Who is Jesus

Who is Jesus
John’s gospel records this conversation between Jesus and 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?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
Matthews gospel records this conversation between Peter and Jesus,
"When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”Matthew 16:13-16.
For me a Christian for over forty years now I believe this is the most important question anyone who hears about Jesus must answer.
C. S. Lewis writing about Jesus in his book Mere Christianity makes this point,
“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
I agree with Lewis. Do you?
Please think about it.

Sometimes no matter what

Sometimes no matter what
Jesus said,
He who has ears, let him hear.
“To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 
“ ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’  
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’  
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.” ’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”Matthew 11:15-19.
Jesus here speaking to the criticism of the religious leaders of the day compares himself with John the Baptist. John and Jesus were quite different in their styles of preaching.
John wore clothing made of camel hair with a leather belt, and ate locust and wild honey. He called people to repent and be baptized.
By contrast Jesus was the norm for the day. He dressed normally, attended parties and weddings. Jesus also called people to repentance while at the same time sitting down with anyone who would listen to him.
Both men were doing the will of God but it was a no win situation with respect to the religious authorities of the day. As Jesus put it,
“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”“.
From this example it is clear that sometimes no matter how you present the message of salvation you will be criticized.
The same is true today as it was in the day of Jesus and John.
Today we have a myriad of churches with different styles and ways of presenting the gospel yet people will not even consider the message of Christ.
The key for the believer in Christ however is this. To do what 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.
We are to present the gospel of Christ in love. In whatever way we can. It is then up to the believer to do with it as he or she wishes.
Are you?
Please think about it.

An Apostles Sermon

An Apostles Sermon
The apostle Paul while in Athens spoke a sermon that is as relevant today as it was back then. The book of acts records,
“So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.  
A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.   Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?  
You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean.”  
(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.) 
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.  
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.  
And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.  
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.  
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.  
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” 
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”  
At that, Paul left the Council.  
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others”Acts 17:17-34.
The reactions of the Athenians is the same cross section of reactions all people have when confronted with Jesus. Some sneer and dismiss what is being said as nonsense, some want to hear more and some believe.
So the question becomes which group do you fit into?
Please think about it.

Pure Faith

Pure Faith
The gospel of James states,
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27.
If there is one thing that upsets me is it’s when people calling themselves Christian do things that are morally and spiritually wrong.
Mahatma Gandhi said,

“Jesus is ideal and wonderful, 

but you Christians 

- you are not like him.”

                                  Mahatma Gandhi.

Gandhi seen the worst in man during British colonial rule in India. He seen men that claimed to be Christians do atrocious things to people.
As I write this Canada is coming to grips with it’s history of treating native children atrociously in residential schools. Many of the atrocities done by people calling themselves Christians.
Such atrocities done in the name of Christ did not start in the nineteenth or twentieth centuries. In centuries past the Crusaders supposedly doing the will of God, from all over the world slaughtered thousands.
Today people calling themselves Christians are at the very least speaking harshly against people of other faiths and ways of life.
Such people to my mind are not Christians. If they are, they are by the slimmest of margins and are very misguided.
Harper Lee in her book To Kill a Mocking bird said,
“Sometimes the Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whisky bottle in the hand of (another)...” Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird.
Jesus made things clear when it comes to who is a Christian when he said,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.  
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?  
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 
“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 7:15-23.
We as true believers in Jesus Christ need to be speaking out against people who are not presenting the word of God correctly. We need to be correcting them. Following the command of the Apostle Paul who said,
The apostle Paul wrote,
“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.” 1Corinthians 5:12,13
We need to be doing this while at the same time showing the love of God to those around us be they Christians or not.
We need to be following the example of Jesus, remembering His words when he said,
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” Matthew 7:12.
We need to remember the words of 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.” John 3:16,17
  Please think about it.

Helping the Poor

Helping the poor
The book of Leviticus tells us.
“ ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.  
Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 19: 9,10.
God cares for everyone. Even in ancient times when there was no social welfare state God provided. He called on farmers not to go over their vineyards a second time. He tells them not to reap to the very edges of their field. They were to leave them for the poor.
Time and time again we see throughout scripture God tells us to look after our fellow man.
The apostle Paul tells us,
“Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” Romans 12:13.
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.
These truths are universal be you a believer in Christ or not. It is the humane thing to do.
It is something we must impress on our children.
It is something we must insist our Governments do. After all what better way to spend the taxes people give the government than on the people themselves.
Jesus made a very important statement when He said,
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” Matthew 7:12.
Please think about it.

Warning to the Wealthy

Warning to the Wealthy
The Epistle of James states,
“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you.  Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes.   Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.  
Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty.  
You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter.  
You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.” James 5:1-6.
Here is a warning to the wealthy about their actions.
Now lets make it clear here the apostle Paul states,
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 1 Timothy 6:10.
Note it is the love of money that can cause problems. Money is an inanimate object it is neither good nor evil in and of itself. It is how it is used that cause the problem.
The warning James is making here is to tell the wealthy to live and use your wealth in a moral way. Not to take advantage of those who work for you or come in contact with you.
Many years ago when I was considering going into business a very wise person told me,
    “when you go into business make sure you can pay those who work for you a living wage. Not the minimum wage.”
 He noted the minimum wage was only put in place because some in the business owners would not without being forced pay even a subsistence wage which is what my friend believed minimum wage to be.
He noted again wisely that it was those who worked for the business owner who were the ones who helped make the business owner wealthy. That they should be rewarded for their labours even if it meant earning a little less profit.
James is telling all wealthy believers in Christ and for that matter everyone to treat their employees in a moral and ethical way.
This is what James is telling believers. He is warning them that while earthly judges may not judge them God will.
Please think about it.

You are a mist

You are a mist.
The Epistle of James notes

“Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. 

What is your life? 

You are a mist that appears for a little while 

and then vanishes.”

                                     James 4:14

Isaiah the Prophet stated,

“A voice says, “Cry out.”

 And I said, “What shall I cry?” 

“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall,

 because the breath of the LORD blows on them. 

Surely the people are grass. 

The grass withers and the flowers fall, 

but the word of our God stands forever.” 

                                                    Isaiah 40:6-8.

If you think about it what James is saying is true. We are a mist. We are like the prophet Isaiah said grass. All the glory of mankind is like the flower of the field.
We like grass eventually wither and all our accomplishments all our glory falls, fades away to nothing.
I am told most people are born die and conduct all their lives within fifty to a hundred kilometres of where they are born. When they pass away most are commemorated with is a small grave plot in a cemetery. Their names and accomplishments eventually fading from living memory.
Our lives however do not end when our physical body dies. We continue on throughout eternity. Where we will spend that eternity however is up to us in this life.
The American evangelist Tony Campolo once noted,
“When you were born, you cried and everybody else was happy. The only question that matters is this - when you die, will you be happy when everybody else is crying?” Tony Campolo.
If Christians are correct, and I as a Christian believe we are, we get to heaven through belief in Jesus Christ who is God incarnate.
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,
As Christians we believe what the apostle John quotes Jesus as saying,
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6.
Christians believe what the writer of Hebrews tells us,
“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.
If what we as Christians believe is not true we have nothing to fear with respect to eternity. For if God does not exist we have simply lived a good life.
If on the other hand we are right then the implications for those who do not believe have eternal implications.
Please think about it.

Include God

Include God
“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  
Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  
Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”  
As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.  
Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” James 4:13-17.
The letter of James like all of the Bible is written to believers. And believers in their planning should include God. As James notes we should be saying,
“If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”  
We should not be bragging about our plans because even the best laid plans of man can fall apart in an instant. We do not know what the day or even the next hour brings. That is why we should not brag.
Bragging about how much money or profit we are going to make according to James is evil. If we boast it should be in the name of the Lord.
We must remember it is the Lord who made us. That it is He who should be directing our paths in all that we do.
If you consider yourself a believer in Christ Jesus do you include the Lord in all that you do?
Please think about it.

Of Christians and Judgement

Of Christians and Judgement
The epistle of James records,
“Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.  
There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbour?” James 4:11,12.
These words echo the words of Jesus and the apostle Paul.
Jesus said,
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 wrote,
“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.
We as believers in Christ have no right to judge others especially when it comes to where a person will spend eternity.
The only people we have the right to judge are those who claim to be Christians, and then only to ensure that they are teaching the word of God correctly.
Jesus told us clearly,

“So in everything, 

do to others 

what you would have them do to you, 

for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” 

                                                          Matthew 7:12.

So if you do not want people judging you. You should not judge others.
Please think about it.

Pharisee of Tax Collector?

Pharisee or Tax collector?
The Epistle of James states,

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. 

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  

Come near to God 

and he will come near to you. 

Wash your hands, you sinners, 

and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  

Grieve, mourn and wail.

 Change your laughter to mourning 

and your joy to gloom.  

Humble yourselves before the Lord, 

and he will lift you up.” 

                                                 James 4:7-10.

If you claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ do you truly humble yourself before Him?
James uses strong words here. He tells sinners to wash their hands of their sins. To purify their hearts. He then states, Grieve, mourn, wail. Change your laughter to mourning you joy to gloom. To truly humble yourself before God.
I think we as followers in Christ Jesus are quite often too casual about our salvation. We say we are saved yet we all sin and fall short of what God wants for our lives from time to time.
It is in those times when we sin that we need to grieve and wail. We need to go to our knees and say “O Lord forgive me.”
Luke’s Gospel records,
“To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable:  
“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  
The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.  
I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 
“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 
“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” 
Luke 18:9-14.
In this scenario who are you, the Pharisee or the Tax collector.
Please think about it.

Peace Makers

Peace makers
James the half brother of Jesus writes,

“Peacemakers who sow in peace

 raise a harvest of righteousness.”

                                         James 3:18.

The apostle Paul writes,

“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, 

live at peace with everyone.” 

                                                                                 Romans 12:18
To Titus Paul writes,
“Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good,  to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.” Titus 3:1,2.
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.
Being at Peace with God and with man is a major part of being a believer in Christ. When we are living peaceably with those around us it is much easier to present the gospel message.
Christianity is not a confrontational faith. While Jesus spoke against some of the practices of the Jewish leaders of his day. He a Jew had that right.
Jesus however never spoke against the secular Roman authorities or anyone outside his faith, nor did his disciples.
Jesus never raised a sword in anger. He lived at peace with those around him.
Thus if we claim to be followers of Jesus we must do the same.
Are you living at peace with those around you?
Please think about it. 

Your Tongue

Your tongue
James the half brother of Jesus writes,
“Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.  
We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. 
When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.  
Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.  
Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.  
The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 
All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man,  but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  
Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.  James 3:1-10.
Here James gives the believer in Jesus words of advice and warning.
 “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”
To be a teacher of the gospel you need to be careful. People look up to teachers of the gospel. That’s why it is important that a teacher make certain what they are teaching is true.
Others see Jesus through the lense of a believers life. It is doubly so if they know the person is a teacher of the gospel.
Over the centuries many people have been led astray by false teachers. The apostle Paul even warns,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4
That is why we as individual believers in Christ Jesus need to read the Bible for ourselves and get to know what it says.
The other point James makes here is, watch what you say. Guard your tongue.
James noting “Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.”
An untamed tongue can cause a lot of grief. What people say can quite literally change their lives. James notes,
“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  
Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.” 
Our tongue can be our worst nightmare. If we do not tame it, it can destroy others and ourselves. We must be cautious about what we say. It is better to say nothing than to say something you might regret.
The writer of Proverbs tells us,

“Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,

 and discerning if he holds his tongue.” 

                                                    Proverbs 17:28.

Please think about it.