Is it foolishness?

 Is it foolishness?

The apostle Paul writes,

"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.     Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!  

For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!  

Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation" Romans 5:6-11.

Christians believe that we cannot live a good enough life to get to heaven. God understood this after all God set the standard. 

That being said Jesus told us,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already.” John 3:16,17.

Jesus came into this world to show in human terms how far God would go to reconcile man to himself. Jesus paid the price for all that we have ever done wrong by dying on the cross.

I know it sounds like foolishness even the apostle Paul noted,

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." 1 Corinthians 1:18.

That being said; If the message of the cross. The message of Jesus’ death and resurrection is foolishness then those who hear of Jesus have nothing to fear. On the other hand however if it is true... those who do not believe in Jesus need to the think very carefully about what they believe.

Please think about it.

Hope and Peace

  Hope and Peace

The apostle Paul writes,

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  

  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:1-5.

God dose not promise us a life without problems, but He dose offer us hope in all situations. As someone has said “Hope is not that everything will work out well but that God has everything under control.”

As believers in Christ Jesus we have peace knowing that Christ is with us in our journey through this life no matter how easy of tough that journey may be. 

At the same time should we for whatever reason die we have peace in the knowledge that we will pass from this life into the arms of God.

Thus the question remain; 

Is your hope in Christ Jesus? 

Do you have peace in your heart?

Please think about it.

If you were the only one

  If we were the only one

The apostle Paul writes,

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

C. S. Lewis noted,

“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.

That, if C. S. Lewis is correct, and I believe he is, means Jesus would have died for you if you were the only person in need of forgiveness of sin.

Thus my question to you is, do you believe Jesus is the Son of God, Saviour of all who believe in Him. 

The apostle Paul states,

"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

The apostle John states,

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”1John 1:9.

Sinning is falling short of God’s ideal for your life. It’s doing things contrary to God’s commands. We all sin and sin separates us from God. The good news is Christ came to this world to show in human terms how far God would go to bring us back into a right relationship with him.

The apostle Paul stating,

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8.

Later in that same letter to the Romans and through them to us the apostle Paul notes,

"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.

If you have never called on the name of the Lord and confessed you sins directly to Him, will you take some time now to do so?

The choice is yours. God will never impose Himself on you.

So Please at least think about giving your life to God today because even if you were the only person in the world ever to sin, (and you are not) Christ would have died for your sins.

Please think about it.

A question for the ages

  A question for the ages.

In John’s gospel we read,

"Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?' Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.' Pilate asked him, ‘What is truth?'" John 18:37-38.

Jesus never denied who He was even when faced with death. Prompting the Roman governor to ask a question that has continued through the ages “What is truth?”.

Is Jesus the Son of God, the Saviour of all who would believe in Him? Through the ages Jesus has been called everything from a good man to myth. 

Today no credible historian would call Jesus a myth. That being said many today simply regard Him as a good man.

When it comes to Jesus C. S. Lewis in his book Mere Christianity said it best when he wrote,

“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.

So who do you think Jesus is?

Please think carefully about it.

Why do you believe what you believe?

   Why do you believe what you believe?

The apostle Paul writing to Timothy said,

“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.

I was once told “listen not only to those who agree with you but to those who disagree with you.”

When it comes to being a Christian we need to know what we believe and why we believe it. Not only that we should not dismiss out of hand those claim to be Christians and disagree with us. We should be asking the question why do those with whom we disagree believe what they do.

Is it their misinterpretation of scripture? Or, Are we misinterpreting Scripture?

Are they being mislead by the pastors, evangelist and teachers they listen too. Or, are we?

Here in North America where I live, we have laws that protect freedom of speech. Thus everyone has the right to express their own opinion provided it does not hurt someone else.

In such an environment it is easy for someone to be turned away from the true faith. As a result we as true believers in Christ Jesus need to study the Bible carefully both by ourselves and under the tutorage of a good pastor and teacher. While at the same time questioning what we are being taught. Asking questions of those who are teaching us.

Always remember a good and honest teacher, or preacher will give you direct answers to your questions.

So, my question to you is. Why do you believe what you believe?

Please think about it.

The Poor and the Christian

  The Poor and the Christian

In the book of James we read,

"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.  

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?...  

As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead"James 2:14-20, 26.

The Jews have a concept known as “Tzedakah”. It is something I believe Christians need to at least consider. 

I got the following definition of Tzedakah from a Jewish website it states, 

"Tzedakah is the Hebrew word for acts that we call charity in English: giving assistance and money to the poor and needy or to other worthy causes. However the nature of tzedakah is very different from the idea of charity. The word "charity suggests benevolence and generosity, a magnanimous act by the wealthy and the powerful for the benefit of he poor and needy.

The word "tzedakah" is derived form the Hebrew root Tzadei-dalet-Qof, meaning righteousness, justice or fairness. In Judaism giving to the poor is not viewed as a generous, magnanimous act, it is simply and act of righteousness, performance of a duty giving the poor their due."

According to Jewish scholars there are various levels of Tzedakah,

Giving begrudgingly

Giving less than you should, but giving cheerfully,

Giving after being asked

Giving before being asked

Giving when you do not know the recipient's identity, but the recipient knows yours

Giving when you know and the recipient's identity, but the recipient doesn't know yours.

Giving when neither party knows the other's identity.

Enabling the recipient to become self-reliant. 

Another Jewish website, My Jewish learning 101 states,

Biblical prophets castigated the Israelites for neglecting and even exploiting the poor, insisting that God has particular concern for those in need. The rabbis of classical Judaism praised tzedakah, calling it, for example, "equal in value to all the other mitzvot [commandments] combined." They also praised those who practice it, saying that they attain the level of holiness of someone who brought sacrifices in the ancient Temple. The Rosh Hashanah liturgy lists tzedakah alongside repentance and prayer as a human act capable of averting a negative divine decree.

Jesus said,

"Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  

I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 

"Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  

When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  

When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 

"The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 

"Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  

For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,     I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 

"They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 

"He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 

"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." Matthew 25:34-36.

Please think about it.

A way of life

  A way of life.

"Here, O Israel: The Lord our God is one.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

These commandments that I give to you today are to be upon your hearts.

Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, and when you lie down and when you get up.

Tie them as a symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.

Write them on the doorframes of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

The way I read this those who believe in God are to make Him a part of their lifestyle. We are to love God and honour God in all that we do. We are to impart our beliefs in God to our Children in word and in deed.

If you consider yourself a believer in God, a believer in Christ Jesus, God’s one and only Son are you doing this?

Please think about it.

Are you blessed?

  Are you blessed?

The Psalmist writes,

"Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

 whose hope is in the LORD his God, 

the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them—

the LORD, who remains faithful forever.” 

                                                                   Psalm 146:5,6.

Do you believe in the God of Jacob. The Lord God who made the heavens, the earth and the seas and everything in them?

Do you believe in the LORD who remains faithful forever?

Are you blessed?

Please think about it.

Confession of Faith

  Confession of Faith

The apostle Paul writes,

“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.

The writer of the book of Hebrews states,

“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.

You cannot call yourself a Christian unless you truly believe in and have absolute faith God.

Simply believing God exists is not enough. God calls each individual to have faith in Him.

Do you have such faith?

Please think about it.

Something Controversial

  Something controversia.

Jesus said,

"Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." John 3:36.

Here is a controversial statement that Jesus made and Christians believe. If this statement is true the world has a lot to think about.

That being said God has prepared a way for us to get to heaven. The apostle Paul stating,

"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.

Will you accept the Salvation that comes through Christ Jesus today?

Please think about it.

To the Perishing

  To the Perishing

The apostle Paul wrote,

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18.

Simply put this is the unapologetic view of Christians. We believe the words of Jesus as quoted in John’s gospel. 

“Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  John 14:6.

If we as Christians are wrong then no one has anything to fear. If we are right then the rest of the world has at the very least something very important to think about.

Please think about it.

Who's the fool?

  Who’s the fool?

The Psalmist writes,

"The fool says in his heart, 

"There is no God." 

                                 Psalm 14:1.

The question comes down to who’s truly the fool? Those who believe in God or those who do not believe in God.

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.