Respect

Respect
“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.  
For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.   Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.  
Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.” 
     1 Peter 2:13-17.
I like what Peter says here. Peter lived under the emperor Nero one of the worst prosecutors of Christians. In fact it is believed that Peter died under Nero. Yet Peter could say,
    “Submit yourself for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the King, as supreme authority, or to the governor,...”
I believe Peter said this because by respecting and submitting to the authorities they would have a great deal of problems convicting anyone of doing wrong.
In fact Peter even says,
“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 2:11,12
For Christians the only time I believe we should not submit to authorities is when they tell us we cannot practice our faith.
A word of caution here however in light of what has been happening in the United States with people wanting to refuse to serve those they disagree with, in particular homosexuals.
Refusing anyone service for any reason is not Christian.
I understand many Christian as part of their faith, believe marriage is between a man and a woman. That is their right to believe that and because it is a part of their faith it is their right under freedom of religion not to marry same sex couples.
However refusing service because of someone’s lifestyle or belief when you have a business that is open to the public is wrong.
I’m sure Paul, a tent maker served all people. Even those he disagreed with. He certainly had a lot of dealing with people who’s beliefs and lifestyle he would not have liked. After all he met with Stoic philosophers and others. He spent time in Athens and Corinth cities filled with pagan worship, practising things that would have appalled him. Yet we have no record of him speaking against such people. In fact he said,
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
                                                                                                              Romans 12:18.
By living at peace with all people we can create opportunities to reach people for Christ.
We live in a secular democracy that is filled with things we dislike such is life here in North America and around the world. We must learn to live within it to successfully win souls for Christ.
As Christians we must not compromise our beliefs. It is however possible to reach our world for Christ by showing love and compassion to even those we disagree with. The apostles did it.
Paul was doing it in such a positive way that he was invited while in Athens to speak to learned men and philosophers. The result was he actually seen people accept Christ as their Lord and Saviour.
Jesus sat with the Samaritan woman someone shunned by Jewish religious leader of His day. He did so to point her to heaven.
The purpose of Christ entering the world was expressed by Jesus who 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.
As Christians in the twenty-first century we need to be respecting the government. We also need to show love and respect for not only God, our neighbours, but even our enemies.
It is incumbent on us to show love and accept people as they are. In doing so we will win souls for Christ.
The writer of Hebrews said,
“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.
If we are truly Christians we need to follow the example of Jesus who welcomed everyone irrespective of who they were. That is what it is to be Christian.
Please think about it.

Your Faith

Your Faith.
Job said,
“Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.”  
                                                                                                                                      Job 13:15.
When I read this verse from the book of Job I couldn’t help but think Job had what my Jewish friends called “chutzpah”.
Job was so confident in his faith and his actions with respect to God that he was willing to defend himself directly to God’s face. That takes confidence!
I wonder how many of us have that kind of confidence in our faith. Are we as secure in our faith in our actions toward God as Job obviously was?
Think carefully about your life and lifestyle. Only you truly know you.
It has been said each individual has many faces. There is the face we present to the world in general. The face most people see. The one they know us by.
Then there is the face we let our true friends see. A face with a few flaws and foibles , flaws and foibles our friends accept, even like.
Then there is the face that only you see. It is comprised of all you are. Your imperfections, your fears, likes and dislikes. It is your inner being that is truly you. This is what only you and God see.
When you stand before God. When he looks at your life. At all you were as a person what will he say.
Job was so confident that he’d lived a life acceptable to God that he could say,
“Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.”  
                                                                                                                                           Job 13:15.
While it is true we are saved through the grace of God. Through faith in Christ Jesus, and true believers in Christ have their sins washed away. Thus allowing them to enter heaven. Christians will still be judged by God with respect to our actions in this life.
So what will God say about your life.
Having faith in God and accepting the saving Grace Christ offers should only be a beginning for Christians. Our faith should spur us on to do good works for Christ.
James the half brother of Christ wrote,
“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. 
 What are you doing for God. Are your actions pleasing to God? Could you stand like Job was willing to do and say, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.”  
  Please think carefully about it.

Someone said,

Someone said,
Someone said to me that I write and talk about love a lot when I speak about God. They are right. It’s because I believe in what Jesus said 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 neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” 
                                                                                            Matthew 22:36-40.
Jesus also tells Christians,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,  that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.  
If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  
And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?
  Matthew 5:43-47
I believe as a Christian it is my duty before God to show unconditional love to all people, even if I disagree with them.
Jesus speaking of himself tells Christians.
“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.
It is my belief that if God loved mankind so much He gave us His one and Only Son then the least I can do is show love to those around me.
My parents who were not Christians brought me up to show love and kindness to all people. To help people wherever I could.
While they didn’t realize it they were obeying what Proverbs said,
“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. 
Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.” 
                                                                                                      Proverbs 3:3,4.
My Father practiced what he preached and was well respected in his community as a result.
While a young teenager I went to see a move musical called Goodby Mr. Chips in it was a song by Leslie Bricusse that had an impression on me that still resonates with me to this day. It’s called In the morning of my life the words are,

In the morning of my life

I will look to the Sunrise

At a moment in my life 

When the world is new.    

And the Question

I shall ask only God can answer.

Will I be brave and strong and true,

Will I fill the world with love my whole life through?

Will I fill the world with love my whole life through?

In the evening of my life

I will look to the sunset

At a moment in my life 

When my life is through.

And the question I shall ask only I can answer 

Was I brave and strong and true.

Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?

Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?

                                                                                                   By Leslie Bricusse  
                                                                             From the Musical Good by Mr chips.
Since hearing that song I have become a Christian and realize that one cannot be a Christian without showing unconditional love for God, ones neighbours, and even ones enemies. That is what Christ did that is what all Christian must do.
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.
I believe one day we all will be held to account for our lives before God.
The Talmud while not recognized by Christians as an inspired work of God, tells a story I can see as happening when we stand before God. It says,
“When a man appears before the Throne of Judgment, the first question he is asked is not, “Have you believed in God?”  Or “Have you prayed and observed the ritual?  “He is asked: “have you dealt honourably and faithfully in all your dealings with your fellow men?”
                                                                                           The Talmud.
I believe by showing unconditional love as far as humanly possible to all people irrespective of who they are I could answer that question with a resounding yes.
Martin Luther King Jr. said,
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”
                                                                              Martin Luther King, Jr.
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.
I believe by showing unconditional love to all those around me I am endeavouring to live at peace with men. I am endeavouring to live a holy life.
Are you?
Please think about it.

To be Christian

To be Christian
“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 
But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” 
                                                                                                                                     Psalm 1:1,2.
I write today directly at Christians particularly those in North America and the west in general. I write with the hope they will look at their life and actions. That they will assess what they are doing and if necessary make a change.
Billy Graham once said,
“Make sure of your commitment to Jesus Christ, and seek to follow Him every day. Don't be swayed by the false values and goals of this world, but put Christ and His will first in everything you do.”
 Billy Graham
Jesus set the standard high for Christians. 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 neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” 
                                                                                       Matthew 22:36-40.
Jesus did not stop there however He said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,...”  
                                                                                                 Matthew 5:43,44.
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.
Question: Would you die for an ungodly person, for a sinner? Jesus did. 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.
This is how far we could be called to go. Think about it.
There are Christians around the world being persecuted and put to death for their faith. One figure I read was a Christian dies every seven minutes somewhere in the world for their faith.  They are dying because they are presenting the word of God to the people around them. Christians are going to prison for witnessing for Christ.
Christians in many parts of the world do not have the right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Yet many that would call themselves Christians especially here in North America would squander that right and bring God’s name into disrepute.
I think of something I heard about in the United States where a person who had a business did not want to serve as they put it “homosexuals” as it was against their belief. I ask the question would they discriminate against, adulterers, or convicted thieves?
Jesus didn’t. Jesus died beside a thief. Jesus sat and ate with tax collectors and spoke with a Samaritan woman all considered sinners of his day and spoken against by the religious leaders of his day.
As Christians we must as the Psalmist say’s
“...delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” 
                                                                                                                                Psalm 1:2.
But while we must delight in the law of the Lord we cannot use it to discriminate against anyone we interact with in this world.
The apostle Paul wrote,
“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.
That “all have sinned” meant “ALL” you, me, and everyone who has ever lived. As a Christian we know we are save by the grace of God. However how can we reach the world if we discriminate who we associate with. Who works in our businesses, or buys from us.
Remember,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 
Romans 5:8.
Billy Graham said,
“Racial prejudice, anti-Semitism, or hatred of anyone with different beliefs has no place in the human mind or heart.”
                     Billy Graham.
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.
Jesus showed that love of God by associating with everyone whether they were considered a sinner or not. Jesus did not pick and choose who he associated with because of his religious beliefs. Him sitting with the Samaritan woman and the tax collectors proved that. Jesus showed unconditional love to all.
As Christians we need to practice true Christian Love. Paul defined this when writing to the Corinthians. He wrote,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
                                                                                                           1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.
Are people seeing this kind of Love in you?
Please think about it. 

False Teachers

False teacher

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.”
                                                                                                                                         2 Peter 2:1-3 
Christians should always be aware that there are false teachers in our midst. Peter in the above quoted Scripture notes them.
Unfortunately false teachers do not come with neon signs telling who they are. Many speak well. They even string scriptures together that sound good but when studied in context are found to be false.
Christians need to know the signs of a false teacher. In order to do that you need to study the Bible.
Peter notes,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.”  
                                                                       2 Peter 2:1. 
False teacher will bring the word of God into disrepute among non-believers. It is therefor imperative we have nothing to do with such people.
Someone pointed out to me some time ago that we should be speaking out publicly against such teachers. Then noted but in the secular democracy with freedom of speech laws the way they are. Even heretics have the right to teach as they wish. He also noted that the person spoken against could possibly take legal action against the person who spoke up against them.
That being said we know God will one day judge the false teachers. Until then we should be quick to spread the truth of the Scriptures. We need to be both inside and outside our churches teaching the truth about Jesus Christ.
The voice of the true believer should be should be louder and more prolific than that of the false teacher.
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 need to be doing so with the truth. We need to be echoing the words of Jesus who when 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.  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.
We need to tell the world the words of Paul who said,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” 
                                                                     Ephesians 2:8,9.
We need to be telling people the words of Jesus who said,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” 
                             Matthew 11:28-30.

Please think about it.

Jesus a Lunatic???

Jesus a Lunatic???
Matthews Gospel records,
“At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them.  
When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.” 
He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?  
He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests.  
Or haven’t you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent?  
I tell you that one greater than the temple is here.  
If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.  
For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” 
Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue,  and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” 
He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out?  
How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 
Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.  
But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. 
                                                                                                     Matthew 12:1-14.
Here the Pharisees who were so legalistic accuse Jesus and his disciples of working on the Sabbath. They interpreted what Jesus and His disciples were doing as harvesting the wheat, threshing it and preparing it as food.
These men were so afraid of upsetting God that they held to a very strict interpretation of the law. So strict it placed heavy burdens on people.
They didn’t even like the fact that Jesus healed a man, did a good work on the Sabbath.
They especially didn’t like the fact that he called himself Lord of the Sabbath. Equating himself with God.
Jesus knew this. He also knew that to equate himself with God was punishable by death.
Jesus could have avoided controversy by simply not saying who he was. By not claiming to be the Son of God. But he didn’t.
C. S. Lewis points out,
“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
The disciples of Jesus, and close to three billion Christians around the world today believe Jesus to be the Son of God the Saviour of mankind. Christians believe that Jesus is God incarnate, God in the flesh.
Now either we Christians are right or we have been believing what is perhaps the most monumental lie in human history.
John’s Gospel records Jesus asking a question to Martha that we all must answer,
“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.
Question: Who do you think Jesus really is?
Please think about it.

God, Jesus and you

God, Jesus and you
The apostle Paul writes,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
                                                                               Romans 3:23.
Christians believe that everyone who has ever lived has sinned, and Sin separates us from God. Christians believe that we cannot live lives good enough to live with a holy God.
We also believe that God recognized this that is why He sent His one and only Son to die for our sins,
Paul immediately after saying “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” says,
“...and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
                                                                                                                                          Romans 3:24.
Still speaking to the Romans Paul explains,
“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.
Speaking to the Ephesians Paul states,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.”
                                                                 Ephesians 2:8,9.
We cannot work our way to heaven it is by the grace of God we get there though having faith in Christ. By truly believing that Jesus died for our sins that we may have eternal life with God.
Paul explains,
“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.
Believing in and accepting God’s grace that comes through Jesus is the way to heaven. Jesus 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
The Writer of Hebrews states,
“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.  
So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. 
For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father’” ? 
Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son” ? 
And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” 
  Hebrews 1:3-6
Jesus is God incarnate, God in the flesh. No other faith in the world as far as this writer knows believes that the founder of their faith is God incarnate.
I as a Christian believe that God came into this world for several reasons. First and foremost he came to as Paul said reconcile man to Himself. To show man in human terms how far He would go.
Secondly ultimately God will judge every person on the earth. By His entering the world in the form of Jesus, He experienced all it was to be a man. We can never stand before God and say “You didn’t understand what it was to be a man, because you have never experienced what it is to be one. Someone all powerful cannot rightly judge someone as frail and full of flaws as a man.”
However when we stand before God that argument will not hold because he does understand. Jesus while on this earth never functioned more than a man.
He grew up in an average family for his day. He went to weddings. Wept at the death of a friend. Experienced the love of family and friends.
Experienced the hate of his enemies. He experienced a vicious beating at the hands of the Romans who’s governor had said he found nothing wrong with him worthy of death. Yet Jesus despite being beaten for a crime he did not commit was crucified.
Thus when we stand before Him and are judged, He can judge justly.
We today can however know the outcome of that judgement. Jesus while on the earth 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.  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.
As the apostle Paul wrote,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.”
                                                                  Ephesians 2:8,9.
Are you willing to accept the Grace of God today?
Please think about it.

A Note to Christians

A Note to Christians
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.
Dear Christian are you living a life acceptable to God?
The other day I was at a friends store. They are getting ready for their opening and I was helping them out.  The persons sister came into the store who claimed to be a Christian. She didn’t see me I was hidden behind a shelf.
Without even saying hello she immediately started criticising everything she seen and not in a good way. I have a fairly thick skin and am not easily upset. But she upset me and had my friend who’s store it was in tears.
My friend had put a lot of work into making the place look good and it did look very good. She’d had her own business before and knew how things worked.
Others had come into the place and commented on how good it looked. Yet her own sister who claimed to be a believer in Christ verbally abused her it was that bad.
I said nothing. I didn’t have a chance she left almost as quick as she came but she left. She left as I said leaving my friend in tears. It took well over an hour for her to compose herself.
Francis of Assisi said,
“The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today” 
                                                                                                           Francis of Assisi.
The sermon that woman preached that day was one of arrogance and hate. She showed no understanding or love toward her own sister. It was a horrible testimony for someone who claims to be a Christian.
 Had non-Christians been there she would have turned them away from God.
The apostle Peter’s admonition,
“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.” 
Should be integral to our walk as Christians. We should not attack. 
Jesus said,
“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” 
     Matthew 10:16 
Simply put we are to be wise and carful in what we say.  Harmless as a dove. No one should see a Christian as threatening. They should see us as loving, caring and understanding.
We should be an example of love as written by the apostle Paul who said,

“Love is patient, love is kind. 

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails....

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. 

But the greatest of these is love.”  

                                                                                1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13
As Christians we need to every once in a while ask God to increase the Love we have for both Him and those around us.
We need to pray a prayer like Francis of Assisi, who prayed,

“Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love,

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light;

And where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console,

to be understood as to understand,

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.” 

                                                                                                     Francis of Assisi
Please think about it.

At Just the Right Time

At Just the Right Time

“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.
I see Christians all the time taking their salvation for granted. Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his book The cost of Discipleship called the grace God offers us as “Costly Grace” he explains,
“It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: 'Ye were bought at a price', and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.” 
                                                                                     Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship.
We as Christians cannot take our salvation for granted. We must thank God everyday for it.
At the same time we cannot keep the message of Salvation through Jesus Christ a secret. We must in a respectable and polite manner present that message to those around us. We must have an open and loving dialogue between ourselves and non-Christians.
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 must remember that the Salvation we have cost Jesus his life. Thus it must be of paramount importance in our life to tell others why he died.
Lorenz Eifert said,
“The dying Jesus is the evidence of God's anger toward sin; but the living Jesus is the proof of God's love and forgiveness.”
                                          Lorenz Eifert
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 
Christians must remember John 3:16,17 because the prime purpose of Jesus coming to this world is to offer the free gift of salvation to all who would believe in Him.
Please think about it.

Sometimes I shake my head

Sometimes I shake my head.
“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.
Sometimes I shake my head when I listen to things that are happening in the United States. Not so long ago I heard of a store that didn’t want to serve gays. They said it was against their belief as Christians.
For me when I heard this I immediately thought of the bad old days of segregation when there were those who refused to serve people because of the colour of their skin.
I wonder would the people who want the right not to serve gays, would they extend that to Muslims, to Atheist?
Would they refuse to serve someone who commits adultery after all adultery is wrong according to Christian belief. Would these people even turn the clock all the way back and not serve people based on skin colour?
Think of the message they are sending. They are claiming to be Christians but are saying to a segment of society that they are not welcome. That is not the way to win souls for Christ.
As Christians we must follow the teachings of Christ. Christ did not discriminate. In Christ’s day tax collectors were considered sinners. Yet Christ had dinner with them. Matthew’s gospel records,
“While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples.
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
             Matthew 9:10-13.
In  John 4:6-26, John records Jesus as speaking to a Samaritan woman. Jews and Samaritans didn’t speak to each other at that time. Samaritans were discriminated against. Yet Jesus spoke to this woman, who was also an adulteress.
The fact is we are all sinners. The apostle Paul stating,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
                                                                      Romans 3:23,
That all means all, you, me and all who are living or have ever lived. The apostle Paul states,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8.
Paul also makes it clear that Christians are not to judge those outside the Church he states,
“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.
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
Jesus showed by example how we are to reach the world. Jesus showed that we are to welcome everyone in love. Jesus told us to love God, our neighbour and even our enemy. He told us to go into all the world and make disciple of all nations. We cannot do that if we discriminate against even one person.
The apostle Peter said,
“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 2:11,12.
The Writer of Hebrews said,
“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.
A true Christian one who is dedicated to Christ and doing His work in this world will welcome with open arms anyone. They will do there best to live at peace with all men and open a dialogue between themselves and others that they may reach that person to Christ.
I believe as a Christian I and all Christians have a duty to love God, our neighbour and even our enemy. We are to offer in love, the same choice Jesus gave to us when 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.
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.
This for me is the most important choice ever offered to mankind.
Unfortunately there are many in the world who think they are Christians but are in name only. Jesus even 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.
It is these people, people who say they are Christians that are not, that distort the message of Christ in the eyes of non-Christians.
Please think about it.

The Christian Message, foolishness???

The Christian message, foolishness???
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.
For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,  but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”
         1 Corinthians 1:18-25
I think Paul says it all here. Those who do not believe in Jesus as we Christians do. Can look at us and think what we preach is foolishness. After all we believe God entered the world He created in the form of His One and only Son Jesus.
One of the big questions I get, is why would God enter the world He created? To which I think the answer is simple.
First God created man with a freewill allowing the individual to do as he wished. That includes the right not to believe in God. As a result as man progressed many people chose to turn away from God. Thus God entered the world to show mankind he was real and call mankind to himself.
Second I believe God had to enter this world to fully experience all it is to be a man and thus be able to judge man justly when the time comes. Because Jesus walked the earth and lived as a man we can never say he didn’t understand what it was like to me a man.
Thirdly and I think the words of Jesus sums things up nicely, 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.”
      John 3:16,17.
At the same time God through Jesus gave us a waring again Jesus speaking of himself said,
“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 3:18.
The apostle Paul echoing what Jesus said when speaking to the Athenians said
“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.”
                                                                             Acts 17:31.
The message we Christians present to the world may seem foolishness but the Christian walk is a walk of Faith.
Christians are to my knowledge the only faith in the world that claims God reached down in the form of his One and Only Son Jesus Christ to offer redemption from sin.
The apostle Paul writes,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.”
                                                   Ephesians 2:8,9.
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
“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
Faith in Christ, belief in His redeeming sacrifice on the cross is how Christians believe you get to heaven.
The question is do you believe this?
           Please think about it.

A Magnificent Privilege

A Magnificent Privilege

“Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. 
For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” 
                                                                                                   Luke 2:28-32.
There are times when I wish I could have been at certain places the bible talks about. The day Jesus was presented by his parents to Simeon is one of them.
This man had waited his whole life for the coming of the Messiah and how he was introduced to him.
Simeon knew what Jesus would become. “A light for revelations to the Gentiles” and for glory to the people of Israel.
I know Jews today do not believe Jesus is the Messiah but that does not negate the fact that Jesus has brought glory to Israel.
Jesus came into the world to bring revelation to the Gentiles. To show them, and for that matter the Jews the way to heaven.
What more glory could a people receive than that of showing people the way to heaven.
As Christians we need to give thanks to God for the revelation that offers us eternal life with God. We need to thank God for Jesus and his saving grace.
The apostle John speaking of Jesus wrote,
“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” 
               John 1:12,13.
Because of Jesus we who believe in Him are children of God. What a magnificent privilege to be called a Child of God.
It is something we should be praising God for and not taking for granted.
I can imagine Simeon holding Jesus and with a loud voice praising God. This is how we should be.
The psalmist wrote,

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
  Please dear Christian take time to praise God today