Category: Choose Christ

Life….


Where do we find life? Here on Earth we can see it in all of its forms and shapes. It is all around us, everywhere. We can’t escape life except when we take it.

Do people here respect and revere life today? No! The evidence shows on the television and on all news media outlets that there is no respect for life anymore. Why has this happened and who allowed it to happen? The answer to both questions falls to our love of convenience and our disdain for rules. We have allowed our country to be overrun with people who have grown up with instant communications, drive-thru windows, microwave meals and popcorn, even drive-thru marriages in Las Vegas. Why would anyone care about life when things are so easy and simple and quick? What do you care that someone just shot a child because his dad was from a rival gang? It isn’t your kid, so stay out of it!

Our hearts have become numb and hard to the point of being heartless and uncaring in this world. What happened? Fifty years ago prayer was taken out of schools along with the Bible and gradually we have moved any mention of God away from children, unless their parents brought them up in church. Yet, today almost any mention of Jesus’ name is called offensive. Prayer isn’t even allowed at sporting events for the most part. Is it any wonder that our country is about to go the way of Rome? We have pushed God away so many times that, if He was human He would never come around here again!

Jesus was and is human but He is also the Son of God and He has not forsaken us nor has He forgotten us. He is the Author of Life, the Creator and the King of Kings! One day, likely very soon, He will come back and everyone will bow to Him and call Him Lord! Life comes from Him, eternally and yet we throw it away as well as our own chance at eternity because of unbelief or rather we choose not to believe because “we are not ready yet”. Today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow because it isn’t here yet and yesterday is already gone! He seeks out those who will have Him, He waits patiently for those who are seeking Him, so what will you do?

Do you believe?


I do! It is evident in my preaching and in the content here, so yes I do believe in Jesus as my Savior and I know that He can be your’s too! If you will believe in Him. Will you?

Remember, today is the only day that we have. Yesterday is history and tomorrow is a mystery, neither one of which we can do anything in, but today is the day of salvation and life and love. Use today as if it was your last day, seek the Savior’s love and find it today while today is still here.

How much more?


What has to happen in our country or in the world to wake people up? How much more will have to be taken away in the form of losing freedoms or rights? How much more will we willingly give up to the government or to our own view of life, freedom, and happiness? Why are we willing to make ourselves into slaves of the government like Israel and the Egyptians did when famine took over their lands? Are we really more like sheep than we thought?

The answers to these questions are answers which we really don’t know. The media, the news outlets, the governments of the world are all clueless in answering these questions because they simply don’t know the answer and they don’t know where to look for it. Is the answer to all of this in God’s Word? Yes, most of these questions could be answered by people following the wisdom contained in the Bible. I mean REALLY following it, daily, in our jobs and at home 24/7!

Would we be willing to do that? The short answer is unfortunately NO! Christian faith has taken a huge hit in terms of people willing to follow it over the years. I am not speaking of those who claim to be Christians, I am speaking of those who really are committed and live their lives in God’s presence with prayer, meditation on His Word DAILY! Not just once per week and certainly not just on holidays! When you try to nail down those who are TRULY committed to Jesus, the number of Christians who fall into that number drops dramatically. Most polls show that out of the world’s population there is approximately 25% that claims Christianity as their faith, but if they are truthful and look at those who committed to following Him daily, I believe that number would be closer to ten percent.

True, this is just my own opinion and I don’t have any facts or polls to back this up with so don’t jump on me because of this. I have only been a pastor for a little more than four years but it seems that the number of Christians who would still claim it even in the face of death threats is likely less than the ten percent, but this was prophesied over two thousand years ago so it shouldn’t be surprising. It is just disheartening and depressing, but God knew and knows who will be His and who will turn from Him. So, how many more will turn away? How much more will we lose to technology or to the attractions in the world?

The real answer is: Only God knows for sure!

We have given up our family time together, we rarely meet with our friends to talk and go over our lives together, the world is crashing in on every aspect of personal life, like waves on the seashore and like the sands of that seashore, we seem to be powerless to stop it. The sad part of it is that we have done this to ourselves! We have allowed it to happen and the more it encroaches on our lives it seems that we are willing to just allow it to happen even more.

Please, turn to the Bible and to faith in Jesus! Getting closer to Him and the wisdom in God’s Word is the only hope that we truly have!

Why are you leaving?


So many people are leaving religion and their belief in God today, why? I know they are dissatisfied in the religion or with most of the supposed rules that it has. Some are saying that they can get their satisfaction spiritually by going to yoga classes or martial arts class. Some just don’t seek any affiliation with any religion regardless of whether it is Christian, Muslim or Jewish or any other religion.

It is true that many people have found that during college their views of the world and their place in it changes and they adapt to those changes, but I would like to ask a question about all of this.

Are you willing to risk eternity on this decision? While it is true that if you don’t believe that there is an afterlife leading to an eternity then there is no reason to worry, but do you really was to risk it? Why am I asking this? Because I have to for one, I am a pastor and a Bible teacher so I am required to make you aware of your choices and what they could lead to.

Even if you don’t believe in God or His existence, He still loves you, and He has provided a way for you to escape the punishment in hell that comes with rejecting Him and the grace that is offered through His Son, Jesus. I know, hell is not real according to some people but if there is a Heaven then there is a hell where Satan and his demons will be punished. If you reject Jesus and His atonement for your life and your sins then you will be there with Satan and his demons and everyone else who believes that they are good enough to get into Heaven on their own.

Our righteousness is as dirty rags in the eyes of God because He is Holy and perfect and our imperfections just don’t measure up, no matter how “good” we think we are.

There are so many today who think that everyone is against them, even the church, and that is not true. Many things are happening today because God is orchestrating it, even if He isn’t directly behind the murder and mayhem that is happening He is in control. Satan and his powers and demons are the ones behind all of the evil in this world, whether you want to believe it or not. It is true that those who ridicule the existence of God or don’t believe in Him at all won’t believe in Satan’s existence either, but not believing doesn’t make anything or anyone go away.

Jesus loves you and gave His life for your healing and for your salvation, there is no love greater than that!

Understanding is necessary!


This is something which is missing in our society today. Why do I say this? Because there is so much intolerance in our country, especially for Christian viewpoints! That is why I said that there needs to be more understanding in the media and in our culture too. Yes, there are intolerant Christians, but just like those who kill people with guns, they don’t represent the Church or the majority of Christians in this country!

We, as a people and a nation, need to stop this persistent categorizing people who you don’t understand by the actions of a few! It’s like deciding that all dogs are bad just because one breed, like the Pit Bull terrier, has a few who aren’t raised correctly. Many times in our society people are judged by the actions of a few people and it is applied to a large group, such as those with dark skin color or those who work in a particular profession. We are told not to judge people by our parents and by God, yet we do it all the time. I heard many times in school “don’t judge a book by its cover”, but today it seems that we as a nation have forgotten those words too. What happened?

Understanding is defined as: the ability to understand something; comprehension; sympathetically aware of other people’s feelings; tolerant and forgiving; having insight or good judgment.

It seems that our society and the much of the world in general has forgotten the meanings of this word, whether sympathetically and forgiving or just simple understanding. Have we gone so far away from our teachings about God and His laws that this word is unknown or disregarded by everyone in society today? It seems that way because every story on the news should have something to do with this, but most stories are about intolerance and hatred toward those who don’t believe the way you do or who look different from you (racism).

I have addressed racism before but I am going to bring this up again: We have different cultures, beliefs, and religions but we ALL belong to the HUMAN RACE! Skin color may be different and the shape of our eyes may be a bit different in some parts of the world, but Biblically speaking we are descended from Adam and Eve who both were likely dark-skinned and not Caucasian. Yes, we all differ in our cultures and our preference for people who look like us or those who are similar in beliefs. These beliefs and cultural differences can be seen from one part of a city or state to another, but if you are a Christian your beliefs a similar enough that there shouldn’t be a division. Specifically one that may cause you to be so different that you can’t stand each other!

The apostle John said that “If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.”  1 John 4:20

Seek God in His Word. Learn of Him and His provision of grace and love toward all of us. Pray that He will come into your heart and change you to be a new creature in Christ. This is what is necessary for salvation. If there are any questions or prayer requests please leave them in the comments. Thank you and I pray that all who read this will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord.

The significance of th cross


Not much more to say, other than “Amen!”thecross

Changing times…


The world and everything in it is changing. The problems which we have to deal with, the good and the bad things which happen every day rarely give any of us a break in our lives. How can we handle so much change from day-to-day? With prayer and seeking God it is possible but there are many people in the world who either refuse to do that or they just don’t believe in God in the first place. Have you ever noticed the stars or the pictures taken by the Hubble telescope? Our universe is not an accident! The stars and their galaxies were placed by God in their orbits and in their places so that we could wonder at His power and majesty.

This world that we live on was put here specifically for our benefit with just the right amount of oxygen and nitrogen to sustain life. This didn’t happen by accident either. The placement of the outer planets and the comets were planned and placed for God’s majesty and for our wonderment. Why? Because we cannot explain these things away with mathematics and calculus. Philosophy and mankind’s intellect can’t explain these collections of stars and gases nor can it explain our own chemical make-up. No amount of education can explain the chemical signals which produce emotions like love or hate or rage and we never will!

They are out of our grasp but one day we will know as we are known by Him. How do I know that? Because it is in His Word! God said so and the world and everything except us was formed by His Word. He specifically came to the garden and formed man from the ground, with His Hands not by His Word, that is why we are fearfully and wonderfully made!!

One of the most worrisome beliefs that I hear about and read about today is that there are many (only 2 to 5% of the population) who either don’t believe in God, are not associated with any religion or who just choose not to associate with an organized religion. That is fine and you are entitled to your opinion, but don’t expect me or any other believer to stop believing in Jesus and the Bible just because you don’t! As I have stated many times before, disbelief or not believing in something or Someone doesn’t get rid of them!

Yes, our culture has changed drastically in many ways over the past fifty or sixty years, but God is still real and so is Satan. Two opposing sides trying to either save mankind or drag as many into hell as possible, the choice is ours. We are not automatically damned to hell, unless that is our choice, and we don’t get a free pass into heaven either. Many do believe that if a child dies before they are old enough to make a rational and conscious choice then they do get to make that choice in the presence of God. Whether that is true or not, I don’t know because it isn’t revealed in the Bible.

Change is coming soon, though I am not sure of the severity or magnitude of that change but it is coming.

Prayer…does it accomplish anything?


Last night, I went to a Wednesday night prayer meeting. Not a Bible study like we have been to before, but an actual prayer meeting. All of us prayed for someone or a group of people on our hearts. Many of those in attendance prayed for each person on their hearts, some prayers were long, some were specific about their health problems. In truth, we really had a “prayer meeting” and not just Bible study.

Does prayer accomplish anything? Yes, it does! A sinner’s prayer can bring a soul that has been searching for something or Someone into a relationship with Christ. The prayer which is prayed by a grandmother or grandfather can keep a child out of harm’s way until they can come to know Jesus. A nation which prays and humbles itself before the Lord and repents of its sin of turning away from Him, will be forgiven and their land will begin to heal. Prayer for someone who is suffering from cancer or some other incurable disease or condition can bring relief or healing, if that is the outcome that God sees for that individual, especially if they are to be used by Him in a special way in the future.

Prayer is a two-way communication between you and the Creator. There is no loss of signal, or misunderstood words or problems with interpretation because God knows what you need, He is just waiting for you to ask for Him to fulfill your needs in your life, not your wants! He doesn’t pour out money from Heaven just because you ask for it, but He will provide for your needs at the right time and the right amount in relation to your faith and belief in Him. We all have a measure of faith, but our ability to have a prayer answered is in His hands and His will not yours. Just as Jesus prayed in the Garden for “let this cup to pass from me, nevertheless not my will but thine be done” Matthew 26:39

God allowed Jesus to go to the cross and He had to drink from the cup of suffering because that was the Father’s will. The punishment and pain that He felt on the cross and from the flogging beforehand were miniscule compared to the Father turning away from Him and leaving Him as He hung on the cross. The pain from that is what caused our Lord to cry out on the cross in agony as the separation became clear and it was very painful to Him. The abandonment and isolation from His Father is the punishment which Jesus endured for us, because it is the same isolation that we would be subject to feel if we were cast into Hades or hell. We will know the times which we had a chance to choose life with Jesus, we will remember all of those chances that we had that we didn’t take. If you haven’t given your heart to Jesus, then consider it please. Anything that we have to endure here is but a puff of smoke compared to the eternity that you face without God’s presence in your life because of turning away from the grace offered to you while you live today.

Yes, prayer can and does accomplish many things today. Not just in your life or in the lives of your loved ones but God can use your prayers and those of others to affect the world and how things turn out in the rest of the world today. Prayers asking for strength and endurance for those who are persecuted as Christians, God especially answers those because the people being prayed for are praying for the same thing. Thank you for reading and I pray that all who come here will seriously consider accepting the offer of grace that we have been given in this life.

 

What is your view of the World?


Is it evil or good or somewhere in between those extremes? Do you see much of either during your daily commute or at work? In many ways, our world is exactly the way that we have made it. Cruel, uncaring, apathetic toward anyone with a different opinion or belief than you, because yours is right of course! So, what can we do to make our world and the people in it more caring toward one another? Honestly, I really don’t know the answer to that at all. Because we are flawed human beings, we do the best that we can with what we have. If we were taught a set of beliefs and morals then we will act accordingly. If we came up in the slums of Rio or Delhi, orphaned and alone, then we will possibly be like animals, take care of yourself first and foremost and don’t worry about anyone else because they certainly won’t care about you.

There are other places and cultures where we could grow up in a much different set of circumstances and depending upon the beliefs and the comfort that we lived in while we were growing, our values and outlook would be different still. As some researchers have proven in the past, it really is more nurture than nature when it comes to our culture and values and our beliefs or lack of them.

So, can this horrible situation in which the world stands on the brink of our next war, world-wide though it may be, be solved and fixed satisfactorily by an ordinary man? I very much doubt it! Humans will do things and agree on things only if it serves their purpose. Our world is under the control of Satan and his forces and they are causing all kinds of evil in our world, yet God will not allow them to go any further than He allows. We see prophecy being played out in the world and on the news every day, whether you believe it or not this is happening today. Griping about it won’t solve anything, electing an official who shares the same agenda as the last President won’t solve our problems either. Getting back to worshipping God and learning about His ways from the Bible will help get us on the right path. But, there is no quick fix for any of the problems in our world today. 

God does have the answer, but many in the world today will not like it and they won’t enjoy it at all. When the church is taken up into Heaven and the world descends into the chaos which will follow, those who come to power at that time will bring their answer and many will accept it. But…it is a lie, a ruse, one that will plunge the whole world into a war that many millions will die in and that time is also foretold in the Bible, it is called the Tribulation. It isn’t a made up fantasy, it is a time that will purge the world in some ways and burn the world in others. Please, turn to God and give your heart to Jesus before the trumpet sounds and many Christians are taken up.

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.…” 1 Thessalonians 4:16

 

Promises and Blessings


And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19
Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you, Exodus 23:25

Life sometimes throws us a curve, usually one that we don’t see coming until it hits us square in the eyes. I know, some of you may have thought I would say something else, but it’s the truth. God’s promises are new every morning and they are meant to be for us as well as the Jewish people. Some of us can claim them and some of us never will claim them. It also seems to happen at the worst possible times, but I suppose that is when God wants us to depend upon Him and lean on Him more than we depend upon money or people.

Your life and mine are part of God’s creation and His Kingdom, particularly if we are Christians because we have given our hearts to Christ. We are supposed to be following in His footsteps on a daily basis, not a weekly or every few months or just when we feel like it. Studying the Bible and learning from God’s wisdom about circumstances in our lives, whether we have faced them yet or not, is the best way to learn about Him. Reading through God’s Word at least once every year is not as hard as it sounds and yet many Christians only read what is called out in church on Sunday and maybe on Wednesday night services.

How can you claim God’s blessings and His promises to you and for your life if you don’t know about them in the first place? You won’t know about them if you have never read the Bible, yet that action is severely lacking in churches today. Why is that? Very likely, it is because the Truth of the Bible cannot be ignored and you can’t disprove it. Many people say that it is just a book of stories written down by old men long ago and it doesn’t mean anything. Without faith in God and His Son, Jesus, that may be true, but if you look at the prophecies that have come true from the Bible how can you claim this?

The land of Israel was given back to the Jews in 1948, many Jews have returned to their homeland after nearly two thousand years in exile and their language has been revived as well. All of these are foretold in Scripture and very little is left to happen according to the prophecies in God’s Word before the time of Tribulation will be upon the world. Nobody knows the day or the hour of this time which is coming except God, but I don’t believe that this generation that is alive today will die before it begins to happen.

That could be within the next few years or it may be a decade or more away, but we are living on the edge, the cusp of it right now. The players are moving into position and the time is coming soon. Be prepared. Be watching and be ready!