Category: Religion

Life and death…choose Life!


In so many ways, our world looks like this. Possibly not such a stark contrast in much of the world as this, but in other ways it is exactly like this. Many places in the world are or have been in a drought for a long, long time. In some areas, the drought is caused by man’s own mean-lifeordeathspirited streak in not tolerating others particularly in the area of religion.

Why?

Is it so hard to get along with others who don’t believe exactly the same as you do? For some, it seems to be exactly that point! Hindu’s can’t get along with Christians, Muslim’s can’t get along with Christians, Socialist and Communist countries have problems with Christians. Do you see a pattern here?

It isn’t hard to see, but it is hard to understand the reason behind it. It is true that in the distant past, Christian countries and those who followed the leader of the Church at the time, well-meaning soldiers who were charged by the Church to bring civilization and “right beliefs” to the heathen. This was not the way to bring Christ to other people, but it was done, so lets move on!

Our past, regardless of the country that you live in or the beliefs that you hold, is something that we should study, make note of so that we won’t repeat those mistakes, and then move toward a more Christ-like living arrangement. Jesus did not tell us to go and beat belief into the masses because that doesn’t work! It turns most, if not all, away from that belief in Him.

Jesus said for us to go and tell them the good news of His teachings and that He came to bring salvation to all of mankind. Jesus paid the price so that all could benefit from it, but it is your choice whether you accept it and respond when God calls you.

Matthew 28:16-20 King James Version

16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. 17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.

18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

 

What will you do?


In the world today, there are many who wonder about a savior. One who will save them from themselves or from an eternity of punishment. Even though there are many religions in our world and some of them claim to have a person capable of this feat, the only One Who is capable of it is Jesus the Christ!

Why do I bring this up in this way? Because there are many who don’t believe what the Bible says or believe in Jesus and His life, let alone His death and resurrection which gives us our hope of eternity in Heaven. Why do many people not believe in God or His Word? Mostly because of the work done in the world by Satan and his followers. I know, there are also many people who don’t believe that he exists either but since he tempted Jesus in the wilderness then he does exist.

He, Satan, attends church services more than most church members do, which is why we have so many churches which are split up and pulled apart due to disagreements. Getting back to my initial question, what will you do with the knowledge of Jesus and your need of being saved? Do you need Jesus in your life? If you feel that you can get to Heaven all by your own works, think again because it is not possible!

The Law of Moses which was given on Mt. Sinai, doesn’t save you. It only shows you that you can’t keep the law PERFECTLY. Humanity can’t keep the law without breaking at least one or more of the laws, we just are not capable of it! The only Person able to do so was Jesus! Even in His human body, He still had the nature of God which means that He could keep ALL of the laws without sin…without breaking even ONE! Why do I say this? Because, if He wasn’t perfect enough to do this, He couldn’t be the Son of God nor could He atone for all of our sins!

Even in the Law, the sacrifice was to be a lamb without blemish, spotless and without defect of any kind. Could you find such a person to fill that requirement today? Absolutely not! There is no perfect specimen, male or female, which has no defect and is spotless in every way without sin…this has only happened ONCE in all of history!

Even as a child, we lie to our parents even when we don’t know what a lie is! We steal pencils, erasers, notebooks, and any number of things in our lifetime. At some point in your life and mine, we have coveted something which someone else has. We all have lusted after a beautiful woman or a handsome man. Many of us may have even thought that we would like to see someone die, even if we didn’t act upon that thought. If you think about your life with an honest open mind, you know as well as I that each of us has done these things at some point.

Jesus came here in order to give His life for each of us. He gave up His power and place in Heaven to be clothed in flesh so that He could pay the price for all of our souls. But, while He was here teaching His gospel to those who would listen, He still had the power over demons, disease, death, and nature itself because He didn’t doubt that God would do for Him what was necessary to bring His disciples to true belief in Him, saving faith in the only begotten Son of God.

Please, seek Him out for the answer to your life’s problems and emptiness so that you can have His peace and assurance for eternity.

Today’s Sadducees


This is very much like what is happening today. I pray that you enjoy it.

A dangerous cancerous growth


Unfortunately, humanity is born with this condition and has been for many thousands of years. This cancerous growth is our sin nature. We are prone to it and will fulfill it even at the young age of two. Tell any child of toddler age that they can’t have something, but they know they can reach it. One day, they will do exactly that and if you ask them if they did, they will lie to you. Even with the crumbs from the cookies in their lap, they will lie about eating them.

They haven’t been taught to lie nor are they cunning little thieves but our nature is bent toward sinful behavior whether we have seen it or heard it or not. This growth, this nature is something that we can’t cure by any means of our own. We have not the idea of formulating a cure and we don’t have the ability to do so with our own resources.

Kidney cancer cells, SEMThis sin nature is like a cancer for which there is no cure and no treatment. Radiation will not affect it, chemicals of any kind will only make it worse but they will not kill it. It is, pure and simple, a death sentence to every human born since the time of Adam and Eve. Yet, God did provide a way for us to clear it from our system, from our hearts altogether. Through the work of the Holy Spirit and the grace given to us as a gift by God and the atonement bought with the blood of Christ. It is a very expensive treatment and a cure, but it is freely given to us by God…if we will, by faith, believe in the work of Jesus!

God had this idea or plan in place even before the Earth was formed or Adam was created. Because, He knew that it would be needed and necessary for all of mankind. It was not something which was an afterthought, nor was it something that caught God by surprise! It was necessary, which was all of the reason that God needed to put His plan in motion. You might wonder, why would God choose to allow part of Himself, part of the Trinity, to take on the form of a human and live among them, teach those who would listen and hear the words and working of God and His grace and then die a death on a cross in order to redeem mankind?

The answer is very simple but it is also hard for us to understand, which is why so many people have trouble with this word and the actions and results which come from it. The answer is: LOVE.

God loves His creation, not just the planets and stars and galaxies, but He loves each of us because He knows each of us. How is this possible? Because God is outside of our time. He can look at any point in time that He chooses, from the beginning to the end and HE can see each of us at any point in our life. He knows what you said yesterday and what you will do tomorrow. You are known in a way that you can’t understand or comprehend, but it is because of this knowing that He loves us. It is also for this reason that He did send Jesus to atone for all of mankind’s sins, even though much of mankind will not accept it nor believe it.

As the Scripture says: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son. That whosoever would believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

God didn’t do this because He had to, but because He wanted to. He wanted to have the same relationship that He enjoyed with humanity in the Garden. If this was the only way to do this, then that is exactly what He would do. He knew that Israel, as a nation, would reject Jesus. Which is why Paul was blinded on the road to persecute more of the young church. God wanted him to be the apostle to the Gentiles (those outside of Israel), which is exactly what he did. God uses the weak things or people to prove His power and glory and to bring to redemption those who might not hear of His grace and mercy through any other means.

If you have felt the call of the Holy Spirit, the feeling which tells you that something inside needs to change, then seek Him out at a church which teaches from His Word. Read His Word and pray that He will show you what you should do. Give your heart to Him by asking Him to come into your life and save you from this “cancer”, so that you can be made new and whole, into a new creation. One which will be used in His Kingdom to bring others to Him as well. Each of us has a purpose that nobody else can accomplish. This is why those of us who are called to Him are called in the first place, because we can have an effect on someone’s life that is very important to God. That person may be the next Paul or Peter or John, but if we aren’t available then they may never come to know Jesus at all.

Read and study the Bible


Here are eleven excellent reasons you should read the word of God everyday:

  1. It tells you how to be genuinely saved and how to grow in your faith. John 3:16, Psalm 119:105, Romans 12:1, 2, and Phil. 4:6; 7

  2. It gives you clear guidance and direction for your life. Psalm 119:105

  3. It empowers your prayer life. Phil. 4:61 7

  4. It sharpens your ability to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit more and more clearly. I Corinthians 1:5

  5. It ministers to your mind, body, and spirit. Proverbs 4:20 – 22

  6. It helps you to maintain your mental health, (according to Dr. Paul Meier) Prov. 4.

  7. It increases the anointing on every area of your life. I Corinthians 1:5

  8. It increases your wisdom in every area of your life. Proverbs 1 – 4

  9. It enhances your intellect and your personality. (It can literally increase your I.Q.) I Corinthians 1:5

  10. It pours grace, joy, and peace into your spirit, your mind and your life. II Cor. 1:2, I Timothy 1:2, and II Timothy 1:2, and Galatians 5: direction 22

  11. In direct statement or in principle, it gives you guidance and/or direction about every issue or topic in life. Psalm 119:105

What then is the best translation of the Bible? I agree with Dr. Kroll. The best translation of the Bible is the accurate translation of the Word of God that you will read and obey.

Reading and studying the Bible does you no good at all IF you don’t obey God’s Word in the things which it tells you to do. Some people think that the Bible is a book of “do’s and don’ts” but it isn’t. Yes, there are the Ten Commandments and they tell you the things which you are supposed to do and some tell you not to do others. The point is this: when your heart belongs to Jesus and the Spirit lives inside you…you won’t WANT to do those things which are the “not do’s”!

God loves each of us more deeply than we can understand, even when we are in His presence we will be overwhelmed by His Love and the depth of it!

Don’t turn away from a love that is so awesome and joyful until it feels like a warm blanket that never gets cold and you just want to snuggle in it forever! That is the best description that I can give you of the love that I have felt here. I can’t even imagine what it will be like to sit with the Father and feel the waves of joy and love flowing from Him!

Seek Him out and we can experience it together in eternity!

Are you tired of -ism’s?


I certainly am. Racism in particular. My reasoning is this: according to the Bible, ALL of us are descendants of ONE couple! They were likely dark-complexioned so the genetics worked out to create all of the tones of skin in the world. But…we are ALL of ONE race, the human race, Homo sapiens, if you want to take it that far.

There are many of course including Communism, consumerism, Islamism, racism, etc., so why are we so intent on raising the flag of racism in our country and in the world itself. Since the races diverged from Noah’s family after the flood, the genetics of different shades of color in our skin has allowed all of the different “races” to be in all of the different places around the world.

The real “race” difference in all of us is our religious differences and cultural differences as well. Culturally the human race is very diverse in many, many different ways and it is that culture difference which causes most of our problems. Culturally, we can be very different from each other from one side of town to the other.

The differences worldwide are enormous between cultures. The barrier of languages, religious differences, cultural differences, “racial differences”, all of these contribute to our global problems. Could all of these be overcome? Yes, and one day they will be, but it won’t be due to humanity’s strength and will, it will be done by the King of Kings!

Religious differences have caused so many problems and wars in our world, past and present, until many are wondering if we should just get rid of religion altogether. The problem with that solution is this: mankind. We are a sinful race and we will all do what is right in our own eyes. It would be an anarchist’s dream! There would be no limits, morally, to what we could or would do to each other. The world would truly go insane, even compared to the chaos which is going on today.

God is still in control, no matter what, and He will allow some things to happen which we don’t like or enjoy. But, He will not allow you to be tempted beyond your ability to resist, if you will turn to Him for strength. Seek Him out while He may be found. God’s will for all of us is in His Word, all that we have to do is prayerfully seek Him out in it.

But God….


In the Old Testament, there are two words which contrast the way that God shows His love and patience for us, and they are “but God”. The third word is mostly seen in the New Testament and it is “therefore”. What do these words have to do with salvation or a sanctified life in Christ and in relationship with God?

They show us what His love for us means enough that He is about to do something which will make a difference in many lives, not just in one person’s life. The statements which come after these words most often signify a change for the entire human race regarding God’s love and patience toward us all.

When you see “therefore” in the New Testament, it means simply that whatever follows is done, period. Some examples of these words and what follows are listed here:

Genesis 8:1
But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.

Genesis 31:42
If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you.

Genesis 50:20
You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

1 Samuel 23:14
David stayed in the desert strongholds and in the hills of the Desert of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but God did not give David into his hands. 

The reason that I didn’t include “therefore” statements from the New Testament is because there are so many of them. Nearly every chapter in Matthew and Luke’s gospel has one. All of the letters which Paul wrote have them, so it would be prohibitively long.

All of these examples show that God cares for us, not just the Israelites but the whole of humanity! Why? Because, He wouldn’t have sent Jesus to die in our place, to suffer the scorn and the abandonment upon the cross if He did not love us!

Why do you think that Jesus said to His disciples, “Suffer the little children to come unto me”, because children don’t need a “why” or a reason to believe…they just do! This is the kind of faith that we seem to lose as adults. We get so caught up in life and in our living until we can’t or won’t believe unless we can touch it or feel it in our hands. This is why there will be so many “Christians” in hell one day! Many of them think that they know Jesus and that they believe in Him, when they really believe in the idea of Him and His love for them. The “idea” won’t save their souls!

We have to shed our veil, the curtain which we have been seeing Him through and look at Him as our Creator and our Savior and see Him as a real and living person, not as a “quaint idea” that is spoken of in the Bible and at church. Many times during my life when I thought that I was a “Christian”, I prayed and I read a few verses of scripture. But, I never did get into the Temple. I never crossed the threshold of the outer court, let alone come into the Holy Places where God is. God enjoyed a relationship with Adam and Eve for a while, yet we don’t know how long it was. They were immortal at that point, so it could’ve been a long time. This is the sort of relationship that He wants with His church, His people today.

Do we come near to Him? Do we visit with Him every day or do we just visit for an hour or so on Sunday morning, then go home and don’t think about Him again until next week? How would you feel if that were your relationship with your spouse? Kinda cold isn’t it?

God loves you and me and everyone else on this world that He created for us, but we seem to forget that He is there. We don’t want to acknowledge Him unless we need Him for something, usually urgently…like RIGHT NOW!!

God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit don’t work like that! The Spirit comes to you when you become a Christian. He doesn’t come as a drip at a time, but as the whole package. Jesus saves you and you are to become more like Him as you mature in your walk, daily, as a Christian, studying the Word of God and learning from Him. God watches over you and me and everyone else and makes sure that all things work to our good and His glory IF we belong to Him. 

The church needs to understand that since we are the “body of Christ” until His return, we need to mature into people who are as priests in His Kingdom. We shouldn’t be acting like little children who don’t know better or who don’t know how to act like true Christians who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

Is the devil real?


Something which all of us need to heed and be prepared for. Amen.

Drifting…


Many people seem to be drifting away from the church and it is not a good thing. Why is it so? Because, at this time in our history, we are coming very close to the end of the age spoken of in the Bible. I am not talking about giving you a date and the hour because neither I nor anyone else knows God’s timing in this. But, the prophetic clues are all around us and if you have never read the Bible, then today would be a good day to begin.

Many of the signs are happening every day on the news and many more of them are coming. The world says that evil and sinful living is correct and a good thing and being a follower of Christ is considered to be hateful toward those who don’t believe. Sermons are being watched by law enforcement and scrutinized during hiring for jobs, if a pastor is a bi-vocational leader. If the sermons have anything deemed as “hate speech” in them, the job offer is taken back or the person is fired if they have been hired.

Even social media posts with a religious bent to them are being criticized and taken down in some cases as well as being scrutinized for job interviews. All of these are the beginning of persecution toward believers which Jesus spoke of and it will get worse before it gets better.

Why am I writing this and also talking about people leaving the church? It seems that leaving the church would be a good thing if you want to get ahead in life, right? Not really. If you are living according to the dictates of the world around you, instead of living like a follower of Christ, then you are bending toward the world and getting off of the path set before you by Jesus.

Christians are supposed to be reflections of Jesus, not clay which bends and twists every which way the political correctness police want you to bend! God is our Shield and our Protector and we are to be following Jesus in all that we do and say! If you claim to be a Christian and you aren’t doing this, you may want to check your heart and your spirit and make sure of what or who it is that you are listening to. Are you sure that you belong to Jesus or some lying spirit from Satan who tricked you into thinking that you are saved?

Satan and his demons or spirits can do this and have done it for thousands of years. They attend church more often than many people do, so they know very well how to fool you. Remember, they were around when all of Scripture was being written and played out, so they know it better than anyone with letters behind their name in the pulpit. They can quote it word for word but often will twist the meaning so that it sounds they way they want it to sound.

Some of the horror movies like “The Exorcist”, “The Omen”, and others show this because the demons know things about the person confronting them that they couldn’t know without being supernatural beings. Don’t discount this because even Jesus had to silence those which He cast out so they wouldn’t scream His name and Who He was to every person around. It wasn’t His time to be known that way yet. Even Paul had to cast a demon out because the girl who was possessed kept telling everyone that they were representatives of the Most High God.

Even though it sounds like a good thing, if a demon is announcing that you are the Son of God or a prophet of God, then it seems like you have the OK from Satan to do what you are doing. That is why Jesus and His disciples cast them out because they wanted their message to be validated by the Spirit of God and not a demon from darkness!

Seek out His Word in the Bible. Study it and learn from it, think on it when you have the time and ponder its meaning (meditate), because God will give you the meaning if you are truly seeking it for the Truth that it contains. Seek His will which is contained in the Bible so that you know Who and what you believe, in order to back up your faith and be able to give it away.

Confusion in Christianity


So much is happening in the world today and some of it is due to confusion about Christianity, what is contained in the Bible and how to live as one. Do I mean that Christians are confused? Some of them are, but mostly it is the world that is confused about what Christianity is. Why is that? What is there to be confused about?

Jesus is our Savior and Creator, He was born as a man but with the nature and Spirit of God present in Him. He died because of His humanity and the body that He lived here with, and He also allowed Himself to die in order to pay for the sins of mankind. Could He have refused this cup, yes He could but He didn’t want to defeat God’s purpose.

Many films and books today question Who He is and the authenticity of the Bible as well as whether it is the Word of God or not. People seem to get all worked up about Christianity’s claim that it is and Who it is about, even if they don’t believe it themselves. If you don’t believe it, then let all of us “Christian nutcases” believe what we believe. Very few of us seem to be trying to convert anyone or bring anyone to any knowledge of Jesus, so why does it bother so many people?

I think it bothers them because they doubt their own beliefs or rather non-belief. What if the Bible is true? What if the sermons which have been preached and the truths in them are true? What if hell really does exist? What if…Christianity is right? If you wait until you die to find out, it will be too late to change your mind then.

God loves each of us, regardless of our love for Him. Please, tell others about Jesus if you know Him. The workers are few in the world and we can’t reach everyone, but people are wanting to know Jesus. I do try with this site, but I can’t get to every person because the Internet doesn’t reach everywhere. I will be praying for you all. Thank you.