Do you believe?

  Do you believe?

Jesus said,

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. 

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." John 1:10,11.

To many people in the world today think God is a big old man ready to thrash you with a stick if you don’t do as he wishes. Nothing could be further from the truth. Especially when it comes to Jesus.

Jesus speaking of Himself 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.

God loves everyone. God wants everyone to enter into a personal relationship with Him.

That being said God has given everyone that has ever lived a freewill to choose whether or not to believe in Him. Which is an act of faith.

The writer of Hebrews telling us,

"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.

I think God asks us to have faith in Him because having faith in someone we cannot see is perhaps the hardest thing an individual can do.

The writer of Hebrews tells us,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for

 and certain of what we do not see.”

                                                           Hebrews 11:1.

So. Do you believe in God a God that loves us so much He sent His one and Only Son to save us?

Please think about it.

God and only God

  God and only God

In the book of Ecclesiastes we read,

"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." Ecclesiastes12:13,14.

I believe what is written above. I also believe that God is a just and all knowing God. That is why I am not scared to stand before Him.

The Psalmist writes,

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. 

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:13-16.

What the psalmist is saying here is that God knows why we are the way we are. He knows us right down to the level of our DNA. Thus God and only God can judge us justly.

Please think about it. 

Belief in Christ

 Belief in Christ

The Psalmist writes,

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 

If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 

If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. 

If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.” Psalm 139:7-12.

Like it or not. Whether you believe in God or not. God is omnipresent. We cannot hide from God. That being said we have no need to fear Gods presence as long as we believe in Him. As long as we believe in Christ Jesus we know we will have a home in Heaven.

In the apostle John’s gospel we read 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.

The question thus becomes do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God?

Please think about it.

Green pastures, still waters, and the valleys

  Green pastures, still waters, and the valleys

The Psalmist writes,

"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.

As Christians. As believers in Christ Jesus. We can say with confidence that no matter what we do. What we go through or where we go. In good times and in bad. God is with us.

Can you say this?

Please think about it.

The Christian hope

  The Christians Hope,

The apostle Peter writes,

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in heaven for you" 1Peter 1:3-4.

The apostle Peter here tells us of the hope all Christians have. 

A living hope “that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in heaven”

Do you have this kind of hope? 

You can. 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.

Please think about it.

Your thoughts

   Your Thoughts

In Ecclesiastes we read,

“The thoughts of the wise are in the house of mourning,

 but the thoughts of fools are in the house of pleasure.”

                                                                                        Ecclesiastes 7:4.

This seems like an odd statement. Why would someone who is wise not seek pleasure over mourning?

I would say a large portion of people in this world live by the statement, 

“Live for today. For tomorrow we die”.

Few people unless confronted by the death of a loved one, friend or their own impending death look to what happens beyond the grave.

Pleasure is after all far better to most than thinking about death.

Now I don’t say we should dwell on our death. Quiet the contrary we should look to enjoy each day we are alive.

We should however consider where we will spend eternity.

As a Christian a follower of Christ Jesus I believe His words, when speaking of Himself He 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. 

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son". John 3:16-18.

Do you believe this?

Please think about it.

A Hard thing

  A Hard Thing

The Psalmist writes,

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” Psalm 14:1.

Atheist tell people there is no God. But how do they know? 

The way I see it in order to know there is no God you have to have been everywhere and see everything. Which are traits of God making the atheist a god.

No one in this world can say for certain there is not God simply because God could be in the place that person has never been. A good example is the grave. No one living has gone beyond the grave.

Blaise Pascal made a wise statement, saying,

“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.

To believe in God requires faith. The writer of Hebrews stating,

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see."  

                                                  Hebrews 11:1.

Faith in anything especially in something or someone we cannot see is for most people a very hard thing. Perhaps that is why God asks us to have faith in Him.

Please think about it.

Suffering Messiah

 Suffering Messiah

The apostle Paul writes,

“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.

Let’s face it the Christian message can sound like foolishness to those who don’t believe in Christ Jesus.  

In his letter to the Romans Paul states,

"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." Romans 5:6-8.

 In Jesus God demonstrated in human terms just how much He loved us. He loved us so much that he was willing to die in the most hideous way possible, by crucifixion.

All of this seems the opposite to what a true saviour, should be. In human terms a true saviour is someone who leads a mighty army.

During the time of Jesus I’m sure the Jewish people who were under the boot of Rome looked for a conquering Messiah.

Jesus on the other hand was a suffering Messiah one who came to cleanse the sins of all who would believe in Him. 

Do you believe in Jesus?

Before you answer that question take time to read the New Testament and see what those who knew Jesus best thought about Him.

Please think about it.

Gods power made perfect in weakness

  Gods power made perfect in weakness

The apostle Paul writes,

“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.  Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.  

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  

That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10.

There is a group of people claiming to be Christians who say God always wants you to be health, and wealthy. While I know God wants the best for all who believe in him. Paul here makes it clear we will have troubles. The apostle Paul should know he suffered much for the gospel of Christ.

God allowed Paul to have a thorn in the flesh. We don’t know what was wrong with Paul suffice to know Paul had a physical aliment.

Paul notes that Christ said to him “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”.

It is a witness to the world when people who are seemingly weak or sick boast about the Lord. When people who are weak by the world standards do great things for God.

I believe the mark of a true Christian shows when they are going through hardships. When they trust in God no matter the circumstance.

Question: Is Gods Grace sufficient for you?

Please think about it.

This world or heaven?

   This world or heaven?

Jesus said,

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  

But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 16:19-21.

Let me make things clear here. There is nothing wrong with being rich. There are many good Christians around the world that are wealthy and serve God to the best of their ability.

The trouble with money and wealth comes when you put your trust in your wealth and not in God. When your wealth becomes your god.

We are called on look to God to provide for us. Jesus said,

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?  

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6: 25,26.

If you consider yourself a Christian, where is your trust? In the treasure you have in this world or in heaven?

Please think about it. 

Standing before God

 Standing before God

In the book of Ecclesiastes we read,

“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.” Ecclesiastes12:13,14.

We all have our secrets, be they good or bad. We however cannot hide them from God. The Psalmist writes,

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139:13-16.

Put simply in twenty-first century parlance God knows our very DNA. He knows why we are like we are. Thus God and only God can judge us.

Here’s a question only you can answer; 

Are you ready to stand before God?

Please think about it.

He will judge

  He will Judge

The Psalmist writes,

“Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns." The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity. 

“Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; 

“let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the LORD, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth.” Psalm 96:10-13.

I firmly believe God will one day judge everyone. He will judge them in righteousness. That is why we as believers in Christ Jesus must be willing to say to the world “The LORD reigns!”

That is why we must be telling the world,

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

That is why we must be telling the world that 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.

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son". John 3:16-18.

If you consider yourself a Christian are you doing this?

Please think about it.