When it is first heard, the Good News, or when we first realized that we were sinners and that we would face eternal judgment if we reject God’s one and only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, a “believer” could easily think “Why would anyone reject or abandon God once they become knowledgeable?”

There are those that never receive Him in the first place…

Luke 8: ¹¹ Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. ¹²The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.

then there are those that believe at first, but then fall away…

 ¹³And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.

This is most troubling for me, how one can know the truth, and walk away. Everyone can hear it, at least physically for those that have the mental faculties. But isn’t that enough? Then again, why doesn’t everyone “embrace” salvation? It’s so strange to me. Why was Abel obedient and Cain insolent? You’d think that the first son of Adam, the one created from dust and walked with God, would know better.

No one can come, unless…

John 6: ⁶³ It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. ⁶⁴But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) ⁶⁵And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

This knowledge of the Good News or “awakening”, as I like to call it, is only the beginning. Being “born again” (see John 3) is just that, in a spiritual sense, anyway. We start out as these little seedlings that require tender, loving care. Our faith, at this point, is very delicate and prone to many dangers that can retard our growth or uproot it altogether.

 ¹⁴And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.

Did you catch that? 

“their fruit does not mature.” Can’t we all relate to this in one way or another? The friend that seemed to answer the altar call one night, but he won’t even return your call the next? What happens to them?

 Romans 10: ¹⁶But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?”

1 Peter 4: ¹⁷For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

And what is the gospel?

Acts 17: ³⁰ The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, ³¹because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

In even simpler terms:

Matthew 4: ¹⁷ From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

There’s that word: Repent

This is not a very popular word, but it is the Word that Jesus, John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, and all the other saints preached.

This is not something we do as one event. Repenting is something we do continually until we die. It is a command for the unbeliever and the believer alike. What kind of a believer says “Oh, I repented 3 years ago, but now I’m good, no need to do that again, whew! (as he wipes the sweat from his brow)”?  I think many do, in their minds, but they fool themselves.

Although we are made perfect through Christ, this is not realized while in these earthly bodies of flesh.

Allow me to make one thing clear about repentance.

I used to think that when I repented, it meant that I was somehow “turning from sin and vowing never to commit those sins again that I committed before”. That is no longer my understanding, thank God. That used to give me so much guilt that the devil used to keep me from doing much good because I hated myself.

Repenting, as I understand it now, is simply changing my mind about my sin, knowing that it leads to death, and feeling sorry about it. This is the godly sorrow that brings us back to His feet where we confess and seek restoration and healing.

1 John 1: ⁸ If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

James 4:  ⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Do you see the difference?

When I focused on my inability to keep from sinning and thought that I must be a “bad Christian” because I kept doing the things that I knew I should not, it kept me from going to God.

Genesis 3:  ¹⁰And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.”

Now that I continually seek Him, despite my sinful nature, I know that I will never meet His standard, although I strive for it. As I seek Him I am always repenting in prayer saying “Teach me your ways and change my heart. I am far from living the way you want me to live.” The closer I get to knowing Him, the more I realize how far I am off the mark. The closer we get to God, the worse we look in comparison. He is so merciful and patient with me that I cannot even begin to tell you.

Matthew 5:
³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Check out what the Apostle Paul had to say after many years of serving Jesus:

Can you relate to this?

Romans 7: ¹⁵For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. ¹⁶Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. ¹⁷So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. ¹⁸For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.

²⁰Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.  ²¹So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. ²²For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, ²³but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. ²⁴Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? ²⁵Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

This text is difficult for me as if things are hopeless, but it is always a breath of fresh air when I get to chapter 8:

Romans 8: ¹There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ²For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. ³For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Isn’t this cool? “in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us” Is that Christ-like or what?

Compare that to:

Matthew 5: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.

I take this to mean: The work He accomplished over 2000 years ago is still being fulfilled through our lives today. Pretty cool, huh?

Growth is essential.

Growth should be constant and consistent. At first, the seedling should be protected, taking extra protection against temptation. I believe that in many ways, God has great mercy for the new believer and at the same period, He expects growth.

This is Discipleship 101.

If the growth does not occur, the roots will not grow deep and the seedling will start to wilt and be easily uprooted.

Hebrews 6: ¹Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, ²and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. ³And this we will do if God permits.

Just like any relationship, like marriage, for example, it is always either moving towards one-ness or towards separation.

Are you moving closer to Him or further away from Him?

Growth yields a closer walk with Christ.

Consider how close Abraham was with God so that after 35+ years of walking with God he was obedient enough to sacrifice his only son, no questions asked! He wants this closeness with us!

My life over the past 10 years has been somewhat chaotic. (some of you reading know this to be true) Can anyone else relate to a chaotic life? Have you been greatly frustrated or has life made no sense at times? OK then, at least a few of you, or perhaps many, will understand this then.

A part of my testimony is this: The more life seems chaotic and things seem to be in complete disarray, the more following and focusing on Jesus Christ makes sense to me. 

Can I get an amen?

Hebrews 4: ^7c “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

Here is my ultimate “secret” for spiritual growth, at the very least it is the catalyst that got me started. Read and see what that seedling can become! The secret, of course, is found in verse 2, which helps me to live up to verse 1. The fruit of this obedience is mentioned in verse 3. The little seedling has grown up. 🙂

Psalm 1
¹Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
²but his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

 ³He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.

Let me draw a conclusion that I’ve made as a result of this brief study. 

People fall away primarily because they fail to continue growing in the knowledge and understanding of Jesus Christ.

Please do not let this be said of you!

I beg of you please, seek God with all you’ve got! Grow deep in God’s love so that you will have the same conviction that we see Peter have in verse 68:

John 6: 66 At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him. 67 Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?”

68 Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. 69 We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.”

Will you grow with us in 2019?

Dear Lord, I don’t know what to say. After all the wonderful things you’ve taught me, I am speechless. My prayer is for those that don’t know you and for those that don’t share the same conviction that I do. You are the One that has the words of eternal life. Where else would I go? Teach me how to love you more.

Let my words, thoughts, and actions become your words, thoughts, and actions. I want to be more like you. Less of me is fine with me and more of you is greater. Thank you for all that you’ve done in my life and for what you continue to do. I know that you know what’s best for me and that gives me great joy. Please use these words you’ve given me to bless others and perhaps open some hearts. You are the God of all Creation and I am excited to be at your service!  In Jesus name, Amen.

Photo by Mantas Hesthaven on Unsplash

Are you frustrated? Do you sometimes feel like giving up? Life can be so harsh at times and it can be rather difficult to have any kind of joy or peace in these times. If that is where you’re at right now, then pay attention to this week’s message. Meditating on the following passages and commentary may be just what you need to endure these “hard times”.

Last time we discussed that Jesus the Creator has invited us, the object of His love, to become His friends. This was in “What Does Jesus Mean To You? part 2”. Today I’d like to analyze that relationship in a bit more detail.

Although God’s love for us is unconditional…

John 3: ¹⁶ “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

…

2 Peter 3: 9 He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

There are conditions to being His friend:

John 15: ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command.

Let’s explore this relationship a bit more so that it is clear what we should or should not do. I am convinced that if we follow Christ and become His disciples in this way, we will care less and less about our circumstances and more and more about staying in Him and being His disciple. This will yield peace and joy (and all other fruit).

Let’s look at some of the most fundamental commands that are key to pleasing Him:

John 15: ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

Matthew 6: 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

John 8: 31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings.

Hebrews 11: ⁶ And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

2 Thessalonians 3:6 And now, dear brothers and sisters, we give you this command in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: Stay away from all believers who live idle lives and don’t follow the tradition they received from us.

Translation “Be careful who you spend time with!”

It is clear that not all friendships are equal. Some friendships yield rich and rewarding blessings and some friendships can end in disappointment and betrayal.

What can we expect from our friendship with Jesus? Here is one great promise in two different verses, again with conditions:

Mark 11: ²⁴ I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours. ²⁵ But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”

John 15: 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!

Two peculiar conditions

1. “remain in me” (Spirit)

Here are two peculiar conditions, “remain in me” (Spirit) (abide in other translations) and “my words remain in you” (Truth). (John 4: 23-24)

What do you think of the words “remain in me”? To me, it means fellowship with our Lord (read 1 John 2: 27 below). These two verses come to mind:

1 Thessalonians 5: 17 “Never stop praying”

and also

2 Corinthians 10: 5 (NASB) We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

Friends these two verses are concepts that I find very challenging to implement into my life. Some days are better than others, but the more we become conscious of our thoughts and the more effort we put into continual prayer the more natural it becomes.

2. “my words remain in you” (Truth)

This is clearly reading the Word of God. Since we read last week that Jesus is the Word, that says to me that all books of the Bible are His words. If you’ve read the book of Haggai, do you remember what it is about? Not that it needs to be memorized, but the concepts, ideas, and events should be stored in the heart so that you can share with others and have your own faith. There is value to all the books in the Old Testament, which is what the New Testament authors understood very well, that’s all they had.

If you remember just one thing… Remain in Christ

I think I’ve said enough. I’ve found and listed other verses relating to “remaining in Him” that I think you’ll enjoy. This is a message worth meditating on, if we can learn and practice at becoming His friend and remaining in Him I am convinced that there is no greater place to be. Can I get an amen?

John 15: 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. 6
Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned.

John 15: 9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. 10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.

1 John 2: 24 So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father.

1 John 2: 27 But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ. 28 And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

1 John 3: 24 Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.

Jude 1: 5 So I want to remind you, though you already know these things, that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later he destroyed those who did not remain faithful.

Just one more passage…

Jude 1: 20 But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, 21 and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. 22 And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. 23 Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. 24 Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault.

Will you remain in Him?

“Dear Holy Lord, Your words pierce my soul. Thank you for choosing me as you chose your disciples. As you say in Jude 1: 24, “Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault.” That’s what I want. Please keep me from falling away, for I am weak and have many faults, but you Lord are all powerful and I can trust in you to complete what you started. In Jesus name, amen”

Photo by Jacob Meyer on Unsplash

You can find part 1 here: “What Does Jesus Mean To You? part 1”

Close your eyes and think to yourself: “What words come to mind when I think of Jesus?”

Do the words Lord, Master, God, Cross, Savior, Prophet come to mind?

How about Creator? Check out these verses:

John 1:¹ In the beginning the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
² He existed in the beginning with God.
³ God created everything through him,
and nothing was created except through him.
⁴ The Word gave life to everything that was created,^[a]
and his life brought light to everyone.
⁵ The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness can never extinguish it.
… ¹⁴ So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

I just love these two passages!

Colossians 1: ¹⁵ Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.
He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,
¹⁶ for through him God created everything
in the heavenly realms and on earth.
He made the things we can see
and the things we can’t see—
such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world.
Everything was created through him and for him.
¹⁷ He existed before anything else,
and he holds all creation together.
¹⁸ Christ is also the head of the church,
which is his body.
He is the beginning,
supreme over all who rise from the dead.
So he is first in everything.
¹⁹ For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
²⁰ and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

Here you have it folks, Jesus the Creator, from two different authors, pretty cool, huh? It’s amazing that the Creator of all things seen and unseen decided to come to this earth and live with us.

Friends of the Creator?

Now let’s read another perspective of Jesus:

John 15: ⁹ “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. ¹⁰ When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you these things so thatyou will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! ¹² This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. ¹³ There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.

For those of us that trust and obey Him, He calls us His friends.

Folks, this puts us in good company, who else was considered a friend of God?:

Numbers 12: ⁶ And the Lord said to them, “Now listen to what I say:
“If there were prophets among you,
I, the Lord, would reveal myself in visions.
I would speak to them in dreams.
⁷ But not with my servant Moses.
Of all my house, he is the one I trust.
⁸ I speak to him face to face,
clearly, and not in riddles!
He sees the Lord as he is.
So why were you not afraid
to criticize my servant Moses?”

God trusted Moses, how about that!

2 Chronicles 20: ⁶ He prayed, “O Lord, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! ⁷ O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? ⁸ Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name.

Of course Abraham was a friend of God.

Psalm 25: ¹¹ For the honor of your name, O Lord,
forgive my many, many sins.
¹² Who are those who fear the Lord?
He will show them the path they should choose.
¹³ They will live in prosperity,
and their children will inherit the land.
¹⁴ The Lord is a friend to those who fear him.
He teaches them his covenant.
¹⁵ My eyes are always on the Lord,
for he rescues me from the traps of my enemies.

This Psalm was written by King David, another friend of God. But I love verse 14 which simplifies it and shows exactly how anyone can become friends, which is consistent with the words in John above.

Do you understand what I am trying to illustrate here? The Creator of heaven and Earth invites us to be His friends! Perhaps that is just the purpose for His creation to begin with. Oh how wonderful that is!

Is Jesus Your Friend?

Will you pray this prayer?

“Dear God, You are an awesome and mighty God. Big enough to create everything, yet humble enough to come to this earth to show us a visible image of you. Lord, I haven’t always been your friend. As a matter of fact I’ve been your enemy at times and rejectedyou. Please forgive me for my actions that were not pleasing to you. You know my heart Lord, let me know where I have sinned. I really want to know you more and I’d like to be your friend. Please be patient with me as I learn more about you. Thank you for leading me down your path. In Jesus name, amen”

In the spirit of this message, here is a song that was written in 1855 by Joseph M. Scriven, I’m sure some of you have heard it before. If you know the tune, go ahead and sing it:

What a Friend we have in Jesus

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield you; you will find a solace there.

Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised Thou wilt all our burdens bear
May we ever, Lord, be bringing all to Thee in earnest prayer.
Soon in glory bright unclouded there will be no need for prayer
Rapture, praise and endless worship will be our sweet portion there

Photo by Jacob Meyer on Unsplash

Who is Jesus? Of all the messages I’ve written, this issue the most imperative. Out of all the questions to be asked, there is not one where the answer has eternal ramifications that this one has.

For now let’s start with this question: Who was this man Jesus?

He lived 2,000 years ago, what relevance did His life have to anyone? Why are people still dying for their belief in Him?

Some say that He never existed. Some people believe he was simply a good man. Some believe He was a prophet, but nothing more. Some people say that He is only one way to God, and there are many ways.

Does it matter? 

Last week we discussed the One who created the heavens and earth. It is clear to me from the scriptures we reviewed that there is one God. Not many gods but one God.

What did God have to say about the Savior through His prophets?

Micah 5: ² But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,

are only a small village among all the people of Judah.
Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you,
one whose origins are from the distant past.

This is one of many prophecies about the Messiah (Christ). There is said to be over 300 prophecies all of which were fulfilled through the person of Jesus.

There are websites that delve into these prophecies in great detail, see the link below for one such resource.

What did Jesus have to say about Himself?

Mark 14: ⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood up before the others and asked Jesus, “Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?” ⁶¹ But Jesus was silent and made no reply. Then the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”

⁶² Jesus said, “I Am. And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

John 3: ¹³ No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. ¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, ¹⁵ so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.

John 14: ⁶ Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

These are just a few statements Jesus said about Himself. The New Testament is filled with similar passages.

Here’s a unique passage where we see the Father and Spirit give testimony:

Luke 3: ²¹ One day when the crowds were being baptized, Jesus himself was baptized. As he was praying, the heavens opened, ²² and the Holy Spirit, in bodily form, descended on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, “You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.”

Yet people still don’t believe.

They choose not to. Even though the text is clear, it still comes down to faith. People that deny these truths always find reasons not to believe. What is the alternative to an inerrant Bible? If the Bible is not the Truth, what is? How could we rely on anything? It is no wonder people have no hope today.

Psalm 39: ⁶ We are merely moving shadows,

and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.
We heap up wealth,
not knowing who will spend it.
⁷ And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
My only hope is in you.

I say all this to say what does Jesus mean to you? It really doesn’t matter what other people think, or what they say. You’ve read these scriptures and others, what do you make of them?

Hebrews 11: ⁶ And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

If you believe He is the Son of God, does His teachings have any bearing on your life? Does it have any affect on your daily decisions on how you spend your time and the conversations you have?

One more passage, one to meditate on…

Luke 13:   ²² Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he went, always pressing on toward Jerusalem. ²³Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?”

He replied, ²⁴ “Work hard to enter the narrow door to God’s Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail. ²⁵When the master of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. You will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Lord, open the door for us!’ But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ ²⁶ Then you will say, ‘But we ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ ²⁷ And he will reply, ‘I tell you, I don’t know you or where you come from. Get away from me, all you who do evil.’

I find this to be one of the most challenging passages for me to read. This is why I am determined to seek Him with all my heart. What else even begins to compare in importance?

Will you join me in seeking Jesus?

“Dear God, Help me to understand your ways. Thank you for your grace and mercy as I stumble about trying to please you. I desire to spend eternity with you, please help me to live my life in such a way that brings glory and honor to you. You are a great and mighty God, the One that delivered me from a dark and hopeless past. Please be patient with me as I continue to grow in you. In Christ’s name, Amen”

Messianic prophecy resource page:

http://aboutbibleprophecy.com/messianic.htm

Photo by Jacob Meyer on Unsplash

When you were younger, were you ever forced to take sides on the playground? Perhaps two older kids, maybe bullies, wanted a “side-kick” and that put you in a pickle. If I choose to hang out with Billy, Micky might get angry, and vice versa. Those are hard decisions. For me, I just wanted to run and hang out with people that were less demanding.  I was not a fighter and went out of my way to avoid fights. It is the same with confrontation, I avoid it as much as possible.

The more I read the Word, the more I realize that I am being called to fight and to choose a side, daily. There is a battle going on, on many fronts, and I don’t think the battle lines could be drawn any clearer than how Jesus said it:

Matthew 12: 30 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

This is just like saying if you are not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Have you ever stopped to consider how this verse applies to your daily activities or friends you hang out with?

Here’s another passage that defines the opposing forces:

Ephesians 2: ¹ Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. ² You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. ³ All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.

This passage startled me when I last read it, of course, that is one reason I love the Word. It helped me to look at the world from a different perspective. If I am not obeying God, I am obeying the devil. I obeyed the devil before I came to Christ and even uncle Bob, who is so friendly, but does not know Jesus, is also obeying the devil. (uncle Bob is fictitious, by the way)

These verses make it clear that there is no middle ground.

I don’t know about you but this really changes my expectations of people. What’s most important for me to remember, however, is who the actual enemy is. Although people I know may be obeying the devil, this does not make them the enemy:

Ephesians 6: ¹² For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

But you may ask, “How could people be working for the devil and not know it?”

John 12: ³⁹ But the people couldn’t believe, for as Isaiah also said,
⁴⁰ “The Lord has blinded their eyes
and hardened their hearts—
so that their eyes cannot see,
and their hearts cannot understand,
and they cannot turn to me
and have me heal them.”
⁴¹ Isaiah was referring to Jesus when he said this, because he saw the future and spoke of the Messiah’s glory.

This is where we come in and where our challenge lies. Knowing that we are called to make disciples and lead people to Christ and ultimately give all the glory to God, what do we do? What does any good soldier do? They make sure they hear what their commander says and carries out the orders. Jesus understood this perfectly:

John 12: ⁴⁹ I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. ⁵⁰ And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.”

Do you know what God wants you to say? When people belittle the political party you associate with, do you ask God how you should respond? Do you know His commands?

You do know that God wants us to be like His Son, don’t you?

Romans 8: ²⁹ For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ³⁰ And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.

³¹ What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? ³² Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? ³³ Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. ³⁴Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

That is good news, isn’t it? I don’t know about you, but that makes me feel pretty secure.

Is it time for you to take a stand? Is it time to arm yourself for the great battle before us?

Ephesians 6: 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

There’s no question in my mind that God has a job for each of us in His army. As the last verse states, our weapon is the word of God.

Do you find yourself taking cover because you have no sword in your hand? Or are you prepared to stand up to the enemy because you know how the war will turn out?

Here is one last verse to encourage you:

Revelation 17: 14 Together they will go to war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them because he is Lord of all lords and King of all kings. And his called and chosen and faithful ones will be with him.”

Will you take up your weapon and fight?

“God I praise your name. Thank you for calling me to be on your side and opening my heart to you.Please forgive me for not taking this war seriously for so long. Will you please help me develop a daily habit of reading your Word so that I will be properly equipped? Lord, please help me to be a light to others so that I may win souls for you. Help me develop a better prayer life so that I can be more effective for your battles. In Jesus name, Amen”

Photo by Andrew Yardley on Unsplash

Do you ever worry about falling away? Or do you go through life without considering your eternal destination, “knowing” that you will live eternally with God?

I try more and more not to question another’s salvation and focus more and more on my own. It is not my job to judge whether or not someone is recorded in the Book of Life, but to love them in a way that they will want their names to be there as well.

Let’s read these verses to study and define salvation:

Ephesians 2: 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

Mark 16: 8 … Afterward Jesus himself sent them out from east to west with the sacred and unfailing message of salvation that gives eternal life.

John 4: 22 You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews.

Acts 4: ¹¹ For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says,
‘The stone that you builders rejected
has now become the cornerstone.’
¹² There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

1 Peter 1:9 The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.

Titus 3: ⁴ But—“When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, ⁵ he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.

Romans 10: ¹³ For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

OK, but does that mean that because I trusted Him as a child and prayed a prayer to receive Him that regardless of my actions since that I am saved? In other words is the familiar phrase “once saved always saved” correct? Or another way to put it is, “Can someone lose their salvation?” I don’t know, let’s keep reading…

Here is one passage that seems to support “once saved always saved”:

John 10: ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, ²⁹ for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. ³⁰ The Father and I are one.”

But what about free will? We are not robots or puppets and that is why we will always have a choice to worship God or the Accuser, Satan. The aforementioned verse states that “No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand.” And that is great news, but I don’t think that includes our choice to leave the Father’s hand.

Don’t these verses imply that it is a choice to remain in Him or not to remain in Him?

John 15: ⁵ “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. ⁷ But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! ⁸ When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

If you are choosing to remain in Him, what does this mean to you and how are you living up to it?

Is this not consistent with these verses from Ezekiel? I know that they are Old Testament, but  God’s character does not change.

Ezekiel 33: ¹² “Son of man, give your people this message: The righteous behavior of righteous people will not save them if they turn to sin, nor will the wicked behavior of wicked people destroy them if they repent and turn from their sins. ¹³ When I tell righteous people that they will live, but then they sin, expecting their past righteousness to save them, then none of their righteous acts will be remembered. I will destroy them for their sins. ¹⁴ And suppose I tell some wicked people that they will surely die, but then they turn from their sins and do what is just and right. ¹⁵ For instance, they might give back a debtor’s security, return what they have stolen, and obey my life-giving laws, no longer doing what is evil. If they do this, then they will surely live and not die. ¹⁶ None of their past sins will be brought up again, for they have done what is just and right, and they will surely live.

What do you think? Do these verses not apply to us today? I think they are consistent with Christ’s teaching above in John 15: 5-8.

Here is a problem I have with “once saved always saved”, especially when it is preached to the masses. This phrase is a horrible paraphrase of several scriptures and it is not considering other scriptures that might lead us to think otherwise. Such as these verses:

2 Peter 2: ²⁰ And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before. ²¹ It would be better if they had never known the way to righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life. ²² They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”

Why would Jesus say these words if salvation was as easy as saying a prayer once in your life and forgetting about it the following year?

Matthew 7:  ¹³ “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. ¹⁴ But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

We read above that salvation is simple, but this clearly says that it is not easy.

Another issue I have with “once saved always saved”, is that for many in my estimation, it is a false sense of security. When the theology of these four words penetrate the minds of the spiritually lazy (like I used to be), or the “saints on the sidelines”, there is no motivation for them to get to know God any better.

Let’s review these verses that I think beautifully summarize what we should all be focusing on in our daily walk:

Philippians 1:11 May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ —for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

Philippians 2:12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.

1 Timothy 4: ¹⁵ Give your complete attention to these matters. Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress. ¹⁶ Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you.

1 Peter 1:5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.

Hebrews 3: ¹² Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. ¹³ You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. ¹⁴ For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. ¹⁵ Remember what it says:

“Today when you hear his voice,
don’t harden your hearts
as Israel did when they rebelled.”

What if we were to change “once saved always saved” to say “once saved always saved when we continue to put our faith in Jesus”?

Are you saved?

“Dear Lord, thank you for sending your Son to die for me and pay for my sins on the cross. Lord, I am sorry for the many sins I’m guilty of. Sins for doing wrong and sins for not doing right and not loving you with a whole heart. I will put my trust in you. I choose you to be Lord of my life. Please help me to change my ways and get to know you better daily. I know many that do not take your calling seriously, but today I choose to follow you with my whole heart. Please lead me down your path and thank you for guiding me. In Jesus name, Amen.”

Photo by Anthony Tori on Unsplash

I love getting feedback, thank you! But there is one thing that I desire more than just knowing that people are reading these messages, and that is knowing that they are reading the Word. If you are a regular reader of God’s Word, would you let me know? I’d love to hear from you.

What is your greatest concern? We all have our fears, concerns, and worries at times. Life is difficult. Who can we count on? Who is truly reliable? Is there anything certain in life? Friends disappoint us, jobs dry up, and bad news comes in all forms. When I have these anxieties, and I have many, I recall this verse:

Philippians 4: 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Don’t worry about anything!

It’s not some magical “hocus pocus” about this verse that takes all anxiety away, but it is the belief and trust in God as I recite this and then pray for whatever situation and ask Him for what I need. This is where the action is. The ability to trust in God does not happen automatically, it is developed over time like developing your muscle tone at the gym:

1 Corinthians 9: 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.

If we can only develop the habit of trusting in Him, then He becomes our place of safety, and this pleases Him:

Psalm 62: 8 O my people, trust in him at all times. Pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge.

Psalm 91: 2 This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him.

How can we learn to trust Him?

If we are either moving closer to God or away from God, this correlates to how we trust in Him. I think it is safe to say that the closer we are to Him the more we know that we can trust in Him. How do we trust anybody? By getting to know them. Look at what happened to the Israelites that led them to be exiled:

Hosea 4: 6 My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me. Since you priests refuse to know me, I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children.

Jesus addressed this very issue:

John 8: 19 “Where is your father?” they asked.
Jesus answered, “Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.”

As a reminder, who is Jesus?

John 1: 1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God.

If we know the Word, we know God?

I say yes, with one qualifying statement, and this is hard to describe. There is a difference between reading the Word for content and reading the Word with the expectation of hearing God speak. This is why the prayer “Lord, please reveal yourself to me as I read your Word.” is so effective when we mean it. That being said, don’t skim the text just to get through it, read the Word as if to devour it, take it all in and chew on every sentence. Read as if your life depends on the grade for comprehension because it does!

Isaiah 55: “Come to me with your ears wide open. Listen, and you will find life. I will make an everlasting covenant with you. I will give you all the unfailing love I promised to David.

Which is on par with this:

Jeremiah 29: 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

I am convinced that if we take this message seriously, we will develop a faith that is so strong that nothing will shake us.

Psalm 1: 1 Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. 2 But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. 3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

Did you comprehend that? That’s a pretty good promise.

Reading His Word day and night has dramatically changed my life. I’ve taken this seriously. God is teaching me many things and my faith is stronger than it ever has been. I’m seeing God’s presence in my life. He is answering my prayers and rescuing me when I call on His name. He’s also given me the best friendships and relationships that I’ve ever had. I know that He has a purpose for me and that makes me feel significant. He’s chosen me to partner with Him, just as He has chosen you:

For all who are reading this, God is speaking to you:

John 15: 16 You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.

Isn’t it about time you get to know the One who appointed you?

“Dear Lord, I long to know you. The more I know you, the more you will change my heart which will lead me to trust in you and rely on you. For nothing on this earth compares to your everlasting love and mercy. You alone are my God. You are the One I will trust in. Thank you, Jesus, for loving me and leading me into all truth. In Jesus name, Amen.”

Photo by Karan Varshnei on Unsplash

I sincerely hope you enjoyed last week’s 3 part series called “How Well Do You Know God”. Given all the messages that I’ve posted so far, do you know what to do? Do you know how to love God, how to be a true disciple, or what to do to have eternal life?

Other than going to church, what do we do that’s different?

Many people give us suggestions about what we should do, you know friends, relatives, neighbors, stock brokers, etc. We should invest in stocks, we should go to a baseball game, we should get on Facebook, we should watch a particular movie, we should go to the beach, we should… well, you get the idea. There are many things to spend our time doing and many people in our lives give us wonderful suggestions.

Have you ever thought about what God wants you to do? I am not saying not to do any of things I mentioned, but if I love God more than any person, then I shouldn’t I consider what He wants me to do?

There are a lot of commands of course such as “love one another” and “love your enemies”, but what does God want us doing with our time? Does God even care how we spend our time, as long as we are obeying His commandments? Does He overtly tell us to do something, other than the obvious Great Commission?

When reading the gospels I see that Jesus gives clear instruction on what we should be doing, so I thought I’d do a little study on it.

Luke 13: ²⁴ “Work hard to enter the narrow door to God’s Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail.

Work hard? What does that mean?

To me, working hard is doing all that we can to enter the “narrow door”. For me, it is developing a daily reading habit, consistent prayer or as Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5: 17 “pray without ceasing”, and consistently fellowship.

You can also look at it as Paul does:

1 Timothy 4: 8 “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”

Peter says this:

2 Peter 1: ⁵ In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises.

Consider the greatest commandment…

I believe this “effort” is exactly what the Greatest commandment requires:

Matthew 22: ³⁷ Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

To be honest I still don’t know what it means to love God with all my heart, soul and mind. I’m still trying to figure that out.

In this passage of John, the disciples want to perform God’s works, I love how Jesus simplifies it.

John 6: ²⁷ But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.”  ²⁸ They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?”  ²⁹ Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”

I’m not sure what other commentary is needed here. It’s clear that Jesus wants us to work hard, spending our energy to join Him for all eternity. That doesn’t sound like a bad deal, does it?

 Now, do you know what to do?

“Dear Lord, I wish to please you. I don’t always work very hard on seeking you or sometimes even care about what You want. Please help me to be wiser with the time You’ve given me. Thank you for being patient with me.”

Seeking the Lord is not just for Sundays

Last week we discussed what God desires more than anything else and that is to love Him and to love others…

Matthew 22: 36“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” 37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

The problem I’ve always had with this is how do you love someone that is invisible? Someone that you cannot see, interact with, or “hang out” with, right?

I mean, naturally speaking, the idea of knowing someone that is invisible, much less loving them, seems a little weird or just downright wacko. Just ask any atheist. 🙂 

Since I was little I believed that Jesus came to earth to pay the price for our sins and was resurrected. So for me at least I think there was a disconnect. Although I believed in the Gospel message, I did not know how to relate to God in any way. This explains why I did not know how to love Him.

Start seeking the Lord today!

All this changed when I started to seek Him. I made a serious effort, a commitment, if you will, to not only start reading the Bible regularly but to get to know Him. Remember Hosea 6:6 and that Jesus referred to it twice?

Hosea 6: 6 I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.

What God has shown me is that getting to know Him is the key to loving Him. Which is why I think the concept of seeking God is found all throughout the Old and New Testaments:

2 Chron. 15: …The Lord will stay with you as long as you stay with him! Whenever you seek him, you will find him. 

1 Chronicles 16: 11 Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him.

This verse shows that seeking God is not something that you finish and check off, but one that is perpetual. 

1 Chronicles 22: 19 Now seek the Lord your God with all your heart and soul. 

1 Chronicles 28: 9 “And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.

Psalm 14: 2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the entire human race; he looks to see if anyone is truly wise, if anyone seeks God.

Speaking of atheists:

Psalm 10: 4 The wicked are too proud to seek God.They seem to think that God is dead.

And now for the New Testament

Matt. 7: 7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find.

And here’s my favorite:

Matthew 6: 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

In summary, I believe that seeking God leads to knowing God (as promised) and knowing God leads to loving God, and this is just the beginning.

I’ll conclude with this verse:

John 17: 3 And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.

Will you seek Him?