He makes me lie down….

Psalm23 Today I am speaking from a position not so unlike the title. I had a doctor visit this morning because of some allergies and a possible chest infection, so I am taking meds for it and I am writing to you from a bed. Before anyone asks or thinks about this, I am not in such health that I can’t get around but I am trying to listen to my doctor’s advice.

God does the same thing to us at times and just as the Psalmist wrote in the 23rd Psalm, He does make us lie down at times. Usually it is for our own good but sometimes it is to get our attention or to get us to hear Him like we should. God enjoys hearing our prayers and our needs, although He already knows what they are, but He also enjoys it when we are willing to listen to Him. Why did I put some of those words in bold-face? Because, many times we really DON’T listen to Him or even listen for His voice!

We say our prayers and end it with “in Jesus’ name, Amen” and then go about our business. I am not saying that we shouldn’t expect an answer when we pray sincerely about a need in our life or someone else’s, but ending it like that is like calling your Mom or Dad telling them what is happening, how you feel, and could you send me some money or help, thank you, goodbye!

How would you feel? I don’t know how you would feel but I wouldn’t answer that prayer or request at all, but I am only human. If you don’t ever let God speak to you when you pray, that is what it seems to me would possibly happen. Of course, that is looking at it from our point of view and our way of thinking and that is not how God thinks or feels at all. He knows what we need and when we need it, so He will likely answer that prayer anyway, but it may not be when you want it answered.

He is our Creator, our Redeemer and our Father in Heaven and just like fathers here on Earth, He likes to hear from us but He also likes to speak to us as well. Give Him a chance! You wouldn’t pick up the phone and call your Dad and tell him all the stuff that isn’t working in your life and ask for help in fixing it and then just hang up would you? It is likely that you wouldn’t get a very good call back after that either.

God, thankfully, isn’t like us with our petty hurts and feelings. He loves us so deeply that He sent Jesus to take the punishment for ALL of mankind, so we, meaning everyone, could have a relationship with Him IF we will believe in Jesus and His atoning work on the cross! He did it for us, all of us, and yet we as the human race have rejected Him for a long, long time. Even Christians make up their own “god” and rules which he will follow, thinking that by going to church their “god” will allow them to get into Heaven one day.

Of course the problem with that thinking is: we have made an idol in our own minds to be our god. It is not fashioned with gold or silver or carved from wood, but we have placed god in a box which limits him to a being which is more to our liking and comfortable. But…that is NOT God! He won’t share the throne or any of our worship and praise with that puny idea in our heads!

The Bible is God’s written Word and His way of speaking to each of us and we need to take it as literally the Truth from the Holy Spirit which is part of the Trinity. God did not mince words when He spoke the world and all of the animals into existence nor did He mumble when He gave the Ten Commandments to Moses! If you want to know God, read the Bible and learn from Him about Himself!

Seeking your Savior

Have you thought about your need for a Savior? Has it ever come up in discussions around the house or with other family members? In much of the world’s cultures, individuality is expressed and encouraged more than a need for a savior so many people never search for one.

themissingpiece Until that day comes when you feel that there is something missing and you can’t put a finger on what it might be. Sometimes this feeling hits us when we are teens or young adults and we try to fill that space with many things. Sometimes we try to fill it with sex or drugs, other times we try drinking, but eventually (if we survive all of the experimenting) we begin to look for something or someone meaningful to fill that void.

The problem rises up again when we find that people can’t fill that area of our lives. The only Person Who can is Jesus. “I’ve been down this road before, I don’t want to go again.” or something like it is what many of you are thinking right now.

The problem with that kind of thought pattern is that it doesn’t come from you, it is coming from a demon or another spirit which is trying to lead you away from Jesus. Following those thoughts can lead you to a life with many rewards, as far as the world can see. Like money, fame, a good marriage maybe, prestige but all of these are also patches or things which make you feel good about yourself and your place in the world but they have no lasting benefit.

What do you mean “lasting benefit”? If I had a million dollars in the bank, what else would I need?

See…that is the focus which Satan and his demons try to get you to focus on! Money is just a tool and it is mostly a tool of Satan because he can dangle all sorts of bills in your face and they look really good for a while, but just like the prodigal son, when the money runs out so do many of your friends. In spite of what you think about your friends, if you are wealthy to any degree, many of them are only there because of the money and the good times afforded to them by your money.

So, what can you do? Money can’t give your life meaning on its own and people can’t or won’t do enough for you, particularly in a time of trouble. Even your spouse can’t help you when you truly need his or her compassion and support, even though they will give you both of those if they love you truly. Who can help in these desperate times then?

Jesus can!

Jesus came to take God’s punishment on Himself for ALL of mankind, past, present and future. He did this on the cross and then was raised again on the third day, finalizing the victory for us! When the Holy Spirit convicts you of your need for Jesus, listen to Him and seek out a Bible teaching church and read your Bible! If you don’t have one, there are quite a few online but you can buy one easily enough, if you don’t live in a country where religion is restricted. Find out about His sacrifice for you and believe in Him for your salvation. All you have to do is ask Him to save you and He will!

God loves you more than you can realize and He doesn’t leave you in the cold when you need Him! He is always there, even if you can’t feel Him, pray to Him that He will be near you in a stressful situation and ask for His help in every situation and He will always be near you. He said that “I will never leave you or forsake you”; He is always near those who believe in Him and will give them strength to get through whatever is in your path, amen?

Salvation, is it important to you?

Many people seem to think that being a Christian is not fun, but they could not be more wrong. Living as a follower of Jesus today is not easy but the rewards of being a follower of His are worth more than ALL of the money in the world! To God, your soul is worth more than the entire world! Just ONE soul in God’s Kingdom is worth more than all of the wealth in the world, imagine how much value He places on all of us?

Believing in Jesus and His atonement for you and your family is all that is necessary to be saved, then follow Him, learn about Him, read His Word, seek His counsel in all things. Living daily for Him is not a joy ride that you take on one certain Sunday. It is not something which you do because you are in trouble or you have been given a bad diagnosis. Yes, He is to be sought out when things like this happen but He is to be followed every day of your life even after the problems are taken care of!

Jesus endured all of the stripes from the whip used on Him without a word, as well as the nailing to the cross and He did this because it was necessary for the atonement which He came to provide for us. The agony was not something which He sought because in the garden He had asked the Father if it was possible for this cup to pass from Him, yet not my will but thine. Jesus was sweating drops of blood in His anguish before this trial, but He did it anyway.

The Creator of the universe allowed His creation to whip Him with a cruel cat of nine which tore flesh and reached down to the bone at times under the hand of Roman soldiers who hated the people where they were tasked with keeping the peace. They took out their hate and frustration on Him and never thought about it until afterward. At least some of them repented after He arose from the grave according to historical documents.

Could He refuse to go to the cross? Yes. He could have come down or struck down those who put Him there? Yes, but if He had we wouldn’t have salvation granted to us and anyone else who believes in Him and His message.

Life today has many hardships even in America. Most of the world doesn’t think so, but there are many problems which we have that are fixable IF we will turn back to Him. Follow Him, believe in Him, read His Word, and do His Work while we are here instead of being selfish and proud and taking care of just one person….me.

When you do that you have declared that you are your own god because you are more important than anyone else. Our problems are multiplied in this world because it isn’t just one person who is doing this. It is almost every person in the world! Very few take care of others very much. Oh, you see a few hundred who will sacrifice themselves or their comfort when problems arise, but if we did this as a country on a daily or weekly basis the entire world would be so much better off!

Acting as Jesus would in every situation is something which is not normal for us. It is hard for us to understand and practice that way of life, but that is what the Christian life is supposed to be like! Seek Him out in every situation, His wisdom and His direction for your decisions because if you can’t do that or if you won’t do that…then how can you truly claim the distinction of being a Christian?

Do you enjoy life?

joy Some of us do, but many don’t. Oh, we tolerate everyday ups and downs and we go to work and come home. Living or existing as the day permits and allows. So, what do you enjoy in your life? Your children or grandchildren likely give you some enjoyment and joy. But…what about your life with Jesus? Does being a Christian bring joy and fulfillment in your worship and study of God’s Word?

For some Christians it does exactly that, but for many who think they are Christians and are not, the worship service and study of the Bible is confusing and frustrating. It is that way for many that I call “casual Christians” as well. The biggest problem with this is that you can’t be a casual Christian, claiming Jesus on Sunday or when a loved one dies and then living as you please the rest of the time. Jesus is not a hero which you call on when you need Him and then send Him away until the next time!

He is our Savior and yes, He is our Hero and our Creator but He is not on-call some days and not on others. God and His Son are available at all times, not exactly for your convenience or at your time or on your schedule. God works according to His timing and His schedule. Don’t turn away from Him, especially when you need Him! Not just on bad days or at times when trouble is making your day feel like a week, but call to Him and lean on Him every day!

God loves each of us and wants the best for us, but His best and our idea of best are sometimes very different. His idea of a mansion and no debts may be your home in Heaven, not a beautiful home and no bills here. God’s ideas for us are not the same as our ideas of Who He is, thankfully. If our salvation was no better than our idea of what salvation is, then we would never see Heaven at all!

Don’t close the door on an opportunity in your life to get to know Jesus because the moment that you give your heart to Jesus your name is written down in the book of Life. After that, your life here and into eternity will never be the same!

Times and times and half a time

So many meanings, hard to understand, only metaphors and not literal prophecy, these are the interpretations of the book of Revelation or at least the way that many Christians have looked at it and declared it too hard to understand. Why? The fig tree blooming is the nation of Israel coming back into their country after nearly 2,000 years. The time of the gentiles being over in the city of Jerusalem came about after the 1967 war. Now, we are fifty years past that time and the generation is about to see many other prophecies coming true in that land.

What are the people of the world seeing in these things? Not much actually. Nobody is paying any attention to what is coming about, nobody is noticing that prophecy is coming true before them. Why is that? Because few people believe that the Bible is the Word of God and His promises and prophecies always happen at the time that He chooses.

The book of Revelation is not a fantasy and none of the prophecies in the Bible are wishes, they are foretold by God Who lives outside of time as we see it. He can know what day you and I will die, and He also knows when you will read this post or if you will just scoff at the first few lines and leave. God loves each of us and the Bible is His way of telling us that He knows all that is knowable about us and about our world. It is also His way of telling us that He loves us and He doesn’t want us to go down the wrong pathway!

Learn about Jesus and read the Bible, regardless of which version that you read it tells the same story if you open your mind and ask Him to reveal it to you. Your life is special to God and He knows exactly what you can do for His Kingdom, if you will give your heart to Jesus and follow Him the rest of your life. Jesus taught His disciples that the Old covenant only pointed to Himself, His covenant was ratified by His blood that was shed for you and me on the cross. When He rose from the grave three days later, He proved Who He was and when He left after forty days, He said that He would return to take His church with Him.

It is true that you can choose not to believe this and go on living your life without Him, but when you breathe your last breath here and stand in judgement without Jesus as your Savior….what can you say about your life? Were you righteous in all of your ways? Did you manage to live a sinless life as Jesus did? If you told one lie, no matter how big or small you thought it was, then you are a wretched sinner and will pay with your eternal life in hell.

Sounds harsh? Yes, but the only decision which was needed and necessary was the one of belief in Jesus as your Savior and giving your heart to Him, turning from your “old life” and living as well as you can with His Spirit guiding you each day. Learning more about Him through study of His Word. Is living with the Holy Spirit as your guide easy? No! Because you are now an enemy of Satan and he will try to make your life worse, but through Jesus you have defeated him and you have the victory.

Sermon for today

Romans 15 10/8/2017

Beginning where we left off last week in chapter 14, we read what Paul was exhorting the Christians in Rome to do:

13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. 14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. 15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

We are to keep our faith in Christ Jesus and follow His teaching. Doing those things which would build up anyone who may be young or new in their faith. If you don’t drink, don’t start. If you do, then don’t do it in front of someone who is new in their faith toward Jesus. Anything which we do in front of our children or in front of someone who is “weak” in their faith, can cause them to stumble because they saw or heard us say something or eat or drink something. If your spirit hasn’t condemned you for drinking or eating certain things, that’s fine. But if it could cause a child in the faith to stumble, make sure that you don’t do it in front of them, for their sake at least.

I don’t mean for you to live in a “do as I say and not as I do” way, Paul wasn’t meaning that either. But, if your life has anything in it which might cause a child in faith or in age to stumble in their following of Jesus, then don’t do it! If you wouldn’t do something in front of Jesus Himself, then it isn’t right to do it in front of anyone else either!

Romans 15

1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. 3 For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me. 4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. 5 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: 6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7 Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

Christ the Servant of Jews and Gentiles
8 Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:

9 And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.

10 And again he saith, Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people.

11 And again, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people.

12 And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.

13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Paul the Minister to the Gentiles
14 And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another. 15 Nevertheless, brethren, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort, as putting you in mind, because of the grace that is given to me of God, 16 That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.

We are to be Jesus’ example to those around us, even when we don’t feel like it. God sent Jesus to us to give us an example of how to live as He did and with His strength guiding us. Because only with His Spirit giving us direction and strength can we be like Christ. In our human-centered thinking, we can’t be like Jesus, we can’t love those who hate us, we can’t give our life for others if we don’t have Jesus giving us the power and His will to do so.

These attributes of Christian living aren’t the normal way that Christians live, but it is the way that we should live our lives through Jesus.

Is living this way easy? No, it isn’t because every day your old spirit, the you which was there before Jesus came into your heart and changed you, is still being used by Satan to tempt you away from being like Christ. To take you away from being the example that everyone SHOULD see because you have been transformed into a “new creature in Christ”. 2 Cor. 5:17

We are not supposed to allow our “old self” to control our life after giving our heart to Jesus. We are supposed to live and be like those who came from the upper room on during Pentecost. Boldly speaking the truth of Jesus and His saving grace for us, regardless of who hears it or what they may say about us. Be the Christian which God intended for you to be, not the one which hides on the back row and keeps your salvation a secret from your so-called “friends”! They need Him too, but if you don’t tell them about Him….how will they find out if they don’t go to church or read the Bible?

That is our job, our purpose in this life to be more like Jesus and less like us.

Why?

It is a question which we hear, especially parents, when our child or children are young. They ask it…sometimes to the point of getting on our nerves with the number and frequency of the question!

Sometimes we can answer it with a realistic answer and sometimes it is “Because I said so!”! But, this week we have no answer for the shooting in Las Vegas. There is no note or reason or anything that even approaches rationality. Because there is nothing rational about this! Was the shooter insane? I don’t know and few other people have a real clue either. Had he been “radicalized” in some way? Who knows?

Why is a question which we as a nation will be asking about this for a long time. Will we ever find the answer to that question? I honestly don’t know. In my view, my opinion is that only the shooter knows and God and likely we will never find out the actual reason. Because, the behavior to do such a thing defies logic and any human decency.

On the news tonight, Steve Hartman said that there are no real words to describe or comfort this type of event and he is right. We can’t think of anything to say because there isn’t anything that makes any sense when you are talking about an act so dehumanizing and tragic.

Life is precious. Not just one person’s life or a particular skin color or religion, but to God ALL human life is precious because He made us in His image! At one time the rule of law was that “when man kills another man, then by man his life will be taken“; which we have toned down with political correctness so that even when convicted a killer can live out his natural life without ever being killed for his crime! Some even claim that it is inhuman to punish a man in that fashion. Really? If they killed your wife or son or daughter, would you feel that way?

God is already punishing the killer from Las Vegas since he took his own life as well, so at least he is getting his punishment. His soul and his eternal body will endure that forever and there is no appeal or stay that will come to get him out of hell.

Hell was not created to punish mankind, but when we act like demons and follow the leading of their suggestions in our minds then God has no recourse but to place us in the same place of punishment that they have waiting for them. Please give your heart and life to Jesus and follow Him while there is still time to do so. We don’t know when He is coming back, but it won’t likely be much longer. Will we all live to see it? I don’t know, but I do know that when He comes there will be no doubt about Who it is and what is happening…at least to those who have heard about it or read the book of Revelation.

Our Savior

Jesusdiedforme

The most wonderful part of this bit of information is the part that is not in the image. He rose again on the third day! Jesus came to Bethlehem as an infant, with His deity poured out into the life of a human babe. His Father was and is God and through the Holy Spirit He was formed in the womb of Mary.

Jesus came to us, not to prove that God can do this thing of bringing a child into the world by a virgin, but to prove His love for ALL of us. Thirty-three years later, He went to the cross after being nearly whipped to death and He hung on the cross for a few hours and then He said, “It is finished”.

Heaven and hell and all of creation felt His passing. It was celebrated by the demons and Satan and it was likely questioned by the angels in Heaven, but God knew the reason and the timing of it all. It had to happen that way. He gave His life for each of us because He loved us and He did it because only He could accomplish what God had wanted to do since the Garden.

Our country and the world needs Jesus in their life because He is the Way to our salvation and eternity. You can believe it or not if you wish, but when you are standing in front of God one day without His righteousness covering your sins…you will wish that you had given your heart to Him. At which point…it will be too late.

Conclusions

In our society, we draw conclusions about everything and most of the time we do it immediately. Especially when it comes to violence in a public place. Writers for many publications are disavowing any responsibility when it comes to owning the reason for any crime which has a violent outcome. In spite of our collective ideas of terrorism, whether it is done by a person of color or of a certain religion, we still tend toward segregation of blame.

If you are Muslim, then you were radicalized. If you are African-American then you are angry; about what doesn’t seem to matter, but that is what the pundits on “news” programs label people as. But when the person is white, they are labeled as insane and a gun nut or even disturbed because of PTSD. Yet, many of them bought their weapons legally with background checks and apparently passed those checks multiple times.

bible-verses-about-the-downhearted The shooter in the most recent event bought quite a number of guns, some modified to fire more quickly like an automatic. According to what we have heard so far, he actually bought these legally with background checks. So, why didn’t the number of purchases by one individual not raise a flag or at least suspicion? Even if he passed the background checks, the amount of ammunition bought and the number of guns purchased should have gotten someone’s attention.

Why do we or at least some in America make snap judgments about each other and about people who buy firearms and use them. It is true that we only think these things when some person uses a firearm to take lives in a way that is inconsistent with society or its norms. But honestly, any life taken is one which was taken too soon! Murder is against the law of man and God as well! It doesn’t matter if you kill someone with a knife or a gun or a bomb, murder is still against God’s law!

What can make someone snap to the point of shooting at people just because they are convenient targets? I will never understand the kind of crazy that sounds like!

Was God there? Yes, in the first responders who came to the aid of those in danger. He was there with the police who stormed the hotel and found the killer who was taking lives like targets on a range. Yes, God was there and He is still there giving comfort and strength to families and friends and to those who are recovering! We all need to pray for the victims and for our country because there could be another person who may snap and begin to do this somewhere else.

Seek Him out in all things and look for God in every place where you are because He is there, sad though He may be because of our intent and because of the apathy that is in our society today. God still cares and loves all of us, whether we return that love or not is our choice.

We need to be close

Our world is cracked and shattered today by violence which happened last night in Las Vegas. Nobody knows why the shooter did what he did, no rational person would do such a thing. Is there an explanation for this? Yes, there is evil in our world and we can’t ignore it. Men are evil, Satan is evil and yet people are wanting to take guns away from law-abiding citizens. The shooter bought his guns legally with FBI background checks, what snapped? What happened?

Honestly, we will not know for sure. His brother said that he doesn’t know why or what could have brought this on. Nobody knows for sure, except God. The shooter has been judged by Him and is likely being punished in hell right now. Taking a life which is made in the image of God is not something that God dismisses. A Christian could not have done this, so he is likely in hell and will be for eternity.

We should be seeking God’s strength and His Presence today, not trying to take the rights of people to own guns. It is true that an owner of many guns is the person responsible for this tragedy, but what started this or what set him on the path to do such a thing…nobody knows except for God. I know that I am repeating myself, but it is so shocking until it is hard to understand or even get your mind to begin to comprehend.

Pray for the families who have family members injured or recovering or even killed in this horrible tragedy. This is not the time to place blame or seek revenge on law-abiding citizens because of the act of one person whose sanity snapped in some way.

Seek out Jesus and look to God’s Word for comfort in times like these. bible-verses-about-the-downhearted