Why Faith?

  Why Faith

In the book of Ephesians we read,

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8,9.

So what constitutes faith. Hebrews defines faith this way,

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."  Hebrews 11:1

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Hebrews 11:6.

 Why does God want us to live by faith?

I think it’s because it’s so hard to have faith in anything we cannot see. 

Even though we have the Bible that tells us about God and Jesus. The Bible to many people is simply words written centuries ago.

The apostle Paul writes,

"That 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.  

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."  Romans 10:9-11.

I also firmly believe that people who have faith in anything will be willing to go to their graves for what they believe. 

The apostles proved this. All but one was martyred for their faith. And around the world today there are multitudes of men and women who are suffering imprisonment, persecution for what they believe.

So the question becomes,

Do you have complete faith in Jesus?

Please think about it. 

Madman or God Incarnate

  Madman or God Incarnate?

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

                                                                                   Genesis 1:1.

The Bible doesn’t debate the existence of God. It was written to believers and believers in God accept the fact that God does exist.

In the New Testament the apostle John tells us,

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  

He was with God in the beginning. 

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  

In him was life, and that life was the light of men....

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. " John 1:1-4,14.

Here John refers to Jesus as “the word”. 

        He tells us that “...the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” 

that,...“He was with God in the beginning.” 

That “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”

 That, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”

And lastly and most importantly, “We (John the other disciples and believers)  have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John truly believed, Jesus is God incarnate.

I like what C. S. Lewis in the book Mere Christianity says about Jesus,

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity.

So who do you think Jesus is?

Please think about it.

So what are you doing

 So what are you doing?

In the book of James we read,

“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,  because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” James 2:12,13.

Do you judge people? Do you show mercy towards people especially those you disagree with. Do you judge someone begging for money on the street or those with a different lifestyle, or faith than yours?

You should not be. Jesus made it perfectly clear saying,

"Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  

For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Matthew 7:1,2.

I like what the late American evangelist Billy Graham said,

“It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God's job to judge

 and my job to love,” 

                                         Billy Graham.

So what are you doing?

Please think about it.

When God examines you

 When God examines your ways

The writer of Proverbs states,

"For a man's ways are in full view of the LORD, 

and he examines all his paths." 

                                                        Proverbs 5:21.

That says it all. God knows about everything we do and why we do it. 

Question:

When God examines your ways, what will He say?

Please think about it.

We have no right

  We have no right

The Psalmist writes,

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139:13-16.

God knows us intimately. This quote from psalms in modern terminology is essentially saying God knows the very DNA that makes up of our being. He knows why we are the way we are. This is why God and God alone is the only one who can judge another person.

Jesus made it clear to all who believes,

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  

For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Matthew 7:1,2.

While we must judge the actions and words of some people in order to be careful as to who we trust at times for our own safety. We have no right to judge where someone will spend eternity. That is Gods job. NOT ours.

Please think about it.

How to be saved

 How to be saved

Jesus speaking about himself said,

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:16,17.

The apostle Paul writes,

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8.

I've heard it said that the way we get to heaven is if your good deeds out weigh your bad deeds you get into heaven.

Christians do not believe this. We do not believe you can live a life good enough to enter heaven. C. S. Lewis said,

"The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us."  C.S. Lewis.

The criminal on the cross with Jesus proves your good deeds don’t have to outweigh your bad deeds to get to heaven. You simply have to confess your sins and ask God’s forgiveness. The book of acts records,

“But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence?  

We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." 

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'" Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." Luke 23:39-43.

This criminal did what the apostle John told us to do.

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  1John 1:9.

He did what the apostle Paul told us we must do,

"That 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.  

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."  Romans 10:9-11

So the question comes down to, Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Saviour of all who believe in Him? 

Please think about it.

Paul's Story

 Paul's Story

"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners

of whom I am the worst."

                              1 Timothy 1:15

The apostle Paul is an example of how even someone with extremist views can be changed for good.

Paul (Saul) at first chose to attack the church. To put Christians in jail. In the book of Acts we read that Saul was at the stoning of Stephen the first Christian martyr. Acts stating,

“But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison”Acts 8:3.

Paul however had an encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Standing before Agippa, Paul tells of this encounter,

"On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.  

About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.  

We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic,‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' 

"Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?' " ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied.  

‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you.  

I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them  

to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' 

"So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.  

First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.” Acts 26:12-20.

The point being if God can change a man like Paul from a zealous persecutor of Christians to a leader in the church. A man who would eventually die for being Christian. God can change your life if you would let Him.

Please think about it.

Are you telling the world

 Are you telling the world

The Psalmist writes,

“Sing to the LORD a new song; 

sing to the LORD, all the earth. 

Sing to the LORD, praise his name; 

proclaim his salvation day after day. 

Declare his glory among the nations, 

his marvellous deeds among all peoples.” 

                                                      Psalm 96:1-3.

I firmly believe that this is what all Christians are called to do. We are as often as we are able to tell others about the Salvation that come from God through Christ Jesus.

Jesus said,

"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

If you consider yourself a Christian. A true follower of Christ Jesus, are you telling the world around you about the Saving Grace that comes from God through Jesus Christ?

Please think about it.

Hope in all situations

 Hope in all situations

The apostle Paul writes,

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  

  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:1-5.

God dose not promise us a life without problems, but He dose offer us hope in all situations. As someone has said “Hope is not that everything will work out well but that God has everything under control.”

As believers in Christ Jesus we have peace knowing that Christ is with us in our journey through this life no matter how easy of tough that journey may be. 

At the same time should we for whatever reason die we have peace in the knowledge that we will pass from this life into the arms of God.

Thus the question remain; 

Is your hope in Christ Jesus? 

Do you have peace in your heart?

Please think about it.

Why the Crucifixion?

  Why the Crucifixion?

In the Gospel of Luke we read,

“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary.  

The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." 

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  

But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favour with God.  

You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God" Luke 1:26-32.

This portion of scripture is fulfilled at the end of Luke’s gospel and approximately 33 years later Luke stating,

“On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.  

They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.  

While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.  

In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead?  

He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:  

‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' "  

Then they remembered his words. 

When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others.  

It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.” Luke 24:1-10.

The one thing that differentiates Christianity and other faiths is the fact we believe Jesus was crucified for our sins, died, then rose from the grave. That he walked the earth and was seen by many people and eventually rose into heaven.

The apostle Paul telling us,

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8.

In the suffering of Jesus we see just how far in human terms that God would go to show you the way to heaven and eternal life.

The apostle John writing,

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."1John 1:9. 

If you were to die tonight where would you spend eternity.

Please think about it.

The fulness of the Deity

 The fullness of the Deity

The Apostle Paul writes,

“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”

                                                                                       Colossians2:9.

The apostle John writes,

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  

He was with God in the beginning. 

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  

In him was life, and that life was the light of men....

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ” John 1:1-4,14.

The writer of Hebrews states,

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3 

In the above quoted scriptures from the New Testament we see the three basic things believers in Christ Jesus believe.

1. Jesus is God.

    ”in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”

    “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” 

   “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”

Simply put Jesus is God incarnate. God in the flesh.

2. He made the world and everything in it. 

   “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been                          made.”

Jesus is one with God the creator of the universe and everything in it.

3. He provided purification for sins and sits with God in Heaven.

  “After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty                in heaven.”

 To be a Christian, a true believer in Christ Jesus you must believe that Jesus is the one and Only Son of God. God incarnate. The one who provided purification for your sins.

So what do you believe about Jesus?

    Please think about it

     Please think about it

The ultimate Choice

  The ultimate Choice.

In Luke's gospel we read,

“One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 

But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence?  

We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." 

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'" 

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." Luke 23:39-43.

Here we have laid out for us the choice all who hear about Jesus need to make. Here on the day Jesus was crucified were two other men, both sinners. Both in need of Salvation.

We too are sinners. While we may not have been guilty of the same sins the criminals on the cross had done. We are still sinners. The apostle Paul noting,

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23.

The two criminals chose two different paths. One insulted Jesus asking him to save himself and them. This man had no idea that if he’d followed the path of the second criminal he would have been saved.

The second man saying,

"Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence?  

We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." 

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'" 

To which Jesus said,  "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." 

That second criminal did what we must do. We must have faith that Jesus is the Son of God the Saviour of all who believe in Him.

The apostle John Writing,

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."1John 1:9. 

Have you confessed your sins to God today.

Please think about it.