Be Holy

Be Holy
The apostle Peter writes,
"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.
Charles H. Spurgeon said,
"O Christian people, be holy, for Christ is holy. Do not pollute that holy Name wherewith you are named. Let your family life, your personal life, your business life, be as holy as Christ your Lord would have it to be."  Charles H. Spurgeon.
Christianity is a way of life, something, sadly, many claiming to be Christians here in North America where I live forget.
Many calling themselves Christians in this day and age act no different from the world around them. Billy Graham the American evangelist was right when he said,
"Those outside the church expect followers of Christ to live differently, yet today many in church are chasing after the world - not to win them, but to be like them."Billy Graham.
Today we have Christian groups that are selling lotions, potions, and other things that are nothing more than worldly lotions and potions with Christian names. Within the Christian world there are as many “how too” books as there are in the secular world if not more all giving the same message. Many Christians mix their faith with politics. Something Jesus and the apostles never did.
Sadly Christians are known for what they are against, rather than for the Love of Christ they are suppose to be showing to the world.
If ever there was a need for the church here in North America to turn back to the Bible and the teachings of Christ it is now.
Christians have been given a sacred trust. 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.
Those teachings included unconditional love for God, neighbours, and even enemies.
Thus my question to you. If you claim to be a Christian, a true believer in Christ Jesus, are you showing the unconditional love of God to all you come in contact with?
Please think about it.

Are you?

Are you?
The apostle Paul writes
“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  
“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:5,6.
Anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ Jesus needs to be wise, especially when dealing with those outside our faith. What we say and do has potentially eternal consequences. What we say and do can bring people to Christ or push them away.
In proverbs we read,

"Reckless words pierce like a sword, 

but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

                                                             Proverbs 12:18.

As Christians we need to be cautious about what we say. Words quite often hurt more than any physical pain. Our words must bring healing to those around us.

When dealing with others be they from outside our faith or fellow believers in Christ Jesus, we should always remember what Jesus 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.

Are you?
Please think about it.

Peter's call

Peter's Call
The apostle Peter writes,
"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.
Peter makes it clear that those who believe in Christ Jesus are.
 “...a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation , a people belonging to God,”
We are a people who are to
“declare the praises of him (Jesus) who called out of darkness into his wonderful light.” 
Peter reminds us that we are
“aliens and strangers in the world” 
“to abstain from sinful desires,”
He tells us to,
“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.”
Thus my question to anyone reading this who claims to be a Christian is are you doing what the apostle Peter is telling us to do?
Please think about it.

In Spirit and in Truth

In spirit and in truth
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.
I live in North America so I can only talk about the Church here in Canada and the United States. Here, particularly in the United States Christianity is part of the culture. Many people go to church because that is what you do on Sunday. Church in many cases is a social club. A place of entertainment where you can be with friends.
There are also many claims made by preachers, evangelist and those sitting in the pew with respect to the driving out of demons, and the performing of miracles. How true these claims are is of no importance when someone stands before God to be judged. They are of no importance because God knows the truth.
What God wants from his followers is someone who is someone who is worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. Jesus speaking to the Samaritan woman said,
“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.”John 4:23-24.
Thus my question to anyone who claims to be a Christian, a follower of Christ Jesus is; Are you truly worshipping God in Spirit and in Truth?
Please think about it.

To Believers in Christ

To believers in Christ
The Psalmist wrote,

“Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; 

it is fitting for the upright to praise him. 

Praise the LORD with the harp; 

make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. 

Sing to him a new song; 

play skillfully, and shout for joy.” 

                                       Psalm 33:1-3

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

So my question to you who claims to be a follower of Christ Jesus. A believer in God. Out of the 86,400 seconds God has given you to day have you used even one of them to thank and praise Him?
Please think about it.

It seems Outrageous

It seems Outrageous
In the gospel of John we read,
"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.
Those words written by the apostle John are either the truth, or one of the greatest lies in all of history. Those words tell us that the God that created the heavens and the earth entered the very thing he created. God became man. Jesus Christ is God in bodily form.
The apostle Paul wrote,

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

                                                                                  Colossians 2:9

The writer of Hebrews wrote,
“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 1:3.
It these words are wrong. Then they are of no consequence as C. S. Lewis said,
     "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.
So my question to you, the reader.
Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God, God incarnate or not?
Please before you give your answer at least read the New Testament.
Please think about it.

God Exists

God exists
In the book of Genesis we read,

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

                                                                                    Genesis 1:1.

The Bible does not debate the existence of God. It was written to believers and believers need no convincing when it comes to the existence of God.
The Bible does however say,

"The heavens declare the glory of God; 

the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 

Day after day they pour forth speech; 

night after night they display knowledge. 

There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard." 

                                                                                         Psalm 19:1-3

Stephen Hawking one of the greatest minds of the twentieth century is quoted as saying,
"It would be very difficult to explain why the universe should have begun in just this way, except as the act of a God who intended to create beings like us,"Stephen Hawking.
Dr. Arno Penzias 1978 Nobel Prize winner in Physics
"Astronomy leads us to a unique event, a universe which was created out of nothing, one with a very delicate balance needed to provide exactly the conditions required to permit life and one which has an underlying (one might say ‘supernatural') plan." Dr. Arno Penzias.
Louis Pasteur said,
"A bit of science distances one from God, but much science nears one to Him... The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed by the work of the Creator" Louis Pasteur. 
All of that being said belief in God is an act of faith. The writer of Hebrews telling us,

"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.

Having faith in anything is very hard for many people. Yet scientist do it all the time. They look into the universe and theorise that something exists or is happening that they at that moment can’t really see. Then go on to believe what they have theorised until it is proved or disproved by scientific observation. Many scientist like Albert Einstein never lived to see their theories proved yet they believed in them.
So it is with those of us who believe in God. We have read the Bible, and looked around us and are sure God exists and if He doesn’t we have lost nothing. As Blaise Pascal wrote,
“Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists.” Blaise Pascal.
Please think about it. 

Do you believe this?

Do you believe this?

The psalmist states,

"I wait for the LORD, 

my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope." 

                                                             Psalm 130:5.

Is your hope in the Lord?
The Prophet Isaiah wrote,

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? 

The Lord is everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. 

He will not grow tiered or weary, 

and his understanding no one can fathom. 

He give strength to the weary and increase the power of the weak. 

Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall;

 but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. 

They will soar on wings like eagles;

 they will run and not grow weary 

they will walk and not faint." 

                                         Isaiah 40: 28-31.

If you are truly a Christian, a believer in Christ Jesus, do you believe this?
Please think about it.

Warning

Warning
In the book of Obadiah we read,
“The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your head.” Obadiah 1:15.
Here is a warning to all people presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, politicians, religious leaders, and the average person. “Your deeds will return upon your head”
Jesus 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.
You could take Matthew 7:12 this way. If you are harming others then it could be assumed you want others to harm you. If you are doing anything bad to others, then it could be interpreted that you want bad things to happen to you. As Obadiah said, “...As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your head”
Jesus told this parable within which is a warning. He said,
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.  
At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores  and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.  
In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.  
So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ 
“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.  
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ Luke 16:19-26.
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 neighbour as yourself.'  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:36-40
Matthew also recording Jesus as saying,
"You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.'  
      But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,..." Matthew 5:43,44.
So if you consider yourself a Christian are you doing to others what you would have others do to you?
When you stand before God what will He say to you?
Please think about it.

No other gods

No other gods
In the book of Exodus we read,
"You shall have no other gods before me."Exodus 20:3.
This verse in Exodus is perhaps the most forgotten verse in the Bible here in North America.
North America is full of God’s. God’s even those calling themselves Christians worship. God’s like consumerism, money, political parties and political leaders. Even Christian leaders or men and women calling themselves Christian leaders.
 In the United States many even put the constitution and the bill of rights ahead of or equal to God. This should not be so.
While Christians in the United states have wonderful freedoms, and the United States constitution and bill of rights are noble documents. They are not equal to the Bible in any way. And the Bible never promised Christians any form of rights, within any nation or society on earth.
  If you consider yourself a Christian a true follower of Christ Jesus, you need to look at what you worship. At what you put ahead of God or equal to Him.
Jesus said,
"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.  
God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:23-24.
So my questions to you if you claim to be a Christian is;
1/ Do you put anything ahead of God?
2/ Do you truly worship God in Spirit and in truth?
Please think about it.

A Religious Effigy

A religious Effigy
Jesus speaking to his followers said,
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 
You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.  
Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven Matthew 5:13-16.
Some time ago I came across a book entitled "Essentials in Christian Faith" by John B. Harrington, published in 1958, could have been written yesterday. It opens with this quote from Paul Gallico in Esquire Magazine in 1948:
"A writer in a popular magazine has written the following words; 'We are all, if you will pardon the expression, Headed for Hell in a handbarrow. If, ever the people of the world stood in need of a spiritual revival, it is now. We are beginning to poison the face of the earth with our miserable presence. The brakes are off. The cart of the world is sliding down the way greased with hatred, ambition, lies, self-seeking and avarice toward the pit.'"
Harrington notes that Gallico makes no pretense of being "a religious man" noting that "...for him it is precisely religion in its organized forms which has in part caused the situation he deplores. He is careful to state that it is not "religion" for which he is looking. For in his opinion, religion throughout the history of our culture has advanced its control over human beings by the investment of bigotry and persecution. 
Yet, out of despair over the current human situation he says; ‘The voice for which my heavy spirit is yearning must reach us all... For if it is not heard, we are lost. Something beyond our material enrichment and lust for power and position, some rewards founded on good will, selflessness, and the innate dignity of the human spirit...honour, humility, decency courage."
If Paul Gallico is right and I believe he is, mankind is considerably nearer the bottom of that slope than he was in 1948. Moreover at the bottom of that slope is a very deep lake filled with fire and brimstone.
The world cannot go on the way it is.
Never in the history of human kind as there been a greater need for the salvation that comes through Christ Jesus. Sadly however at least where I live here in North America the Church it seems has become a religious effigy of what it should be. The salt has lost its saltiness, the light is under the bowl and people are potentially going to hell because of it.
Sadly many in society to day think little about God and the salvation offered by Christ Jesus. Many in our society see what the apostle Paul saw when he wrote to Timothy.
"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God" 2 Timothy 3:1-4.
Those outside the church see a church looking inward. A Church that passes judgement on them without getting to know them.
Thus my question to you. If you consider yourself a Christian, a true believer in Christ Jesus. Have you become a religious effigy of what a Christian should be. Or are you presenting the Gospel of Christ, the hope of mankind, with love and understanding to others.
Please think about it.

God's word or yourself?

God’s word or yourself?
The Apostle Paul writes,
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2Corinthians 5:17.
Are you a new creation?
Billy Graham the American evangelist in a reference to Christ’ disciples said, 
"The men who followed Him (Christ), were unique in their generation. They turned the world upside down because their hearts had been turned right side up. The world has never been the same." Billy Graham.
If you claim to be a follower of Christ Jesus is your life turned right side up? OR are you mixing your old life and the things of this world with the teachings of Jesus?
The more I look at people who are claiming to be Christians here in North America, be they in the pulpit, in the media or in the pew, I sadly see a mixing of secularism and Christianity. This is true of all denominations.
Even those claiming to be evangelical fundamentalist are mixing their faith, their politics and secular teachings. Twisting God’s word to conform to their beliefs. Believing only what they want to believe. Making God’s word of little or no effect. This is something the apostle Paul warned about when he wrote,
"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.
St. Augustine wrote,

“If you believe what you like in the gospels, 

and reject what you don't like,

 it is not the gospel you believe,

 but yourself.” 

                                   St Augustine.

So if you claim to be a Christian a follower of Christ Jesus, are you believing the Bible or only what you what to believe in it?
Please think about it.