Tag Archives: Christianity

Loss by non-participation

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Trash bin

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As I read a string of comments by those who hate both faith and religion, I’m struck by something.   They hate what they don’t own so much that their attacks drown out any possible value in Christianity.  They attack anything they can’t hold in their hand.  Thus, they throw away everything good.  They not only lose out on eternal promises, they even lose out on the temporal benefits.

While many pick and choose what they will from Jesus, those people throw it all away.  How horrible it will be for those who hate the Lord.  When they finally see Him face to face, they will realize the damage they’ve done.  They will have ruined their hope for any peace for eternity.  And they will realize that they were instrumental in destroying the hope of others.

By His Grace.

The Never Ending Blog.

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Typing ape

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Many write in their blogs wondering what to talk about today.  So do I.  But it’s not for lack of something to say.  It’s a war between what I can grasp with my tiny understanding, and what words to use to describe what I do perceive.

I find it interesting how the general subject seems to turn from one aspect of the Lord to another each week.  But there does seem to be a certain thrust every week.

If you want to write a blog where your material is never ending, try Jesus.  People will hate you for your words.  Isn’t that irony…………..

 

By His Grace.

Through or Into the Flames We Go.

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fire

Image by matthewvenn via Flickr

Making a choice regarding religion is not like buying a new car.  Though there are a myriad of religions and a gaggle of new cars to choose from, there is only one God.  So how can we decide what’s right?  There are a few items for thought regarding religions.  And we will prove ourselves wise if we consider them.

1. God is the creator.  So what is made is not the creator Himself.  We can expect then that any religion which holds creation as greater than God is false.

2. Man is sinful and wicked to the core.  Look at how many times you’ve lied in the last 24 hours.  Either you lied because you wanted something and thought it would be the best way around, or you lied because you weren’t completely up to speed with reality.  But you lied.  Consider how many times you looked at your speedometer and found you were going to fast for the speed zone.  Isn’t this breaking the law?  And don’t all people know that breaking the law is to be imperfect?  Bottom line, you’re not potentially perfect.  You’re full to over flowing with sin.  God does not lie.  So any religion which brings man to the place of potential perfection is false.

3. If God is true and every man a liar.  And if He says that all men will die eternally because of their wickedness.  And if Christianity provides a sacrifice for our sins in Jesus (which it does).  Then the choices get very limited very quickly.

 

You’re not going to find a religion, regardless what they say, which offers the hope of the Lord Jesus.  Cults abound.  False hope is as plentiful as corn dogs at the state fair.  But there is One who is true.  And He has marked out the way in the Bible.  Spurn the Lord Jesus and you will reap a whirlwind of horror.  Embrace Him and you will find the power to hope and live.  We have been given one life.  It’s this one you’re using right now to read this.  There is no other chance to get it right.  The Bible holds the Gospel (good news).  Don’t listen to all the trash in this world.  Go straight to the source.

When you read the Bible you’ll become afraid.  I promise that.  And you’ll be tempted to put it down in a hurry.  But that fear is a recognition that the Holy Fire of God is present in those words.  You have to walk through that fire to find the Lord Jesus.  Live or die.  It’s your choice.

By His Grace.

To Judge or Assess?

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Scale_of_justice

Image by TaranRampersad via Flickr

I witnessed an old man having trouble with the lock on the back of his trailer.  Now, I’d jump out and help.  But only one key opens the lock.  And only one set of fingers at a time can turn that key.  And what advice can I possibly give to help? “Try to turn it this way.”  Yeah.

I was waiting behind him to pull into my door.  And there was nothing more to do but sit and watch.  After a while he gave up and waddled back to my truck.  Was he going to ask for help?  Maybe he thought I carried a bolt cutter or an oxy acetylene torch.  Nah, that’s not reasonable to expect.

He got near my truck and I jumped out to meet him.  He began to talk and my soul was startled.  Anger and cursing flowed from his mouth like a river of fast moving mud.  I didn’t expect that.  He didn’t look like someone who carried that kind of heart.  But there’s not much a person can tell about another by simply looking at them.

This experience brings me to ponder “judging”.  We are instructed (commanded actually) not to judge.  But what would this world be like if we didn’t access our fellow humans? How would we sort out danger or friendly?  Would we allow the enemies of truth to come live in our house?  Perhaps, but not without making some measure of prevention.  So what is this judging thing?

Judging, as we’re commanded to refrain from, is more likely having to do with settling on a conviction that someone is a certain way and  without redemption.  Perhaps it’s like being a judge at a trial and rendering a sentence on the person in question.  I can see how this would be a source of major damage.  There would be no hope of that person ever overcoming their history.  And such judging would preclude any possibility of change.  So they would be locked out of our sphere of acceptance and hope.

Judging, as is necessary, might be more like assessment.  We consider the other person according to what knowledge of truth we contain.  And we allow for learning on both parts.  I allow myself room to learn something more about the person, while I continue to consider that person with reserved guard.  And I allow that other person room toward possible clarification of their personality.

Refrain from condemning others to the life they now present to you.  But be careful not to allow enemies to get too close.  A curious mix of understanding is needed here.  But doesn’t this just show how small and unwise we really are?  Who can know what is right without the Lord giving understanding?  How many people have been killed, through the ages, because others judged them unfit.  Even the righteous have become victim of this kind of judging.

In the end, perhaps it would be better to identify two words we can use.  We are allowed to access a person’s intend and tendencies.  And do so with understanding that we might well be wrong.  We’re allowed to protect what is precious in our world.   But we’re commanded not to condemn others before we have all the facts.  And even when all the “facts” are presented, can we truly judge them on an eternal scale?   “Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.”

And what would have happened if Jesus had met the “man of the tombs” and simply turned around and left?  After all, wasn’t the entire village afraid of this man?  Wasn’t he a horrible person?  But look what happened when Jesus drove the evil spirits out of him.  The villagers found that man “in his right mind and sitting at the feet of Jesus”.  (Mark 5: 1-10)  See also:  http://timglass.wordpress.com/2008/10/04/a-man-from-the-tombs-mark-51-10/

At the same time I’m put in remembrance of the 7 sons of sceva:

13 “Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” 14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” 16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding. ”  (Acts 9)

Again, we are told to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.

By His Grace.

Lead Them to Life.

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A copy of Barclay’s Amoy translation, opened t...

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I lived my life for the first 30 years with no one to guide me into what is eternally right.  Like most folk, I wandered around doing whatever I pleased.  Some days I would consider righteousness and try to do it.  Other days (most days) I would simply try to gain for myself whatever I could lay my hands on.  Drugs, stealing, lying, and social suicide were my tools of trade.

At 31 I began to read Proverbs.  It’s a very simple-minded approach to the wisdom of God.  It was while reading that little book in the Bible that I began to become familiar with the fact that there is a wisdom beyond what is socially acceptable.  And a couple of years later I had read the entire Bible, found a little church, accepted the Lord, and sat at the feet of a wise elder.

I mention all this to draw attention to something.  Where are those who know the Lord?  Are they making themselves available to someone who is looking for the Lord?  I think of how the world is going insane with sin.  Lies abound.  Greed is the order of the day.  The media holds it’s “church” twenty-four hours a day.  And the world flocks to the “mass” hysteria of waste.  Where are those who know the Lord?

The mainstream church is partially to blame for this lack of mentors in Christ.  They teach a social Gospel lately.  Their Gospel is more in line with an office with a couch.  “If you want victory over this and that, just do this or that.”  Where is the power of God?  Who is dispensing the Glory of God revealed in Jesus?  Where is the Christian who is actually ready to reach out to the sinner with truth, no matter how it will be received?   By “ready” I mean seeking an oportunity.

I present this post for consideration.  I don’t want to offer answers.  I think the questions speak for themselves.  If you’re one of the active lovers of God, then wonderful (and thank you).  If you’re just a pew sitter/sinner, consider what you’ve just read.  Bottom line is: if you don’t like the society you’re living in, remember that shutting up the true Gospel of Christ is key to the problems we’re witnessing today.

By His Grace.

Energy to Continue.

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The divine essence

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Ok.  So you’re in love with God.  Ok.  So you speak about nothing without considering God in the conversation.  Ok.  So you wake only to consider Him first.  You look at your dreams and hope there was something there.  Ok.  So nothing you encounter is absent of the presence of God in your mind.

And you speak, think, eat, act, and blog Jesus.  And, to your amazement, no one seems to notice.  What did you expect?  Did you really think the world would run to you and embrace you as a brother?  Didn’t the Lord say that the world would hate you?  And, I know you’ve noticed, nothing you hold dear finds acceptance in this world.  So what to do?

You want to help people discover the Lord’s sacrifice.  You want to elevate the Lord to a prominent place in every person’s life.  You see the truth of Jesus’ sacrifice as if you were right there in person.  You feel the pain of knowing the fate of the majority.  And you are witness to the destruction of hope the lost are experiencing.  Media hold them tight.  The baubles and trinkets of this world capture their every waking moment.  Sin has such a tight grip on their hearts that they hate even the mention of the God of Life.

Just keep blogging.  Just keep speaking.  Just keep thinking God stuff.  It’s ok.  If no one is interested in what you have to say, then testify to the Angels.  Testify to the Lord Himself.   Blog so that the Lord can read what you type.

We are a people set apart for hatred by the Lord Himself.  We will not find love here.  We find love there.  So go there!  Be a Christian!  Be devoted to the One who made you!  And let the world do what it wishes with what you are becoming.  Who are we to stop their insane race to destruction.  Just keep on doing what you do for the Lord.  Nothing goes un-noticed.  And there is reward in His hand.

 

By His grace.