Tag: Bible

We are longing for meaning, can it be found?


Over the past few years I have noticed that people are searching, longing for meaning and purpose in their lives. We all do at one point in life. Some of us find it in our family, some find it in meaningful work, some never find true meaning or purpose and go on searching, wondering what can possibly fill that empty space. There is something, someone, who can fill that space in our lives and in our heart. But, we must search Him out, He will not force us to come to this knowledge. Force, coercion, and pain are not the ways to find Him or come to Him.

Granted, the so-called “church” has done many evil things in the past and some people are causing more pain in His name even today, but that is the way of our nature, not His. We are the ones who have perverted and soiled His name by claiming to be doing things which He would not condone and yet claiming that we do this for Christ. All that is happening when this is done is that the name and glory of the Christ and God Himself are being tarnished like old silver by the actions of people who only have their own interests at heart.

The reason behind this is simply Satan himself because even though he was created to worship God, he was given free will like we are and pride was found in him and he was cast out of Heaven because he wanted to be exalted above God. He is now the ruler of this world and all that is done on earth, especially things which are evil and which can cast doubt toward God he will do. Although, he is not totally in control because God only allows him to do what is truly in the will and knowledge of God. God knows exactly what will work to bring about our obedience and our recognition of Who He is, so that we will ultimately fulfill our purpose. We are in control only to the extent that what we do affects our lives and our immediate surroundings. We are not gods and were never intended to be.

We were created by God to be in this universe and to be servants to Him. That is not to say, that we are slaves in the sense that many people and the devil himself tries to make us believe that we are. As Christians, we do it because we were loved and known by Him first and considered worthy enough that He died on the cross to save us from our own stupid, prideful, decisions. People do things, good or bad, on their own which cause others to fall into a life which will be ruinous to them and to others. It is just our nature, because of the fall from grace in the Garden and we must be redeemed from it through Jesus. He is and always has been the way to life everlasting.

It has been called many things from many cultures and I am not saying that there is another way, by another name but one day everyone will know that Jesus is the only way to Heaven. Whether you get it in a church or from an evangelist or from the Bible itself, when God calls you it will become clear to you that what you need was there all along, you just didn’t know that it was so easy. Easy to claim the life of being a Christian, yet it is hard to live it daily. Many churches will tell you that the life of a believer is easy but it is not. Our nature keeps us from getting up every morning and laying down our own nature and taking up the nature of being a Christian. It can be done, but not under our own strength. We have to ask for His strength and through Him we can do what He wants us to do.

I know that all of this sounds very cryptic because I am not going into specifics about Christian life and service, but the reason that I am not is because it is different for each of us. You may be gifted in one area, your wife or son or daughter may be gifted in another. Yet, through the Spirit, once you surrender your will to His will in your life, you can and will be able to do whatever He asks of you and shows you what He wants you to do. God loves each person on this planet and wants each of us to come to know Him but until we do, He will not force us. It is not in His nature to do that and God cannot change because He is unchanging.

Jesus said: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man can come unto the Father except by Me” John 14:6. There is only one way which will get you to Heaven, and that is through trusting in the saving power of Jesus and the sacrifice made on the cross for you, believing Him for your salvation. No other religion or ceremony will do, no one can do what He did and yet He lives and will come back for His own. We will be tested and some will be found lacking in faith and there will be a falling away but if you will put your faith in Him and trust in Him, and cling to the Bible and the wisdom contained in it, you will find peace and life everlasting through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Watch and do not be deceived


We are living in a time that is close to what is called the “end times“. Many people are asking and wondering what will happen next and the truth is that no one knows except God. I do not claim to have knowledge about any future events except what is contained in scripture, specifically the last book of the Bible, the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Many say that this book is mostly metaphor or allegorical and not to be taken seriously, but that is not what the Bible says.

In the first few verses of Revelation it says: 3Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.   Rev. 1:3

The time is near and we need to be watching the news from the Middle East because that is where the first sign will come from that the time is near and is now. It may not be today or tomorrow, but be watchful and filter the news through the Bible’s prophecy about this time. Most of the prophecies concerning the end of the age have already come about and come to pass. Our Hope is coming and the whole world will see Him!

The god of this world knows that his time is nearing an end which is why there is so much deception and war and all manner of other problems which are in the world and the news daily. The one who is in our world and who goes around seeking those that he may deceive is Satan and his fallen angels. They are causing many to follow religions which are contrary to God, even if they seem to be Christian religions. He is the father of lies and can twist scripture so that many will believe his lies and think that they are following the truth.

God loves us all and wants all to come to Him but as many as he can prevent, that is what Satan will do regardless of how it is done. “He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. Luke 21:8

I know that there will be some who may comment that I am saying that the time is near and I am but the facts from the Bible itself and the prophecies concerning Israel bear the proof of what I am saying here. I am not trying to give a date that He will return because even Jesus said that only the Father knows when that time will be.

The only message that I am giving here is that we must be watching. Pay attention to the news, especially from Israel and the Middle East, because that is where the evidence will show first. Pray and read and study your Bible, listen to what is said about the end times in prophecy. If the King James is too hard to understand get a Bible in the New Living Translation which is modern English. We cannot be taken by surprise if we watch and pray. Check what I have here by comparing it to God’s Word so that you will know that it is true.

Small sins cause the greatest pain


When we do sin, even in the smallest way, we are breaking God‘s laws. Not that we are bound by the Laws of Moses since we are under the sacrifice of Jesus and under grace, but consider that God said that we are to be subject to our government and its laws. Every time we break the speed limit, even a little, we are breaking the law of God and man.

I know that many people don’t count those “little sins”, but God does. In the least, those “little sins” like speeding, lying to someone (just a little), cause problems with our prayers and with our relationship between God and us. If we are to call ourselves Christians, we should act like it, and that means obeying the law.

“For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.” Leviticus 11:44

Christians and those who believe in God and who He is are called to be holy by claiming Jesus as our Saviour because He is the Messiah and the One prophesied about by the prophets in the Old Testament scriptures. We have to come to Him before it is too late because the only way to the Father is through the Son.

There will be a great falling away of people from their faith in God and Christ during the time of tribulation coming upon the world. Your faith in what you have been taught and in the Bible itself will be tested and the only way to hold firm to that is to claim it fully and completely. God does not want any to perish but if you cannot or will not accept the free gift of salvation through Jesus, that is what will happen.

I know this is a harsh message to read and hear but the time will come when these things are happening. It is prophesied in the Bible and God’s words are true!

Are you good enough?


In our world today there are many people who think they are in pretty good shape to get to heaven. They don’t steal, they aren’t committing adultery, they don’t cuss, and they haven’t killed anybody (yet). So, they consider themselves to be pretty good but those that I listed are just four of the Ten Commandments. What about the other six? They mostly deal with pride and selfishness. How are you doing on those? What about having anything take God’s place, which is the first commandment? Is there anything or anyone which you value more than God?

Most everyone has trouble with those at one point or another. Everything that we have is a gift from God whether we purchased it or He brought it into our lives. Your children, your wife or husband are all gifts from God, you may not be happy with them all the time but neither is He happy about us and our choices, which is why we have the ability to choose. God wants us to have the choice and the ability to choose Him as an act of love not because we had no choice.

When we were still sinners and blind to the truth of God’s love…did His love for us still exist? Of course it did! Even the smallest detail regarding sin is a sin. The thought you had about someone having more than you do…is a sin. The envy that you feel toward someone you may not even know is a sin. Any word or thought that we say or think that is hurtful or to spite someone is also a sin. Speeding on the highway, taking a pen home from work, using something that is not yours without asking, these are all sins and we will be held accountable for them unless we repent and ask forgiveness.

The world and every created thing in it exist regardless of our position in it or our comprehension of it. The sun and the moon rise and set, the tides come in and flow back to the sea and the seasons change just as God said that they would from the beginning. Animals, birds, fish, and insects all live according to God’s plan because they don’t have a choice regarding what they are or what they do. They glorify God by living and reproducing. We should glorify Him in our walk with Him daily and by our character that everyone sees daily because to some people that may be the only reflection of Christ they ever see.

The same is true in our lives. We wake up and go to sleep at night. We dream, we wake in the morning, eat breakfast and get ready for another day. This is a ritual which will continue until we retire or we die whichever comes first. The true novelty of life is that it shouldn’t be a novelty; we should live it as real as it is and thank God every day that we have that privilege. The life that we are given to live is for God’s glory and His purposes. Whether we choose to work for Him and with Him is our choice but our life will be much greater for it if we choose to walk in His ways and follow His purposes.

While we are here, regardless of our vocation, we should use our time and energy to witness to people by our lives and what they see of Christ through our actions. Remember, the pay for God’s work may be small compared to what others get in this world but our retirement plan is out of this world! No one on earth could possibly measure what the streets of gold or your mansion in glory would be worth. The wonderful presence of God Himself and the fact that you will be with Him for eternity is also beyond anyone’s comprehension.

Our life will be more than we can imagine when we are in His presence and we will be for eternity if we are His. I can’t comprehend one thousand years or one million and eternity is far longer than either of those which is why Christ said that we live like flowers, here today and gone tomorrow. We have to allow Him to work through us while we are here because we only have a short time on this earth, and yet if we belong to Him we will have eternity to learn from Him and to be with Him daily. Heaven will be a place where we will experience freshness and joy all of the time because we will never be tired or run out of things to do, ever!

Even the apostle John couldn’t comprehend what he was seeing when he saw the vision of heaven and the angels and even God Himself. We truly haven’t a clue in regard to what is in store for us and our loved ones in Heaven or even when the earth is remade in the image of the paradise that it was in the Garden of Eden. I have left out reference to scripture in this morning’s sermon because the whole Bible from beginning to end declares God’s majesty and the magnificence of His creation. The sky, the trees, the birds and all the creatures that have ever been on the earth as well as the universe declares His creative power and wondrous love for us. He created all of these things for us to marvel at and consider because He is God, period!

I am bringing this message of praise and adoration before you because it is necessary to realize God’s presence and who He is. We are coming to the end of the church age and our time on earth will soon be done so the time to make your choice regarding who you will serve and where is now, not tomorrow or next week.

What would you say to a person who thinks they are good enough to stand in front of God and declare that they are eligible for heaven? Are you sure about your salvation? If you or a friend of yours thinks “I hope I can get into heaven when I die”, unless your “hope” is in Christ you won’t! If you are counting on your deeds to get there, you will be sorely disappointed. Our righteousness is as filthy rags without the blood of Christ because nothing that we can do on our own will ever be good enough.

John 3:16 says: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Give our life to Christ and ask Jesus to save you from your sins today. We aren’t guaranteed tomorrow or even tonight so the time is now. Once you do that and are sincere in your repentance there will be no doubt about where you will go after you die. You will be with Him and then your life will really begin!

A message for Father’s Day


Today being Father’s Day, I thought we would concentrate on finding out what God’s Word says about fathers and their place in the home. Truly, fathers are the leaders in the home, the ones who set the example for their children to follow. Do we have an example to follow? Did our father or grandfather show by his example how to be a father? These are a couple of references from the Bible which give us some idea about being fathers:

HOSEA 11:1-4

(NRSV) When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more I called them, the more they went from me; they kept sacrificing to the Baals, and offering incense to idols. Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, I took them up in my arms; but they did not know that I healed them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with bands of love. I was to them like those who lift infants to their cheeks. I bent down to them and fed them.

EPHESIANS 6:1-4, 10-12

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  “Honor your father and mother”–this is the first commandment with a promise: “so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”  And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

The way that we can do these things is to make sure that we have a relationship with our Father in Heaven.Then make sure that we live that daily in front of our children. Don’t break the speed limit unless it is a true emergency, don’t cheat on your taxes, you know the drill. Everything that you do is being watched carefully by your children, whether they are grown or not. They watch and they learn by what you say and do in front of them.

When you tell them that God is important make sure that you let them see you doing that, not just saying it. “Do as I say and not as I do” is no way to bring up a child. Your children will do as you do, regardless of what you say. Even in God’s Word, when He told them to do things a certain way they didn’t do it. If they did, it would only be for a little while.

The lives of the next generation are precious to us and to God so we should live our life and our beliefs daily, not just on Sunday. Giving your life to Christ is the most important decision of your life. Living that new life in Christ in front of your family is the next decision that is important because of who is watching. God is watching you and watching over you, but your children, your wife, your co-workers are all watching to see the change that has happened in your life. If there has been a change, it will be evident.

Your character will be affected by that change and it will be what everyone sees on a daily basis. No matter what happens that change can’t be undone once it truly occurs. You won’t lose it and no one can take it from you. You can walk away from God, just as Jonah did, but when God decides to bring you back……He will. Hopefully without a fish swallowing you.  He will guide you back to Him one way or another.

Have you ever met me?


I was a baby at one time, like we all were, who lived with his parents in a small home. I was born to very poor parents as far as wealth goes, but the love that was in that home was very evident. So in practical matters we were rich. My childhood was not remarkable. I had all the knee-scrapes and things that kids get into. There was no television, no Internet, no electricity either but we didn’t know about those things because no one else had them either! I made all sorts of toys out of wood and mud and used my imagination to entertain me and my cousins and my brothers.

As time went along, of course, we all had to grow up. That is when I found my vocation as a wood-worker and carpenter. I worked with my dad and learned all that he could teach me about his trade. He was very good at his trade and I learned a lot from him. I missed his laugh and his smile when I became a man. Soon after my thirtieth birthday I was called into another line of work, being a minister of the gospel. My cousin said that I was perfectly suited for this because he had become a minister as well and he knew the people needed to hear the message.

I found his message to be compelling and in line with the one I had been called to bring, so I asked him to baptize me. He agreed, though with some reservations. When I came up from the water, I heard a voice and saw something like a bird land on me. I hoped nobody else heard it, they would think crazy things about me if they did. I went off to be alone and pray and was confronted by someone who kept trying to get me to worship him, but I didn’t give in to any of his plans or temptations.

I managed to gather a few followers, twelve in all who were faithful. There were many more but these stayed close through the time that I had. My message and other things which happened during my ministry angered some and gave hope to others. Unfortunately, the ones who were angry had much more political power and influence than did the people who gained hope from my teachings.

They finally arrested me and gave me a mock trial of sorts and had the ruling government official to condemn me as a traitor and an insurrectionist. All during this time, my Father never left me until I was put on a crucifixion stake as a criminal. He had been with me the whole time. Giving me the words and the wisdom to give others hope and comfort, then during the darkest hour at the end of my life, He left me. I felt alone like I had never felt in my life.

I was placed in a borrowed tomb with a sealed stone over the entrance. I am not sure why they did that since I was dead at the time. Three days later I saw a blinding white light and opened my eyes. I was alive! The scars from the beatings were gone, but the ones from the nails were still there. I walked out of that tomb as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. By the way, my name is Jesus, Yeshua to my Jewish brethren. If you have met me, great! My work is not done yet and yours isn’t either. If you don’t know me, we need to talk about a great many things. The most important of which is your heart and your soul.

My Father’s Word, the Bible, is available to everyone and in every language. My story is told from the beginning to end in one fashion or another. My twelve disciples made sure that they told as many as they could and wrote many letters to the early churches that are still being read by many people today. Your life will never end when you come to the Father through belief in my saving work that He had me do. I have prepared a place for you, won’t you come to me. I am waiting.

Just as you are


It doesn’t matter what you look like or where you live, Jesus loves you just as you are. He has always known you because He knew all of us before we were born. He knows and knew ahead of time who will come to Him and who will not. He also knows the gifts that He has given you and how to teach you to use them for Him and for the glory of God.

You are special to Him, it doesn’t matter who you are or your status here on earth. If your family has lots of money and status and fame, you are special to Jesus. Not because of who you are or because of what you think you have in this world, but because Jesus values you because you are you!

The “stuff” that we and our families gather during our life and on a daily basis doesn’t matter at all, especially with eternity hanging in the balance. The only real stuff that matters is what you choose to do with Jesus and whether you accept His gift for your life! God loves you and truly wants you to come to know Him and His Son, Jesus.

Once you make that decision, your life here will be forever changed in ways that you can’t imagine if you have never given your life to Christ. If you think that you are a Christian, but are having doubts, ask Jesus to clear things up for you. Ask Him to show you exactly what He wants you to do and what you need to read in God’s Word. Once you find the meaning and purpose for your life through Christ, eternity is your destiny because you will have that long to serve Him and to find out more about Him.

If you have access to a Bible, read Romans chapter 8. It has plenty of information for new Christians and for those of us who have gotten a bit rusty in our faith as well. For example: Romans 8:28 says: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.

God loves you all and wants you with Him, please come to Him before it is too late. You won’t regret this decision, I guarantee it!

What should we do about Jesus?


If you are asking this question, of yourself or just wondering, isn’t it time that you made a decision for real? Your eternity hangs in the balance. The condition of your eternity, whether it is comfortable and with friends or terrifying and painful and alone, also hangs on your decision about Jesus. There was a preacher once who preached a sermon about humanity hanging by a frayed rope over the pit of hell and the only way that we could get free from that situation was by accepting Jesus as our Savior and into our life.

What will your decision be? Do you have an opinion about Him based on what the world tells you about Him and Christianity? Or have you got a relative or someone that has told you that it is a bunch of baloney and don’t worry about your “so-called immortal soul” because when we die, we are dead and that is it. That is some dangerous advice to listen to!

You know what really bothers me? It’s the fact that so many people in this country “claim” to be Christian when in actual fact, they are not! I am not judging anyone in this regard, but if eighty percent of Americans really are Christians, why is our country so messed up? When I say that I am a Christian, I mean that I believe that Jesus died for my sins and that the Word of God, the Bible, is true….all of it! Our world and the universe that He created is not billions of years old, and the Book of Revelation is not fiction nor is it allegory. The prophecies contained within it will come to pass at the appropriate time.

God sent His one and only Son to earth to be the sacrifice for all of mankind. If you cannot believe this, read the Bible and pray about it. Your life will never be the same once you accept Jesus as your Savior, it will be more alive and vivid than you can possibly imagine! Without Him, you can do nothing, with Him, you can do anything!

Humanity, the ungrateful child


A wealthy man had a son whom he loved very much.  He gave him gifts.  He spent every moment of the day teaching and caring for his son.  But as the boy grew into manhood, he turned away from his father and came to despise him – yet his father continued to support him hoping that he would come around.  He paid his bills, furnished him with a home and wrote to him.  But, instead of being grateful, the son ripped up the letters, ended all contact with him and cursed anyone who dared mention his father’s name in conversation.  However, he never stopped taking his father’s support.

Sadly, this ungrateful son illustrates humanity.  God is our heavenly Father and many of us imitate the son’s attitude.  God spends every moment with us, whether we know it or not:  giving, teaching and caring – yet, many turn away.  In spite of this, God still continues to care for us with the desire that we will come around.  He supplies us with the riches of the universe, things that cannot be measured in wealth (like sunshine, oxygen, gravity, atmosphere, environment and more); He has paid our bills (Christ on the cross) and written to us (the Bible).  We may curse God – but isn’t it ironic that we still expect Him to continue supporting – which, as the perfect Father, He does.

What would happen to us if we woke up one day and the sun had dimmed to one-tenth of its output? Or if the magnetic field which protects us failed and we were exposed to the radiation of the full spectrum, not just the visible light that we have come to know? Would we blame God or would we pray and repent, asking for His protection again? What would we do in that situation?

In the current condition that our world is in, we would look for all sorts of scientific reasons for what was happening. We would also attempt to find ways that we could protect ourselves, but if something like that happened to our world the only one who could do anything about it would be ignored. If any of the situations that are outlined above happened, the only One who could do anything about it would actually be blamed for it.  God is the only one that we should be turning to, not Allah, or Buddha or anything else. God loves us all, far more than we would ever understand. He is outside of time, for He created time. That is why all of time is seen by Him, today, yesterday and tomorrow are all there for Him to see. He knows exactly how long each of us has to live and serve Him, and He knows if or when we will come to know Him personally.

Our Lord created everything and everyone who ever lived or ever will live on this earth. He also created those who were supposed to be born but weren’t for one reason or another and even though He is in control, He doesn’t because He wants us to have the freedom to choose. Whether it is the choice to live for Him or the choice to have a baby or to finish school and become a doctor or whatever you want to be. Our lives would not be what they are if He controlled us to the point of not giving us that choice. He even gave the angels the right to choose to serve Him or not, that is why Satan was cast out of Heaven. He chose to become greater than the Most High, knowing that he could not but that was his choice.

We are, as a people and a planet, blessed to be cared for by the Creator of the universe. Our “frail, blue marble” of a world would not be so perfectly positioned if it were not for His hand. If you consider for a moment that when we breathe and move around in our homes or on the street, there are trillions of chemical reactions and cellular processes which occur all of the time just to move you. If all of these did not work perfectly every day, you-we would die! For instance, in our brains, there are more than one hundred thousand chemical reactions happening every second. So in the time that it took me to write this, over ten million reactions have taken place just during the last few sentences and that is only one of the organs in the body.

The point of this is that we had to have been created by a Creator who loves us and knows what we will do and what we can do. We did not come to be what we are and where we are because of evolution. Random mutations and accidents do not create life as we know it, God does! Bring your heart to Him and offer your life as a sacrifice so that He can use you, you will never regret it, I promise.

God is present in daily life


Even when you can’t or don’t feel that He is there, God is. When problems come up or tragedy strikes regardless of the form that it takes, He is still in control and there when you call. The times that we are living in and through are tough and will likely get worse, but He is still near.

He is watching over Israel and will continue to protect His people. Christians and Jews as well because we are part of His family. I don’t say this because of some status that I feel because I am a Christian, I am only a servant of His. God loves all of humanity and would like nothing better than for everyone to come to Him. Satan is trying his best to keep that from happening and has been doing so for many thousands of years, so he is good at lying and deceit so much so that he can fool even those who have heard the truth.

In so many ways, our lives today reflect the times and the culture in which we live. It is important that we make sure that our children know the truth about Jesus and the Bible so they will be able to resist when the time comes. The full armor of God is contained in the Bible and in us when we claim Jesus as Lord. We must be diligent in keeping our heart and mind on Him so that our life will reflect Him and not our ideas and problems.

He is our Prince, the Alpha and Omega, the Everlasting Father, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and the Good Shepherd. Jesus truly and more deeply loves each of us than anyone else in this world. Satan hates us, all of us, because we were put here to be in charge of this world and not him. We are nothing but mud people to him and that is why he treats us as he does. To conceive of God giving life to a creature formed from clay (mud) and then giving it dominion over the whole earth would only come from the mind of a Creator which could accomplish this.

He is able to accomplish this and more! Read the Bible and pray to the only God who can save you and give your life real meaning now and in eternity. He is patiently waiting for you.