Spotless, Blameless, at Peace with God

Spotless, Blameless, at Peace with God,

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 
Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.  
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. 
So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.’  2 Peter 3:10-14.
Here is a simple message to all Christians. Peter tells us that the world we know will one day disappear and a new heaven and a new earth “the home of righteousness” will take its place.
His admonition to Christians “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him”, Him being Christ.
The Writer of Hebrews tells Christians,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
Thus the question is, if you consider yourself a Christian are you doing your best to live up to this ideal?
Take a few minutes to pray and ask God to show you your life and lifestyle. Ask God to show you any shortcomings you have and how you can correct them.
Ask God to show you how to live a holy life at peace with all men.
Please think about it.

The Christian Life

The Christian Life
The Psalmist writes,
“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 
But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 
Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 
For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” Psalm 1:1-6.
 As Christians we must delight in the law of the Lord. We must trust in Him. We must live by God’s ethical and moral standards.
The apostle Peter tells us,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 
Dear friends,
 I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.  
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:9-12.
If you claim to be Christian are you doing this?
Please think about it.

Christians Take Time

Christians Take Time
The Psalmist writes,

Praise the LORD. 

Praise God in his sanctuary; 

praise him in his mighty heavens. 

Praise him for his acts of power;

 praise him for his surpassing greatness. 

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, 

praise him with the harp and lyre, 

praise him with tambourine and dancing, 

praise him with the strings and flute, 

praise him with the clash of cymbals,

 praise him with resounding cymbals. 

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. 

Praise the LORD. 

Psalm 150

As Christians all too often we get caught up in life and forget to take time on our own to simply praise God.
True we may “listen to” praise music. But that what we all too often do, simply “listen”. We need to take sometime alone with God and praise Him be it in word or song.
Why not take some time right now to praise God.
Please think about it.

Make Every Effort

Make Every Effort
Matthews Gospel records,
“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.
As Christians we are called to go into all the world and present the Good News of Jesus Christ. In order to do this correctly we must have the right attitude.
The writer of Hebrews tells us,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
When we live at peace and respect the views of those around us it provides the ideal conditions for presenting the gospel to those around us.
It also is true that if those around us are seeing we are living holy lives, in other words living our life the way Jesus would want us to live it. They will be attracted to that life.
The apostle Paul writing to the Galatians tells us what the fruits of a spirit filled Christian life, a holy life, are, when he states,
“But the fruit of the Spirit is

love, joy, peace,

 patience, kindness, 

goodness, faithfulness,  

gentleness and self-control. 

Against such things there is no law.”  

Galatians 5:22,23

As Christians our lifestyle is everything. Our life and lifestyle can bring people to Christ or turn them away. The apostle Peter states,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 
Dear friends,
 I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.  
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:9-12.
Question, Is this the kind of life you are living?
Francis of Assisi made a very true statement went he said,

“The deeds you do 

may be the only sermon 

some persons will hear today” 

                                                                         Francis of Assisi.
What is your sermon telling the world?
         Please think about it.

God, Eternity, and You

God, Eternity, and You
The other day I found this statement on the internet by and unknown author it says,

“Peace is not the absence of affliction, 

but the presence of God.” 

Jesus said,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.
As a Christian I have found this statement to be completely true. I have gone through many highs and lows in my life and at all times God has been there for me.
I know it seems odd to some people but it’s true. God truly cares for you the individual. C. S. Lewis states,
“He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.” C.S. Lewis.
The God I love and serve truly does care for the individual who would have faith in Him.
Do you believe in God? Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God, God in the flesh?
Do you believe Jesus is the Christ who died for you sins, that you may have eternal life?
The Bible also makes it clear how we get to heaven. It come down to who you think Jesus is and what his purpose on this earth was for,
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.” 

John 3:16,17.

Jesus also said

“I am the way and the truth and the life. 

No one comes to the Father except through me.” 

 John 14:6b

   Paul writing to the Romans said,
“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.
Sinning is falling short of what God wants for you in your life. Sin separates us from God.
Isaiah telling us,

“All of us have become like one who is unclean, 

and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; 

we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.”  

Isaiah 64:6

  The apostle John noting,

“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.” 

1 John 1:9,10.

Paul make it clear salvation is not something we can work for. Paul writing to the Ephesians stating,

“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

Ultimately salvation is an act of faith, Hebrews stating,

“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

Faith defined as,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.” 

 Hebrews 11:1

What do you believe?
Think about it.

A Warning

A Warning
The apostle Peter warns,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 2:1-3. 
Jesus said,
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:21-23.
As Christians we need to be carful who we follow and who we support. In this multi media age there are many out there claiming to be Christians who are not. They twist the scriptures to say what they want them to say. They take scripture out of context.
There are even those out there who make up things, lies in order to mislead good people.
As a result we need to find a church that is following the Bible correctly. We need to be studying it for ourselves. We should even be studying some church history and looking at the culture in the time the Bible was written. Doing so will help us to determine who is teaching correctly.
Never take any preacher, teacher, or evangelist at face value. Study their sermon and see for yourself if there is anything wrong. Anything that you don’t understand. If there is talk to others about your concerns and even approach the person who spoke the words. A good minister or teacher will explain things to you. If they don’t, have nothing to do with them.
Always remember the Bible is the word of God not what some preacher or teacher may say. Men can and do make mistakes. Men can and do lead people astray. So the word is be careful. And get to know the Bible. For in doing so you are less likely to be led away from God.
Please think about it.

The Christian and Forgiveness

The Christians and Forgiveness
“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” 
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”Matthew 18:21,22.
As a Christian do you truly forgive. When Jesus replied to Peter that he had to forgive seventy-seven times he was using hyperbole. Meaning Peter should forgive without number, without keeping track.
As Christians we are called to love. If we are truly following a life of love then we must forgive. The apostle Paul writes,

“Love is patient, love is kind. 

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, 

it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil 

but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails....

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. 

But the greatest of these is love.”  

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.

This is being a true Christian. If we are following a lifestyle of love it opens doors for us to reach the world around us for Christ. The writer of Hebrews reminds us,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
So as a Christian reading this the question to you becomes. Are you forgiving people? Are you showing Love not only toward God, but your neighbour and even your enemy.
Please think about it. 

A Note about Christians

A Note about Christians
Jesus said,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Throughout the centuries until the present day there are many who call themselves Christians who are not. It’s easy to call yourself a Christian quote some Bible references and not be a Christian. Going to church or saying you are a Christian does not make you a Christian anymore than standing in a fire station and calling yourself a fireman make you one.
There are many sitting in every church around the world today that are not Christians. There are may preachers, pastors, evangelist, priests and other preaching from the pulpit, be it in the church or in the electronic media that are not Christian.
Evangelical Christians in a nutshell will tell you that in order to be a Christian you must recognize Jesus as the One and Only Son of God, accept Him into your heart and life. That you must confess your sins to God. And accept the Saving Grace God offers you through Jesus.
It’s a simple and true formula. However far too many who call themselves Christians follow the formula only. They fail to let Jesus lead them. They fail to follow the teachings of Christ. They do things that God never intended them to do.
A true Christian is called to love God, their neighbour and even their enemy to do less is to question if the person is a Christian at all.
Jesus when asked,
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  
This is the first and greatest commandment.  
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40
Jesus also said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,...” Matthew 5:43,44
Note Jesus tells Christian to Love God, their neighbour, and even their enemy.
Jesus tells Christians
"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.
The apostle Paul states,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
Christians are not allowed to judge those outside the church that is God’s job. Christians may judge those inside the church but that is to make sure the person is teaching the word of God correctly.
The apostle Paul tells Christians
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  
gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”   Galatians 5:22,23.
Here the apostle Paul tell Christians what attributes a Christian should show in their life. Positive things, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Attributes respected by all people.
James the half brother of Jesus said,
“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?  
Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.  
If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?  
In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 
But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.  
You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. 
You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?” James 2:14-20.
What James is telling Christians is that Christianity while believing the individual is saved by the grace of God. That same faith should result in actions to help the needy and others.
The Writer of Hebrew tells Christians,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
This is what it is to be a true Christian. To be and do less is to question if a person is truly committed to Christ.
Please think about it.

Your Fruits

Your Fruits
The apostle Paul writing to the Galatians wrote,
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  
gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”   Galatians 5:22,23.
Here is a simple thing for Christians to think carefully about. Above I have quoted the apostle Paul writing to the Galatian church. Note what he says are the fruits of the Spirit.

Love

Joy

Peace

Patience

Kindness

Goodness

Faithfulness

Gentleness

Self-control

If the Spirit of God is truly living within you. If God is truly working in you then you should be exhibiting these attributes.
When a person first becomes a Christian I know I seems hard to exhibit such qualities. However if you are truly committed to Christ, if you are truly willing to let God have complete control of your life, then you will start to show more of these attributes.
Christianity, true Christianity, is a faith of Love. Love for God, one’s neighbours and even ones enemies. Christianity practised correctly is not confrontational.
The apostle Peter said,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 
Dear friends,
 I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.  
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:9-12.
The writer of Hebrews states,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
This is what it is to be a true Christian.
Please think about it.

The Christian LIfe

The Christian Life
The writer of Ecclesiastes said,

“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: 

Fear God and keep his commandments, 

for this is the whole  duty  of man. 

For God will bring every deed into judgment, 

including every hidden thing, 

whether it is good or evil.”

Ecclesiastes 12:13,14 .

Christians think about this. Here in North America there are many who call themselves Christians who are not. They have fallen far from the teachings of Christ, who taught love for God, your neighbour and even your enemy. They have mixed politics and their faith and have become confrontational.
As someone once said, “mixing faith and politics is like mixing water and gasoline. The gasoline is unusable, the water undrinkable and the whole mixture explosive.”
To my mind this tells me that the words of Jesus is true when he said,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Unfortunately those outside Christianity see the negative actions of those who claim to be Christian and are not and paint all Christianity with the same brush.
We as Christians I believe must do our best to turn back to the fundamentals of our faith. The love of God, our neighbour and our enemy. We must refrain from judging those around us who are not Christian. The apostle Paul writes,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
Tony Campolo once said,
“Let us preach Christ, let us be faithful to proclaiming the Gospel, but let's leave judgment in the hands of God.” Tony Campolo
I agree with him.
If you consider yourself a Christian then consider your actions. Do you truly love God, your neighbour and your enemy?
The apostle Paul defines love this way,

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy,

 it does not boast, it is not proud.  

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil 

but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails....

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.

The writer of Hebrews tells us,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
We must remember what the writer of Ecclesiastes said,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
God will judge everyone of us. Thus the question becomes will he find you living in peace with all man and living a life of holiness?
Please think about it.

Train a Child

Train a Child

Train a child in the way he should go, 

and when he is old he will not turn from it. 

Proverbs 22:6.

           Joshua Loth Liebman wrote,
“Give your children unconditional love, a love that is not dependent on report cards, clean hands, or popularity.  Give your children a sense of your whole-hearted acceptance, acceptance of their human frailties as well as their abilities and virtues.  Give your children your permission to grow up to make their own lives independent of you.  Give them a sense of truth; make them aware of themselves as citizens of a universe in which there are many obstacles as well as fulfillments.  
Bestow upon your child the blessings of your faith.  These are the laws of honouring your son and your daughter.  Out of these laws will be built the Declaration of Independence for the coming generation, a spiritual and emotional independence that, in turn, will make the world free, democratic, safe, creative”.   Joshua Loth Liebman.
If you are a Christian with children reading this, how are you bringing them up? Are you giving them the blessings of your faith. Are you teaching them what it is to be a Christian in word and in deed?
I have been in Christian service now for over forty years now. I’ve witnessed on the street. I have been a Sunday school teacher, a youth leader and at this writing I am the adult midweek Bible study leader at my church.
Over those years I’ve seen good things and bad things happen in the church. One of the things however that stands out is the way Christians bring up their children.
Sadly many force their faith on their children. They drag them to church and use every opportunity they have to, if you will, hit their children over the head with the bible. They use it to correct their children by quoting scripture.
They make Christianity out to be a lot of do’s and do not’s.
I have found this is not the right way to present the gospel message to your children. Most rebel and turn away from the faith of their parents.
Others come to see the church as a youth social club. We always use to say that the hardest teenagers to reach are those who grew up in the church. They “speak church speak”. They know what to say and when to say it. They know how they are expected to act and do it. Many even have a fair, if not very good knowledge of the scriptures. Yet they have not made a personal commitment to Christ.
As Christian parents we need to point our Children to Christ by living our faith in front of them. Francis of Assisi said,
Francis of Assisi wrote,

“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”

He also said,

“The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today” 

 Francis of Assisi.

Believe me our children do see our unspoken sermons. And most of the times they will follow what is said. They follow our example.
It is important to teach in word and deed our faith to our children, to let them see it is a faith worth living.
Please think about it.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving

“Worship the LORD with gladness; 

come before him with joyful songs. 

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, 

and we are his; we are his people, 

the sheep of his pasture. 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving 

and his courts with praise;

 give thanks to him and praise his name. 

For the LORD is good 

and his love endures forever; 

his faithfulness continues 

through all generations.” 

Psalm 100:2-5

Today is the Thanksgiving holiday here in Canada. A time when we give thanks for all we have.
As a Christian I praise God for all He has done for me. My life has not been a constant high. Even the American Evangelist Billy Graham said,
“The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, 'O God, forgive me,' or 'Help me.'” Billy Graham.
Still in Good times and in bad times God has always been there for me. Helping me thorough the bad times. Giving me peace knowing that no matter what I am going thorough He is with me.
I as a Christian can honestly say with the Psalmist,

“The LORD is my shepherd, 

I shall not be in want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures, 

he leads me beside quiet waters, 

he restores my soul. 

He guides me in paths of righteousness 

for his name’s sake. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

 I will fear no evil, for you are with me; 

your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. 

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, 

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” 

Psalm 23

Can you?
Please think about it.