I've often made the statement that we have a God of second chances. Let's look at just a few of the 'second' chances He gave the first of mankind as a complete entity, followed by His chosen people the Children of Israel, and lastly mankind as a whole once more.
'Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.' (Genesis 2:1-3 NKJV)
What is sometimes not understood, in regards to the Creator declaring a day of rest, was that the reason for the day of rest was in reality far more important than which day of the week it actually took place. God took six days to create all that He created. As a celebration of the completion of His work, which He found was good, He declared the day that followed the end of His work to be a day of rest. That day [of rest] came to be called the Sabbath, and that is, as we all know, Saturday on our calendars today. Just so we understand that the Sabbath was indeed important to God, we need to pay close attention to v. 3 of our Scriptures up above. God never intended that man was to see the Sabbath as a day off from work, with the only thing being different about the Sabbath and any other day of the week being that on the seventh day of the week man didn't have to work. God intended for man to have a different view of the Sabbath day, and that is why He 'blessed the seventh day and sanctified it,' to emphasize it's importance. While it can be pointed out that every day before the Lord is a blessed day, we have to keep in mind that He 'blessed the seventh day and sanctified it,' way before He declared man to be a holy people of His own. Even with this in mind, the fact that in addition to blessing the seventh day, He also 'sanctified it' as His own is a point to be well noted. We know that to sanctify something is to 'set it apart' so that it is seen to not be common with any other. The seventh day of the week, Saturday, was set apart by God as a special day not to be considered as 'just another day.' As we mentioned earlier, this was an act by the Lord God of all before He had declared His position in regards to identifying any certain people as His own.
Now lets just jump ahead just a bit to when that situation changed. At this point in time, there had been some major changes in the live of man. The fall from grace by man by an act of disobedience had resulted in man no longer living on the 'easy street' God had placed him in originally that we know as the Garden of Eden. In between that incident and the giving of what is commonly called 'the Law', God had formally declared the people of the Hebrew nation to be His Chosen People. After that momentous occasion, there had been several instances of God's Chosen turning their backs completely on Him, with the results each time that the whole of the Children of Israel suffered loss and affliction in some pretty heavy-duty ways. But through it all, God was always consistent in all things He desired for His people and demanded from them, including His position in regards to the seventh day.
8 'Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.' (Exodus 20:8-11 NKJV)
There you have it, plain simple language with no need of convoluted interpretation or prophetic discernment. Remember that this instruction took place as a part of the Ten Commandments, so it's pretty obvious that this was of major importance to God. If you'll look closely at the last part of v. 11 here you'll see that once again God stressed the importance of this day to Himself with the affirmation that He 'blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.' Now we don't need to let the word 'hallowed' throw us for a loop and cause us any undue anxiety. This part of v.11 from the book of Exodus doesn't tell us that God did something new in regards to the Sabbath, apart from blessing and sanctifying it. To 'hallow' something is to sanctify or consecrate it, same concept just a different word. Maybe God was simply trying to let people know that He is a very literate Creator.
I've probably got everyone wondering just how the Sabbath being sanctified by God has anything to do with 'Perfect Rest by Perfect Redemption', and I'll be the first to admit that the question is a good one. So, let me ramble just a bit longer and we'll tie it all together.
8 'You shall not at all do as we are doing here today—every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes— 9 for as yet you have not come to the rest and the inheritance which the Lord your God is giving you.' (Deuteronomy 12:8-9 NKJV)
Just so we're all on the same page here, yes, I know that these words of God recorded by Moses were in fact giving instruction as to how pagan places of worship and pagan articles of worship from lands and peoples conquered by the Children of Israel were to be disposed of. But, if we look close and combine our scrutiny with the words of Christ to the Pharisees after they had once again tried, and failed, to trap Him by His own words and actions, we'll find that the spoken words of Moses to the people serve as a description of what was not acceptable before God followed by the words of Christ in describing what provides evidence that what is desirable to the Lord is near at hand to the New Testament Believer.
22 'Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 23 And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David? 24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. 25 But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.' (Matthew 12:22-28 NKJV)
This whole bit of Scripture is basically summed up with the last verse. What Christ was trying His best to make clear to these Jewish leaders was that before something, whether it be Beelzebub or the Spirit of God, could have any kind of authority over anything or anyone, from demons to any of mankind, first that entity had to be well established by their presence. It is not necessary for the demons or us humans to acknowledge the authority of the Spirit of God, which is directly opposite of the fact that before any demon can have any kind of authority over man, that power has to be given to the demon by the man. This is evidenced by the words of James to all of the twelve tribes who were scattered, or dispersed, to all points of the known civilized world.
'Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.' (James 4:7 NKJV)
There are two instructions and a promise at work here, but it is kind of an odd setup in that the instructions are not what I would call 'stand alone' instructions. By that I mean that if we follow the first instruction to 'submit to God.', then the second to 'Resist the devil' will follow as a natural event. This brings us back to verse twenty-five in chapter twelve of Matthew up above in which the apostle
recorded the words of Christ, to read, 'But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.' Let's break this down to make sure we all get it before we move on. If a person chose to not submit to God, then it would be extremely hard to resist the devil. What's even more disturbing for a great many people to hear, and they will have to acknowledge this fact on a certain day to come, is that if a person has not submitted to God, then it does them absolutely no good at all to resist the devil, even if they are able to do so. Now let's get back to our instructions and promise. By submitting to [the will of] God, we are resisting the devil, because it is the firmly established will of God for all of mankind to resist the devil. Then we come to the promise, and in my mind this is one of the most powerful promises made by God to mankind in that if this promise were not found to be true, then the Throne of Grace would be just another lie in a whole shadow-land of deceit. If we submit to God, it follows that we are actively resisting the devil, and if we resist the devil, then he has no choice but to flee. That little four letter word is what makes this promise so powerful, and the definition for that word according to The Oxford Dictionary (1996) is, 1. a) run away. b) seek safety by fleeing 2. tr. run away from; leave abruptly; shun. 3. intr. vanish; cease; pass away. When I plug any one of these meanings into our verse in James, and substitute it for the word flee, it sure seems to me as if the devil has no choice in the matter. Do you see now why I feel that this little [promise] verse is one of the most powerful in Scripture? And here is the best part of it all, the power behind this verse is all yours. If you are a Born Again, Spirit Filled, Redeemed by The Blood Christian, then the power to force the devil to flee from you is all yours! We've already seen how we get that power, by submitting ourselves to God [alone]. This brings us back to Matthew 12:28 and the promise spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ, that the mere fact that He was casting our demons by the [authority of] the Spirit of God was evidence that the Kingdom of God was no longer something to be talked about, it was the here and the now. The 'here and the now' I'm talking about isn't just for those Pharisees in front of Jesus Christ two thousand years ago, it's also about you and me, right now! While the evidence that the Kingdom of God was upon those long ago Pharisees was that Jesus was casting out demons by the [authority of the] Spirit of God, so we today have much more in the way of proof that the time of the Kingdom of God is now. Remember that the Holy Spirit had not yet descended to man at the time of the events described in Matthew 12:28, so the work of the Holy Spirit was strictly through and by Jesus Christ. But now, in today's time, the authority and sovereignty of God is more than available to every New Testament Believer through the work of the Holy Spirit within each of us. With all that we've gone over, be assured that we've almost gone full-circle to where all of this ties in with the 'Perfect Rest by Perfect Redemption!' thing. We're almost there, just hold on just a little bit longer!
20' Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.' (Luke 17:20-21 NKJV)
I can promise you one thing, and that is that this answer from Jesus was not what the Pharisees expected or wanted to hear. By the same token though, each person who comes to the Throne of Grace has the last part of this Scripture, 'For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.' as a promise from God. Just so that we understand the facts concerning the Kingdom of God I'm going to take a little side trip here, but I promise it won't be long.
Back in Genesis, Scripture says that God made man in His [their] own image.
26 'Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.' (Genesis 1:26-27 NKJV)
We know that God wasn't talking about a physical image because God doesn't have a physical image (see John 4:24), and this cannot be confused with the time that God the Son walked the earth as Man. As a preemptive strike, I'm going to throw some Scripture out here in support of the fact that in spite of man's sin of disobedience there in the Garden of Eden, man still has the Spiritual image of God.
11 'For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.' (Titus 2:11-14 NKJV)
This epistle, or letter, was written by Paul to his emissary Titus, who was overseeing the [Early] Church in Corinth, and the part of Paul's letter we have here is written as an assurance of several things. First, that God has made grace available to every single person. It's important to understand this because just as we saw earlier in Matthew 12:28, the fact that the presence of the Spirit of God is evidence of the presence of the Kingdom of God, and equally important the availability of God, so the presence of the 'the grace of God that brings salvation' is also evidence of the presence of the Kingdom and availability of God, and being that it 'has appeared to all men.' is more than ample to put to rest any thinking gone wrong that would limit the presence of the Kingdom of God to just those early members of the church built without hands. The second point to be taken from this letter to Titus is the promise made by God that this 'grace of God...' is one of the several means by which man is guided and prompted by the Holy Spirit, and for this to have any value to a person we have to keep in mind that each of us has been created in His own [Spiritual] image, (see John 16:7-8). This second point here is joined by necessity to the ultimate purpose of my rambling about today, that being the Scriptural truth that it's only by the New Testament Believers perfect redemption by the shed blood of Christ and the promises kept from God that Christians are able to enter into His perfect rest, which is found in the Kingdom of God which is within each and every person who has come to the Throne of Grace for Salvation. The author of Hebrews makes it pretty clear that entering into His rest is both something that all Christians have the choice of doing in our times today, and also that we will be under the ever watchful scrutiny of our Lord God Himself.
11 'Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.' (Hebrews 4:11-13 NKJV)
To make a very important point clear, we have to be sure that we know that our ability to enter His rest is not based on our being worthy of that privilege. We're only given the opportunity to be declared righteous before the Lord because of the obedience of Another.
14 'Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.' (Hebrews 4:14-16 NKJV)
Okay then, there we have it, the bottom line is that yes, we as Christians do have the invitation to enter into His rest while still here in this world gone bad. And yes, that invitation to enter into His rest is only available by the shed blood of Christ. And again, yes, His rest for us in today's time is within the Kingdom of God, which is within each of us. Keep in mind the parable of the Bridegroom. Since we, the church [built without hands] don't know exactly when our Bridegroom will return for us, we have to make sure that we're firmly lodged within His rest at all times, (see Hebrews 4:11-13).
Be Blessed before the Lord!
Terry
Monday, March 19, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Whose horse? What saddle?
Here's the point that some people will go their whole lives and never get, you can put a thousand dollar saddle on a hundred dollar horse, and at the end of the day you still have a hundred dollar horse. Yeah, yeah, I know that some of you reading this figure that I've finally gone all the way 'round the bend. But, believe it or not, there is a method to my madness, so just hang in there!
Let's call it whatever you want to, thousand dollar saddles and hundred dollar horses, smoke and mirrors, mirrors and smoke, sleight of hand. You figure out what you want to call it, whatever you're comfortable with. Because that seems to be the most important issue in our country today. The most important issue is not the issue at hand, but how we reconcile the issue at hand. Example (I'll use a favorite peeve of mine): A majority of churches no longer have an altar call at the end of services. When I have personally have asked a number of other ministers why this is, I get the answer that the issue of altar calls makes too many of their congregants uncomfortable, so it's something that isn't discussed. Notice that it isn't the altar calls themselves, but the issue of not having them, that makes the people uncomfortable. This particular issue is a kind of 'double-end-around' issue. What I mean by that is that the reason why the altar calls were stopped is safely tucked away out of sight, and therefore out of mind (unless that pesky Holy Spirit gets involved, and I pray He will!). So by refusing to discuss the fact that there are no altar calls, people are spared the uncomfortableness of having to discuss the original reason, which would by necessity have to be part of the discussion on the issue of no altar calls. There, have you got it? What really concerns me here is that not too many years ago, just about the only place you saw or read about this type of illusions, or disillusions, was in politics. But now, unfortunately, this is the case no longer.
Before we go any farther, let me try to answer a question that may be popping up in some minds. Some of you may be wondering if I'm a liberal Democrat, or a conservative Republican, or maybe a liberal Republican or a conservative Democrat. I suppose that these are fair questions, but for me the problems began when church members start identifying themselves as a liberal this or a conservative that. Maybe some of you are wondering which of those I am in church, a liberal or a conservative. Okay, I'll give it a shot to describe myself in both the church setting and the political venue. I'm a Christian. I'm not a liberal Christian, or a conservative Christian. I'm not a Republican Christian, or a Democratic Christian. I'm a Christian, and just like those early disciples at Antioch were identified as Christians, so am I called a Christian. That's it, the whole sheebang, the whole kit-and-cabootle, the big cheese.
'And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.' (Acts 11:26 NKJV)
As you may have figured out already, I'm not denominational, and that's because I've yet to read anywhere in the Scriptures that Believers are to be identified by any name, title, or label other than what the disciples were called there in Antioch. Do I think that denominations are evil or against what the Scriptures teach? I'll answer this question with a 'conditional' no. So long as the doctrines taught and preached are in no way contrary to Scripture, then no, I don't see denominations as evil or against the teachings of Scriptures. My primary concern with different denominations is that most of them have the tendency to add doctrinal elements to their worship rituals that are not based on Scripture. (We used to call this practice 'legalism' back in the day, but I understand that the word 'legalism' isn't politically correct these days, so we just ignore these things, we mustn't make anyone uncomfortable you know.)
Let's get back to our issue today, and yes, I do have the tendency to wander a bit, I sure hope that doesn't make anybody uncomfortable.
It seems to be the question at the top of every bodies list(s) these days as to whether or not Obama is a Christian or a muslim. This question itself is actually what prompted my ramblings today. A wide variety of people have a wide variety of answers, and explanations, and accusations, and..... It just goes on and on, continually feeding on itself. The most troubling aspect of this whole issue is the thousand dollar saddle and hundred dollar horse thing. Most of those who weigh in on this debate don't really care about whether he is a Christian or a muslimboth foreign and abroad.
Now I'm going to do something different, that I've only done once or twice before. I'm going to stop right here and leave it up to you to spend some time (hopefully a considerable amount of time) in prayer over these questions. My prayer is that you will come before the Lord, and claim His promises that He will guide you in any decisions you may need to make. These changes aren't only to do with who you may or may not vote for any time the election polls are open. These changes are much more important than that. These changes, should there be need for changes, are directly related to your status before our God in heaven. Liberals, conservatives, moderates, Democrats, Republicans. Before you decide anything, read your Bible! See what the Scriptures says about how we, as New Testament Believers, should not only be identified by others, but more importantly, how we have to see ourselves before God.
Be Blessed my Brothers and Sisters before the Lord!
Terry.
Let's call it whatever you want to, thousand dollar saddles and hundred dollar horses, smoke and mirrors, mirrors and smoke, sleight of hand. You figure out what you want to call it, whatever you're comfortable with. Because that seems to be the most important issue in our country today. The most important issue is not the issue at hand, but how we reconcile the issue at hand. Example (I'll use a favorite peeve of mine): A majority of churches no longer have an altar call at the end of services. When I have personally have asked a number of other ministers why this is, I get the answer that the issue of altar calls makes too many of their congregants uncomfortable, so it's something that isn't discussed. Notice that it isn't the altar calls themselves, but the issue of not having them, that makes the people uncomfortable. This particular issue is a kind of 'double-end-around' issue. What I mean by that is that the reason why the altar calls were stopped is safely tucked away out of sight, and therefore out of mind (unless that pesky Holy Spirit gets involved, and I pray He will!). So by refusing to discuss the fact that there are no altar calls, people are spared the uncomfortableness of having to discuss the original reason, which would by necessity have to be part of the discussion on the issue of no altar calls. There, have you got it? What really concerns me here is that not too many years ago, just about the only place you saw or read about this type of illusions, or disillusions, was in politics. But now, unfortunately, this is the case no longer.
Before we go any farther, let me try to answer a question that may be popping up in some minds. Some of you may be wondering if I'm a liberal Democrat, or a conservative Republican, or maybe a liberal Republican or a conservative Democrat. I suppose that these are fair questions, but for me the problems began when church members start identifying themselves as a liberal this or a conservative that. Maybe some of you are wondering which of those I am in church, a liberal or a conservative. Okay, I'll give it a shot to describe myself in both the church setting and the political venue. I'm a Christian. I'm not a liberal Christian, or a conservative Christian. I'm not a Republican Christian, or a Democratic Christian. I'm a Christian, and just like those early disciples at Antioch were identified as Christians, so am I called a Christian. That's it, the whole sheebang, the whole kit-and-cabootle, the big cheese.
'And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.' (Acts 11:26 NKJV)
As you may have figured out already, I'm not denominational, and that's because I've yet to read anywhere in the Scriptures that Believers are to be identified by any name, title, or label other than what the disciples were called there in Antioch. Do I think that denominations are evil or against what the Scriptures teach? I'll answer this question with a 'conditional' no. So long as the doctrines taught and preached are in no way contrary to Scripture, then no, I don't see denominations as evil or against the teachings of Scriptures. My primary concern with different denominations is that most of them have the tendency to add doctrinal elements to their worship rituals that are not based on Scripture. (We used to call this practice 'legalism' back in the day, but I understand that the word 'legalism' isn't politically correct these days, so we just ignore these things, we mustn't make anyone uncomfortable you know.)
Let's get back to our issue today, and yes, I do have the tendency to wander a bit, I sure hope that doesn't make anybody uncomfortable.
It seems to be the question at the top of every bodies list(s) these days as to whether or not Obama is a Christian or a muslim. This question itself is actually what prompted my ramblings today. A wide variety of people have a wide variety of answers, and explanations, and accusations, and..... It just goes on and on, continually feeding on itself. The most troubling aspect of this whole issue is the thousand dollar saddle and hundred dollar horse thing. Most of those who weigh in on this debate don't really care about whether he is a Christian or a muslimboth foreign and abroad.
Now I'm going to do something different, that I've only done once or twice before. I'm going to stop right here and leave it up to you to spend some time (hopefully a considerable amount of time) in prayer over these questions. My prayer is that you will come before the Lord, and claim His promises that He will guide you in any decisions you may need to make. These changes aren't only to do with who you may or may not vote for any time the election polls are open. These changes are much more important than that. These changes, should there be need for changes, are directly related to your status before our God in heaven. Liberals, conservatives, moderates, Democrats, Republicans. Before you decide anything, read your Bible! See what the Scriptures says about how we, as New Testament Believers, should not only be identified by others, but more importantly, how we have to see ourselves before God.
Be Blessed my Brothers and Sisters before the Lord!
Terry.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Choose Your Environment!
Not too many times will we find that certain ideas, or 'notions' as my Great-grandmother would have said, put forth from professionals in the secular world agree with truths claimed by Christians. Maybe I should rephrase that last bit to read something like, 'with truths that should be claimed by Christians.' There, that's much better, don't you thing?
If you've ever spent much time studying, or just reading maybe, about the 'professionals' thoughts and opinions in regards to the development of our childrens minds and personalities, then without a doubt you've come across terms and phrases like 'conditioning' and 'formative years' and 'positive environment' and 'negative environment' along with many others. I believe that along with these terms, and the many, many more that we don't have nearly enough room to list, it's a well-established fact that the development of children's personalities and characters is affected in large by the environment(s) they are subjected to. We're not going to get into a bunch of the gory details like 'socio-economic influences' and others. For the purpose of my rambling today, we'll be satisfied with the premise that humans are influenced by and in many ways, become one with, their environment. Now let's take this to the next level, and by that I mean let's look at this secular statement as a Scriptural truth.
'And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.' (Hebrews 10:24-25 NKJV)
The author of Hebrews may not have been addressing the issues of conditioning or becoming one with your environment, but we have to note that the writer had some very specific reasons to '...not forsak[ing] the assembling of ourselves together...' From the beginning of this piece of Scripture, we, as Christians, are told that for the purpose of 'stir[ring]' up what is accepted as the most important instruction given to New Testament Believers, we need to not hinder this instruction in any way by not coming together with other Believers. In other words, in order to fulfill this instruction, along with doing good works, we need to create an environment that we will become one with and are greatly influenced by. That environment can not be created, sustained, or built upon except by and through God, Christ Jesus, and Fellow Believers. I'm sure that like most of us, you may have been told by people that they didn't need to be in church to worship God, and that is very true. But we have to understand exactly what the Biblical meaning of 'church' is. If we go back just a bit into the Greek, which we know was the original language that most, if not all, of the New Testament was written in, we end up with the word that has been translated a vast majority of the time by most scholars into the english word 'church' that actually has a slightly different meaning. While the difference may not be noticable in most cases, for our purpose here today we need to identify what I think I'll refer to as the 'suble differences' in an applied, or practical, meaning of the words 'church' and 'assembly.'
Most of the time when someone uses or hears the word 'church' the mental image that pops to mind is a white building with a tall steeple set on top of a bell tower. This image will have as it's backdrop a setting of large shade trees, and there might even be a slowly running creek at the edge of the property. Now, just how close was I? Come on, let's be honest, I pretty much nailed it, didn't I? But let's use the word that more closely reveals not just the etymology of the [Greek] word loosely translated into the english word 'church' and see where that takes us. According to [James] Strong, the [Greek] word 'ekklesia' does not have as an absolute meaning anything that comes anywhere near this mental image we were looking at just a minute ago. In fact, Strong finishes his definition of this word translated into the English as 'church' with the statement that, "In the N.T. a church is never a building or meeting place." He does note earlier that 'ekklesia' describes a 'church, congregation, assembly; a group of people gathered together.' Let's follow this track and see what an examination of the more accurate meaning of our Greek word 'ekklesia' can tell us. Ekklesia takes us to 'koinonia', which gives us the meaning, "Fellowship, the close association between persons, emphasizing what is common between them; by extension: participation, sharing, contribution, gift, the outcome of such close relationships: fellowship, communion, communicate, communication, contribution, distribution." Do you see the meaning of the Greek 'koinonia', which has a literal meaning of 'fellowship' being displayed in the words of our Scripture from the book of Hebrews that we looked at earlier? Tie that in with what the illustrious Mr. Strongs noted was the product, or end results, of this kind of church (ekklesia) or fellowship (koinonia), that being 'fellowship, communion, communicate, communication, contribution, distribution.' To my way of thinking, which I do my best to keep consistent with God's Will with a lot of praying and communion, the end results of mans fellowship with man, as well as man's relationship with God, has to have as it's [Spiritual] focus these products listed by Strong.
Okay, now lets tie up all of our loose ends. We began by acknowledging that both secular man and Scripture agrees that the environment that man finds himself in, whether by design or coincidence, in large part determines who and what man is and will become. Just as each of us has to make the conscious decision to come to the Throne of Grace and accept the blood of Christ as atonement for sin, so does each of us have to make the conscious decision to decide the who's, the what's, and the where's of our own individual environment(s). No one can make any of these choices for us, and by that same token, no one except me is responsible for my decisions and no one except you is responsible for yours. I know that it sounds pretty simple, just make a couple of choices and all will be good. But I also know that making these choices, and then living these choices is anything but easy. I take comfort that no matter how hard or inconvenient my choices to make may be, they are not nearly as difficult as a Fellow I've read about who lived His whole life based on a choice He had made, and knew that the final act of His choice would be to demonstrate the greatest [kind of] love any person can have for another. If I look at it from His perspective, my choices don't really seem all that bad.
How about your choices? Have they been made? Have you decided the who's and what's and where's of your environment?
Be Blessed!
If you've ever spent much time studying, or just reading maybe, about the 'professionals' thoughts and opinions in regards to the development of our childrens minds and personalities, then without a doubt you've come across terms and phrases like 'conditioning' and 'formative years' and 'positive environment' and 'negative environment' along with many others. I believe that along with these terms, and the many, many more that we don't have nearly enough room to list, it's a well-established fact that the development of children's personalities and characters is affected in large by the environment(s) they are subjected to. We're not going to get into a bunch of the gory details like 'socio-economic influences' and others. For the purpose of my rambling today, we'll be satisfied with the premise that humans are influenced by and in many ways, become one with, their environment. Now let's take this to the next level, and by that I mean let's look at this secular statement as a Scriptural truth.
'And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.' (Hebrews 10:24-25 NKJV)
The author of Hebrews may not have been addressing the issues of conditioning or becoming one with your environment, but we have to note that the writer had some very specific reasons to '...not forsak[ing] the assembling of ourselves together...' From the beginning of this piece of Scripture, we, as Christians, are told that for the purpose of 'stir[ring]' up what is accepted as the most important instruction given to New Testament Believers, we need to not hinder this instruction in any way by not coming together with other Believers. In other words, in order to fulfill this instruction, along with doing good works, we need to create an environment that we will become one with and are greatly influenced by. That environment can not be created, sustained, or built upon except by and through God, Christ Jesus, and Fellow Believers. I'm sure that like most of us, you may have been told by people that they didn't need to be in church to worship God, and that is very true. But we have to understand exactly what the Biblical meaning of 'church' is. If we go back just a bit into the Greek, which we know was the original language that most, if not all, of the New Testament was written in, we end up with the word that has been translated a vast majority of the time by most scholars into the english word 'church' that actually has a slightly different meaning. While the difference may not be noticable in most cases, for our purpose here today we need to identify what I think I'll refer to as the 'suble differences' in an applied, or practical, meaning of the words 'church' and 'assembly.'
Most of the time when someone uses or hears the word 'church' the mental image that pops to mind is a white building with a tall steeple set on top of a bell tower. This image will have as it's backdrop a setting of large shade trees, and there might even be a slowly running creek at the edge of the property. Now, just how close was I? Come on, let's be honest, I pretty much nailed it, didn't I? But let's use the word that more closely reveals not just the etymology of the [Greek] word loosely translated into the english word 'church' and see where that takes us. According to [James] Strong, the [Greek] word 'ekklesia' does not have as an absolute meaning anything that comes anywhere near this mental image we were looking at just a minute ago. In fact, Strong finishes his definition of this word translated into the English as 'church' with the statement that, "In the N.T. a church is never a building or meeting place." He does note earlier that 'ekklesia' describes a 'church, congregation, assembly; a group of people gathered together.' Let's follow this track and see what an examination of the more accurate meaning of our Greek word 'ekklesia' can tell us. Ekklesia takes us to 'koinonia', which gives us the meaning, "Fellowship, the close association between persons, emphasizing what is common between them; by extension: participation, sharing, contribution, gift, the outcome of such close relationships: fellowship, communion, communicate, communication, contribution, distribution." Do you see the meaning of the Greek 'koinonia', which has a literal meaning of 'fellowship' being displayed in the words of our Scripture from the book of Hebrews that we looked at earlier? Tie that in with what the illustrious Mr. Strongs noted was the product, or end results, of this kind of church (ekklesia) or fellowship (koinonia), that being 'fellowship, communion, communicate, communication, contribution, distribution.' To my way of thinking, which I do my best to keep consistent with God's Will with a lot of praying and communion, the end results of mans fellowship with man, as well as man's relationship with God, has to have as it's [Spiritual] focus these products listed by Strong.
Okay, now lets tie up all of our loose ends. We began by acknowledging that both secular man and Scripture agrees that the environment that man finds himself in, whether by design or coincidence, in large part determines who and what man is and will become. Just as each of us has to make the conscious decision to come to the Throne of Grace and accept the blood of Christ as atonement for sin, so does each of us have to make the conscious decision to decide the who's, the what's, and the where's of our own individual environment(s). No one can make any of these choices for us, and by that same token, no one except me is responsible for my decisions and no one except you is responsible for yours. I know that it sounds pretty simple, just make a couple of choices and all will be good. But I also know that making these choices, and then living these choices is anything but easy. I take comfort that no matter how hard or inconvenient my choices to make may be, they are not nearly as difficult as a Fellow I've read about who lived His whole life based on a choice He had made, and knew that the final act of His choice would be to demonstrate the greatest [kind of] love any person can have for another. If I look at it from His perspective, my choices don't really seem all that bad.
How about your choices? Have they been made? Have you decided the who's and what's and where's of your environment?
Be Blessed!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Whose Timezone are you in?
One of the most common mistakes man makes is made because ninety-nine percent of us can't tell time. I know that this sounds kind of ridiculous, but it's true, and is easily proven by the things said and done by that ninety-nine percent. Look at the great many number of times that people have came out with a certain date and time for something, usually the Second Coming of Christ, to happen. It's way beyond funny and right up to the point of pathetic the lengths some of these idiots will go to in trying to convince everyone how they are the only one able to figure out just when things are going to happen. Let's take a look at the prediction made by Harold Camping last year. He stated that the Rapture and Judgment Day would take place on May 21, 2011, and that the final destruction of the world would happen five months later on October 21, 2011. This fellow, Camp, used the Bible as his source of information, and said that things would happen just as he predicted. Let's keep in mind two things here. First, Camp had made pretty much the same prediction for September of 1994. Second, any person who claims to know the time and date of the Second Coming, the Rapture, and the end of the world is flat out calling the Bible a lie, and so then by association is calling God a liar.
'But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.' (Matthew 24:36-44 NKJV)
So what do we do with this piece of Scripture when some nut like Camp, who has been proceeded by many, many others, comes along a with no hesitation calls God a liar? Look at the last three verses here, and you'll see that God has a purpose for not broadcasting the time of the Second Coming.
'Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.' (Matthew 24:42-44 NKJV)
And,
'But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.' (II Peter 3:10 NKJV)
He doesn't tell us when these things will happen so that mankind cannot plan for them. Let's get real here, I'll bet that you know at least one person who if they knew exactly when Christ was coming again would wait right up until the last minute to come to the Throne of Grace. Does anyone come to mind? Wait a minute, does this describe you?Think about this for a minute, do you know anyone who lives the life all week long, then spends a couple of minutes at the altar on Sunday, but can't spend very long in the kneeling position because their favorite pub or liquor store opens right about that time. The mindset of those who mock God in this fashion are the same as those who predict the Second Coming. But, let's not forget what the Father has to say about people playing around with Him.
'Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.' (Galatians 6:7-8 NKJV)
I've always felt that this bit of Scripture was pretty straightforward and easy to understand, no PhD's or half a century of Seminary training necessary to understand it. God is plainly saying to not try to play any games with Him, because there will be some hefty consequences for those that do.
There is one other things I feel we should take a look at, and this is in regards to those who have a bad case of the stupids and decide to prove it by telling others when Christ is scheduled to return. Even if there were some specific historical happenings to work from, in terms of some kind of timeline, and even if they got around the whole call God a liar thing, there is still one last hurdle to get over.
'But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.' (II Peter 3:8 NKJV)
And,
'For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past, and like a watch in the night.' (Psalms 90:4 NKJV)
Just exactly how do those who claim to know enough about things to call God a liar get around this bit of news? It's really both sad and disgusting at the same time that when these self-proclaimed prophets pop up, it takes no time at all until they have quite a following. I really can't imagine what kind of a person would ever consider getting involved with these kinds of shenanigans, but it happens over and over again. Then, when the purported day and time comes and passes, the false prophet does like Camp did recently, and blow it off with the explanation that they'd made a 'small miscalculation' in their figures but would get it right next time. I'll agree that they made a miscalculation, but there is nothing small about calling God a liar. I think that a lot of folks may take up with these con-artists for the same reason that the Children of Israel wanted a king back in the day. For those not familiar with this bit of Old Testament history, (see I Samuel Chapter Eight), the people demanded a king. They wanted a real flesh and blood king, just like the peoples of the other nations had. They wanted to be able to see and touch their king, which they couldn't do with God. Maybe this is the motivation for a lot of people in our times to fall in with these self-proclaimed false prophets. At least for a time they have someone to worship and claim allegiance to that they could see. Then again, I may be wrong about the reasoning and the people just may be stupid.
So, let's wrap this thing up. We cannot second-guess God. We cannot force Him to bow to our will, or to adjust His schedule to fit our timeline. Hey this isn't me saying this, what I am saying is READ YOUR BIBLES! My story stays the same, it's always consistent, and anybody can read it for themselves. My story and my time-zone are both just as available to anybody else as it is to me, it's called the Bible. And the writer of my story and the keeper of my time-zone are just as accessible to anyone else as He is to me, just bow your head, close your eyes, and begin with something like, "Dear Heavenly Father, keeper of Eternal Time and Author of Eternal Life....."
So there you have it, please, accept it and be blessed by it! Amen!
'But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.' (Matthew 24:36-44 NKJV)
So what do we do with this piece of Scripture when some nut like Camp, who has been proceeded by many, many others, comes along a with no hesitation calls God a liar? Look at the last three verses here, and you'll see that God has a purpose for not broadcasting the time of the Second Coming.
'Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.' (Matthew 24:42-44 NKJV)
And,
'But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.' (II Peter 3:10 NKJV)
He doesn't tell us when these things will happen so that mankind cannot plan for them. Let's get real here, I'll bet that you know at least one person who if they knew exactly when Christ was coming again would wait right up until the last minute to come to the Throne of Grace. Does anyone come to mind? Wait a minute, does this describe you?Think about this for a minute, do you know anyone who lives the life all week long, then spends a couple of minutes at the altar on Sunday, but can't spend very long in the kneeling position because their favorite pub or liquor store opens right about that time. The mindset of those who mock God in this fashion are the same as those who predict the Second Coming. But, let's not forget what the Father has to say about people playing around with Him.
'Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.' (Galatians 6:7-8 NKJV)
I've always felt that this bit of Scripture was pretty straightforward and easy to understand, no PhD's or half a century of Seminary training necessary to understand it. God is plainly saying to not try to play any games with Him, because there will be some hefty consequences for those that do.
There is one other things I feel we should take a look at, and this is in regards to those who have a bad case of the stupids and decide to prove it by telling others when Christ is scheduled to return. Even if there were some specific historical happenings to work from, in terms of some kind of timeline, and even if they got around the whole call God a liar thing, there is still one last hurdle to get over.
'But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.' (II Peter 3:8 NKJV)
And,
'For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past, and like a watch in the night.' (Psalms 90:4 NKJV)
Just exactly how do those who claim to know enough about things to call God a liar get around this bit of news? It's really both sad and disgusting at the same time that when these self-proclaimed prophets pop up, it takes no time at all until they have quite a following. I really can't imagine what kind of a person would ever consider getting involved with these kinds of shenanigans, but it happens over and over again. Then, when the purported day and time comes and passes, the false prophet does like Camp did recently, and blow it off with the explanation that they'd made a 'small miscalculation' in their figures but would get it right next time. I'll agree that they made a miscalculation, but there is nothing small about calling God a liar. I think that a lot of folks may take up with these con-artists for the same reason that the Children of Israel wanted a king back in the day. For those not familiar with this bit of Old Testament history, (see I Samuel Chapter Eight), the people demanded a king. They wanted a real flesh and blood king, just like the peoples of the other nations had. They wanted to be able to see and touch their king, which they couldn't do with God. Maybe this is the motivation for a lot of people in our times to fall in with these self-proclaimed false prophets. At least for a time they have someone to worship and claim allegiance to that they could see. Then again, I may be wrong about the reasoning and the people just may be stupid.
So, let's wrap this thing up. We cannot second-guess God. We cannot force Him to bow to our will, or to adjust His schedule to fit our timeline. Hey this isn't me saying this, what I am saying is READ YOUR BIBLES! My story stays the same, it's always consistent, and anybody can read it for themselves. My story and my time-zone are both just as available to anybody else as it is to me, it's called the Bible. And the writer of my story and the keeper of my time-zone are just as accessible to anyone else as He is to me, just bow your head, close your eyes, and begin with something like, "Dear Heavenly Father, keeper of Eternal Time and Author of Eternal Life....."
So there you have it, please, accept it and be blessed by it! Amen!
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Federal Court Ruling
Follow the link below for the complete details of this ruling.
Federal court rules in favor of religious liberties
Christian Examiner staff report
Federal court rules in favor of religious liberties
Christian Examiner staff report
Friday, January 27, 2012
Worthiness, Is It Real?
As is often the case, and maybe even more so when we're talking about man's [concept of] religion versus the truths of God's Grace and Mercy, either too much significance is attached to a persons status in the eyes of man, and/or not enough importance is placed on that same persons position before God. So what we often end up with is people calling themselves into His ministries, and/or refusing to answer His legitimate call(s). A point to be made here is that [God's] Truth will always prevail! As we work our way through the Scripture(s) below, we'll see this promise from God proven, along with several other pertinent concepts.
'But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.” When they heard this, they were furious and plotted to kill them. Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. And he said to them: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.” And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.' (Acts 5:29-42 NKJV)
It is interesting here that God used a well-respected Pharisee, who was also an acknowledged teacher [of the Law] to basically prove the truth of the message being preached by Peter and some of the other apostles. Now what we have to keep in focus is that the value of any message preached or lesson taught can only be determined by it's ability to stand up to a test of it's truth, and by the worth of the information or idea or concept to the intended audience. If this scenario had been played out in today's time, then the test of truth would be simply to ensure that the message content was not in any way contrary to Scripture. But the Bible in it's complete form didn't exist at that time, and so Peter didn't have a Bible in his hand to present as evidence as to the truthfulness of his words. The other end of this rope, so to speak, the end having to do with the not only the worth of the message to it's intended audience, but also just who the intended audience was, was also riddled with problems just as apparent. I know that it's kind of hard for most people to firmly grasp the idea that during that time in history that you or I could be killed for even whispering any kind of acknowledgment of the sovereignty of the triune being of God, much less declaring God the Son as your Lord and Master openly for all to hear. Let's flash forward to the death of the first apostle to answer the call of the Lord, to the point of death.
'When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.' (Acts 7:54-60 NKJV)
And,
'Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.' (Acts 8:1 NKJV)
Let's make sure that we're all on the same page here, in regards as to how the death by stoning of the apostle Stephen ties into the situation that Peter and some of the other apostles found themselves in. Saul, who later after he'd been 'blinded by the light' (quite literally!), was known as Paul [of Tarsus]. You'll find by reading through his letters, or epistles, that later were adopted into what's commonly accepted as the 'canonical' books of the Bible, that Paul spares himself not one bit when speaking of his life and attitude towards those who were choosing to follow the teachings of Christ, and then later on, those very same teachings as they were taught by the apostles and disciples, including himself. Look again at verse fifty-eight in chapter seven and verse one of chapter eight. This Saul that those stoning Stephen left their clothes with, who was '....consenting to his death....' was none other than the apostle Paul, who many call the greatest of the apostles. I felt it important to make sure we all understand just how much danger Peter and the others willingly put themselves in, and this has to be weighed in when we examine the second part of our test we were looking at earlier, that of the worthiness of the message in regards to the value to the intended audience. Simply put, as is often the case, when people are willing to put their life on the line, the value of the message preached or lesson taught appreciates significantly, especially so in the the case of Stephen, the first of the apostles to be martyred. It would be considered ironic if weren't so heartbreaking, the fact that the other apostles and members of the Early Church benefited greatly by Stephens death, and keep in mind that his death occurred after this situation Peter and his bunch found themselves in. So let's flash backwards to when Gamaliel was doing his best to give his best advice to those who basically wanted Peter and his fellow apostles dead, and they probably weren't too awful concerned about how it came about or the legality, just so long as these troublemakers were dead. Gamaliel made reference to two earlier times when two different men, Theudas and Judas of Galilee, both came with their messages, claiming to be what they were not. In both instances, the men were killed, and then their followers just sort of melted away, and nothing ever came of it. So the advice Gamaliel was giving was simply to not get involved, and to let nature run it's course. The logic in his argument was that if Peter and company were truly preaching God's Message, then they most assuredly did not want to get involved, because they didn't want to get cross ways with Him. Additionally, if these upstarts were of God, and they had them killed, then the chances are good that their message would gain credibility, or worthiness. Finally, if the preachers were not ordained with God's Message, then they would be popular for just a minute, and then just fade away. Either way, this was a win-win for the Jewish leaders. So the Jews followed their counselors advice, thinking that they had made their point, and without doubt secretly praying and hoping that they would hear no more about Peter and his bunch. They were satisfied with having the apostles beaten, and ordered to not teach any more in the name of Jesus, and then sent on their way. Now, right here we come to the whole point of every word I've put to paper today, the last part of the last verses in the Scriptures we first started with.
'So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.' (Acts 5:41-42 NKJV)
These men had been threatened with death, and came awful close to the threat being carried out. They'd been beaten, and that in itself would've been enough for most people to never even think the name 'Christ' again, much less preach His Message in His Name. So what was their next step to take? It was the only logical one for anyone who is truly a son or daughter of God, they praised Him for being counted worthy, and then the preaching began! I know that I've gone the long way around, but I'm known to do that, but here is what we have to never loose sight of, when we're facing trials and tribulations. Our God is a God of promises kept. That is a simple way of saying a whole lot. Read through the Scriptures we've referrenced today, and pay close attention to both the promises made and kept in these Scriptures, and also to the times that promises were made elsewhere in the Bible, and then kept here. Believe it or not, every bit of my rambling today has to do with worthiness. Not only our worthiness to be redeemed by the shed blood of Christ, but also that the constancy of our worthiness is maintained by the evidence of our very lives.
'Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.' (Matthew 3:5-9 NKJV)
The only claim that man has to the worthiness necessary to claim the shed blood of Christ is that God loves mankind. His love alone, and again, that is God's love for man and has nothing whatsoever to do with how man felt about the Father, is what enables God to see us as worthy of the free gift of Grace, and this gift of Grace was evidenced in it's fulness by Christ's unselfish act of love.
'For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.' (II Corinthians 5:21 NKJV)
Now don't go and make a common mistake in assuming that man's worthiness is a one shot deal. God's declaration of man's worthiness is merely the starting point, and is the first step in process. Next, man's continuing worthiness is or is not evidenced by what man does after he or she has accepted the shed blood of Christ as atonement for their sin.
'Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.' (Matthew 10:34-38 NKJV)
Jesus is very clear here on several points. First, becoming a Christian puts a person dead in the middle of a battleground, and the only relief in sight is when Christ comes again to end the major conflict between Christians and satan that has been ongoing since God said, 'Let there be light....' Second, when a lot of people are counseling with someone seeking salvation, they fail to mention a promise made by God, as spoken by His Son. This promise is that by becomming a child of God, we will find ourselves at odds
with any and every person who is not a member of our 'Spiritual' family, including family and friends who are still living in the 'temporal.' Yes, our moms and dads and brothers and sisters and best friends, unless they are Christians, they have to be considered as mortal enemies. Hey, don't take my word for it, just read your bibles! The last thing we'll look at from our Scriptures from above, is that our own worthiness will either be proven or disproven by our own actions. This is not to be confused with the worthiness God bestowed on us because of His great love for us. This worthiness is the worthiness that will keep us from hearing the most dreaded words any person could ever hear on that Day of Judgment coming in the near future.
'Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV)
So there you have it. Everything that has anything to do with man's relationship with God the Father by and through the shed blood of Christ is based on, and supported by, worthiness. Are you worthy to claim the blood of Christ as atonement for sin? Is Jesus Christ worthy to shed His blood for that atonement of your sins? Now, here's the big one, have you claimed your worthiness [before God] to accept the shed blood of Christ for salvation? Are you ready to do it right now? Just pray this simple prayer, and do it with the knowledge that this isn't a game, or a quick fix. This is serious business that is only for those with a truly repentent and sincer heart. If you're ready and sincere and truly repentent, then pray this prayer, and claim your gift of Grace:
Lord Father, I come to you now with a sincere and repentent heart,
and I'm claiming the shed blood of Your Son as an atonement for my
sins. I know that without His shed blood that I'm forever under the
the condemnation of my sins, because I am a sinner. Accept me now
as one of Your own, as Your child, as forgiven. Amen
One more thing I would ask of you, and that would be to send me a note just to let me know that a decision has been made that has the angels in heaven dancing with joy. And now, my new brother or sister in Christ, you'll remain constantly in my prayers that you may grow and prosper before the Lord, and that you'll be blessed in all that you do!
Terry
'But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.” When they heard this, they were furious and plotted to kill them. Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. And he said to them: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.” And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.' (Acts 5:29-42 NKJV)
It is interesting here that God used a well-respected Pharisee, who was also an acknowledged teacher [of the Law] to basically prove the truth of the message being preached by Peter and some of the other apostles. Now what we have to keep in focus is that the value of any message preached or lesson taught can only be determined by it's ability to stand up to a test of it's truth, and by the worth of the information or idea or concept to the intended audience. If this scenario had been played out in today's time, then the test of truth would be simply to ensure that the message content was not in any way contrary to Scripture. But the Bible in it's complete form didn't exist at that time, and so Peter didn't have a Bible in his hand to present as evidence as to the truthfulness of his words. The other end of this rope, so to speak, the end having to do with the not only the worth of the message to it's intended audience, but also just who the intended audience was, was also riddled with problems just as apparent. I know that it's kind of hard for most people to firmly grasp the idea that during that time in history that you or I could be killed for even whispering any kind of acknowledgment of the sovereignty of the triune being of God, much less declaring God the Son as your Lord and Master openly for all to hear. Let's flash forward to the death of the first apostle to answer the call of the Lord, to the point of death.
'When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.' (Acts 7:54-60 NKJV)
And,
'Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.' (Acts 8:1 NKJV)
Let's make sure that we're all on the same page here, in regards as to how the death by stoning of the apostle Stephen ties into the situation that Peter and some of the other apostles found themselves in. Saul, who later after he'd been 'blinded by the light' (quite literally!), was known as Paul [of Tarsus]. You'll find by reading through his letters, or epistles, that later were adopted into what's commonly accepted as the 'canonical' books of the Bible, that Paul spares himself not one bit when speaking of his life and attitude towards those who were choosing to follow the teachings of Christ, and then later on, those very same teachings as they were taught by the apostles and disciples, including himself. Look again at verse fifty-eight in chapter seven and verse one of chapter eight. This Saul that those stoning Stephen left their clothes with, who was '....consenting to his death....' was none other than the apostle Paul, who many call the greatest of the apostles. I felt it important to make sure we all understand just how much danger Peter and the others willingly put themselves in, and this has to be weighed in when we examine the second part of our test we were looking at earlier, that of the worthiness of the message in regards to the value to the intended audience. Simply put, as is often the case, when people are willing to put their life on the line, the value of the message preached or lesson taught appreciates significantly, especially so in the the case of Stephen, the first of the apostles to be martyred. It would be considered ironic if weren't so heartbreaking, the fact that the other apostles and members of the Early Church benefited greatly by Stephens death, and keep in mind that his death occurred after this situation Peter and his bunch found themselves in. So let's flash backwards to when Gamaliel was doing his best to give his best advice to those who basically wanted Peter and his fellow apostles dead, and they probably weren't too awful concerned about how it came about or the legality, just so long as these troublemakers were dead. Gamaliel made reference to two earlier times when two different men, Theudas and Judas of Galilee, both came with their messages, claiming to be what they were not. In both instances, the men were killed, and then their followers just sort of melted away, and nothing ever came of it. So the advice Gamaliel was giving was simply to not get involved, and to let nature run it's course. The logic in his argument was that if Peter and company were truly preaching God's Message, then they most assuredly did not want to get involved, because they didn't want to get cross ways with Him. Additionally, if these upstarts were of God, and they had them killed, then the chances are good that their message would gain credibility, or worthiness. Finally, if the preachers were not ordained with God's Message, then they would be popular for just a minute, and then just fade away. Either way, this was a win-win for the Jewish leaders. So the Jews followed their counselors advice, thinking that they had made their point, and without doubt secretly praying and hoping that they would hear no more about Peter and his bunch. They were satisfied with having the apostles beaten, and ordered to not teach any more in the name of Jesus, and then sent on their way. Now, right here we come to the whole point of every word I've put to paper today, the last part of the last verses in the Scriptures we first started with.
'So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.' (Acts 5:41-42 NKJV)
These men had been threatened with death, and came awful close to the threat being carried out. They'd been beaten, and that in itself would've been enough for most people to never even think the name 'Christ' again, much less preach His Message in His Name. So what was their next step to take? It was the only logical one for anyone who is truly a son or daughter of God, they praised Him for being counted worthy, and then the preaching began! I know that I've gone the long way around, but I'm known to do that, but here is what we have to never loose sight of, when we're facing trials and tribulations. Our God is a God of promises kept. That is a simple way of saying a whole lot. Read through the Scriptures we've referrenced today, and pay close attention to both the promises made and kept in these Scriptures, and also to the times that promises were made elsewhere in the Bible, and then kept here. Believe it or not, every bit of my rambling today has to do with worthiness. Not only our worthiness to be redeemed by the shed blood of Christ, but also that the constancy of our worthiness is maintained by the evidence of our very lives.
'Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.' (Matthew 3:5-9 NKJV)
The only claim that man has to the worthiness necessary to claim the shed blood of Christ is that God loves mankind. His love alone, and again, that is God's love for man and has nothing whatsoever to do with how man felt about the Father, is what enables God to see us as worthy of the free gift of Grace, and this gift of Grace was evidenced in it's fulness by Christ's unselfish act of love.
'For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.' (II Corinthians 5:21 NKJV)
Now don't go and make a common mistake in assuming that man's worthiness is a one shot deal. God's declaration of man's worthiness is merely the starting point, and is the first step in process. Next, man's continuing worthiness is or is not evidenced by what man does after he or she has accepted the shed blood of Christ as atonement for their sin.
'Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.' (Matthew 10:34-38 NKJV)
Jesus is very clear here on several points. First, becoming a Christian puts a person dead in the middle of a battleground, and the only relief in sight is when Christ comes again to end the major conflict between Christians and satan that has been ongoing since God said, 'Let there be light....' Second, when a lot of people are counseling with someone seeking salvation, they fail to mention a promise made by God, as spoken by His Son. This promise is that by becomming a child of God, we will find ourselves at odds
with any and every person who is not a member of our 'Spiritual' family, including family and friends who are still living in the 'temporal.' Yes, our moms and dads and brothers and sisters and best friends, unless they are Christians, they have to be considered as mortal enemies. Hey, don't take my word for it, just read your bibles! The last thing we'll look at from our Scriptures from above, is that our own worthiness will either be proven or disproven by our own actions. This is not to be confused with the worthiness God bestowed on us because of His great love for us. This worthiness is the worthiness that will keep us from hearing the most dreaded words any person could ever hear on that Day of Judgment coming in the near future.
'Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV)
So there you have it. Everything that has anything to do with man's relationship with God the Father by and through the shed blood of Christ is based on, and supported by, worthiness. Are you worthy to claim the blood of Christ as atonement for sin? Is Jesus Christ worthy to shed His blood for that atonement of your sins? Now, here's the big one, have you claimed your worthiness [before God] to accept the shed blood of Christ for salvation? Are you ready to do it right now? Just pray this simple prayer, and do it with the knowledge that this isn't a game, or a quick fix. This is serious business that is only for those with a truly repentent and sincer heart. If you're ready and sincere and truly repentent, then pray this prayer, and claim your gift of Grace:
Lord Father, I come to you now with a sincere and repentent heart,
and I'm claiming the shed blood of Your Son as an atonement for my
sins. I know that without His shed blood that I'm forever under the
the condemnation of my sins, because I am a sinner. Accept me now
as one of Your own, as Your child, as forgiven. Amen
One more thing I would ask of you, and that would be to send me a note just to let me know that a decision has been made that has the angels in heaven dancing with joy. And now, my new brother or sister in Christ, you'll remain constantly in my prayers that you may grow and prosper before the Lord, and that you'll be blessed in all that you do!
Terry
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Who Goes To Heaven?
After spending some time on Twitter this morning, I had something I was already aware of driven home. Let's start with a simple question that we each should ask ourselves, that being, "What am I in this secular world I live in?" I think that a lot of Christians have some misconceptions about the whole idea of how 1) we should see ourselves, 2) how God sees us, and 3) how the world does, and should, see us. The question I started with is actually a [Spiritual] no-brainer simply because whether we consider the secular environment we temporarily live in or not, we should still see ourselves as children of our Most High God. If God doesn't see us as His own children, then we have a big problem. Then finally, if those of the world see absolutely no difference in themselves and us, if we don't 'stand out' then we have another huge problem. Now those of you who've read my rambling posts before know that as a rule I don't specifically point a finger at anyone. Well, today I'm going to critique something said by one of our societies more prominent TV or Commercialized Pastors. Joel Osteen was asked pointblank by Oprah if 'gays could go to heaven'. After doing his very best to avoid answering her question, which while I personally don't care for the woman or her values I felt she asked in a clear concise manner, he finally tried to hide behind the old, 'well, I like everybody' dodge. Finally, Oprah did pin him down and he said, that yes, even gay people could go to heaven so long as they had repented. This right here is my whole purpose of today's rambling, and this ties in with the question I began with today.
Fact: No gays, or murderers, or liars, or any kind of sinners will go to heaven.
Fact: When a sinner is truly repentant, they no longer live in the willful sin that separated them from God in the first place.
Fact: With repentance comes the 'new man', who isn't a 'former' or 'ex' anything.
There, that's just three Scripture-based facts to get us off on the right track. The key things to keep in mind here are the idea of being truly repentant and the putting on of the new man.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (II Corinthians 5:17 NKJV)
The key word here in this bit of Scripture is the word 'if'. This small, seemingly insignificant word is what tells the story, in regards to someone being or not being truly and sincerely repentant. 'If' someone is truly repentant, then that person is a new creation in Christ. But, 'if' someone is not truly repentant, then there is nothing new about them. I have what could be called, by those wanting to be kind, a somewhat 'checkered' past. When I claimed the shed blood of Christ though, I became a new creation in Him. While I do still have, and always will have, labels attached to my name by this world we live in, God doesn't view me as an 'ex-con' or a 'former' or 'dry' or 'recovering' alcoholic, or as a thirty-one year 'clean' addict. When any person who is truly repentant comes to the Throne of Grace, I do believe that the angels will be dancing with joy, and those same beautiful words that rang out from the heavens at a certain time past will again ring out, letting all the world know that, 'This is My beloved son, in whom I am well pleased!'
I can, and will, promise you one thing. Beside those names found in the Lambs Book of Life there will not be any memos or notations to the effect of 'ex-con' or 'murderer' or 'drug addict' or any other worldly label. This is what triggered me today, shame on you Joel Osteen, and any other who professes to be either a Christian or a Minister of His Gospel, for re-applying these worldly labels! Even before I was called into the ministry, I had read my Bible and understood that when I answered the call of Grace, that God no longer saw me as I had been. Homosexuals will not go to heaven! Murderers will not go to heaven! Sinners, period, will not go to heaven! Only children of God go to heaven!
Sadly, not everyone who presents themselves as Christians are recognized by our Lord God as one of His.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’" (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV)
This brings us right back to that little, unassuming, word that so much hinges on, that word 'if' we found to be so important there in II Corinthians 5:17 that we looked at earlier. If we are truly in Christ, then the things and parts of our lives that are contrary to how God would have us live will no longer be part of us.
'This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.' (Ephesians 4:17-24 NKJV)
And,
'If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.' (Colossians 3:1-17 NKJV)
See how much is dependent on that tiny two-letter word, 'if'? Every aspect of Christian living described in both of these epistles, or letters, penned by the apostle Paul to those Early Church members in Ephesus and Colosse is based on whether or not a person is truly in Christ. The evidence of what is true and what is not true can be found in the everyday lives of people. A dear friend, who is also a beloved sister in Christ, has heard me many times make the statement that we, as Christians, have got to quit identifying ourselves by the worlds labels. Our particular conversations stemmed from the fact that she referred to herself as a 'former' or 'recovering' alcoholic. It took a couple of years of scoldings, but we're past all of that now. Yes, she was an alcoholic, but now she's a child of our Lord God in heaven. This brings us to the final point I feel the need to bring up today, and that is how we see ourselves. I'm not the slightest bit bashful about saying that we need to work towards the goal of seeing ourselves through the Father's eyes. I've made this statement many, many times, and I will continue to hold this to be something that is a very important goal to set and work towards achieving. Our daily growth as children of God is actually impaired by the lack of this vision of ourselves and that's because if we take God's view of us out of the equation, then all that's left is our own vision of ourselves, and that is jaundiced by this crazy world gone bad that we live in.
The choices we are called to make in regards to not only our Salvation but our relationships with God, fellow Believers, and the world are constant and ever-changing. We each have to step up and make the right decisions and then make sure that God, our fellow Believers, and those who are stilled trapped in the condemnation of sin by the world know exactly where we stand. Don't allow yourselves to be labeled by the world, speak out loudly and boldly and let everybody know that you're not an 'ex' or 'former' anything, that you are a child of God, period!
'In the day when I cried out, You answered me, And made me bold with strength in my soul.' (Psalms 138:3 NKJV)
King David, who also had things behind him that God assuredly didn't approve of, gives us a very simple, yet highly accurate, description of just how easy God has made it for us to enter in to a relationship with Him. First, David says that he cried out. Then, God answered. Finally, he applauds the Father who made me bold with strength [in my soul].
We each have the same assurances that David voiced here, this wasn't just an Old Testament thing, David wrote these words by God's direction just for you and I to read today.
I know that I've wandered from what I started with, but if you've read my posts in the past, this doesn't surprise you in the slightest. In quick order let's sum up a couple of things. When we accept the Son's blood as atonement for our sins, not only our sins, but also any labels, or names, given us by any part of this world, are also washed away. Only children of God will be found in the Lambs Book of Life, with no notes or memos to tell God what we once were. We shouldn't accept, or answer to, any of this secular worlds descriptions or names, and we should be bold in our refusal. Finally, we need to work daily to develop a view of ourselves as seen through God's eyes.
There we go, I'm done, for now at least. My prayer for you is that you will find the peace and boldness that can only come from God that we each need to present our daily lives as a walking breathing testimony to Him!
Fact: No gays, or murderers, or liars, or any kind of sinners will go to heaven.
Fact: When a sinner is truly repentant, they no longer live in the willful sin that separated them from God in the first place.
Fact: With repentance comes the 'new man', who isn't a 'former' or 'ex' anything.
There, that's just three Scripture-based facts to get us off on the right track. The key things to keep in mind here are the idea of being truly repentant and the putting on of the new man.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (II Corinthians 5:17 NKJV)
The key word here in this bit of Scripture is the word 'if'. This small, seemingly insignificant word is what tells the story, in regards to someone being or not being truly and sincerely repentant. 'If' someone is truly repentant, then that person is a new creation in Christ. But, 'if' someone is not truly repentant, then there is nothing new about them. I have what could be called, by those wanting to be kind, a somewhat 'checkered' past. When I claimed the shed blood of Christ though, I became a new creation in Him. While I do still have, and always will have, labels attached to my name by this world we live in, God doesn't view me as an 'ex-con' or a 'former' or 'dry' or 'recovering' alcoholic, or as a thirty-one year 'clean' addict. When any person who is truly repentant comes to the Throne of Grace, I do believe that the angels will be dancing with joy, and those same beautiful words that rang out from the heavens at a certain time past will again ring out, letting all the world know that, 'This is My beloved son, in whom I am well pleased!'
I can, and will, promise you one thing. Beside those names found in the Lambs Book of Life there will not be any memos or notations to the effect of 'ex-con' or 'murderer' or 'drug addict' or any other worldly label. This is what triggered me today, shame on you Joel Osteen, and any other who professes to be either a Christian or a Minister of His Gospel, for re-applying these worldly labels! Even before I was called into the ministry, I had read my Bible and understood that when I answered the call of Grace, that God no longer saw me as I had been. Homosexuals will not go to heaven! Murderers will not go to heaven! Sinners, period, will not go to heaven! Only children of God go to heaven!
Sadly, not everyone who presents themselves as Christians are recognized by our Lord God as one of His.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’" (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV)
This brings us right back to that little, unassuming, word that so much hinges on, that word 'if' we found to be so important there in II Corinthians 5:17 that we looked at earlier. If we are truly in Christ, then the things and parts of our lives that are contrary to how God would have us live will no longer be part of us.
'This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.' (Ephesians 4:17-24 NKJV)
And,
'If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.' (Colossians 3:1-17 NKJV)
See how much is dependent on that tiny two-letter word, 'if'? Every aspect of Christian living described in both of these epistles, or letters, penned by the apostle Paul to those Early Church members in Ephesus and Colosse is based on whether or not a person is truly in Christ. The evidence of what is true and what is not true can be found in the everyday lives of people. A dear friend, who is also a beloved sister in Christ, has heard me many times make the statement that we, as Christians, have got to quit identifying ourselves by the worlds labels. Our particular conversations stemmed from the fact that she referred to herself as a 'former' or 'recovering' alcoholic. It took a couple of years of scoldings, but we're past all of that now. Yes, she was an alcoholic, but now she's a child of our Lord God in heaven. This brings us to the final point I feel the need to bring up today, and that is how we see ourselves. I'm not the slightest bit bashful about saying that we need to work towards the goal of seeing ourselves through the Father's eyes. I've made this statement many, many times, and I will continue to hold this to be something that is a very important goal to set and work towards achieving. Our daily growth as children of God is actually impaired by the lack of this vision of ourselves and that's because if we take God's view of us out of the equation, then all that's left is our own vision of ourselves, and that is jaundiced by this crazy world gone bad that we live in.
The choices we are called to make in regards to not only our Salvation but our relationships with God, fellow Believers, and the world are constant and ever-changing. We each have to step up and make the right decisions and then make sure that God, our fellow Believers, and those who are stilled trapped in the condemnation of sin by the world know exactly where we stand. Don't allow yourselves to be labeled by the world, speak out loudly and boldly and let everybody know that you're not an 'ex' or 'former' anything, that you are a child of God, period!
'In the day when I cried out, You answered me, And made me bold with strength in my soul.' (Psalms 138:3 NKJV)
King David, who also had things behind him that God assuredly didn't approve of, gives us a very simple, yet highly accurate, description of just how easy God has made it for us to enter in to a relationship with Him. First, David says that he cried out. Then, God answered. Finally, he applauds the Father who made me bold with strength [in my soul].
We each have the same assurances that David voiced here, this wasn't just an Old Testament thing, David wrote these words by God's direction just for you and I to read today.
I know that I've wandered from what I started with, but if you've read my posts in the past, this doesn't surprise you in the slightest. In quick order let's sum up a couple of things. When we accept the Son's blood as atonement for our sins, not only our sins, but also any labels, or names, given us by any part of this world, are also washed away. Only children of God will be found in the Lambs Book of Life, with no notes or memos to tell God what we once were. We shouldn't accept, or answer to, any of this secular worlds descriptions or names, and we should be bold in our refusal. Finally, we need to work daily to develop a view of ourselves as seen through God's eyes.
There we go, I'm done, for now at least. My prayer for you is that you will find the peace and boldness that can only come from God that we each need to present our daily lives as a walking breathing testimony to Him!
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