Showing posts with label A choice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label A choice. Show all posts

Saturday 27 November 2021

Reason and Warning

 Reason and Warning

In John’s gospel we read of Jesus saying,

"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.

This is the reason Jesus came into this world. To point all who would believe in Him the way to heaven.

Additionally Jesus issues this warning,

“Whoever believes in him (Jesus) is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son". John 3:17.

If what is reported here by the apostle John is to believed, then what is said is to my mind the most important warning in history.

As C. S. Lewis put it,

“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” C. S. Lewis.

That being said. It is a personal choice. Thus all who hear about Jesus must decide for themselves.

Which dear reader you must decide for yourself; Is what the New Testament says about Jesus true or false?

Please think about it.

Thursday 27 August 2015

An explanation

An explanation
Someone pointed out that I from time to time mention when I speak to Christians or write my blogs to Christians that I speak of what as been called a “fundamental truth” an obvious truth. Thus I am asked why write such obvious truths to Christians.
The fact is a good percentage of those who attend church or who call themselves Christians don’t believe the fundamentals of Christianity. I know of several ministers that deny the deity of Christ among other things. They to me are not Christians, because you cannot deny the deity of Christ and be a Christian.
I know of others who are out there protesting against everything they disagree with, wishing to restrict the rights of others. This was something Christ and the apostles never did. Christians that protest in a democracy to restrict the rights of others need to read the Bible more carefully. It tells us,
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
                                                                                                       Romans 12:18.
We cannot live at peace with everyone if we are protesting against someone’s rights.
Thus I write to express what I believe makes one a Christian. The apostles creed while not written by the apostles dose express the basics of Christianity when it says,
APOSTLES' CREED
  "I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
      He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell.
      The third day he rose again from the dead.
      He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
      From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
      I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints,
      the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting."
                                                     Amen.
                                                                *that is, the true Christian church of all times                                                                                           and all places
I believe as the Apostle Paul did when he wrote,
“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
I also believe the writer of the book of Hebrews who said,
           “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.
I believe the words of Jesus who said,
...“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” 
                                                                                                                                              John 14:6b.
I believe the words of the Apostle Paul who wrote,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” 
                                                               Romans 3:23,24
  I believe the words of the Apostle John who wrote,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” 
1John 1:9-10.
John also said,
“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God." 
                 John 1:12,13
John also wrote,
“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....
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 
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, 12-14
God actually entered this world because I believe because if he didn’t we could perhaps quite justly say to Him, “you don’t understand what it is to be human.” you have only experienced absolute power.
With God in the form of Jesus Christ, entering his creation to experience all it is to be human we cannot on the day he will judge us stand be for Him and say that He doesn’t understand.
Christians also believe one very crucial statement made by Jesus who 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.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son”. 
                                                                                                            John 3:16-18.
Please think about it.

Friday 14 August 2015

A Conversation

A Conversation

“Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.  
You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.  
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.  
God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” 
The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” 
Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.” 
                                                                    John 4: 21-26.
Here as Jesus speaks to the Samaritan woman Jesus breaks several social norms of the day, tells who he is, and what God the Father seeks.
First of all he a Jewish teacher speaks to a Samaritan woman. Jewish teachers hardly ever spoke to women additionally Jews considered Samaritans unclean and thus didn’t associate with them.
Secondly he predicts that the time will come “when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.”
In other words something had to happen to prevent the worship at the temple. Something that occurred with the destruction of the Temple in 70 A. D.  shortly after the death of Jesus.
  Thirdly Jesus goes on to say,
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.”
Here is what the God the Father wants. God doesn’t care where we worship Him. A building is just a building. True believers worship God wherever they are.
We Christians believe each person is a part of the church. Believers in Christ make up the Church it is not a bricks and mortar structure.
The fourth thing Jesus admits to here, Jesus admits to being the Messiah.
The question to those who claim to be Christians is, do you worship God in spirit and in truth.
To those who are not Christians the question is, a question that Jesus asked Martha,
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 
                                                                                                                             John 11:25,26.
Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God the Saviour of the world?
Please think about it.