Tag: Bible

Persecution of Christians


The news media doesn’t report this much, but it is still happening. Christians in many countries are being imprisoned and tortured or killed because of their beliefs. Christianity is not a popular religious belief in countries where Islam is the main religion. Converting to Christianity in those countries can get you put in prison or killed. The so-called “religion of peace” is not at peace with anyone.

Our faith in Jesus and in His grace gives us hope for a life in eternity with Him. Can any other religion give you eternity? Some claim to, but if you look closely at their claims it is a lie! Thousands of Christians have died for their beliefs since Jesus’ time, because they would not reject their beliefs or their faith in Him. They received their reward and are now in Heaven with Him. Few other religions, if any, can claim this truthfully.

To go to other countries and try to evangelize people with the message of Christ is our duty and privilege but it is dangerous in some parts of the world. Jesus told His disciples that they would be hated because the world hated Him and in many places that is still true today, even in our own country. Our country has banned prayer in schools and has taken any display of the Bible or the Ten Commandments from public buildings. In the media Christian principles are being challenged every day as well as in the courts.

We have to stand in our faith but we cannot be truly open about it or we get labeled as extremists. Any other belief, regardless of what it is, can be talked about and spoken aloud openly in the media and in public but not Christianity. Is it because no one wants to hear about a religion which has, as its base, truth and moral absolutes which no person in the world wants to hear about.

Moral absolutes are wrong by most people’s standards. We all ascribe to “personal or individual or even relative absolutes” or so the media reports. What is relative to me doesn’t have to be relative for you. For most of the past two thousand years there has been a standard by which the un-believers and the believers were judged and that standard was and is the Bible.

It is true that there have been wars and other atrocities over religious viewpoints as well as whether the church was the only authority in a nation or who could have access to the Bible itself but there are always opinions in our world. Opinions are going to differ inside a home, let alone on a planet where there are more than six billion people!

The point is that God has not abandoned us to our own devices and beliefs! He is still in control, although He is allowing our own choices to play out as they will. He doesn’t control us, but gives us the choice and the opportunity to see the Truth and to accept it. It is our own choice that will condemn us or save us because the choice is between living as if we are in control of our life or allowing Jesus to have control of it. One will allow your own desires and passions to rule your life and the other will change you into the person you are truly meant to be!

Many people don’t want to accept this change, they fear it. They don’t want to lose the life or the friends that they have. But, your life won’t change only your character and when your character changes, people will notice. Your friends may not like the change but they also may want to know what has made such a difference in your life!

Your witness about many things that you like or are passionate about is known to all of your friends because you talk about it and you tell them about it! It should be no different if you decide to follow Christ as your Savior  But in some countries, it is dangerous for you to witness to people, to tell them about Jesus. He will be with you to strengthen you and guide you through this, no matter what happens.

If you live in an area where persecution against Christians is normal, pray about it. God hears those prayers and He will send a comforter and a Helper. You are not alone. If you are considering becoming a Christian in a country where persecution is harsh, become one and then get on your knees and pray for strength and for help in your new faith. God is near you, when you ask Him into your life, He comes into your heart and is there always. You can make the choice to “kick him out” but that is the only way that you can “lose your faith” and it is your choice to do so!

He won’t leave you unless you force Him out and no one can take you from Him! Eternity is the prize that we strive for but the life that you will “live” in eternity is dependent on which choice you make while you live today, because once you die, the choice has been made. You will either live in eternity with Christ or you will be condemned to spend eternity away from God in a place only reserved for Satan and his fallen angels. It is your choice.

So much misconception about God


Why is our world so confused about God? Is it because He is not something or someone who can be seen or touched? I don’t believe so, since the founders of other religions are dead and cannot be contacted or touched either. The difference is that our God can be contacted and He will answer those prayers! Whether the answer will come on your schedule or not is irrelevant because God answers on His time and not yours.

God loves all of humanity, that is why He sent His Son to be the sacrifice that took the sins of all of us, past, present and future, and paid the price for them all. Our only response, the only one that is required of us, is to acknowledge that we need Him and accept that He paid that price for each of us. Then ask Him to come into our lives and make us more like Him. Once that is done, and we have taken the steps in our life to turn away from our sinful ways, we must let others know about Him!

I know that many people don’t want to testify that they have changed, that their lives have been changed by Jesus but if the change has happened people will see it in your life whether you tell them or not. The misconception that many people have is that they cannot know God.

The Bible is a collection of writings that were inspired by the Holy Spirit and in some cases, such as the books of Moses, were given directly by God Himself to the writer. All of these books are God’s way of advising us on living our lives through Hiim and for Him. God also expresses His love for us through these books and the wisdom contained within them, all we have to do is read and study them and ask Him to help us to understand. There is a passage in the Bible that says something like this, “if you feel that you lack wisdom, ask it of Him and He will give it freely”. Now that is  paraphrase, but you get the idea.

God is not someone who is billions of miles away, He is here. He occupies the entire universe and He can live in your heart if you ask Him to. You are never very far from Him and when you feel alone remember the only one who may have moved is you! God has always been close by although He will not barge into your life. He waits patiently for you to ask Him to come in.

God is the Creator and the One who sustains the universe and all that is in it. Jesus is the living Word that came to earth and became a man to take our sins and the punishment for them to the cross. He is the reason that many have trouble with accepting Christianity. They don’t want to accept Him because many do not believe that the Son of God would do what He did.

The love that God has for us is one that we cannot comprehend because it is far above what we are capable of. Yet it is because of that love for us that He came to suffer through life as we do, to be as we are in every circumstance and yet follow the will of His Father even unto the cross to pay for our sins.

Can we know God? Can we get to know Him like the prophets knew Him? Yes, we can! He wants to get to know us and He wants that relationship with us. All that we have to do is ask Him into our lives and study His Word prayerfully so that we will gain an understanding of just Who He is and what we should be doing.

We are sometimes to proud to admit that we need Him until some problem happens in our lives that punctuates the fact that we cannot handle life by ourselves. At those times, even those who claim that they don’t believe in God will seek Him! Whether they make a life-changing decision to allow Him into their lives is another topic altogether, but they will look for Him until something or someone directs them elsewhere.

Satan is very good at directing us to look to ourselves or to something in the world besides God. It is what he has been doing since the beginning and his ability to deceive us is a finely honed skill that he is very proud of. Satan is capable of twisting scripture to a point that you will think that you have found “religion”, and you have but you haven’t found Jesus!

Religion, in all of its forms in the world, cannot save you from your sins. Only Jesus and asking Him to come into your life and your heart can do that. The choice must be a sincere and honest one, not lip service. Saying some words and getting emotional about it doesn’t change much. If the repentance of your heart is not genuine, God will know. Read and learn from the Bible. God to a real church that preaches from God’s Word. Give your heart to Christ and ask Him to cleanse you from your sins. Once you have done this, your life and your character will change and you are a new creation. Your family will see it as will your friends. Everything will change because you belong to Him and He will live in and through you! That is my prayer and hope for all who read this.

When will it end?


The time is not yet for our world to end. The looming date set by the Mayan calendar is going to come and pass but we will have Christmas and New Year‘s day to follow. The ending that I am speaking of is the hatred toward Christians. Every news outlet that I know of, with the exception of one, seems to discount or discredit only one religion and that is Christianity. Every other religion in the world, regardless of how silly it may be, is fine. Why is that?

The only reason that I can think of is because Christianity has a living Savior and the Bible to back up its claims. No other religion does this. The places and people of the Bible can be traced by history and archaeology to the places that are referenced in the Bible. A few other religions have this as well but not to the extent that the Bible does.

Many people have claimed that the Bible is just a made up story, a book full of fairy tales. The historical record of the Israelite people shows that this book is true and that it is linked to them and their history, so why is it so important that the Bible be discredited? I think it is because of fear.

People are afraid that it may be true and if it is, then all of it is true and our world needs the hope that is found in it. If the words and the message of it is true, then there are many people who are needing salvation through Jesus. Why is that such a bad thing? He doesn’t require you to go by the rules of the Old Testament Jewish laws. The only ones that are even mentioned in Jesus’ teachings are the Ten Commandments.

Is it possible that people just don’t want to be responsible for their actions and the things that they say or do? Have we become so callous that we want a society that is that “self driven”? Humanity has always had a tremendous capacity for evil thoughts and actions, regardless of the religion of the time. We have never shown, in any redeemable way, that lack of religion has made things better. In countries where organized religion was outlawed, the people were controlled by fear of the government itself.

That is no way to live. Satan fell from his position because of pride and we are subject to the same thing. Without Christ in your life and sometimes with Him, pride still gets in the way but you can overcome it through Him. Our world is going to end. When will it happen? No one can predict that because God is the only one who knows the day and the time. The surety and the hope that we have through Christ is that His word is true and the prophecies contained in the Word are sure to come to pass because most of the prophecies that are in it have already come to pass.

There is no part of this book that is fiction, nor is it fantasy, it is real and true. You can choose to believe it or not, but that doesn’t change the words or the prophecies contained in it. You can choose to believe or not believe in gravity but that won’t change the fact that it is there either. When the time comes for you to stand in front of God at your own judgement, you will realize too late that the Word and the truth contained in the Bible are true. Although nothing can be done about it then.

We only have the time that is given to us on earth to realize what is true and what is not. The decision is yours to make. So which will it be? Follow Jesus into eternity or spend eternity wishing that you had?

Ignore the world at your own risk!


It says in the Bible that we are not to be part of the world, and yet we are supposed to take Christ‘s message to all of the world. Kind of contradictory isn’t it? Not really, but we can’t let the world and the things in the world affect our life and our witness to those who may not know Christ. How can we do this?

We can’t do it on our own strength or with our own power because Satan and his demonic forces are far more powerful than we are without Jesus in our life and our heart. Without Jesus, it is impossible for us to do good outside the influence of evil. Regardless of how good we think that we are or can be, we cannot withstand the influence of the principalities and powers that Satan has at his disposal.

The reason behind your failure to withstand him is that he hates you with an undying hatred! The reason for this is that he knew that God intended to put humanity above angels in the hierarchy of Heaven one day. That is the one reason beyond pride that Satan had for his rebellion. Everything else pales in comparison and he intends to do everything that he can to corrupt as much of God’s creation as possible.

So, in a word, no we cannot ignore the world! It would be very dangerous to do so because he is the ruler of this world and ignoring the world would be just what Satan wants, in a sense. He doesn’t want to be ignored, but if enough people regard him as a myth or a fairy tale then they won’t know to defend themselves from his attacks or even know that they need to.

Many Christians don’t even know that they need to take care of the thoughts that they have and give them to Jesus. To walk with Jesus on an hourly basis is the only way to defend yourself and if you choose not to be that close with Him then Satan can get into your life, even if you go to church. Mainly because he is there too! He and his demons are in every congregation in the world. They never miss a Sunday or a Sabbath, yet many don’t have any idea that they are there.

When you give your heart to Jesus, He comes in and cleans out anything that has been there before and makes you into a new creation! Your heart becomes the temple for the Spirit to live and work in and through you and for you. When this happens, your life can have so much more meaning not only for you but for God too.

Making Jesus the Lord of your life makes you one of His disciples and they were able to do many glorious, miraculous things as long as their trust and their faith stayed focused on Him. Can we do the same? Yes, we can if we truly believe in Him and repent of our old ways and truly change. Don’t go back to the same places that you went to before, make new friends and tell your old friends that you are a new person!

Take them to church with you and introduce them to your Savior so that they will come to know Him. God loves them, they just have to realize it and accept His love and grace and they will become part of His family too!

What can we do for the world?


We as Christians, are supposed to be the light of the world but are we? The few of us who are dedicated to furthering Christ‘s teachings in the world have little influence in it. Our sphere of speaking engagements and preaching opportunities doesn’t extend very far from our homes. We are not international evangelists, so how can we possibly make a difference?

In all seriousness, we can’t do it without Christ’s help and influence behind the words which we do speak and the limited amount of influence that we do have. Without Him, we are nothing but with Him our words and our actions can make a difference. The difference will be in accordance with His will however so don’t expect things to go as you might hope. Our own feelings and wants are not a part of the equation when God‘s hand and His Spirit are involved. Our prayers to Him are for our benefit but ultimately, He is in control of everything.

I am not writing this to dampen the spirit of those who truly are followers of Christ and have their hope in Him but we have to face reality. The reality of our world is that even though Satan has control over most of the governments of earth, God is still in control of what he can do. We are not left alone, without help. God is behind the scenes, but in control and that is what we have to hold on to in order to be strong enough to stand up for what is right and for those who need to know Him. Even though there are many places where God is not known, His presence and the works of His hands are always visible to everyone. So no one has an excuse for being unable to know about God or who He is.

God’s handiwork is evident in the night sky or the cry of a newborn baby or a new sunrise. The beauty of His creation is that it is because He put it there. Nothing and no one is here by accident or evolution, regardless of the scientific community believing otherwise and trying to teach it as fact.

There will always be people who don’t want to hear about religion or God or creation and that is fine. They are free to believe whatever they wish to believe, but what if all of Christianity and the Bible is true? When you die you don’t get a second chance. There are no “do-overs” or re-incarnation for anyone to fix what was done wrong in their previous life. Your life here and now is the chance that you get, regardless of how long it is. If you choose to believe that there is no God and that you just go to sleep when you die and that is it, no one on earth can change your mind.

Although, when you open your eyes in eternity after death what will you say to the One that you stand before? It won’t be a blank screen staring back at you and it won’t be a computer asking for your ID card. It will be the Creator of the Universe who may ask you “What were you thinking?” or “Did you really think all of this was an accident”? It is possible that the Bible is true because the Creator does not lie! The words that He gave to His prophets and to His disciples are all true, whether you choose to believe it or not!

Yet, there are many who will wake up in eternity to find that it is real. Then what? At that point for them, the Truth is standing in front of them and cannot be denied except that it is too late. You can only accept Christ while you are alive, in the flesh. Once you have crossed over into eternity, what decisions were made here are cast in stone and cannot be changed. Make sure that you have checked all the possible explanations, especially the one about Christ and His saving grace for you before you die. Decide to make a difference in your life, because He will.

You almost persuaded me to be a Christian


 

“Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian”. Acts 26:28

King Agrippa’s comment to Paul is the only time in the New Testament that anyone said to a disciple that they were almost persuaded to become a Christian. These eight words give a sad testimony to King Agrippa and yet, many people say this today, nearly word for word. It is a frightening thought to me to see or hear someone say that because the punishment for those who have rejected God‘s offer of salvation is spiritual death, eternal separation from God!

God loves all of us and yet we, in our own ignorance, tell lies, we cheat, we commit all kinds of sinful acts daily which cut us off from communication with Him even now. He can’t and won’t hear us when we have become defiled by the world and the things in it that draw us away from Him. In many people’s eyes, the things which come between us and God on a daily basis doesn’t matter in the here and now. But, just for a moment, think about this: we are going to be in eternity whether we are in heaven or hell!

True, what you say or do on a daily basis may not hurt anyone right now but if you are the one saying something hurtful or out of character for a true Christian, who is it hurting? You in the long run, because you are going to pay for it by losing something which you would have gained in eternity! It also may hurt someone who hears what you say or sees what you did. Your witness as a Christian is visible to those around you all the time, especially your family but also your students, your friends and co-workers. Every word and deed, small or large will have an impact on your life now and in eternity and it will have an impact on someone else’s life too!

Being “almost” a Christian is like not being one at all! Any little misstep that you make in front of someone, regardless of who it may be, can be eternally damaging. That is why we have to crucify our “self”, the person who wants to say what they always said or do the things that they have always done; it has to be done daily because if you don’t stop that “old you” from showing up, it will happen again and again until no one will be able to tell if you ever changed or not!

Jesus was ordained to follow the path that He did from the beginning. It was not as a result of what happened in Eden, God knew it was going to happen. and we were purchased with His blood, every person from that point until the last person on earth is born and chooses to follow Christ or not. They and we are all forgiven, it only matters who decides to choose and which choice is made, whether to follow Christ as your Savior or not. That is the only choice which really makes a difference in your life now and in eternity!

What about those people who have not accepted Jesus as their savior, do they have to follow the same rules as we do? Actually, they don’t because they are not bound to any commitment to Jesus. They are free to do as they please. Many people would comment that that is unfair but how is it unfair? Being bound to Jesus is a choice, a choice that we make as Christians, while the same is also true about people who have chosen not to follow Christ. They have chosen to be committed to their own beliefs and moral codes, regardless of the eternal consequences.

Their choice is for their immediate satisfaction, right now and they choose not to worry about eternity until it gets here, if it ever does. Now, we know that eternity is true because Jesus spoke of it in the Bible, by many who do not believe don’t think that there is anything beyond this life. Many who do not follow Jesus, don’t come to church and even if they do, they don’t believe what the Bible says so they don’t “listen” to what they hear in church anyway. Their ears heard it but they choose not to listen, yet when they cross through the door of death and find their judgment waiting for them, it is too late to decide then.

What can we do for our loved ones if they are un-decided about their Christian life or whether they will even follow Christ? Pray for them, witness to them, answer their questions, bring them to church with you. After all of this and they are still un-decided, pray for them some more, but don’t push because other than prayer will seem as if you are doing just that, pushing. Many people don’t like “pushy Christians” and they will put even more distance between themselves and you and Jesus! At this point, the seeds have been planted so let God grow them. The Holy Spirit will take over as the gardener and it is out of your hands.

How can we know that we are saved?


Is it possible for us to really know that we are saved? According to the Bible and most preachers, yes it is possible for us to know for sure. How many people know for sure? There is no answer to this question because the relationship that you have or don’t have with God is your business and it is between you and Him. There is no foolproof way of knowing if someone is saved by talking with them or looking at them because we don’t look any different from the outside. The proof is on the inside and that is where God sees the change and knows that there has been a change. We see it from the outside by the lifestyle that the person leads or the changes in their lifestyle.

When there is a true spiritual change in your heart and your soul, then it will show by your character and the changes in that character. If you were a person who got drunk every weekend, like I did when I was young and foolish, and after you accept Jesus you don’t want to do that anymore then that is the first visible change in your life. The language that you used before may change immediately or gradually, but eventually it will change. People will notice these changes.

I am not saying that it is required of every person to go through these changes, but consider this: if you wouldn’t do certain things in front of your mother or grandmother, then you shouldn’t do them when you have given your life to Christ. Mainly because He and His spirit are with you constantly after you have accepted them into your life. So, they are with you no matter where you go or what you are doing or saying from that point on. Would you take your pastor to a strip club? If you wouldn’t then you shouldn’t be going either is the point I am making.

In the book of Romans, Paul wrote: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”. Christ died for your sins and mine and everyone else on the planet, but He was raised to life everlasting on the third day. He did all that was necessary for us to become Christians, all that we have to do is believe in Him and ask Him into our hearts. Then, follow Him like the disciples did. Follow Him like many people follow their favorite singer or sports figure, but follow Him!

The change that comes into your life after receiving Christ is not immediate, but it is miraculous because you are not the same person that you were before and you can’t go back to the life that you had. Your life and your outlook on life is different, because your heart has changed. Once that has happened, everything that you are and everything that you do will reflect Christ to the rest of the world. You are responsible for your witness and everyone will be watching!

Jesus feeds us today


Feeding the five thousand

Matt. 14: 13 through 21

(paraphrased in my own words)

When Jesus heard of John the Baptist being beheaded, he departed into a deserted place. John was his cousin so naturally, it bothered Jesus that this should happen to him. While He was there, many people found out where He had gone and followed him on foot to be near him. When he became aware of them he had compassion on them because they were far from home and he healed the sick that they had brought with them.

Afterward, toward evening, his disciples came to him saying for him to send them away so that they could get something to eat. Jesus said “they need not depart; give them something to eat”. What do you think Jesus was trying to do at this point? Have you any idea?

He was trying to get them to exercise their faith in Him. They told him that they had five loaves and two fishes. The multitude numbered about five thousand men not counting women and children and yet he told them to sit in groups of fifty and an hundred. Then He blessed the food and brake the loaves and fishes and gave them to his disciples to distribute. They all ate their fill and had twelve baskets left over.

What was shown during this feast? The power of God and His Son to be sure but what else? The power of faith in Him. If the disciples had not had faith in Jesus when He gave them the pieces of fish and bread, would they have distributed it as he had told them to? I don’t think so. Their faith was rewarded with substance, just as ours is today. When we have faith in the prayers that we pray and the outcome of those prayers, then the result with be answered prayers.

When Jesus came into history and chose His disciples we began to learn about Him and the Father because they wrote down their experiences with Him and what He said and did. Jesus and His Father worked together and that they loved all of us, not just one people. We learned by Jesus’ words and His work that He wants all of us to come to Him. Many people look at this and say that we are to be slaves to Jesus. Is that actually so bad? Considering that He will reward us with eternity in Heaven, is that so bad?

Granted, God may not answer our prayers in the way that we want Him to but they will be answered.

Can we have faith as they did when they were with Jesus? Yes, we can because we have the testimony of the Bible to bolster our faith. Many people today think that the bible is outdated and useless for the twenty-first century but God can see the time we live in and beyond so His Word and the promises contained within it is never outdated.

We, on the other hand, have our own agenda. We gravitate toward discounting the Word of God and not give it the power that it actually has. Is it possible that we don’t look at God the way that He is portrayed in the Bible? Why would we do such a thing? God created all that is around us, for our benefit and for His Glory. He created us the way we are, warts and all, to reflect His glory so that others will see what we have in Christ and want it too.

Do you look at the bible as being an old book full of children’s stories but not something that we should not pay attention to today? God revealed Himself to Israel through His prophets and they wrote down the words that He gave them to say and to write down. In those writings, we can learn who He is and we can learn about Him. We can learn what He wants of us today, not just Israel. How we are to treat others, how He will treat us, how much He loves us.

Some religions today say that we can be gods. Can you, by willing it, be any taller or slimmer than you are? I know we wish we could at times, but we can’t. Our Creator, Jesus, loves and cares for each of us. Right down to the last hair on our heads. How can you possibly understand a love like that? It is hard for anyone to understand it, but He does. He and the Father have loved all of us since the beginning, long before we were born because God sees the end from the beginning. Time was created by Him and yet He is outside of time. We cannot understand the concept of this, but it is true.

The universe was put together by Him for us so that we could see His majesty and power, even if we never heard a sermon preached. Nature cries out that the Creator is here! He has been from the beginning. The smallest life-form is perfect in its ways because He made it so, not because of some accident.

We cannot make it without Him. He is the One who sustains us, protects us, gives us our faith and our courage for everyday living. Oh, we can pridefully do it on our own for a while but what happens when the really bad stuff happens and our way just doesn’t cut it anymore?

What about the times that we have lost someone dear to us or they have been diagnosed with cancer that is inoperable? Can you hold up to that on your own strength? Maybe for a while, but eventually your strength will fail, then where will you turn? To what or who will you turn to? If you don’t know Jesus, will you blame Him or God for all the bad things? Many people do, which is exactly what Satan wants us to do.

The provision that Christ showed to the five thousand, He will give to us if we only turn to Him. Whether we turn in our hour of greatest need or we turn because we are drawn to Him by the Spirit. He loves us, which is why we are all still here to begin with. If it were not for the love that God has for us and the mercy that He bestows on us daily, the world would have ended years ago. We might never have been born, but God knew that we would because He has a purpose for each of us. That is why the mouth of hell is not yawning beneath us, because of His pleasure and His mercy toward us and those who have not accepted Jesus yet.

We are loved by the Creator! The One Who put all of this together perfectly so that we could see its majesty and His Glory! Can we comprehend a love like that? I can’t and I would imagine that you can’t either! Almighty God, His Son and the Holy Spirit did an awesome work in this universe and man cannot fathom why we are special enough to be the only life here. In reality, we may not be or God may have something else in mind, who knows? Only God Himself knows why He did what He did.

The love and mercy of Jesus, His compassion toward the people that He fed and healed and toward us, is what is keeping hell and the end of the world at bay and Satan too. What will you do when the time comes that Satan’s wrath comes to earth? If you are still here, who will you turn to?

Jesus is the only way to eternity, regardless of the promises you may hear from any “false Christ”. The end of our life is only a heart beat away or one more breath away, what will you do about Jesus? You don’t know when your life could end. It might end tonight or tomorrow. I may not make it home, but I will be with Jesus. Some might ask me: “How do you know that you will go to heaven?” Because the Spirit within my heart gives me peace in the knowledge that I am His. Are you?

Why all the hostility toward the Bible?


The main reason for all of the hostility toward God‘s Word is because of its claims to the Truth. The Bible is an old book and today, many people look at it as such. Why should I read something which was written over two thousand years ago? It was written as our hand-book for life, that is why. True, it was written for the Jewish people to begin with, but when Jesus came and the New Covenant was established in His sacrifice for all of mankind it became everyone’s book!

Jesus said that “I am the way, the truth and the life. He that comes to Me will have everlasting life“; I paraphrased that but those words were spoken by Him for us today, now! The time is growing short, much shorter than it has been since He went to His Father and He said that He would return and He will, soon. No one knows the day or the hour but with the world on the brink of what the Bible calls the end times.

There is hope for each of us if we will give our lives to Christ and ask Him to come into our hearts. This web address is very helpful in answering your questions and pointing you in the direction that you need to go: http://peacewithgod.jesus.net/.

The world and those who are in the world, at times, cannot see or understand God’s Word. If you have not given your life to Jesus, think about it, pray about it. It is not a weakness to ask Him into your life because being a Christian is sometimes one of the hardest things to do.

I know that many people see it as being weak and some even view Christians as people who have their screws loose. That is not the case but the secular world doesn’t recognize the wisdom which is contained in God’s Word. Even the Bible says that the world sees God’s wisdom as foolishness.

Regardless of the message that other religions give, Jesus is the only way to heaven and eternal life. Can you come to Him by any other way than accepting Jesus as your Savior? No, the only way to know that you are saved from your sins is by repenting (turning around/away from) of them and asking Jesus for forgiveness and asking Him to come into your heart and change you into the person that you were meant to be.

The ruler of this world, Satan, doesn’t want you to come to Jesus or the knowledge that you can change your life by coming to Him. He will do anything to keep you from this because he hates you and God! Pride can get in the way of your salvation too. There are many things of this world that can keep us from turning to God, but your heart knows where to turn when there is nowhere else to go. Give your life to Jesus and your life will never be the same, it will be better!

Your life’s purpose


Did you know that just twenty-one days elapse from conception to the first heartbeat when you are still in your mother’s womb? From that point on your life is begun and your parent’s lives will never be the same. The things that you desire in life that give you a purpose or worth, make you feel significant or accepted, give you security or cause you to feel loved or allow you to experience the beauty of God’s creation. These are the things which you will follow after and crave  most of your life. Can they be found in one place or person?

The answer is yes, they can be found in one person and His name is Jesus. The creation, of which we are a part of, is His doing. We are special to Him and to God, so why don’t we feel special? Did we do something wrong? Can we fix it if we did?

Some of us do feel special because our parents and grand-parents reinforced that feeling. But are we special? To God we are special because He created each of us for a purpose and we are made for that purpose especially by Him.

The second question: Did we do something wrong? No, not exactly. We all do or say things that we regret later, it is just our human nature. That is the problem but we can’t blame everything that we say or do on that. We cannot abrogate or refuse to acknowledge our responsibility in life because of “human nature”. It is that nature that we have been handed down from antiquity that we must take control of but we cannot do it on our own strength. We have to allow Jesus into our life and our heart so that we can become someone better than we can become ourselves.

We can’t do it on our own. Regardless of the science-fiction stories of a utopian future where we all get along and disease and poverty don’t exist. That world is not possible without the rule of Christ in our lives and even then it would not work unless He was the ruler of the world as He will be.

But, the most important decision that you will make is whether to accept Him as Lord and Savior in your life and your heart. When you give your life to Him and give up your way of doing things in favor of His way, your life and the influence that it has on others will be changed dramatically. God loves you far more than you or I can possibly imagine and He wants the best for you. That does not mean that you will have millions of dollars or houses or anything that the world recognizes as “success”, but you will be successful in other ways, eternal ways.

The life that we have does not end when our physical body dies because God created us with an eternal spirit which will live on. Eternity makes this life seem like a puff of smoke so the influence that you have here needs to be based on following and loving Jesus, not on following what the world wants you to do.
Think about it. Pray about it and seek the wisdom that only God can provide through His Word, the Bible. Don’t just read it like a book, because it is the Creator‘s conversation with us and His people. Pray and ask Him to show you the wisdom that is intended for you and your situation. He will open your eyes and your heart so that you can see and understand that which you need.