we may be able to see things that will happen before others do.

God loves humanity and He will give them, meaning those who don’t believe, every chance to come to know Jesus. But at some point He will tell Jesus to go and get My people. Some say it will be too late for people to change at that point but I don’t believe that God will turn away from those who are left behind. He will still be working to draw more to Himself, even if they are under the eye of the antiChrist at the time.

I don’t mean that He will save everyone but He will save those who will give their hearts to Him and serve Him. God knows exactly who they are and He will get their attention even during those trying times. People who claim to be Christians will be forced to prove it with their lives or take the mark of the Beast. If they do, they have turned away from Jesus and they are not Christians. If they refuse to take the mark, then at that time they will be killed. All of this is in the book of Revelation, which I am not going to give chapter and verse here. The entire story plays out during the first sixteen chapters and finalizes from chapter seventeen to 19 when the battle is over, at least for one thousand years. Chapters 20 through 22 detail some of what will happen at the end of that thousand-year reign of Jesus. Just read it and pray about your part in the time leading up to all of this.

Make sure about which side you are on before things get really bad.

The wonder of Joy


joyIn many ways when we come to know Jesus, we are joyful in that knowledge that we have our salvation granted through Jesus our Savior. We are very much like a small child, giddy and so happy that our Savior loves us enough to grant us our salvation through His blood, His death and resurrection! So…what happens after you find that you need to learn more about Him and learn to listen to Him every day?

It seems that many people don’t experience that joyous wonder like a child. They understand that they need Him and they ask Him into their hearts. But sometimes our church or others in the church who should shepherd them toward their Savior drop the ball. Many people end up just standing in ankle-deep salvation for many years and some never get past that point.

The joy of knowing Jesus and knowing that you have been saved through His sacrifice in your place should carry you through for many months until you begin to mature as a Christian. But how do you do that? The same way you get through any learning situation, by study, prayer and by seeking His advice for your life every day. It is a daily walk with Him after all, and just as any relationship…it needs to be cultivated and nurtured.

He is your Creator and your Savior and that relationship should be one that continues all through your life, day in and day out. Sounds boring, but think about Who you are having a relationship with! He is the Creator, the Son of God, your Savior and the second Person of the Trinity! Could there be anyone in the universe who could possibly be more interesting?

If you are wondering how you could get to know Him, READ the Bible! God inspired the writers and disciples to tell you about Himself and His personality. Yes, sometimes He is demanding but it’s because He expects us to obey Him, just as we expect our children to obey when they learn the rules about being in your house! Life, as a child of God, is a learning process and it is one that takes a lifetime! You can’t get a version of it which is a digest version, it is a day by day, week by week learning process which is very much like our own lives.

The joy of knowing Jesus is like the joy of bringing home your newborn son or daughter. It or rather they are new in your life, you are new at learning how to handle your relationship with them or Him. As time goes on and you learn more about Him, the joy should grow into a deeper love and a deeper relationship…but there should always be a bit of joy in it from day-to-day!

 

About Dad and Father’s Day


My father died in 2001 from a heart attack. My grandfather died in 1995 due to untreated COPD, although he never smoked as far as I know. I think it was due to his hobby of woodworking and breathing sawdust for many years. These were the two father figures in my life. One who was with me while growing up and one that wasn’t.

fathers-day-002I spent many hours, days even, being angry and hurt while I was growing up. Especially during my teen years. I felt betrayed and tossed aside by my dad, and my grandfather as good as he was didn’t know how to help me. I now realize that I wasn’t tossed aside by my dad, and my grandfather was at a loss about how to handle my feelings.

My real problem was that I got conflicting stories about our relationships. Sometimes it went one way and everything was OK. Then, later it would change and there would be frustration and bitterness mixed in with other feelings and being a teenager didn’t help. We would go to church and I would hear about the love of God and how we are supposed to emulate Him in our lives.

Then we would get home and things were…different. Nothing like what I had heard in church. There was no abuse or anything like that, but God’s Word wasn’t spoken of or read in our house until my grandfather was over 80. I would find him reading and studying the Bible then, but that didn’t happen while I was younger.

In many ways I would like to thank my father and grandfather for showing me what NOT to do in this life. So that when I became a father myself I would tell my son that I love him and I began reading the Bible when he was small. When he was 12 I became the pastor of a small church, so he got to see me preparing for sermons, praying and studying God’s Word.

Fathers have a lot on their shoulders, sometimes grandfathers do too. The only One Who can help the ENTIRE family to muddle through the teen years and come out still smiling and being a family is Jesus. Having that foundation in my life and my family’s life has helped me so much while raising my son. Since my family was broken before I even knew what a family was, I had no idea how to be a dad.

Thankfully, my wife and I had given our lives to Jesus before our son was born, although we were busy with work and I had gone back to school before I knew we were even having a child. Our life with Jesus suffered because of our work during this time because while I was in school, I worked in the lab at the hospital on the weekends. Sunday was my wife’s only day off, so many weekends during that time neither of us went to church. I do regret that, but it can’t be changed now.

God loves all of us and He doesn’t want us to live our lives without Him, but there are so many who choose to do this. Why? Because, love can’t be forced upon someone. God knows us better than we know ourselves because He has known us since before we were born, even from the beginning of creation. Just as any father on Earth, God wants a relationship with us. Seek to learn more about Him by reading His Word and praying for Him to reveal its wisdom to you for your life.

Have a wonderful Father’s Day!

Preaching from the Bible


Is this the actual way to do it? I mean, if you are a preacher of the gospel aren’t you supposedTaketheGospeltoAll to preach from the Bible? Today, it seems that more churches which are growing, especially the larger ones, have pep talks and “5 ways to make your marriage work” sermons. Jesus didn’t preach or teach on these topics. The gospel is the Good News of His payment of your debt owed because of your sins. He made that payment iN FULL so that we can accept His grace and offer of salvation once and never have to come to Him asking for salvation again.

We may need to confess our sins when we fail Him one day or another, but our salvation is secure in Him. He will in no way lose any that the Spirit calls to Himself and they accept that call. Preaching from the Word of God is the only way that many people get to hear God’s Word. It seems that today many rely on apps on their phone or tablet for scripture reading, and that’s fine but reading the Word and hearing it preached allows it to be imprinted on your mind and your heart even more.

Don’t neglect the gathering together of the brethren in worship. I know, there are always other things to do instead of going to church BUT if you have given your life to Jesus you are expected to worship Him at least one day during the week. Of course some people claim that they worship Him every day, which is good, but the disciples gathered together to worship and pray so I think we should too.

We should preach from God’s Word and worship together because the worship of His people and the praise which we give to Him, He inhabits it. Our prayers and needs are seen and heard by our Father and the Son when we are together because those prayers rise like the smoke from incense or sacrifices to the throne! Praise His Holy Name!!

All religions are not the same


In some circles it seems that religions are all thrown into the same pile, regardless of belief or the God or gods being worshiped. Many don’t seem to notice or care that some of those religions are or were created by man, out of man’s mind and not inspired by God Himself! Satan and his forces have been doing this since the beginning, and they are so good at it until the religions that were created by men who were acting under the influence or guidance of demons are accepted world-wide.

Yet, Christianity and Judaism are ridiculed and marginalized because we worship God the Creator of all!

The Bible tells of a time that people will look to their own wisdom instead of His. They will seek out teachers who tell them what they want to hear and make them feel good about themselves. Sound like any “teacher” that you may have seen on TV or heard about? God loves humanity, all of us, not just Christians and Jews. But the salvation and forgiveness of sins comes from belief in Jesus and His death and resurrection and your repentance from those sins.

We are living in troubling times where men do atrocious crimes. Murder, pedophilia, child molestation and slavery for sex…the list could go on and on. The point of this is that we live in a time just like Jesus described to His disciples where the world and the people in it are very much like those in the days of Noah. They didn’t call on God nor believe in Him and didn’t care about anyone except themselves. Sounds very familiar doesn’t it?

God’s love for us is what is keeping your life and mine on a path toward our futures. What that future is exactly, nobody knows for sure except for God. Each decision which you and I make is not controlled by God but is guided by Him. After your salvation you are happy and joyful at having your salvation. Then many people seem to get into a rhythm of going to church and going home then work and then repeat.

The problem with this is that we are supposed to be progressing just like a child or baby. The apostle Paul said it best when he chastised the church at Corinth about still being babes when they should be learning the meat of God’s Word! It is a fact that you can’t progress in your Christian life and walk with Christ if you don’t pray and learn His Wisdom from the Bible.

Being a Christian is a process just like any journey it begins with a step. The first step is accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior then you have to take the next step and learn about Him from His Word. Study it daily and seek His Wisdom from it with prayer and sometimes fasting. The more that you learn about Him, you will realise that there is more to know about Him. You will never graduate from learning about Him until you are in Heaven. Then you will know and be known fully and completely.OnlyJesus

Anguish and sorrowful times


There are many people in our world today who feel desperately sorrowful and depressed. Some for unknown reasons and some because of things which they have been unable to control in their lives. Sometimes these problems are because of the job which they have to do, like a policeman or woman. Some of them may feel this way because of being in a branch of the military and they are also doing things which bother them. I know that it doesn’t bother them during their fighting and battles so much, but whenever they get back home it is labeled PTSD.

Either way that you look at this, it is something which most of us have to deal with at some point in our lives. Whether it is from battle in a war zone or from an abusive spouse, PTSD is real and it doesn’t go away easily. Sometimes it takes long sessions with a therapist  or drugs to tone it down manageably and sometimes it takes faith and prayer. Whichever way you get treated for it, I pray that it doesn’t cause more problems in your life.

So many are having to live with anguish and sorrow in countries where Christian persecution is happening and where children are being taught to be “warriors” or suicide bombers who are told that this is the only way to bring about the coming messiah. It is NOT the way at all! The Mahdi is NOT the messiah, it is Jesus the Christ! In the Bible the end times are a time of turmoil and war and suffering like the world has not seen in thousands of years.

john317The three years at the beginning of the Tribulation is what is referred to as Satan’s wrath, the last three years are where the wrath of God is poured out on the Earth and those who follow the antiChrist. Those alive during those first years of the Tribulation, it will seem to be a time of plenty and peace at least for those who decide to follow the one who is in charge. Any Christians who were not taken in the rapture of the church will know who he is really but few others will believe it.

Their lives, your life will be in danger because soon everyone will have to take the mark of allegiance to him, likely a chip or some other mark in the hand or on the forehead. Christians will be in danger of being killed if they do not take the mark because if they don’t they can’t buy food or gas. If they do take it, then they are forfeiting their soul because they are aligning themselves with Satan’s pawn, his false Christ and if they do this then they “love their life more than Christ”.

Why do I bring this up in this writing? Because we are the generation which will be here when all of this comes to pass. What year or day this will take place I don’t know. God knows which day and hour it will happen but all of the prophecies which were to take place beforehand have already taken place or they are taking place now. Read the book of Revelation carefully and pray about what you are reading, then look at the news and all of the things that are happening in the world. Much of what you have read is happening in some way and in some place in the world. Make sure of your salvation before that day comes.

 

 

Who will lead us?


mygodisawesomeIn the world today there are many people who seem to be clamoring for a chance to be a leader in some fashion. Some are not worthy to lead a song, let alone a country, but that doesn’t stop them from being in a position of power if they can manage it. Power is seductive and it corrupts those who thought they were good, decent people particularly if they don’t have a strong foundation of values to stand on.

The lack of teaching from the Bible in America specifically has caused a terrible vacuum of responsibility and accountability in our country, but it seems that the majority don’t want this book as their compass in life. Most seem to be bent on doing their own thing, again. Like those who did this almost fifty years ago, doing your own thing is fine until it impacts on the rest of us. Today we are at the mercy of those who fought against the “establishment” and “the man” back in the day. The problem is that now they are part of it!

So much is happening and will happen in the future until we should be taking note of the things which are happening in the news today. It is part of prophecy and we need to be telling others of it and watching closely for the signs of Christ’s return.

The leaders of the world seem to be intent on doing almost anything to keep religion, in particular the Christian religion, out of government. The Bible has so much good advice for those who are in power yet they won’t listen to it or read it to gain that wisdom. Why? Because, they are trying to fit into the normal way of the world around us and politics seems to have nothing to do with religion for the most part. In the Middle East, religion and politics go hand in hand but that is a totally different culture from most of the world.

God places governments and their leaders in their positions in order to fulfill His purposes, whether we take notice of this in His Word or not. He raised up Pharaoh for the purpose of humiliating the gods of Egypt. God raised up Darius also as well as Nebuchadnezzar for His purposes. The Bible should be leading us toward our future regardless of which leader may be in power. Yet…today few people pay much attention to a book of Israelite history and religion because of the Person named in it as Messiah, Jesus the Son of God!

Seek out leaders who will acknowledge Jesus as their Savior because if they aren’t following Him, then who or what are they following? Themselves or some man-made god or religion?

 

What do you really believe?


It is becoming clear that many people in churches today, regardless of denomination, have no idea what being a committed Christian is. Some think it means going to church when we feel like it. Some seem to think that, just like the rest of the world, if they are good and read the Bible occasionally then God will let them into Heaven. There seems to be quite a few that think that they don’t really have to do anything except to believe that Jesus is the Christ and that will get them into Heaven.

Preachers have told us this for decades, that if you believe in Jesus you will be saved. The apostle, John, says mostly the same thing in his gospel. So, why does it seem that we should desire more of Him than we do? Jesus said that “apart from Me you can do nothing“, truly that phrase has nothing to do with belief. It has to do with our commitment to a daily life with Him.

Reading the Bible, prayer for all of the things that are good and needed in our world, seeking His will for your life in His Word, meditating on His Word after you read it and considering what it means to your life, these are processes which we need to do in our daily walk with Him. This sounds like far too much to do in a day, but it doesn’t need to be. Reading a chapter or two every day and then praying for the meaning of it to be revealed to you doesn’t take long. Thinking about what God reveals to you during the day is your meditation on Him and His Word, but it shouldn’t interfere with your daily life.

Being a dedicated child of God is not as easy as just saying that you believe in Him. It is a daily, sometimes hourly walk with Him through your day, every day. He walked with Adam in the Garden, so why can’t we walk with Him every day? He doesn’t get in the way, and He certainly won’t be a hindrance to anything that we do, unless you intend to do or be in agreement with sinful actions on a daily basis.

Being a Christian is not as easy as it is portrayed because even though becoming one is easy, the process is a daily walk with Him. As Jesus said, “take up your cross and follow Me”, sometimes that means that we have to put something else that we have been holding onto down. For many people today, that is not an easy thing to do. We are addicted to our computers, our tablets, our phones, our games and almost every other distraction imaginable. But, we only come to Jesus when it is necessary or when we have to.

Seeking Him and learning about Him and about our relationship with Him is something which we don’t consider important. We will worry about that tomorrow or next year or when the next revival service is at church. But…what if you don’t live that long? What if you were to die in an hour or two from now? You would be standing at the judgement of your life in front of God without any help at all.

God knows your life and He knows if you will come to Him and when. He is your Creator and He will not turn you away IF you will come to Him with a repentant heart and ask Him to save you from yourself. Ask Him to help you to become the person that you can be in Christ and He will do it IF you are sincere and truthful about your need for Him.

If this is just “lip service”, He won’t even hear you. But, this has to be done in this life. Waiting to take care of this on your death-bed won’t cut it because you may not have that chance. A car wreck, a heart attack or any number of other ways that you can die without any notice, might prevent you from making that last-minute decision. So, what will you decide?

Are you going to keep doing what you have always done, hoping that God will just let you pass? Will you just turn away, like the rich young ruler did because you are having too much fun and you don’t feel that you need Jesus in your life? Maybe you think that being a devoted Christian just doesn’t fit your lifestyle right now. But, if you were to meet Jesus at your judgement and He says that “I never knew you”, how will you feel? Eternity is a long, long time to be outside in outer darkness, away from the Love of God.

Think about it, pray about it if you are serious about your Eternal destiny and then pray some more. Seek Him while there is time, in this life, because when this life is over…your time to be His is up and your eternity begins wherever you are.