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

Equality in Christ

Do we not all have one Father? Did not one God create us? Malachi 2:10


As a little girl, I grew up in the late 60s. I attended 2 elementary schools. The first school I attended was for blacks only. Then the laws changed, and the government placed a law that said schools must be integrated. So before I knew it, I had to leave the only world that I had ever known, and I was bused off to the white’s only school that the government said I must attend. As long as I live I will never forget the greeting that we kids received on that early August morning. Our bus was greeted with people lining each side of the streets with signs filled with racial slurs.


As a child, I couldn’t understand why we were treated that way; it wasn’t until years later that I came to realize that we were treated in that manner because we were different. It brings to my mind the story of the Jews and the Samaritans; especially the story of the Samaritan woman in John Chapter 4:1-42, because she had a “triple whammy” in her life. She was treated unkindly because she was a woman and not just any woman but one with a tainted past, and she was despised by the Jews because she was a Samaritan; in today’s terms that means she was biracial. Some would say, she was indeed different.

If we were to be honest with ourselves; aren’t we all different? Or should I say aren’t we all different from Jesus. Let me ask you some questions. Were you born without sin? Are you holy? Could you die for the sins of the world? If you attempted to, would God accept your offering? I’m positive that He could not. Does it matter to you that Jesus is different from you? I did not think so.


It did not matter to Jesus what you looked like. Neither did He let your sins keep you away from Him. Although you were different from Jesus, He still died for you. Isn’t that good news?


Did you decline his finished works because you are Black, White, Asian or whatever your race, ethnicity or sex may be, just because He was Jewish? I did not think so. The same salvation that Jesus offered to His mother, Paul and Apollos, who all happened to be Jewish people, is offered to all people. Isn’t that freeing? The story of the Samaritan woman shows that everyone is equal in Christ.


 My favorite part of the story about the Samaritan woman is when the men of Samaria get involved. Now I don’t want you to miss out on this morsel of truth. In verse 42, the men of Samaria say “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.” Did you get that? God revealed to these men who was different from Jesus; that He was the Savior of the world. Jesus came for the different, so that He could make a difference in our lives. That would be you, me and every sinner that has ever live. Now that Christ has made you different, go therefore and make a difference for Christ.


If you go against the grain, you get splinters, regardless of which neighborhood you're from, what your parents taught you, what schools you attended. But if you embrace the way God does things, there are wonderful payoffs, again without regard to where you are from or how you were brought up.... God pays no attention to what others say (or what you think) about you. He makes up his own mind.                          Romans 2:9-11 (The Message)

Bow Down And Worship For This Is Your God

Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. John 19:30 (NASB)

 

 

 

It is Jesus, the One who left the glories of heaven to ransom us; It is Jesus, the One who became sin so that we would not have to die in our sins. It is Jesus, the One who was cursed upon a tree, so that we would not be cursed for eternity. It is Jesus who raised Himself up from the dead and will one day raise us up, to live with Him throughout eternity. Bow down and worship, for this is your God.

 

 

 

Everything that is within me blesses your Name, again and again. Crying Holy is the Lord God Almighty. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive our greatest adoration. Jesus Son of God is His Name.~ Nicole Mullens

Share The Wealth

All praise goes to God, Father of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. He is the Father of compassion, the God of all comfort. He consoles us as we endure the pain and hardship of life so that we may draw from His comfort and share it with others in their own struggles. For even as His suffering continues to flood over us, through the Anointed we experience the wealth of His comfort just the same.      2 Corinthians 1:3-5   (Voice)

 

Unfortunately, holidays can be painful for those who have lost loved ones, and holidays can also be painful for those who suffer from loneliness. The Bible tells us that our heavenly Father is compassionate and He can bring comfort to any situation in our lives. He is the God of all comfort. The word of God tells us that God is wealthly in comfort. What is so amazing is that He allows us to take part in His comfort. God uses the pain from our hurts and trials to comfort others. Now this is the most exciting part to me; after He has held us, wiped our tears and comforted us with His endearing words, He then commands us to comfort others in the same manner. This should get you excited, the Apostle Paul was so excited that he praised God for this. Now we all know someone who is hurting, It may be your aging parent who has lost his or her spouse, or maybe its that neighbor of yours, who have lost her child to death, or could it be the friend of yours who lost his job and is struggling to take care of his family or maybe its your own spouse whom you have been neglecting. Make it a priority to set some time aside to comfort them with God's love. Remember He is wealthy in comfort and He has shared His wealth with you, so you likewise share the wealth.

 

 

God does not comfort us to make us comfortable only, but to make us comforters.~Dr. John Henry J. H. Jowett

If You Are Looking For The Truth Look No Further

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him. John 18: 37, 38 (ESV)

Pilate asked the question that men have been asking for centuries. What is truth? Pilate gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "you wouldn't know the truth if it was staring you in the face". John 1:14 tells us “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Pilate was conversing with Truth and yet he washed his hands of Him. Pilate wanted to please the masses. He allowed them to determine what truth was. Society makes terrible determinations of morals and truths. What may be true today may be obsolete tomorrow. The only truth that is eternal is God's truth and once we become aware of it, we have to make the choice to accept and obey it, and then the Truth will be the determining factor in our lives. If you are looking for truth, then look no further. Jesus is the perfect example of truth. It is He who said "when you see Me, you Have seen the Father". Turn to Christ; His truth will set you free.

"I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me. ~ Jesus

Our Prayers Can Influence God

The prayer from the heart of a man right with God has much power. James 5:16 b (NLV)

The bible gives us the assurance that when we are right with God, we can influence Him. There are many examples in the bible of people who moved the hand of God. But the one example that stands out to me is with King Hezekiah. God sent the prophet Isaiah to tell him to put his house in order because he was going to die. But something amazing happened. According to the word of the Lord, King Hezekiah ended up living 15 years after that event. Why? The book of Isaiah tells us when this death sentence was given to the king he turned his face to the wall and prayed to God and before the prophet had left the middle court the word of the Lord came to him saying return and tell King Hezekiah "I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, and I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of 
the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.” (2 Kings 20:1-6). Did you get that? King Hezekiah was as good as dead, but he was able to influence God with his fervent prayer and because of that prayer of meekness God extended years to his life. If you are right before God your prayers do matter and you too can influence Him. Although you must understand when we pray to God we are making a request that is subject to His sovereign will. God will give you only what he deems best for you. So if you are in right 
standings before God and your prayers are not answered it is not that He does not hear you, it is because Father knows best.

When a righteous man prays and leaves it up to God to answer in His own way, there will be no unanswered prayers. ~C.W. Wood

Believing Is Not Enough

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3: 1-3 (ESV)

 I have not been able to shake verse 2 from John chapter 3, that was taught in Sunday School yesterday. These religious leaders actually believed that Jesus was sent from God, yet they chose to blatantly deny Him. It is one thing to believe in something or someone but the proof of your beliefs are your actions. James tells us that the demons believe there is one God and tremble. Will that get them into heaven?  No, they do not stand a chance and neither do you.  The only way you can get to heaven is when you place your trust in Christ.  I believe that many people in my family have died early deaths because they chose not to take better care of themselves. I believe this and I chose to be health conscious. This is acting on what I believe. Do you believe that Jesus was sent from God, if so in the words of Jesus "you must be born again." What have you done about Jesus who is the Christ?

“Being educated, religious, moral, respected and upright will not get you into heaven. There are no exceptions. “You must be born again”. ~Neil Saint