Seven days that changed eternity

The crowd laid palm branches before Jesus as He entered the town a sign they submitted to His authority it is also a symbol of salvation, and they cried out hosanna which means Please Save us, for they longed for a savior. But in less than a week they would cry out crucify Him for they were easily swayed by those in charge.

What we forget though is this all of this was God the Fathers plan and Jesus was in on it from the beginning.

Jesus said “So Jesus said again, “I assure you: I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. This happens because he is a hired man and doesn’t care about the sheep. “I am the good shepherd. I know My own sheep, and they know Me, as the Father knows Me, and I know the Father. I lay down My life for the sheep. But I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd. This is why the Father loves Me, because I am laying down My life so I may take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from My Father.””

John 10:7-18 HCSB

This week in history changed everything!

In the first seven days God created everything and gave man life, and in the seven days of this Holy Week God brought redemption and finalized the story of salvation, no longer was there a great gulf between God and man, Jesus fulfilled all the requirements so we can be reconciled to God, when He said it is finished, all of creation groaned and hell shook for no longer was man bound by sin and death. 

The cries for hosanna were heard and answered by God through Jesus, the only way to get to God the Father is through Christ the Son, today people still cry hosanna , (save us) and God answers I have sent you my only begotten SON, believe in Him and you shall be saved.

““For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.”

John 3:16-18 HCSB

“Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. “If you know Me, you will also know My Father. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.””

John 14:6-7 HCSB

“But the righteousness that comes from faith speaks like this: Do not say in your heart, “Who will go up to heaven? ” that is, to bring Christ down or, “Who will go down into the abyss? ” that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. On the contrary, what does it say? The message is near you, in your mouth and in your heart. This is the message of faith that we proclaim: If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10:6-13 HCSB

Truth or Consequences

God has called us all to obedience, He does not tolerate disobedience for long, He gives us what we deserve and turns us over to our own deprived hearts.

God has allowed evil men to rule, when His people have turned their backs on Him from the beginning God told His people that they would regret having rulers and still today I believe we do, submitting to God is easier than submitting to man, God's ways are perfect our ways are not.

It is not God's will for our society to take the life of innocent children, it is not God's will that our society be morally bankrupt, it is not God's will that we as a culture be sexually corrupt, it is not God's will will that widows and orphans be trampled on, the poor exploited,or racial divisions these perversions are all the result of the rule of man.

It is time to turn from our ways and back to God our creator, His way is the only way.

Psalms 81, Romans 1:16-32 Isaiah 55:6-11, Exodus 20:1-17,John 14:6

Confidence in Christ alone

Have you ever been so self confident that you cross the line into arrogance? I have, and it is a line I try to avoid always, I do not like myself when I cross it.

Today in the world we live in there are billions of people put on this planet, not one of us chose where we would be born, not one of us chose our skin color, not one of us chose our families, or circumstances we grew up in.

Our lives were and are governed by the hands of God, there is not a blink of an eye that He is not aware of.

When we humble ourselves and come to this realization we understand our mortality, our fallibility and our need for God's divine sovereignty in and over our lives.

Knowing that we can screw up and find grace in Jesus Christ, because God the Father sent Him to us because of our weakness in our flesh, knowing we could no better save ourselves from sin and death than we could choose where and who we are born to.

We are weak and needy people, and finding our hope in Christ’s grace is what marks a mature relationship. The most dangerous aspect of our relationships is not our weakness, but our delusions of strength in ourselves.

Our strength, our hope, our confidence, our peace, our prosperity our lives, our future's, our past, our salvation belongs to the Lord. We are and always will be in His hands. Let your weakness become strength in Christ alone.

Psalms 46:1-11 HCSB

God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble. Therefore we will not be afraid, though the earth trembles and the mountains topple into the depths of the seas, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with its turmoil. Selah There is a river — its streams delight the city of God, the holy dwelling place of the Most High. God is within her; she will not be toppled. God will help her when the morning dawns. Nations rage, kingdoms topple; the earth melts when He lifts His voice. The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah Come, see the works of the Lord , who brings devastation on the earth. He makes wars cease throughout the earth. He shatters bows and cuts spears to pieces; He burns up the chariots.   “Stop your fighting — and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth.” Yahweh of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah

Psalms 121:1-8 HCSB

I lift my eyes toward the mountains. Where will my help come from? My help comes from the Lord , the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber. Indeed, the Protector of Israel does not slumber or sleep. The Lord protects you; the Lord is a shelter right by your side.   The sun will not strike you by day or the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all harm; He will protect your life. The Lord will protect your coming and going both now and forever.

Psalms 146:1-10 HCSB

Hallelujah! My soul, praise the Lord . I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing to my God as long as I live. Do not trust in nobles, in man, who cannot save. When his breath  leaves him, he returns to the ground; on that day his plans die. Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them. He remains faithful forever, executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry. The Lord frees prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are oppressed.   The Lord loves the righteous. The Lord protects foreigners and helps the fatherless and the widow, but He frustrates the ways of the wicked. The Lord reigns forever; Zion, your God reigns for all generations. Hallelujah!

I can only imagine

It is hard to imagine at times a world of peace, we all hope and should pray that day comes soon. But as long as there is sin in this world, chaos, death, destruction, anger, hostility all the enemies of peace will have the upper hand. There is coming a day though when Christ shall return, and when He does hope will be fulfilled, peace will be installed, and love will rule our lives.

Jim Daily from focus on the family recently posted this.

"I want every child to grow up in a home with a mom and a dad, with parents who tuck them into warm beds on cold nights with a kiss, a hug and prayers of assurance.

I want the most innocent and vulnerable among us, pre-born children, to be protected under the rule of law.
I want God’s gift of marriage to be celebrated, not redefined.

I want our nation’s schoolchildren to walk in and out of their classrooms with a spirited and excited spring in their step, not looking over their shoulder or wondering if their school is safe.

I want a world where we celebrate not denigrate our pastors, these brave and courageous individuals who extend God’s love to all people and who preach the Gospel with boldness and courage.

I want to live in a colorblind society, among people who see the character of a person, not the pigment of their skin or their place on the social class ladder.

I want our leaders to respect our religious freedoms and not force us to choose between violating our conscience and following the laws of the land.

I want peace, not war – militarily, politically, physically, socially and emotionally."

Jeremiah 23:5-6 HCSB

“The days are coming”  — this is the Lord ’s declaration — “when I will raise up a Righteous Branch of David. He will reign wisely as king and administer justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. This is what He will be named: Yahweh Our Righteousness.

Philippians 2:1-11 HCSB

If then there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love,  if any fellowship with the Spirit,  if any affection and mercy,   fulfill my joy by thinking the same way,  having the same love,  sharing the same feelings, focusing on one  goal. Do nothing out of rivalry  or conceit,  but in humility  consider others as more important  than yourselves. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests,  but also for the interests of others. Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death — even to death on a cross. For this reason God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow  — of those who are in heaven  and on earth and under the earth  — and every tongue  should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory  of God the Father.

Revelation 21:1-8 HCSB

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth,  for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,  and the sea no longer existed.   I also saw the Holy City,  new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,  prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. Then I heard a loud voice  from the throne:   Look! God’s dwelling  is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things  have passed away. Then the One seated on the throne said, “Look! I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words  are faithful and true.”   And He said to me, “It is done!  I am the Alpha and the Omega,  the Beginning and the End.  I will give water as a gift to the thirsty  from the spring of life.   The victor  will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son.   But the cowards, unbelievers,  vile, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars  — their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur,  which is the second death.”

Even so come quickly Lord Jesus, Merry Christmas, may there be peace on earth and goodwill towards all men.

Christianity or Religion

Religion is discovered, Christianity is revealed, the revelation of Christianity is that we become like Christ and our lives reflect the very essence of who He is.

2 Corinthians 2:14-17 HCSB

But thanks be to God, who always puts us on display in Christ and through us spreads the aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

To some we are an aroma of death leading to death, but to others, an aroma of life leading to life. And who is competent for this?

For we are not like the many who market God’s message for profit. On the contrary, we speak with sincerity in Christ, as from God and before God.

The culture, the ark and the Bible

God’s grace is great and extended to mankind, this is true but His grace is not extended forever . God has had enough and His wrath is being poured out righteously with His  judgment too those who have rejected Him. Our call as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father is to share with mankind His love, His truths, His coming again. The job of mankind is either except Him or reject Him, but either way their choice is made and God is sovereign over them.

Rom 1:18-32 -18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man--and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. 24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

You see the key words starting out here are "The Wrath of God is revealed"

We can see around us what God's wrath is, the depravity of mankind. Man is turned over to his own wicked desires evil has become good and good evil. When you read through these verses you see the wrath of God and the consequences of man's rebellion. 

We can look back at the account of Noah as see how God works. While reading the account of Noah: God has brought some details to mind that are easily overlooked, because we are not reading about them they are lost in the flood if you will.

Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them." 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. ... 11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, "The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14 "Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. ... 17 "And behold, I Myself am bringing flood waters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die. 18 "But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark--you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you. ... 22 Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did.

Genesis 7:1 Then the LORD said to Noah, "Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation. ... 4 "For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made." 5 And Noah did according to all that the LORD commanded him. ... 10 And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth.

Matthew 24:36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 "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, 39 "and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

You've probably read the story of Noah over and over but when you put it with the words of Jesus in Matthew , there is a new light shining on them. You see Noah lived in wicked times, so wicked that God was not happy with mankind and destroyed them except for Noah and his family, but what you don’t see is Noah engaging the culture, he didn't get sucked into the name calling, the backbiting, the games the world plays, he just did what God told him to do, as a matter of fact the Bible says twice that “Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did. “

Are we to do the same? Yes!

Noah figured out that what God said was going to happen, and even though he had never seen rain or knew what it was he built the ark according to the directions God gave him. It took him over 100 years to build the ark day and night he was faithful God. We know he was ridiculed and laughed at for his obedience but the Bible says “Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did. “

Don’t stop reading yet and think I have thrown in the towel on standing up for what is right, I haven’t God has just said to me to approach things His way and not mine, and it is not easy to do in this culture when you see death coming to those who refuse to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

God’s way is above our ways and Noah knew this, he preached while they built the ark to all who would listen, the Bible said he found grace with God and was considered righteous in the eyes of God, and he was a preacher. Jesus said the culture was one of drunkenness and foolishness and people only cared for themselves they lived life as they wanted without God.

And we see that today in our society more and more, the irony is this:  man is foolish and rebels against God always has and will because we are slaves to sin, before Christ calls us and sets us free. We have no free will until Christ gives it too us. Without Christ we are held in bondage and have no way of escape, after Christ is in us we do have the choice to not sin.

But when man sins it is because of our nature, but when we try to override the laws of God, the law of morality we are saying that we are above God, that our ways are greater and we have crossed a line that God will not tolerate.

When politicians live in immorality today and promote a culture of greed through laziness telling the masses we will provide for you, when politicians say it is okay to murder children and destroy the lives of women by the millions through abortion and they try to legislate marriage as an open act to whomever we please, man with man woman with woman we have trampled on the words of God and have set ourselves to be god and God says He is a jealousy God and will not tolerate idolatry.

When the serpent came too Eve in the garden remember what he said

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?" 2 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 "but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' " 4 Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. 5 "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

See verse 5 for God knows you will be like Him, and from that first bite of deception mankind has wanted to be god,  the devil has deceived us into his own lie where he says he will raise his throne above God’s and be seated, and mankind has been drawn in.

We need to be as Noah, and don’t fight the world,  that is what they want to show everyone that we are hateful bigots serving a bigot for a God, even though that is not truth they use all the can to deceive one another into believing their own lies.

There are churches out there that have embraced the world’s philosophy, and excepts whatever comes their way as truth, some do it for money, some do it for numbers, but all do it for their father the devil who is the father of lies.

The Bible says this

2 Corinthians 3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted--you may well put up with it!

And run we should, we should stay busy like Noah doing what God tells us, and when history is written may it be said of us  “Thus we did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did. “

One day soon Jesus is coming back, those who are His disciples will leave with Him and never face the judgment of God, and those who have rejected and mocked God will face the fury of a righteous God whose anger will burn against them forevermore for they have condemned themselves already.

Just for a quick side note here also, you see in chapter 7 of Genesis the Bible says twice that God left the door of the ark open 7 days before He shut it waiting for anyone else to join Noah and his family, no one came and the population of the earth was wiped away except Noah and his family.

When Jesus breaks the sky and calls us home there will be 7 years of tribulation God will receive unto Himself all those who persevere through this time of judgment and receive Him into their lives.

If you don’t know who Jesus is, or if you’re not sure what it means to be forgiven and set apart and receive Jesus into your life as Lord and Savior you can, it will not be an easy road many claim to be followers of Christ but few are.

But know this we are all sinners and fallen short of the glory of God, but yet while we are sinners Christ died for us, and in His death and resurrection He gives us life, abundantly and eternally for all those that call upon His name, and confess Him as Lord and Savior. Christ alone is our way to God the Father. Once we are in Him, and He in us, we are forever His, nothing can separate us one day He will return and call us home, what a day that will be. Ask Jesus to change you confess to Him you have sinned we all have,  believe in your heart and mind and confess Him before your family friends and wherever you go and you shall be saved.

7 Things a Good Dad Says

Christian Living

March 31, 2014

I think I may be leaving one phase of fatherhood behind even while I enter into another. My youngest child is just about to turn eight, which means that we are not only past the baby and toddler stages, but even nearing the end of the little kid phase. Meanwhile my oldest child has turned fourteen and is just months away from high school. All this change has caused me to think about fatherhood and the new challenges coming my way. I have found myself thinking back to the many models of fatherhood I have seen and admired through the years. What made these fathers admirable? What set them apart? What was it that they said to their children? From these models I have drawn seven things a good father says.


I love you. Few things are more important to a child than knowing where he stands with his parents. As I think back to my childhood, I remember several friends who lived with uncertainty in their relationship with their parents, and their fathers especially. They longed to hear words of love and approval. But I saw other kids who had total confidence in that love and approval. Often the difference was little more than three simple words repeated regularly: “I love you.” Men can be so petty, so prideful, and hold back those words. Yet there is no good reason for it. The more awkward it feels, the more urgent it is. From the dads I admire I’ve learn that a father needs to say, “I love you,” and he needs to say it often.


Let me kiss it better. Even as a young child I remember observing two different kinds of fathers in my church. When children fell and scraped their knees, there were two ways I saw dads react. Some fathers would pick up their children, set them back on their feet, and tell them to get over it. “You’re fine. Walk it off!” They wanted their soft children to toughen up. There were other fathers who would pick up their children, hold them in their arms, make a show of extending comfort, and say, “Let me kiss it better.” These were fathers who wanted their hard children to soften up. Sure, there are times to tell your child to walk it off, but there are far more times to extend love and concern through those childhood bumps and bruises and through the bigger sins and mistakes that come with age. From the dads I admire I’ve learned the value of saying, “Let me kiss it better” (though, obviously, as the children get older the wording changes!).


Come with me. There is so much in life that can be better caught than taught. Often the best way to train up a child is to let that child into your life. One father I admire taught me the distinction between being face-to-face with my children and being shoulder-to-shoulder. I saw this shoulder-to-shoulder parenting in my own father who often brought me with him on his errands or, even better, to his work. This allowed me to see the value of putting in a hard day’s work, and the value of building relationships with clients, suppliers, and so many others. It allowed me to see that work was an extension of the rest of life, and not a part of life that exists all on its own. The fathers I have admired are the fathers who say to their children, “Come with me,” and who welcome them into their day-to-day lives.


Please forgive me. Every father sins against every one of his children. He probably does it every day. Sadly, sin is every bit as inevitable as death and taxes. Fathers need to be in the habit of identifying their sin to their children and asking forgiveness. But as I think back, I saw this and heard of this in so few fathers. There are only a few I knew to consistently identify their sin and seek forgiveness for it. As I consider my fourteen years of parenting, I see far too little of it as well. The practice seems so much more difficult than the theory. The good dad is the one who humbly, carefully says to his children, “Please forgive me.”

You’re forgiven. Just as every father sins against every one of his children, every child sins against his father. The father who asks forgiveness also needs to be willing to extend forgiveness. Every father punishes his child at times, but too many fathers punish in the worst way—by holding a grudge or by letting the child suffer as dad withholds forgiveness and reconciliation. Our children need to be forgiven and they need to experience the joy of reconciliation. Here I think of a father I know—a father I admire—who taught me that a good dad doesn’t just say, “It’s okay,” but always goes further to say, “You’re forgiven.

Let’s pray. There is one father I admire whom I have only met in the pages of books he has written. Of all he has written, what has gripped me most is the ways in which he prays with his children. He reserves special time each week for each child and in that time he inquires about their souls and prays with them. That sounds like a wonderful practice. And in the rhythm of daily life with all its ups and downs he is also quick to lead them in seeking God’s strength, God’s help, God’s wisdom. Here he teaches them the best and deepest kind of dependency on the best and greatest Help in the world. I have learned from him that the good dad is quick to say, “Let’s pray.”

You can’t do it. We live at a time when parents are known for being extravagant in their praise for their children and assuring them, “You can do anything.” But the good dad assures his children that in the most important area, they can’t do it. They simply can’t. One of the great challenges every Christian father faces is in showing his child that behavior is a reflection of the heart and that the child cannot simply will himself into heart change. And this is where the gospel becomes so precious, because it begins with that inability, leads straight to the blood and righteousness of Christ, and then to the enabling of the Holy Spirit. The dads I love and admire are the dads who assure their children, “You can’t do it,” and who quickly lead them to the gospel and to the Savior who can.

I am eager to hear what you have learned from good fathers. So, following roughly the same format, tell me what you’ve heard a good father say…


http://www.challies.com/christian-living/7-things-a-good-dad-says

Only By The Grace of God

A lot of us are struggling with legalism in our lives and the lives of those around us, even though we know that it is the grace of God that saves us. We try hard to live by the rules, and we assume God will love us more, reward us more and overlook our mistakes. We make hundreds of rules up to live by, in reality Jesus said, Matthew 22:37  "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 "This is the first and great commandment. 39 "And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'40 "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

We make it so hard on ourselves and those around us, no wonder people are turned off by us, I've been a dedicated rule-keeper and I struggle with this, knowing God will never love me anymore than He does right now or when He sent Jesus to the cross for me. My parents taught me some basic rules, and most of them were excellent, but they're not really biblical, and have nothing to do with me standing before God.

Rules like we all need a solid eight hours of sleep each night (I have broken this rule every day of my life.) You brush your teeth in the morning, and before going to bed, wash your hands before every meal. Period. Close your eyes when you pray, I peeked during prayer time as a kid many times, and the Pastors and older people in the congregation didn’t always close their eyes, so I decided that either he was a phony, or that this  "eyes-closed" rule might not be iron-clad.

 We define Christianity by a list of arbitrary rules, therefore reducing our relationship with God through Jesus Christ to an exercise of futility of rules. God cannot and will not be put into a box. He's so much bigger than that. And His grace is greater than anything our finite minds can muster up .

Make no mistake. We will stand right before God, not on the basis of our ability to keep an exhaustive list of rules, the Pharisees and Sadducees did this but only the by the  shed blood of Jesus Christ. In Christ alone we are found Justified, and Righteous.

 When our faith is in Him, His grace "covers" us.

Romans 5: 1Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace

with God through our Lord Jesus Christ 2We have also obtained access through Him

by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3And not only that but we also rejoice in our afflictions,  because we know that affliction produces endurance, 4endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. 5This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Freedom

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.
Gal 5:1


Freedom, man longs for it everywhere, people die for what they believe freedom is. But outside of Christ there can be no freedom for freedom is a gift from God.


The chains of religion invoke mankind to slavery so they may earn something they can not, salvation , if your religion demands or suggest that you must work for or work to keep what God alone gives freely, you have become a slave and are deceived. 


1 But false prophets arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. These false teachers will infiltrate your midst with destructive heresies, even to the point of denying the Master who bought them. As a result, they will bring swift destruction on themselves. 2 And many will follow their debauched lifestyles. Because of these false teachers, the way of truth will be slandered. 3 And in their greed they will exploit you with deceptive words. Their condemnation pronounced long ago is not sitting idly by; their destruction is not asleep. 4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but threw them into hell and locked them up in chains in utter darkness, to be kept until the judgment, 5 and if he did not spare the ancient world, but did protect Noah, a herald of righteousness, along with seven others, when God brought a flood on an ungodly world, 6 and if he turned to ashes the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah when he condemned them to destruction, having appointed them to serve as an example to future generations of the ungodly, 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man in anguish over the debauched lifestyle of lawless men, 8 (for while he lived among them day after day, that righteous man was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard) 9 - if so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from their trials, and to reserve the unrighteous for punishment at the day of judgment, 10 especially those who indulge their fleshly desires and who despise authority.Brazen and insolent, they are not afraid to insult the glorious ones, 11 yet even angels, who are much more powerful, do not bring a slanderous judgment against them before the Lord. 12 But these men, like irrational animals - creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed - do not understand whom they are insulting, and consequently in their destruction they will be destroyed, 13 suffering harm as the wages for their harmful ways. By considering it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight, they are stains and blemishes, indulging in their deceitful pleasures when they feast together with you. 14 Their eyes, full of adultery, never stop sinning; they entice unstable people. They have trained their hearts for greed, these cursed children! 15 By forsaking the right path they have gone astray, because they followed the way of Balaam son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness, 16 yet was rebuked for his own transgression (a dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the prophet's madness). 17 These men are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm, for whom the utter depths of darkness have been reserved. 18 For by speaking high-sounding but empty words they are able to entice, with fleshly desires and with debauchery, people who have just escaped from those who reside in error. 19 Although these false teachers promise such people freedom, they themselves are enslaved to immorality. For whatever a person succumbs to, to that he is enslaved.
2 Pet 2:1-19


4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you are saved! - 6 and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 to demonstrate in the coming ages the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from works, so that no one can boast.
Eph 2:4-9


Are you tired of being enslaved to sin? Being held captive by death? Then call upon the name of Jesus Christ and be saved, for salvation and freedom come by no other name they are found in Christ alone.

Hell is real

C. S. Lewis’s In The Great Divorce, describes a busload of people from hell who come to the outskirts of heaven. There they are urged to leave behind the sins that have trapped them in hell. The descriptions Lewis makes of people in hell are so striking because we recognize the denial and self-delusion of substance addictions. When addicted to alcohol, we are miserable, but we blame others and pity ourselves; we do not take responsibility for our behavior or see the roots of our problem. 

Lewis writes:Hell … begins with a grumbling mood, and yourself still distinct from it: perhaps even criticizing it. … You can repent and come out of it again. But there may come a day when you can do that no longer. Then there will be no you left to criticize the mood or even enjoy it, but just the grumble itself going on forever like a machine.

Modern people struggle with the idea of God’s thinking up punishments to inflict on disobedient people. When sin is seen as slavery and hell as the freely chosen, eternal skid row of the universe, hell becomes much more comprehensible.

Jesus said those who reject Him have condemned themselves (John 3:18) , so God does not send us there, we choose to go there. 1st, sin separates us from the presence of God (Isa. 59:2), which is the source of all joy (Ps. 16:11), love, wisdom or good thing of any sort (James 1:17)…

2nd, to understand hell we must understand sin as slavery. Romans 1:21-25 tells us that we were built to live for God supremely, but instead we live for love, work, achievement or morality to give us meaning and worth. Thus every person, religious or not, is worshiping something—idols, pseudo-saviors—to get their worth. But these things enslave us with guilt or anger or fear or a lust for things. Guilt, anger and fear are like fire that destroys us. Sin is worshiping anything but Jesus—and the wages of sin is slavery.

Perhaps the greatest paradox of all is that the people on Lewis’s bus from hell are enslaved because they freely chose to be. They would rather have their freedom as they define it than salvation. Their relentless delusion is that if they glorified God, they would lose their human greatness (Gen. 3:4–5), but their choice has really ruined their human greatness. Hell is, as Lewis says, “the greatest monument to human freedom.”

Hell Is Less Exclusive Than So-Called Tolerance Nothing is more characteristic of the modern mindset than the statement: “I think Christ is fine, but I believe a devout Muslim or Buddhist or even a good atheist will certainly find God.” A slightly different version is: “I don’t think God would send a person who lives a good life to hell just for holding the wrong belief.” This approach is seen as more inclusive.

In preaching about hell, then, I need to counter this argument: The universal religion of humankind is: We develop a good record and give it to God, and then he owes us.

The gospel is: God develops a good record and gives it to us, then we owe him (Rom. 1:17). In short, to say a good person, not just Christians, can find God is to say good works are enough to find God.

You can believe that faith in Christ is not necessary or you can believe that we are saved by grace, but you cannot believe in both at once.

So the apparently inclusive approach is really quite exclusive. It says, “The good people can find God, and the bad people do not.” But what about us moral failures? We are excluded.

The gospel says, “The people who know they aren’t good can find God, and the people who think they are good do not.” Then what about non-Christians, all of whom must, by definition, believe their moral efforts help them reach God? They are excluded.

So both approaches are exclusive, but the gospel’s is the more inclusive exclusivity. It says joyfully, “It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been at the gates of hell. You can be welcomed and embraced fully and instantly through Christ.” And Christ alone, John 14:6

Dr. Timothy Keller senior pastor of New York’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church