The things you accumulate

  The things you accumulate. 

The apostle Peter writes,

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in heaven for you" 1Peter 1:3-4.

If you accept the saving grace offered to you by God through Christ Jesus. Then you can praise God because the inheritance we have is not in this world but in heaven where it can never spoil or fade.

The riches you may accumulate in this world are fleeting. At the end of your life they will be dispersed among other people. They will no longer be yours. But the things you do for Christ. The things you do for God will be yours forever.

Please think about it.

God or...

 God or...

The Psalmist writes,

“Trust in the LORD and do good;

 dwell in the land 

and enjoy safe pasture.” 

                                                    Psalm 37:3.

Today I’m writing to those who claim to be Christians, followers of Christ Jesus in North America and also in the democracies of the west.

Here in North America we enjoy safe pasture. We have freedoms the world can only dream of. That being said I think at times those freedoms stop us from fully trusting in The Lord. 

When you are prospering and living in safety it is easy to ignore God. It’s easy to put your trust in other things rather than God.

Jesus told this parable,

"Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." 

And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.  He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' 

"Then he said, ‘This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.  

And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." ' 

"But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' 

"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." Luke 12:15-21.

Now let me say being wealthy is not wrong. There are many wealthy Christians today who but their trust completely in God. 

The problem with wealth is the emphasis you put on your wealth. 

Thus my question to you; who do you trust more, God or your wealth?

Please think about it.

No other gods

  No other gods

In the book of Exodus we read God as saying,

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 

"You shall have no other gods before me.” Exodus 20:2,3

Billy Graham the late American Evangelist said,

"Make sure of your commitment to Jesus Christ, and seek to follow Him every day. Don't be swayed by the false values and goals of this world, but put Christ and His will first in everything you do." Billy Graham.

As Christians we must heed the words of God in Exodus. It is absolute. Anything we put ahead of God, is a god, be it a person an organization or thing. This should not be.

The writer of Hebrews states,

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" Hebrews 12:2.

Jesus paid an horrific price for us. Jesus showed how far God would go in human terms to show us the way to heaven. We should never forget that.

Thus I would ask you the question; If you are truly a Christian, a follower of Christ Jesus do you put anything before Christ?

Please think about it.

My Belief

My Belief

Is man but an atom in space?

A mist in time?

A moment in eternity?

What is your life?

Your life or mine?

What of the life of a man?

What is the sum total of Life?

Is it a collection of bobbles bangles and beads.

A collection of artifacts past to the next generation?

Is all there is to life,

A gathering of things.

That you never can keep?

Is it a mans... 

A Woman’s duty,

to procreate,

Train the next generation,

then pass into oblivion?

Or

is life more?

Is life Eternal?

Destined to continue on through endless days?

At a place of our own choosing?

I believe you have a choice.

Jesus 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.

This is what I believe.

What do you believe?

Please think about it.

On Idols

On Idols
In the final line 1 John. The apostle makes a definite statement all believers even today must obey. He writes,
“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:21.
In John’s day idols were everywhere. Idol worship was in every city, town and village in the Roman world. Temples to the various Roman god’s were easily spotted.
Today in the twenty-first century we have as many idols if not more than existed in John’s day. They are just harder to spot.
Idols are anything we worship other than God knowingly or subconsciously. Money is perhaps top of the list. There are people who put the making of money above all else quiet often even their families. But there are other things. Everything from the latest designer clothing to computers to cell phones, consumer goods, to sporting and entertainment events, to
We just have to look at when a technology company announces the release of its latest, greatest gadget. The lineups for it start early in the morning and go for city blocks.
Now there is nothing wrong with having money or the latest electronic gadget or going to or participating in sports or entertainment events. Money, gadgets and other things can make our lives easier. Sporting and entertainment can help us relax.  The problem comes when we desire them more than we desire God.
Especially if you consider yourself a Christian you need to carefully consider what place money and possessions  and other things have in your life.
You need to ask yourself the question do I put the things of this world, ahead of God?
Please think about it.

Idols

Idols
In the final line 1 John. The apostle makes a definite statement all believers even today must obey. He writes,
“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:21.
In John’s day idols were everywhere. Idol worship was in every city, town and village in the Roman world. Temples to the various Roman god’s were easily spotted.
Today in the twenty-first century we have as many idols if not more than existed in John’s day. They are just harder to spot.
Idols are anything we worship other than God knowingly or subconsciously. Money is perhaps top of the list. There are people who put the making of money above all else quiet often even their families. But there are other things. Everything from the latest designer clothing to computers to cell phones, consumer goods, to sporting and entertainment events, to
We just have to look at when a technology company announces the release of its latest, greatest gadget. The lineups for it start early in the morning and go for city blocks.
Now there is nothing wrong with having money or the latest electronic gadget or going to or participating in sports or entertainment events. Money, gadgets and other things can make our lives easier. Sporting and entertainment can help us relax.  The problem comes when we desire them more than we desire God.
Especially if you consider yourself a Christian you need to carefully consider what place money and possessions  and other things have in your life.
You need to ask yourself the question do I put the things of this world, ahead of God?
Please think about it.

Flee Idolatry

Flee Idolatry
The apostle Paul writing to the Corinthian church, a church that was surrounded with idol worship and a myriad of temptations said,

“Therefore, my dear friends, 

flee from idolatry.” 

                            1 Corinthians 10:14.

At the very beginning of the Ten Commandments God states,

“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt,

 out of the land of slavery. 

“You shall have no other gods before me. 

“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven 

above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.  

You shall not bow down to them or worship them;...” 

                                                                   Exodus 20: 2-4a.

We who live at the beginning of the twenty-first century have idols all around us. We may not consider them idols but they are. Anything that we hold in higher esteem than God is an idol.
We see our idols in the media every day. Be they fancy consumer goods. The acquisition of wealth ahead of worship of God. Even our cars, and homes.
These things may not seem like God’s after all they are inanimate objects and in and of themselves are harmless.
That was the same with the idols in Corinth. The carved statues to the Greek god’s were just stone. Harmless.
The harm comes however when we as individuals start to believe that such things have the power to change our lives. That they will give us a better life, or meaning their our life.
When we start turning to them rather than putting God first in our lives and worshipping him alone.
Matthew’s Gospel records the temptations of Christ. The third temptation was to worship Satan. Matthew’s Gospel records,
“Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.  
“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 
     Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’’” Matthew 4:8-10.
Notice Jesus makes it clear,
“For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’’
As believers in Christ Jesus we as individuals need to take stock of our lives and ask ourselves if we have any idols in our lives.
Please if you consider yourself a believer in Christ think about it.