Excuses, Excuses,Excuses

Jesus said to them, “Follow Me. I will make you fish for men.  Matthew 4:19

"I wont become a Christian because of the things that Christians do".  Have you ever heard that excuse before? What about this excuse ?  "I refuse to become a Christian because all Christians are hypocrites."  EXCUSES!, EXCUSES!, EXCUSES. I will be willing to pay you money if you can tell me that you have heard these excuses before. "The reason that  I wont go to the grocery store to buy groceries is because  all of the employees at the grocery store steals." or "I  refuse to accept my paycheck from my employer because my boss is a liar."  Well, do I owe you some money? Of course I don't.  No, you will never, ever hear of anyone using those excuses. Why? Because those are things that meets their physical needs, but when their very need of salvation is at stake, they would rather allow the lives of others to dictate where they will spend eternity.

I am not making light of what we Christians have done to bring shame to the name of Christ. SHAME ON US!. We need to start living out the things that we profess that we believe, but by no means does this negate others decisions to follow Christ. In I Corinthians 11:1 Paul said "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ." Did Paul say, imitate me as I imitate Barnabas? By no means did he say that,  and Barnabas was a great example of "a godly man". Paul imitated the one who died for his sins; the Lord Jesus Christ. 

 In order for someone to sit back and observe the behavior of another, and from their observation,  determine whether the behavior is wrong or right, it is obvious that, that person knows what is morally right. If they know the behavior is wrong, why do they use it as the standard?

 Let's examine this for a second, because I am not sure that they realize it, but in their own examination and conclusion about not following Christ,  because of their fixation on  someone;  who happens to be human just like they are; they have made man as the example of why "Christanity is not the real deal." Before Jesus ascended into heaven, did He say that man was to be the standard, in which another should live?  He most certainly did not!!! You foolish man, do you not know that Jesus entrusted Himself to no man, because He knew man's heart. It is not others who causes you not to follow Christ, it is because you have made a decision within your heart not to do so. You have shut God out of your life. Woe is you!!! The late pastor Adrian Rogers once said "if God is for you who can be against you, but if God is against you, then who can be for you". Amen

 The book of Romans speaks of such people who consistently abandons God. It tells of how God eventually abandons them (Romans 1:24,26,28). It tell us three times in Romans Chapter 1 that God gave them up to do whatever they were inclined to do. This is something to take note of because God will never abandon anyone who calls upon His name, but in Romans,  He leaves these people to do whatever appears to be right in their own eyes. That is scary. They have become their own righteousness and therefore they do not feel a need for God. Where do you think these people will spend eternity? Have you said in your heart there is no God? Who is your righteouness? Is it man? Where will you spend eternity? I pray that it is with Christ.


Everyone has as much of Jesus that they want.`Adrian Rogers

This Is All That I Have To Offer

I Thessalonians 4:16-18
 ¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Today we buried my oldest sister Margie and I am hurting. Almost two weeks ago I was with her at the hospital when her doctor told her that he was going to let her go home on Valentine's Day and five days later she was dead. I'm hurting. There was five of us and now there are four. My oldest sister is gone and I am hurting.  Over the past few years my sister and I had become very close. I could confide in her and she in me, but that will not occur any more because now she is gone.

In the funeral procession today, my oldest brother Willie told everyone now that Margie is gone, that they would have to look to me. What can I offer? Nothing other than the Greatest Gift that has been offered to mankind. That is the Person of Jesus Christ.

One day while talking to Margie. I asked her if she were to stand before God and He asked her why should He let her into His Heaven, what would she say to Him and she told me that she would tell Him "because I asked Jesus to forgive me of all of my sins and I asked Him to save me".  My sister told me that she trusted in Christ. If this is the case, I am not to sorrow like those who have no hope, as someone told me recently "I am to trust that Jesus is faithful to keep what my sister had entrusted to Him".  Hallejah what a Savior!

If any of my love ones or anyone else for that matter were to looked to me, the only thing that I have to offer them is Jesus Christ. I pray that they will take hold of this and run with it, but if they do not I will not be deterred. Because Jesus is my refuge. I am no fool. As I look around there are a lot of my  love ones who have died and I do believe that they loved me but they are no longer here, but Jesus have always been by my side and He promised me that He would never leave me nor forsake me and He is faithful to keep His promises. So love ones, Run to Him! Run to Him! Run to Him! It is Christ alone who can bear your grief, show you grace and extend to you mercy.

 Lately I have been wearing the word mercy out. When I feel the darkness trying to consume me,  I cry "Jesus have mercy on me", and He does. Jesus did not choose to raise my sister from the dead like he did Lazarus or the widow of Nain's son but He said to me in her death "Gladys my grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness." What will I do? I shall likewise be like Paul and say  "I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."  I am hurting and weak but Jesus is strengthening me daily.

In the car today I whispered "Jesus I Love You".  He loves me too. Even So, Come Quickly Lord Jesus. And this is all that I have to offer.