I was discussing my beliefs with someone the other day and he asked me,
"What about acceptance?"
(accept: to receive, esp willingly; to approve; to agree to, to believe in; to agree to pay)
There can be no tolerance for the Devil or for his children. We will never agree. We are at constant war with each other because of the Devil's own choice to declare war on the Kingdom of God!
Therefore we must be continually on the alert, on guard and on the attack against all the lies and imitations, tricks, scams and half-truths of our Public Enemy Number One. Satan is clever. He is ancient and has knowledge and maneuvers that can outsmart us all.
We must be especially careful when on his territory to be in constant prayer and communication with our Commander in Chief. He alone holds the keys to death and hell.
No, it's not about tears and emotions. Emotions come and go. We walk by faith. Faith is key. Faith alone can save you. Faith alone can bring you out of the darkness.
"Acceptance" is one of the Devil's favorite words because it calls for compromise on many levels. It accuses the saints. The Devil is the accuser of the saints!
(compromise: settlement of a dispute by mutual concession; a middle course or view between 2 opposed ones, to adjust by compromise; to lay open to suspicion, disrepute, etc.)
The Devil knows that when we say "acceptance", we think of good, kind and loving and considerate attitudes toward our fellow man. So, he loves to accuse followers of Christ of not being "accepting" of other cultures and religions.
We are not accepting of idol-worshiping, sacrificing to false gods or satanic devices! God says,
"I will have no other gods before Me."
Does that mean God is jealous and possessive of us?
Yes! He is! God is a jealous God. And, thank God He is because it's for our good. He is jealous over us with a protective, constant and unconditional love. But, if we turn to false gods, He gets very angry.
(jealous: apprehensive of or hostile towards someone thought of as a rival; envious of, resentful; anxiously vigilant or protective)
We cannot compromise with the Devil or false beliefs. (In fact, we all probably have a few false beliefs picked up along the way that need to be weeded out of our systems.) We need to allow the Light of God to shine on every dark corner of our hearts and minds to expose every false way, every false teaching that would weaken us in any way.
Jesus said,
"By the traditions of men, ye have made the Word of God of no effect."
Acceptance can also be a good thing and, in fact, Jesus told us to love our enemies which is pretty accepting. We're supposed to love those who want to kill us. Jesus asked God to forgive the men who nailed Him to the cross.
That didn't mean Jesus accepted and believed in the Roman government. He realized the men who nailed Him to the cross were just doing their job as they had been trained.
So, it's like you "love the prisoner but hate the prison". Or, you "love the sinner but hate the sin". That's the kind of acceptance we should implement.
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Friday, March 21, 2014
What Exactly is Salvation?
According to my little Oxford English Dictionary, salvation is "the saving of a person from sin and its consequences..."
The word before that is "salvage" which means "rescue something that is in danger of being lost or destroyed".
Maybe some of you didn't know you needed salvation or salvaging. But, we all need it. Sin has consequences.
Romans 3:23 says "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." And,
Romans 6:23 says "For the wages of sin is death..."
Hmmm...
But, aren't we all going to die?
The verse goes on to say, "...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Yes, we are all going to die. This flesh we live in is temporal. That's a given. With all the new technology and discoveries we've made, nobody has figured out how to make this "house" we live in infinite. Nobody, except God. He will give us new, eternal bodies not made out of flesh and blood.
Hey! Is that a bonus for believing in Jesus or what?
We get new bodies when these ones wear out or get killed. AND we get eternal life! So, does that mean that some people will die for eternity?
Yes, apparently there will be those who will die a "second death". And some who go to hell. But, let's not talk about that. Let's talk about the benefits of salvation.
Once you believe in the birth, death and resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, your life will be different. You will have a new purpose and meaning for your life and a communion with God which can be attained in no other way. That's because, Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the New Testament. He is the Connection between humans and God. He explains things to God for us. He excuses us and gets God to pardon us.
He has the power to do that because He was crucified and bore our sin on the cross. Then, He conquered death. Jesus was the Only One Who had the power to conquer death because He had no sin. He was the pure sacrifice given for the salvation of the world.
So, how do we get saved? What is the secret formula? How do we receive eternal life?
BY FAITH.
The one and only way to be born again into the spiritual realm where you can begin to understand the mind of God is by faith! Faith is the key that opens that door. Faith and faith alone. Yep.
You must believe that Jesus was born. (Easy, right? It's a historical fact.) You must believe He died. (Not much more difficult to believe.) And, believe that He rose from the dead. (This is where some have trouble.)
Ok, maybe you're not 100% sure that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on the third day. Maybe you weren't raised with that kind of teaching. You may have been raised to believe the exact opposite. But, you can try! You can TRY to believe it, can't you? Ask God to HELP you to believe it.
It's not something that you can work up. You just have to be WILLING to believe it. God will do the rest. Take a step of faith out on the impossible and God will meet you halfway! I know it's not an easy thing to believe that this man died 2000 years ago and that He was raised from the dead and walked around on the earth in His new body for 40 days. You weren't there to see it. You only have faith to go on!
But God loves faith! And if you will ask God to help you to believe it, He will show you the truth so that you will HAVE the faith to believe it! Give it a try! It's so easy and well worth the effort.
Here's a little example of a prayer you can pray to be saved for eternity:
"Dear Lord Jesus,
I believe You were born and died. I don't know if You rose from the dead, but I really want to believe it. Please help me to believe that You rose from the dead. I will say by faith that I do believe You rose from the dead. I pray You will forgive me for all my sins and help me to be born again in the Spirit. Please come into my heart and give me eternal life. AMEN."
The word before that is "salvage" which means "rescue something that is in danger of being lost or destroyed".
Maybe some of you didn't know you needed salvation or salvaging. But, we all need it. Sin has consequences.
Romans 3:23 says "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." And,
Romans 6:23 says "For the wages of sin is death..."
Hmmm...
But, aren't we all going to die?
The verse goes on to say, "...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Yes, we are all going to die. This flesh we live in is temporal. That's a given. With all the new technology and discoveries we've made, nobody has figured out how to make this "house" we live in infinite. Nobody, except God. He will give us new, eternal bodies not made out of flesh and blood.
Hey! Is that a bonus for believing in Jesus or what?
We get new bodies when these ones wear out or get killed. AND we get eternal life! So, does that mean that some people will die for eternity?
Yes, apparently there will be those who will die a "second death". And some who go to hell. But, let's not talk about that. Let's talk about the benefits of salvation.
Once you believe in the birth, death and resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, your life will be different. You will have a new purpose and meaning for your life and a communion with God which can be attained in no other way. That's because, Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the New Testament. He is the Connection between humans and God. He explains things to God for us. He excuses us and gets God to pardon us.
He has the power to do that because He was crucified and bore our sin on the cross. Then, He conquered death. Jesus was the Only One Who had the power to conquer death because He had no sin. He was the pure sacrifice given for the salvation of the world.
So, how do we get saved? What is the secret formula? How do we receive eternal life?
BY FAITH.
The one and only way to be born again into the spiritual realm where you can begin to understand the mind of God is by faith! Faith is the key that opens that door. Faith and faith alone. Yep.
You must believe that Jesus was born. (Easy, right? It's a historical fact.) You must believe He died. (Not much more difficult to believe.) And, believe that He rose from the dead. (This is where some have trouble.)
Ok, maybe you're not 100% sure that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on the third day. Maybe you weren't raised with that kind of teaching. You may have been raised to believe the exact opposite. But, you can try! You can TRY to believe it, can't you? Ask God to HELP you to believe it.
It's not something that you can work up. You just have to be WILLING to believe it. God will do the rest. Take a step of faith out on the impossible and God will meet you halfway! I know it's not an easy thing to believe that this man died 2000 years ago and that He was raised from the dead and walked around on the earth in His new body for 40 days. You weren't there to see it. You only have faith to go on!
But God loves faith! And if you will ask God to help you to believe it, He will show you the truth so that you will HAVE the faith to believe it! Give it a try! It's so easy and well worth the effort.
Here's a little example of a prayer you can pray to be saved for eternity:
"Dear Lord Jesus,
I believe You were born and died. I don't know if You rose from the dead, but I really want to believe it. Please help me to believe that You rose from the dead. I will say by faith that I do believe You rose from the dead. I pray You will forgive me for all my sins and help me to be born again in the Spirit. Please come into my heart and give me eternal life. AMEN."
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Fear Mongering
Friends of mine have mentioned that they do not want to listen to "fear mongers". That was in reference to my mentioning the possibility of a post-tribulation rapture (resurrection).
Choose your poison.
Would you rather go along, thinking that it's not your "portion" to go through the Great Tribulation and then, when (oh, my!) you find yourself in the thick of it, instead of being "raptured", you wake up to the shock of, "Hmm... maybe Jesus actually meant what He said in Matthew 24."
Or, would you rather just read what Jesus said in Matthew 24 and believe it now?
Was Jesus a fear monger when He clearly instructed His disciples on what to expect? I don't think so. In fact, in verse 6, He encourages the disciples by saying,
"See that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet."
He also encouraged them by saying, "for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" in verse 22.
He never once mentioned a "secret rapture" or that we would be snatched out of the Tribulation. He said in verse 27,
"For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
There will be no secret rapture like in that crazy movie. (What was it called? "Left Behind" or something?)
Sure, you could die before the Tribulation begins. You could even die quickly right after the Tribulation begins. Only God knows the individual destiny of each person on the planet. All I'm saying is that the "Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory" is unscriptural. It's a lie.
Of course, the devil wants you to believe that. He has worked very hard to deceive a lot of people around the globe in the Christian community. He's hoping they will be totally unprepared for the greatest persecution that this world has ever seen.
He doesn't want Christians to refuse the Mark of the Beast or to have the faith that God will supply all their needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. He's the real fear monger! That's what he does best!
Just remember in I John chapter 4, verse 18, it says:
"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love."
If you want to get rid of all your fears, fall in love with Jesus! Fall in love with Love. Jesus is Love.
Now, if you like, take a look at Daniel chapter 11. It talks about the Antichrist. Verse 32 to 35 says:
"And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he (the Antichrist) corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits.
33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen (helped) with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.
35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is for a time appointed."
This will be our day! This will be our hour! We will receive power for the hour from on high, people! The people who know their God will be strong! We may seem weak. We may think we have no strength.
You may feel intimidated, fearful, powerless or threatened. But, don't worry because the power is not of you! Jesus IN US will be strong. And we who know our God will do exploits! You will amaze yourself.
Sure, God can use you! In fact, God chose the weak things to confound the mighty things. Our weakness is made perfect in His strength. Why? Because it causes us to call out to Jesus. That's why!
Keep calling out to Jesus to empower you, to prepare you and to use you mightily now and in time to come!
Choose your poison.
Would you rather go along, thinking that it's not your "portion" to go through the Great Tribulation and then, when (oh, my!) you find yourself in the thick of it, instead of being "raptured", you wake up to the shock of, "Hmm... maybe Jesus actually meant what He said in Matthew 24."
Or, would you rather just read what Jesus said in Matthew 24 and believe it now?
Was Jesus a fear monger when He clearly instructed His disciples on what to expect? I don't think so. In fact, in verse 6, He encourages the disciples by saying,
"See that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet."
He also encouraged them by saying, "for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" in verse 22.
He never once mentioned a "secret rapture" or that we would be snatched out of the Tribulation. He said in verse 27,
"For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
There will be no secret rapture like in that crazy movie. (What was it called? "Left Behind" or something?)
Sure, you could die before the Tribulation begins. You could even die quickly right after the Tribulation begins. Only God knows the individual destiny of each person on the planet. All I'm saying is that the "Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory" is unscriptural. It's a lie.
Of course, the devil wants you to believe that. He has worked very hard to deceive a lot of people around the globe in the Christian community. He's hoping they will be totally unprepared for the greatest persecution that this world has ever seen.
He doesn't want Christians to refuse the Mark of the Beast or to have the faith that God will supply all their needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. He's the real fear monger! That's what he does best!
Just remember in I John chapter 4, verse 18, it says:
"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love."
If you want to get rid of all your fears, fall in love with Jesus! Fall in love with Love. Jesus is Love.
Now, if you like, take a look at Daniel chapter 11. It talks about the Antichrist. Verse 32 to 35 says:
"And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he (the Antichrist) corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits.
33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen (helped) with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.
35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is for a time appointed."
This will be our day! This will be our hour! We will receive power for the hour from on high, people! The people who know their God will be strong! We may seem weak. We may think we have no strength.
You may feel intimidated, fearful, powerless or threatened. But, don't worry because the power is not of you! Jesus IN US will be strong. And we who know our God will do exploits! You will amaze yourself.
Sure, God can use you! In fact, God chose the weak things to confound the mighty things. Our weakness is made perfect in His strength. Why? Because it causes us to call out to Jesus. That's why!
Keep calling out to Jesus to empower you, to prepare you and to use you mightily now and in time to come!
Sunday, March 9, 2014
How Much Time Do We Have?
Jesus said in Luke 12:54 "When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is. 55 And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There will be heat; and it cometh to pass. 56 Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth; but how is it that ye do not discern this time?"
How do we "discern" this time?
In my opinion, I believe it has everything to do with our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And that's how we will "discern" the signs of the times. God has made it so easy for us these days. All we have to do is turn on the computer and watch the news. Go to Youtube.
The wind and the sea are roaring! Have you noticed? Pretty hard not to. You can plug your ears and close your eyes, but you would still be able to feel that "something is going on"!
As I have heard several preachers say,
"Something BIBLICAL is going on!"
Russia is invading the Ukraine. The Muslim Brotherhood is slaughtering Christians. Jerusalem is surrounded by armies! Take a look in your Bible.
Luke 21:20 "And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh."
Is Jerusalem surrounded with enough armies, do you think? Or do we need a few more? Let's see: we've got Iran, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey to name a few. Threats have been made. Things are heating up.
And what are we supposed to do when Israel is surrounded with armies?
Luke 21:21 "Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto."
I, for one plan to stay as far away from Israel as I can get. I have no plans (like some Christians I know) to visit Jerusalem in these days. Not a good idea.
Or, the Ukraine, for that matter. Or Libya, Nigeria, Syria, Egypt or Iraq for that matter... There's a lot of the world that's just not safe anymore. The sea and the waves are roaring!
Luke 21:25 and 26 "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken."
Quite often "sea" and "waves" are symbolic of crowds of people. And, the sea and the waves are roaring in the Ukraine and Syria along with other nations right now. People are getting stirred up.
Fear is a weapon of the devil. Don't allow him to use it on you! Fear is not of God. Fear is not the truth. It's a lie of the devil. That's why we need to keep our eyes on Jesus. Keep your eyes on the Word /Jesus.
I find myself with an insatiable appetite for God's Word these days. It seems like I can't live without it. I'm trying to prepare myself psychologically for the possibility that my precious Bible may be taken away from me, so I am memorizing important verses (and reviewing ones I have memorized in the past).
The Word of God completely turns the battle around!
With the Word in our hearts, we become fearless, full of faith, powerful and dynamic. It's a tonic!
How do we "discern" this time?
In my opinion, I believe it has everything to do with our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And that's how we will "discern" the signs of the times. God has made it so easy for us these days. All we have to do is turn on the computer and watch the news. Go to Youtube.
The wind and the sea are roaring! Have you noticed? Pretty hard not to. You can plug your ears and close your eyes, but you would still be able to feel that "something is going on"!
As I have heard several preachers say,
"Something BIBLICAL is going on!"
Russia is invading the Ukraine. The Muslim Brotherhood is slaughtering Christians. Jerusalem is surrounded by armies! Take a look in your Bible.
Luke 21:20 "And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh."
Is Jerusalem surrounded with enough armies, do you think? Or do we need a few more? Let's see: we've got Iran, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey to name a few. Threats have been made. Things are heating up.
And what are we supposed to do when Israel is surrounded with armies?
Luke 21:21 "Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto."
I, for one plan to stay as far away from Israel as I can get. I have no plans (like some Christians I know) to visit Jerusalem in these days. Not a good idea.
Or, the Ukraine, for that matter. Or Libya, Nigeria, Syria, Egypt or Iraq for that matter... There's a lot of the world that's just not safe anymore. The sea and the waves are roaring!
Luke 21:25 and 26 "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken."
Quite often "sea" and "waves" are symbolic of crowds of people. And, the sea and the waves are roaring in the Ukraine and Syria along with other nations right now. People are getting stirred up.
Fear is a weapon of the devil. Don't allow him to use it on you! Fear is not of God. Fear is not the truth. It's a lie of the devil. That's why we need to keep our eyes on Jesus. Keep your eyes on the Word /Jesus.
I find myself with an insatiable appetite for God's Word these days. It seems like I can't live without it. I'm trying to prepare myself psychologically for the possibility that my precious Bible may be taken away from me, so I am memorizing important verses (and reviewing ones I have memorized in the past).
The Word of God completely turns the battle around!
With the Word in our hearts, we become fearless, full of faith, powerful and dynamic. It's a tonic!
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