Category: By faith

The wrong road home


Sometimes we think that we are on the right road or path when we are really on the wrong road. So, how can you find out which road you are on? The first clue is finding out how many actual friends of yours are on it too. If you are alone or have found new friends then you are very likely on the right road. If most of your old friends are with you and you are still going to the places that you always have, then you are on the wrong road.

Many people think that the path which leads to Heaven is one which is traveled heavily, but Jesus said that the road to Heaven is a narrow one and there are few who find it. The broad road may lead upward for a while but in the end it leads to hell. The world is on that broad road which so many seem to truly enjoy walking on. Why? Because it is easy and carefree with no thorns or rocks and it isn’t very steep. Satan makes it easy to believe that you are on the right path and it is so fulfilling in this life to walk on it because of the rewards you have in this life.

When it seems too good to be true, it is. Money, fame and fortune are all available on this wide road and sometimes they come to you very easily but there is a price to be paid. Some people think that they will give up all of their freedom and fun in order to become a Christian which is not true at all. I don’t miss waking up with a hangover or wondering where I was last night or who I was with (or in some cases what happened during that time).

When your heart is changed your life will be too. Your friends will either follow you in your walk with Jesus or they won’t. If they can’t follow you then you will make new friends in Christ. Living your life for Him is far more rewarding than many people think it is. I have never seen a street paved with pure gold in Hollywood or anywhere else, so eternity is going to be far more rewarding than anything could be here.

While it is true that your life on Earth has to end before your eternity begins, for me that is not such a big deal. I mean, there isn’t much here besides my family that I would rather stay here for anyway. One day, they will be with me in Heaven too, so my time will be short without them. It sounds as if I am ready to go and I am really, but I am going to wait until God decides on the day and time.

The title of this piece almost sounds like “the long road home” and for some it may be. Some days it feels that way to me as well, but if you look at how short our life really is compared to eternity then it is easily put up with. I mean, our life at best can last say one hundred years. When you compare that to ten thousand or one million years, it is just a small speck like the period at the end of a sentence.

Granted, time won’t be measured in hours or days or years in Heaven. Really, time won’t be measuredroad2eternity at all, so you won’t even know how long you have been there. And…it won’t matter. No more death, disease, pain, or suffering of any kind. No more sunrise or set. Days and years won’t have a measure to stand anymore. The pathway which is wide and easy leads to eternity too but it is a different one than that in Heaven. It is the punishment for denying God and denial of His Grace and His Son’s sacrifice for your sins. Consider this before your life ends because the time to make that decision is today because you don’t have tomorrow…yet.

Relationships and feelings


In this life we have many relationships. With family, friends, children, spouses, exes and also with God, so which one of those should we concentrate on? It depends. Which relationship is the most important to you?

As a Christian, your relationship with Jesus should be the most important followed by your spouse and family and then your friends. But, do we look at our lives that way? Many of us are so caught up in life until our relationships with most of these that I listed kinda falls by the wayside. We get caught up in careers and paying bills and taking care of children and parents, trying to put on a show of being a Christian while living the best we can outside the church.

So what can we do? Well…first you have to get your priorities straight. Which of those that are part of your life is the most important? Some would say our children and our spouse or family. They are important but are they the MOST important? First, you have to get your life under His authority, seeking Him daily, learning more of His Ways and His Character by reading and studying the Bible. If your relationship with God isn’t what it should be, then the rest of your life isn’t going to be any better either.

The Israelites found this out on many occasions. They would listen to their leaders and follow God for a while, then when their judge or their King who was following God’s lead died, they would go back to worshiping false gods. Then they would be punished and get into bondage of some sort and after a while they would cry out to God. He would send someone to deliver them and for a while all was good…until their deliverer died. Then the process would begin again.

We, in the New Testament Church, are NO different. We come to Jesus and on some days everything is good, then our health has a hiccup. We go to the doctor and find something that may be bad, something which is going to cause a real problem in life. Sometimes it is a family member who gets the message or has a wreck or maybe even a problem in a marriage. All of these are problems and arrows which are slung at you from Satan. He hates you because you are willing to follow Jesus, you are willing to belong to the King!

He tried to knock Job out of his faith, he has tried this same tactic with so many in the church and at some churches. He has broken marriages, he has broken churches, he has broken pastors but we need to bring our faith into today, We need to graft our faith into the Vine of Jesus the Christ, our Messiah! He is the One who gives us strength, He is the One Who can make those diagnosis’ go away, He can fix a crumbling relationship IF it can be fixed. Give it to Him, pray over it continually and then watch Him work!

Church?


Today we look at buildings, great and small and call them our church or “the church”. What is the Church? Truthfully it is the people who worship God. It doesn’t matter if it is in a tent or a cathedral, it is the people who make up the church. Just as it was after Jesus went to be with the Father, it was the people who believed in Him and worshiped Him that made up the Church. It was NOT a building at all! Some did worship in a building, like other believer’s homes, but it didn’t really matter about the place of worship as much as it mattered about the hearts of those who came to worship!

You can come to church, to a building, for many years and play the part of a Christian from the time you are a child in Sunday school on up into your 90’s. That doesn’t make you a Christian, only belief in Jesus and a daily walk with Him can do that. Belief comes first, then the desire to worship Him and then the desire to learn more about Him and baptism is mixed in there as well but my point here is that you can live in a cardboard box and still worship Jesus! The building made of bricks and mortar and wood and sometimes steel beams is just a structure…it is the people who attend services and worship God in that building that make up the Church!

God is doing many miracles even today that many don’t recognize or may not know about because the media doesn’t report on things which happen without the influence of science. Unless it was something which was so BIG that they had to report on it, miracles go unnoticed by the majority of people and news organizations…but they still happen.

If you are not a believer in Jesus or God and you have everything that you need, you probably think that you will never need God even if He exists. But what about when you go to the doctor and he finds a mass or a spot on your lungs or your liver and it turns out that it is cancer, stage 4, and there is little he can do. What then?

You could just lie down and die or you could search the whole world for some treatment which may help. The best cure for this cancer is in the person and the power of Jesus! Cry out to Him, seek His Presence and learn more of Him. Why? Because He loves you! Praying that He will take the cancer away is not the answer, asking Him to come into your life and your heart and make you a new person is!

Could He cure you of the cancer? Yes, He can. I don’t know if He will and I am not going to tell you that He will, but your life will be so much more with Him in your heart even if He doesn’t. Why do I say this? Because your friends will see the change that He has brought into your life and they will likely want what you have. He will give you peace, even when your life is getting worse OR He may heal you and take the cancer out of your body. Then you can tell people what an awesome God He is!

They will ask you why do you believe now when you didn’t before? Because the Creator came and took my sins away and destroyed the cancer and I am alive to tell it, that’s why!! God loves each of us but we have a rebellious spirit inside of us from the day we are born. Until we realize that He is the answer to all of life’s questions and our problems too, we won’t seek Him out. We will keep doing what we did yesterday or last week or last year, but when our heart and soul tells us that we need Jesus we will seek Him out.

Give your life and your heart to Jesus because He gave His life for you! One day soon everyone will see Him and then many will either ask Him to save them or they will hate Him with an unreasonable hatred. Your life is terribly short compared to eternity, make sure of yours before you enter into it.

Romans 8:23: And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. The link for this passage has many of the Scriptures which will show you that you do need Jesus, if you will seek HIm for your salvation. I pray that you and all who read this will do so before your day comes.

Despair and depression


I know that many veterans and others go through this sometimes leading to suicide, but it doesn’t have to be this way. There are many support groups for us and there is always God’s Wisdom in the Psalms and Proverbs.

12804782_1044929828955942_1233315242139204553_nI went through a deep bout of depression a few years ago and it still tries to come back at times. I had many people praying for me and I read through the Psalms during this time, sometimes I re-read a Psalm or two and they spoke to my Spirit in an awesome way that I needed at the time.

Our entire planet is going through an attack of despair and other troubles brought on by Satan and his evil group of rebellious demons. Of course, we don’t see them doing all of the influences in our lives so most people don’t believe that they exist. Remember that Jesus spoke about them in the Bible so if God’s Word speaks about them, then they are real!

Like we can’t see God or Jesus in our world because they occupy a different realm or dimension than we do, so do angels and demons. There are times when we see them, but mostly in this life we don’t see their physical forms. Depression is one of the tools which Satan uses to screw up our lives and cause us to take our own lives or derail our mission on Earth. Depression causes all kinds of problems and sometimes those problems go much farther in your life than just how bad you feel.

It can cause diseases, it can also lead to drug addiction and other destructive behavior. It can also lead to the breakup of families, so this is a very powerful tool which Satan has in his arsenal. God can cure each of these problems in your life with His Presence in your heart if you will just seek Him out and ask Him to come into your heart and change your life. This is the prayer which God hears no matter what.

I pray that any of you who don’t know Jesus as your Savior will seek Him and learn about Him so that you will ask Him into your heart.

Why so much division?


Beliefs, creeds, denominations…it seems that our world is cracked into thousands of pieces when it comes to deciding about Who we believe in and serve. Why?

DivisionMostly it is because of the work of Satan. He has been at work in the world creating other “gods” for people to worship and also creating division in the church itself. Sometimes these are small cracks but over time and with a little help from willing people they get bigger until the church splits in two or crumbles into the dust.

In the first century, just after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples taught His Truth as The Way. Some called it The Truth. For many years it stayed that way until Catholicism and the Catholic church became the dominant form of worship in the crumbling Roman empire.

Until the Reformation, there were no Scriptures that a worshiper could have in his possession and read for himself or herself. Then, when the Bible was printed in English and German, many people were put to death when they were found to have one of these Bibles. The persecution of Christians by the church and by pagans, is found in the Book of Martyrs if you would like to read it. It is difficult to read, but it will show you what it took to be a true believer in Jesus, all the way up to recent history such as in the communist countries since WWII.

The fracturing of the church into so many denominations has caused many problems between believers. Some believe only parts of Scripture, some follow only a few verses in one book or another, when we are supposed to be people who believe in the entire Word of God! Not bits and pieces of it but ALL of it, the Old Testament and the New Testament should be taught in its entirety. Yet, many churches today seem to pick and choose what they will teach or believe and the parts that they will not.

This is not the way that Jesus wanted His church to be! We are not supposed to be bickering and fighting over parts and phrases, choosing which to teach and which to tell others that it is not God’s Word! If it is included in the Bible, whether it be a Jewish Bible or Orthodox Bible or a Protestant Bible, then it should be taught to everyone in the congregation, young and old!

I ask that anyone who is interested in God or Jesus and the Word in the Bible, please seek out a Bible teaching church and search out the Truth. God’s Word is true and has never been found to be wrong in any manner. Many try to bring parts of it to trial saying that it contradicts itself, but if you would seek the Truth it can be found that all of it is more true and accurate than many historical works. Praying that all of you who read this will seek Him out in the Bible and as your Savior. Amen.

Which god do you follow?


This is not the way that I refer to the God of Abraham from the Bible, but many people seem to look at God as just one more to add to the number of “gods”. He isn’t that at all! He is the Creator, our Creator and the God of All things! All created things in heaven and on Earth and under the Earth were made by Him, not some man-made god which came from someone’s imagination.

OnlyJesusThe hypocrisy needs to stop! Many people seem to be trying to merge Jesus and Islam because He is mentioned in the Koran. Some Christians are trying, very successfully, to merge new age thinking and Christian ideals as well. Some of this is even being taught from the pulpit! Why would anyone want to go to a church which teaches man’s wisdom, such as it is, and gives it equal validity with the Bible? Cults do this all of the time and get away with it, but many of their members are so ingrained in the teaching until they can’t tell the difference.

God told the Israelites that this would happen if they allowed their children to intermarry with those who lived in Canaan or the Promised Land. Which is why He told them to utterly destroy the people there and take over their lands, getting rid of all of the idols and groves and things which might draw them away from Him. It is happening in the church today in some countries, particularly in America.

Why can’t we get back to believing the Bible and teaching from it because it is the Word of God? I believe it is because we have compromised for two or three decades, maybe more, and we have become too tolerant of lifestyles and sins which our grandparents would not have allowed in the door of their church. “But, didn’t Jesus associate with sinners and others?”; yes, He did, but He didn’t agree with them or their lifestyle. He didn’t tolerate their beliefs, He told them that they were to “worship God and serve Him only”, it is true that in this particular instance Jesus was talking to Satan, but the Scripture that He quoted came from Deuteronomy 6:13.

Jesus also said that “the sick need a doctor, not those who are well“, and He was referring to those who were sinners needing Him rather than the Pharisees and the Scribes who didn’t think that they needed salvation. The point of this is that Jesus does love and care about all of humanity, but He doesn’t agree with our sinful lives nor our behavior. We are to seek Him out and come to Him for our salvation, not go to man-made religions and “gods” who are NOT God at all!

I pray that all of you who read this will see that I am not judging any sin or person, rather I write this to point you to the One Who can save your soul from the second death of being in darkness and away from God forever. Thank you for visiting.

What would get your attention?


I see many blogs which are much more related to photos or jokes or even paintings which get much more traffic than the messages which I place here. Now, don’t take this the wrong way, I am not complaining about my audience at all! It does seem that interest is more for media and other things included on a website rather than messages of the Christ, our Savior!

I kinda understand it simply because of the time in which we live. We are very close to the time of Tribulation, so there is a waning of interest in things which refer to Jesus and salvation. This is also why churches are empty on many Sundays and why few people go to church at all unless it is for a holiday or a birthday or some other special occasion.

So much that is happening now was foretold thousands of years ago, yet the prophecies were so hard to understand until few people realize that they were speaking of today. The prophets, including John who wrote the book of Revelation, didn’t know what they were seeing. Planes could’ve been the demons of dragonflies, horses with fire coming from their mouths could’ve been tanks with guns firing. Our time reflects the descriptions of the time of the end, with much of the disregard for God and His laws being what we see today on the news.

Yes, we are just as much sinners and full of ourselves as they were thousands of years ago. Nothing has really changed except technology and transportation, the sins are the same, but worse today. Many of our sins today are more akin to things which would’ve been unthinkable in Jesus’ day or before. Slave trafficking was happening at the time, but not sex slaves made out of children, as far as we know.

Pedophiles and so many other sins which seem to be tolerated today by people who are supposed to be “religious” or even Christians. Why are we not saying anything or doing anything about this today? It seems that we have become so used to seeing it or hearing about it, until we just don’t think its important anymore, as if it doesn’t matter! What if it were your child kidnapped and sent to Thailand or some other place to be a slave in the sex trade? Would it matter then?

These things are happening, not because God allows it to happen but because the world is under the control and influence of Satan and his followers. I don’t mean that there is a huge cult or Satan worship group doing all of this, but those who perpetrate evil are under his influence. God is going to bring this to an end…soon. I suggest that if you don’t know Jesus, you need to come to Him and ask for Him to come into your life and change you into the person that He knows you can be!

Without Him, your life will end with your death here and then your eternity will be very different from what you might think it will be. Seek Him while there is still time to do so.

 

Words and meanings


There are many different ways to say things, particularly in our media driven world today. Although you need to be careful of the things that you say in certain places, whether it is on social media sites or commenting on news sites, even in sending an email. Words once spoken cannot be unspoken or taken back, so the hurt that they cause can be just as devastating as a bomb and the damage can be lingering as well. Pastors and politicians have to consider this as well as teens and young adults. Small children say things which are hurtful at times but they don’t understand why it is hurtful.

All of us should realize that is the reason which God gave us two ears and one mouth and tongue. We should listen twice as much as we speak, but also we should consider (think about) what we will say before we say it, if possible. This is a failing which humanity has had since the beginning of spoken language and it really hasn’t changed much since that time.

The truth which we have access to in God’s Word is also littered with words and phrases which we should take as God’s wisdom and incorporate into our life. Learning about God and about His promises is not enough. Just as learning about history is not enough, we need to retain it so that the mistakes which were made in the past are not repeated in the future. We are given a very unusual task which is to tell others about salvation. Not so much for our life and being but for their eternity.

Telling others about Jesus and the offer of salvation is something which Christians should do just as easily as breathing, yet most of us shy away from it as if it causes us pain. Why is that? If you had something spectacular to happen in your life which didn’t involve religion or Jesus, wouldn’t you shout it out to nearly everyone you know? Some of us wouldn’t, by many would.

As Christians, believers in Jesus and His atonement for us, we have been given the most wonderful gift imaginable…the gift of salvation, forgiveness and eternal life! No amount of money, gold, silver or otherwise precious stones or metal can compare to those gifts which we are recipients of! Although, we can’t produce something tangible to show others if they ask about the reason for our joy in Christ, it still needs to be a conversation starter.

Here is a sampling of Scriptures which detail the path to salvation, I pray that you will consider it and become a child of God soon:

1. We must acknowledge God as the Creator of everything, accepting our humble position in God’s created order and purpose. Romans 1:20-21

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

2. We must realize that we are sinners and that we need forgiveness. None of us are worthy under God’s standards. Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.”

3. God gave us the way to be forgiven of our sins. He showed us His love by giving us the potential for life through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8

“But God demonstrates His love toward us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

4. If we remain sinners, we will die. However, if we repent of our sins, and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we will have eternal life. Romans 6:23

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

5. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you are saved. Romans 10:9-10

“That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

6. There are no other religious formulas or rituals. Just call upon the name of the Lord and you will be saved! Romans 10:13

“For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

7. Determine in your heart to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life today. Romans 11:36

The writer of this letter to the Roman church, Paul, was a persecutor of the faith which the disciples had after Jesus was resurrected. He put some in prison and at other times he stood by while the believers were stoned to death. Until his conversion by Jesus on the road to Damascus, he was known as Saul but afterward he changed his name to Paul and became the greatest missionary of the New Testament church. We should try to follow his example.

Short days and short times


It has been almost two millennia since the time of Jesus and His disciples and His prophecy concerning the end of the age , yet people don’t seem to be concerned. Even with many of the signs already shown and seen in years past, as well as the signs which are in front of us every day. When I say that the days are short I am not speaking of days like in the winter when the Sun seems to go down not long after it comes up. I am speaking prophetically of the time in which we are living.

It is true that many don’t believe that we live in these particular times, but in fact we do. There are many signs in the heavens which God has used recently which point toward this time, as our generation is called the “terminal generation”. Yet, most of the people in the world today don’t want to acknowledge the truth of what is going on around them. Even if they recognize that these signs are true and occurring almost on a daily basis!

I don’t bring this up to attempt to scare people into church or make you fearful enough to seek out the truth in the Bible, although you should be doing this anyway. What I am saying about this period of time is that we don’t know how long we have. It could be a couple of months or a few years yet, but just as the virgins in the parable, we need to be ready when the Bridegroom comes. Not sitting around twiddling our thumbs but watching for Him in Scripture and in our everyday lives.

Praying every day, seeking His wisdom concerning these times and those around us who are in need of His love and compassion. Telling those who are in need of salvation about Jesus is the mission which we have in these times. If they don’t want to receive Jesus, then tell someone else and move on. It is imperative that we keep telling as many as will listen because very soon, they will be on their own in a world which will not tell them of Jesus and will kill anyone who does profess faith in Him!

God loves humanity, but His patience is drawing to a close. The Spirit will strive with man for a while longer and yes there will be a few who accept Jesus during the Tribulation, but they will be in the minority when they do. I pray that most of you who read this will accept Him before this time has come. If you have not, then I will be praying for you from the balcony of Heaven. I hope that God might allow me to come to Earth during this time and help guide those who have given their lives to Jesus, because they will need the help.

I am not special. I am a sinner just as you were or maybe still are, but I am forgiven and that makes the difference. Please, if you are seeking your Savior, read the Bible and pray about giving your life to Him, asking Him to come in and change your life from the inside out.

The human equation


If you have ever read the beginning of Genesis in the Bible where it says “Let us make man in our image”, then you have likely wondered about what God was thinking at the time. I have. There are many who have likely had this reaction and thought “why would God, the Creator of everything, make mankind in His Image? Why not do as the “evolutionists” say and use an ape, a gorilla or chimpanzee, as the model for His crowning creation?

I believe it is because God wanted us to be totally unique in the world. Even though He gave the apes and some cetaceans a marvelous way of communicating, as well as interacting with each other, we are unique in all of Creation because we are made in His image. Still, I ask myself and sometimes I ask Him as well…why? Maybe that is the reason. Because we question things to search out the answers, to find out how something works, to find the reason behind a disease or some problem which needs to be fixed. Although, sometimes our questions are aimed at God Himself and we question Him and His motives, particularly in regard to the rules which He set down in the Bible.

We have an independent streak, a stubborn streak, even before we are old enough to know what those words mean. We rebel against our parent’s authority and our teacher’s authority and we also rebel against God too. We may not do it when we are very young, but as we get older it tends to show up more and more. Submitting to God’s rule in our life is not something which we do automatically, it is something which is brought on by the Holy Spirit touching our life and our heart. Telling us that we need God in our life by showing us or our spirit that we have been without Him for long enough.

We are unique in that we are like God in that we have a body, a mind and a soul. We are triune beings just as He is. It seems that this part of us and God is something which people have a hard time with, especially regarding Him. The early part of the Bible or Torah, Genesis, was dictated to Moses by God while he was on the mountain with God. No, the Bible doesn’t say so but how else could Moses write the history of Creation since he wasn’t there when Adam and other early patriarchs were around?

Do I believe that God’s Word is Truth and accurate in all of its words and meanings? Yes, I do. I don’t try to read into the book of Genesis that it was a book which was made up by someone in the ancient world. The creation story and the history of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were written by Moses and he was given that information from God because it was at least one thousand years or more prior to Moses’ birth when all of this happened. Some of it may have come down by word of mouth, but I believe that it was given to him by God. It just makes sense that it was written and given to him this way because God was there and Moses was not.

The salvation story and all of the prophecies concerning the birth of the Messiah begins in Genesis and continues on up until the birth of Jesus. The gospels of the New Testament carry on the story of Jesus and His atonement for us on the cross and then the continuation of the prophecies carry on up through Revelation. God lives outside of time and space, so He can see all of time from beginning to end in our history and the history of the cosmos itself.

God loves each of us, but the lives that we live without Him and our choices to do as we please instead of pleasing Him, He doesn’t like that at all. Seek Him in all that you do, pray to Him and ask Him to show you what He wants in your life. The prayer of a sinner who is genuine in asking for God’s forgiveness will not be turned away. A prayer in jest or without a sincere heart behind it could bring worse punishment into your life. Be careful how you approach the Creator, He doesn’t sling lightning at you but other consequences can happen which would not happen otherwise, so be warned.