Show me

  Show me

The Psalmist writes,

“Show me your ways, O LORD,

 teach me your paths; 

guide me in your truth 

and teach me, 

for you are God my Saviour, 

and my hope is in you all day long.” 

                                               Psalm 25:4,5.

If you claim to be a Christian, a true follower of Jesus Christ, is this your prayer? 

Do you long for God to show you His ways? 

Do you long for God to teach you His truths?

This should be your prayer if you truly love God. Every Christian needs to not just read the Bible but study it carefully and prayerfully. All the time asking God to reveal His truths to you. For it is only by doing so that we will truly know the will of God for our lives.

Please think about it.

Don't mix it

  Don’t Mix it

In Matthews gospel we read Jesus saying,

"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.

In this blog I want to address Christians and particularly those calling themselves Evangelical Christians here in North America where I live.

In Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus gives the divine commission. Telling us to go into all the world and make disciples.

 Notice Jesus didn’t say get involved in politics or trying to legislate morality. Sadly throughout the years Evangelical Christians particularly in the United States have publicly backed political parties and individual politicians. Sadly many calling themselves Christians have tried to legislate morality.

As good as Christian morality is we should not be trying to force our morality on others. 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.

Put this way Jesus’ words here in Matthew 7:12 means;

If you should not be trying to restrict the rights of others or impose your morality on others because in doing so you are saying they can try and do that to you.

When it comes to politics no matter how good a politician or political party may look they change over time and some even lie. Thus by supporting them we run the risk of bringing the words of Christ into disrepute. Whether we like it or not quite often are judged by the company we keep.

As Christians, as believers in Christ Jesus we must strive to honour God in word and deed. We must strive to present the word of God in its purest form never mixing it with things of this world.

Please think about it.

F. A. I. T. H.?

 F. A. I. T. H.?

In the book of Mark we read 

“Then he (Jesus) called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Mark 8:34.

There was at one time a saying among Christians that went like this

F. A. I. T. H. 

Forsaking 

All             

I               

Take         

Him.        

If you consider yourself a Christian are you willing to give everything up to follow Jesus? That’s not to say Jesus will ask you to give up everything to follow him but He may.

Think about your life and all you have materially. Are you willing to give your material wealth to follow Christ?

Think, (especially if you live in the western democracies), think about your freedoms. Are you willing to give up your freedom to follow Christ? Are you willing to die for Christ?

These are big questions. Questions many Christians in the world have said yes to. 

Around the world today there are tens of thousands of Christians in prison, being attacked or socially excluded because they chose to follow Christ.

So I ask you if you live in North America or in the western democracies with all the freedoms we enjoy, would you be willing to give all of those freedoms up to follow Christ?

Please think about it.

By Works

 By Works

The apostle John writes,

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  

Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”  1 John 3:16-18.

As Christians. As believers in Christ Jesus this is how we should show love in a practical way. By helping those in need. 

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.

Thus my question to you; If you consider yourself a Christian, are you showing your faith in Christ, your love for others and for God by your actions?

Please think about it.

Inscribed on your heart

  Inscribed on your heart

In the book of Proverbs we read,

"Let love and faithfulness never leave you;

 bind them around your neck, 

write them on the tablet of your heart. 

Then you will win favour and a good name

 in the sight of God and man."

                                                     Proverbs 3:3,4.

Two things here God asks us to do;

Let love and faithfulness never leave us.

The results of our loving and faithfulness are;

We will win favour and a good name in the sight of God and man.

Thus my questions to you;

Are you showing unconditional love to those around you?

Are you faithful at all times to God?

Are love and faithfulness truly inscribed on your heart?

Please think about it.

To be effective soul winners

  To be effective soul winners.

In the gospel of Luke we read Jesus saying,

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.  

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." 

He also told them this parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit?  

A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. 

"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?  

How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Luke 6:37-42.

Here Jesus makes it simple we are not to judge others. That we should not look at the faults of others. Instead we should look at our own faults.

Pointing out the faults of others will not generally win us any accolades. It may even push others away from us. After all we wouldn’t want people pointing out our faults.

It is not our job to point out the faults of others. Our job is to present the salvation message to those around us, then let God do the rest.

Billy Graham the American evangelist wisely said,

“It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God's job to judge

 and my job to love,” 

                                           Billy Graham  

To be effective soul winners for Christ we must remember the words of Jesus who 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.

Are you a new creation?

 Are you a new creation?

The apostle Paul writes,

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"  2 Corinthians 5:17.

If someone truly give their life to Christ I truly believe their life will change. The rate of change will vary from person to person but anyone who puts their trust wholly in God will inevitably change to exhibit the characteristics of God.

Those Characteristics called by the apostle Paul the fruit of the spirit being,

“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.

That being said we are all human and slip from time to time.

The American evangelist, the late 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.

All true Christians I believe experience what Billy Graham is saying from time to time. All who truly believe in Christ Jesus will have to from time to time go to God with tears in our eyes and say ‘O God forgive me’ ‘help me.’

Upon hearing those prayers I truly believe that God will answer them and give strength and comfort to those who say them sincerely.

Thus my question to you dear reader; have you placed your trust in Christ Jesus? Are you a new creation?

Are you showing the fruit of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control?

Please think about it.

Where is your trust?

  Where is your trust?

The Psalmist writes,

"God is our refuge and strength, 

an ever-present help in trouble" 

                                             Psalm 46:1.

When you get in trouble, when you are having problems in your life, where does your strength come from? Does it come from God or the things of this world?

Matthews gospel records this interaction between Jesus and a young man,

"Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments." 

"Which ones?" the man inquired. Jesus replied, " ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony,  honour your father and mother,' and ‘love your neighbour as yourself.''" 

"All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?" 

Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth." Matthew 19:16-22.

Now there’s nothing wrong with having great wealth. The problem comes when we put our trust in that wealth ahead of God. 

The apostle Paul wrote,

"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.

Notice here the apostle Paul here says “for the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.”

Money in and of itself is neither good nor bad. Its what we do with it and how much value we place on it in our life that can cause problems.

Our trust must always be in the Lord God Almighty. Nothing should come before Him.

So where is your trust?

Please think about it.

Have you?

  Have you?

The Psalmist writes,

"Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Saviour, and my hope is in you all day long." Psalm 25:4,5.

Is this your prayer? Do you ask God to show you His ways? To guide you in His paths?

Is God truly your Saviour?

When I ask is God your Saviour I’m not asking have you prayed the sinners prayer. 

The Late evangelist Leonard Ravenhill said,

“The sinners prayer has sent more people to hell than all the bars in” America Leonard Ravenhill.

The sinners prayer can give a false sense of security. 

What I’m asking you here is; if you were to die today would God accept you into heaven? 

Are you absolutely certain that you will go to heaven?

We all have doubts from time to time as to whether we are good enough to go to heaven. We all question our faith in Christ Jesus. That can be a good thing if it spurs us on to read the Bible, pray and draw closer to God.

The apostle Paul tells us,

"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."  

For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,  for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” Romans 10:9-13.

Thus my question to you; Do you truly believe in Jesus Christ? Have you called on the name of the Lord?

Please think about it.

About Matthew 7:22

  About Matthew 7:22

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

Put this way 

in the year 2021 this means,

If you are

demonstrating against anyone. 

You are telling them 

they can demonstrate against you.

If you are 

speaking out and trying to restrict the rights of others 

given to them by the lawfully elected government.

You are telling others 

they can try to restrict your rights.

If you are 

imposing your morals however good they may be on others.

You are telling them 

they can impose their morals on you, even if they are not as good as yours.

If you are 

trying to impose your faith on others rather than presenting your faith.

You are telling others 

they can impose their faith on you.

If you are

judging others.

You are telling others 

they can judge you in the same way.

If you 

are telling the world you are a Christian

You should be telling the world 

I love you as Jesus loves you,...

unconditionally.

Please think about it.

Would you?

  Would you?

In the book of James we read,

“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgement!” James 2:12, 13.

Do you show mercy to those around you to those you disagree with be it because of their faith, their lifestyle or other things?

You should James tell us we should. He also warns,

“...judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful.”

This echos the warning of Jesus who 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.

So the question I would ask you is; When you stand before God will you be willing to let God judge you in the same way you judged others? 

Would you be willing to let God show to you the same mercy you showed towards others?

Please think about it.

Flee evil Pursue righteousness

  Flee evil, Pursue righteousness 

The apostle Paul states,

“Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” 2 Timothy 2:22.

I think Paul's word cannot be any clearer. We are to flee evil and pursue righteousness. We cannot support anything or anyone that is evil. 

We must constantly pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, calling on the Lord with a pure heart.

Question: Are you doing this?

Please think about it.