Just Say "Know" Part 1

John 10:27-29
"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand."

I will give you several reasons why it is vitally important that if you are saved that you know you are secure and will not lose it.

I) It is necessary for Spiritual growth

Can you imagine what the emotional state of any child would be if that child did not know from day-to-day whether or not he or she were a member of the family? Today I was a good boy; I am a member of the family. The next day I wasn't so good; I am no longer a member of the family. I am loved of my Father; I am not loved of my Father. Friend, that would make a child neurotic to not know whether he or she was accepted in the family. He or she may be punished, may have to go to their room, etc but he or she knows that they know that they are part of the family. It is necessary in the natural world for emotional strength and so it is in the spiritual world for spiritual strength.

II) It is important for Spiritual Productivity

When you know your future is secure, then you can concentrate on the present. From 1933-1937 the Golden Gate bridge was built. It was a dangerous task as many workers were afraid that they would fall to their death over the perilous waters and it seemed like the very fear of falling is what caused them to fall. Though 35 Million dollars was spent on this bridge, they failed at first to build a safety net and 11 people on the first section of the bridge fell into the water and perished.
On the next section of the bridge they spent $100,000 to construct a safety net. After the safety net was built, only 19 fell during the remainder of the construction and all were caught in the net and saved. All lives were saved but here is the important part, with the safety net in place, the work went 25% faster. The workers could concentrate on their work because they knew that beneath them was that safety net. And so it is with a child of God. When he knows that his future is secure, he can concentrate on the present.
Here is part of an aricle I found on GoCalifornia.about.com

One of the most interesting Golden Gate Bridge facts is that only eleven workers died during construction, a new safety record for the time. In the 1930s, bridge builders expected 1 fatality per $1 million in construction costs, and builders expected 35 people to die while building the Golden Gate Bridge. One of the bridge's safety innovations was a net suspended under the floor. This net saved the lives of 19 men during construction, and they are often called the members of the "Half Way to Hell Club."

III) It is important for Evangelism
I am convinced that the reason more people are not born again believers in Christ is quite frankly that they don't think they can live up to the standard. Rather than attempt to make a false start and fall away, they simply never start so as not to appear a hypocrite. They say "I don't have the strength" or "I don't have the wisdom that these other people have". If we could only show those types of people that the God who saves you is also the God who keeps you.

Let me clarify what I mean about the Eternal Security of the Believer. First, we need to clarify what is meant by a believer. A believer is NOT someone who just has head knowledge, or has joined a church, been baptized, gives their money and does all these religious things. These are well and good but none of these nor all of these can save. A believer is someone who has received Christ by faith. Someone who has put his or her trust in the shed blood of Jesus Christ as their only means of redemption apart from any acts of righteousness they could perform. This is someone who has become a partaker of the divine nature, who has been twice born and received the new birth. This person can never, ever, ever again be a lost soul.
Ok, you say "wait a minute, I know some people who were once saved and are no longer saved". Be careful when you say that because you might have thought you knew that they were saved but they were never truly saved. Look at Matthew 7:22-23 "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Jesus does not tell them "I once knew you but now you lost it". He said "I NEVER knew you." So when we say "believer" we are not talking about people who profess to be religious and turn away, we are talking about people who have truly accepted Christ by faith alone.
So you may still be scratching your head and asking me, "David, what about these people who join a church, get baptized, and live for God a little while, are you telling me that those people are not saved?" ... YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If they go away and stay away, they were never saved. These people are described to a tee in 1 John 2:19 "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us."

I sometimes enjoy watching the original Star Trek series and it's amazing how I will sometimes find biblical truths in the show. I am pretty sure show creator Gene Roddenbury didn't intend it to be that way. I was watching an episode last night where this person named Captain Garth (who was mentally ill) had the ability to assume the likeness of any other person, so much like the original that it fooled anyone who saw him. Near the end of the show, he transformed himself to look like Captain Kirk in an attempt to fool Mr. Spock and get Spock to beam him to the Enterprise. Spock enters the control room and sees 2 Captain Kirks that look, speak and act identical to one another. What spock says next and how he resolves the problem can be directly related to the scripture in 1 John 2:19. Here is what Spock said, "Whichever one of you is Captain Garth, must at this moment be expending a great deal of energy to maintain the image of Captain Kirk. That energy level can not be maintained indefinitely, and I have time." And so it is with those who profess to be christians. As Mr. Spock so aptly put it, these people are attempting to "maintain the image" of Christ but eventually that energy runs out because they are doing this in their own strength.

John is saying the faith that fizzles before the finish had a flaw from the beginning. The fact that they fell away and stayed away is proof that they were never saved. Now most of us have had small periods of time where we have fallen away from serving like we should or from faithful attendance in church to be with our brothers and sisters; this is natural and to be expected. However, the fact that we eventually return before too long and get right back where we need to be is proof that we are truly saved and children of God.
So keep in mind these that are described in 1 John 2:19 are not those that lost their salvation; they never had it. Judas is a prime example. Judas never lost his salvation; he never had it. The Bible says that Jesus knew from the beginning that Judas did not believe. (John 6:64)

Let's shift focus a bit. I would like to share some ways you can know that you are eternally secure. I will share 8 reasons and let each one start with the letter "P" for easier remembrance.

1) Promise
God has promised to you eternal security. Look at Romans 8:38-39"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." When Paul used the word "persuaded" he is saying he is thoroughly convinced. He gives a laundry list of things that can not separate you from the love of God .. translated anything that can cause you to lose your salvation.

2) Perseverance
God will complete what He has begun. Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he which has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." Notice Paul's words. He began the Romans verse with "I am persuaded" and now he begins the verse in Philippians with "Being confident". Now when we got saved, who began the good work in us? Was it us or God? It was God. We love Him why? Because He first loved us.
The Holy Spirit of God is the agent of the new birth. Let's take a closer look at who the Holy Spirit is:

1) He was the convictor
He was the one who convicted us of our sin and our need for a Savior.
2) He was the converter
He was the one who opened our eyes. He was the one who helped us to be able to understand the Gospel. He was the one who put faith in our hearts to believe the Gospel.
3) He IS the completer
He who began a good work in us (the convictor and the converter) will complete it. I think most of us have started many things we have not been able to finish, but God never starts anything that He can not finish. If any child of God was ever lost that would mean that God the Father is defeated in His purpose, that would mean that Jesus is disappointed that His blood was not sufficient to keep them, that would mean that God the Holy Spirit is disgraced because He is not able to complete that which He began. So, it is perseverance. NOT the perseverance of the Saints. It is not the Saints who persevere, it is God. The third "P"...

3) Predestination
Look at Romans 8 again but this time start in verse 29
"For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified."

What are these verses saying? God has already predestined or pre determined our destiny as believers. We are predestined to be like the Lord Jesus Christ. We can not be more sure than predestined. In these verses God gives us a chain with 5 golden links... foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification and glorification. As children of God, God already sees us glorified and He already sees us in Heaven. The verse doesn't say He is "going to see", He already sees!!!! Our salvation did not begin the day we were born. Through His not being bound by time, God saw us from the beginning of time believing in Christ and justified. Keep in mind that foreknowledge does not mean to cause. It just means that God knew ahead of time that we would accept Christ and He has made arrangements to make us Justified. Now tell me, what can stop that? How could we lose our salvation if we are already predestined to be like Christ? What is settled in eternity can not be undone in time and what has been decreed by Heaven can not be annulled by Hell. Look at Romans 11:29 "For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. What does that mean? It means God will never change his mind or repent about completing the good work He has started in us. Now the 4th "P"..

4) Perfection
Hebrews 10:14 "For by one offering he has perfected for ever them that are sanctified." In this scripture that one offering is Jesus' blood on the Cross of Calvary. That offering has perfected us forever. If we are perfected forever, how could we ever be lost or lose our salvation??? We can't. Understand this about salvation... when we get saved God doesn't just give us a "fresh start" and then it's up to us from there. He doesn't make the down payment so that we have to make the monthly installments. Like the Hymn says "Jesus paid it ALL". Keep in mind the biblical meaning of perfect is not that we grow wings and a halo, perfect in biblical terms means "complete". You may think, what if I get saved and then sin again? What if???? We are still going to sin because we keep some of that old nature. The difference is when we sin, God just takes us behind the woodshed.. the bible says in Hebrews 12:6 "for whom the Lord loves, He chastens".
Notice in the verse it says by ONE offering. I have a challenge for you. Find anywhere in the bible where anyone was ever saved "twice". There may be such a thing as twice baked potatoes but there are no twice saved Christians. In order to be saved twice, Jesus would have to die twice. Jesus is never going back to the cross again. When we got saved we got a ticket that says "good for 1 salvation only". For more look at Romans 4:5-6 "But to him that works not, but believes on him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describes the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputes righteousness without works." We are not saved by doing good works. People who believe you can lose your salvation generally believe you lose it because you don't have enough good works. They are trusting in their good works to save them and therefore are not saved. Notice the term in verse 6 "impute"? What does impute mean? It means to place it on your account. If you want to have a little fun, the next time you go to the store and you want to charge something, don't tell the clerk to charge it, tell the clerk to impute it. Let's read on in verses 7-8 "Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." Not only does God forgive, He forgets. God will not bring up that sin again. Blessed is the man who God will not impute sin. All it would take is one scintilla of one sin to send us all to Hell but thank God our sins are covered. Ok, onto the next "P"...

5) Position
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation." If we are "in Christ" how could we ever become "not in Christ"? Answer, we can't. What is true of Christ as far as position goes is true for us. We will lose our relationship with God the Father whenever Jesus loses His relationship with God the Father. We know this will never happen. We are also the body of Christ. If we were to become lost (lose our salvation) a part of Jesus' body would have to be cut off. Somebody might ask "what if you slip out of His hand?". We can't. We are one of His fingers.
The best picture of this in the Bible is found in Noah's Ark. Let's test your old testament knowledge how the account went. God told Noah to build the ark and then drive 8 pegs on the outside of that Ark for his wife, his sons, and their wives. Then God told them to hang on tight during the flood and if they endure until the end they will be saved. Is that what the Bible says? Of course not. God told Noah and his family to come into the Ark. That meant God was already in the ark. Being in the ark for Noah was like being in Christ. Then the Bible says that God shut the door. Why? To shut the water out and to shut Noah in. It was impossible for Noah to have fallen out of the Ark as it is impossible for us to fall out of Christ. There was no door knob on the inside of that Ark for Noah to get out. God sealed him in. Ephesians tells us that once we believe we are sealed just like Noah was. Noah may have fallen down many times in the ark, but he never fell out of the ark. We will fall down many times, but we will never fall out of Christ. Ok, the next "P"
6) Possession
We already have Eternal Life. John 5:24 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears my word, and believes on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." This verse says we have it, not that we will get it someday. We have it right now. Keep this in mind. Our eternal life does not begin the instant we die, our eternal life began the moment we believed. Ok, the 7th "P"

7) Prayer
Jesus is making intercession for us.
John 17:9,15 "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou has given me; for they are thine. I pray not that thou should take them out of the world, but that thou should keep them from the evil." Jesus is not praying for God the Father to keep us out of heartache or difficulty but that God the Father will keep us from the evil. Question.. had Jesus Christ ever prayed a prayer that did not get answered? Of course not. Why? Because he always prays in the will of God the Father. Ok, you may say that in those verses Jesus was praying for His disciples. That is true, but if we scroll down to verse 20 we see this "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word." That means He was praying for us that we would be kept. Just to add more to it, look at Hebrews 7:25 "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lives to make intercession for them." It's comforting if you have a prayer group that is praying for you but it's the most comforting to know that Jesus is continually praying for you. The last "P" ..

8) Power
1 Peter 1:3-6 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fades not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." We are kept. We have a lively hope. It doesn't fade away, it is incorruptible and undefiled.
Ok, so a naysayer might say "what if Satan could take you out of God's hand?" Remember the scripture at the beginning in John 10?
"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand." Can you think of any force powerful enough to pry open the hand of God? Question.. if Jesus is not able to keep us, if Satan is able to pry us out of God's hand, why hasn't he done it? The only reason Satan hasn't is because he can't. If someone thinks Satan can take us out of God's hand and he hasn't done it yet, the only conclusion is that Satan is being good to us. And we are going to Heaven based on the goodness of Satan. Wouldn't that be a strange doctrine?
Ok, someone might say "well Satan may not be able to do it but we can." At the end of the scripture in verse 28 "they shall never perish". This text is in the middle voice and it literally means "they shall never destroy themselves." If God didn't save me from me, He didn't save me from my worst enemy. Us, as dumb sheep, have such a Savior that is able to save us and keep us forever by the power of God.

A side note explanation of what "middle voice" means:

Some languages (such as Sanskrit, Icelandic and Ancient Greek) have a middle voice. The middle voice is in the middle of the active and the passive voice because the subject cannot be categorized as either agent or patient but has elements of both. An intransitive verb that appears active but expresses a passive action characterizes the English middle voice. For example, in The casserole cooked in the oven, cooked appears syntactically active but semantically passive, putting it in the middle voice. In Classical Greek, the middle voice is often reflexive, denoting that the subject acts on or for itself, such as "The boy washes himself", or "The boy washes". It can be transitive or intransitive. It can occasionally be used in a causative sense, such as "The father causes his son to be set free", or "The father ransoms his son".

All our Tomorrows

Procrastination comes from the latin "crastinus" which means of tomorrow. A procrastinator is a champion, a master of putting things off until tomorrow, anytime but now.

I grew up as a fan of the original Star Trek TV series and one of the episodes is called "All Our Yesterdays". However, since our church is doing the study called "30 Days To Live" I thought we should look at "All our Tomorrows". We do not know how many tomorrows we will have.

One of the slyest tricks of Satan is to divert our attention and to get us to put things off. He doesn't tell us not to do them... just not to do them right now. The most disasterous situation happens to people who have not yet trusted Christ as Savior but they are on the brink of making that decision when the Devil whispers to them to "think about it a little longer". Sadly, some of those who fall into that trap suddenly die before they get the chance to make that decision for Christ. The scripture that I feel best addresses this is 2 Corinthians 6:2 "(For he says, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I helped thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)" (emphasis mine).

In the first message in the series yesterday, the pastor brought up many good points and encouraged people to act now in serving Christ which was wonderful. However, I was disappointed in the way he addressed those that were not yet believers who may have been in attendance. I am not sure if he meant it to come out this way but it came across as a "oh don't worry about it... think it over and hopefully one day you'll come to a decision of belief." If that was the intent, that is dead wrong (literally and figuratively). The unbelievers are the last ones who can afford to put off for tomorrow what should be done today. I guess in an attempt to not "hurt someone's feelings" or not "make them mad so they will come back" the now message was not for the lost, or so it seemed.

From all accounts I can find in the New Testament, when Jesus sent his Disciples out to preach the Gospel He did not tell them to give out a laissez-faire Gospel. In fact, Jesus was particularly stern about this. Here is a passage most are familiar with. Mark 6:10-12
"And He told them, Wherever you go into a house, stay there until you leave that place. And if any community will not receive and accept and welcome you, and they refuse to listen to you, when you depart, shake off the dust that is on your feet, for a testimony against them. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the judgment day than for that town. So they went out and preached that men should repent (that they should change their minds for the better and heartily amend their ways, with abhorrence of their past sins)."

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This is an addition to this post that I am adding today, Monday Jan 17th. In the original post, I mentioned that the urgency for salvation was not addressed by the pastor. I don't think he reads this blog but in yesterday's message he presented the clearest, and easiest to understand presentation of the Gospel message I have seen. And he emphasized the point that if we are not ready to stand before God because we have not been made right with Him through belief in Christ, then nothing else matters. He correctly pointed out that this one thing is THE important thing. Way to go James, I am proud of you for putting that message to the congregation. I pray that those there who were not believers will be stirred to make that decision for Christ and not put it off another day.

"Got Milk?" or "Beef, It's What Should Be For Dinner"

God has put it on my heart to declare 2010 as "the year of meat". I get frustrated many times with the so called "modern churches" who have members (like a country club does) who even after many years are still "babes" who are only interested in digesting milk. The Apostle Paul was also frustrated with those in His day who were the same way. Take at look at these scriptures:

1 Corinthians 3:1-3
"And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for you were not ready to bear it, neither yet now are you able. For you are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are you not carnal, and walk as men?"

Hebrews 5:11-13
"We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness."

1 Peter 2:1-3
"Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."

Notice the causes for needing milk... deceit, hypocrisy, envy, strife, slander and divisions. It is sad to say but there is a lot of each going on in the modern church so no wonder the church is stagnant at the milk or baby stage.

Jesus Himself was also frustrated at those around Him who did not read the scriptures (know the scriptures). See these passages:

Matthew 12:3
"But he said unto them, Have you not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him."

Matthew 12:5
"Or have you not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless?

Matthew 19:4
"And he answered and said unto them, Have you not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female."

Matthew 22:31-32
"But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have you not read that which was spoken unto you by God,saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."

Mark 12:10
And have you not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner."

Mark 12:26
And as touching the dead, that they rise: have you not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spoke unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?"

Luke 6:3
And Jesus answering them said, Have you not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was an hungred, and they which were with him; How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the showbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone?"

God expects us to read our bibles, not just read them but study them and become familiar with them to the point that we can point to a scripture when we need to. I can just hear the frustration in my mind's eye when I read those scriptures. 7 times Jesus asks the rhetorical question to them of "have you not read?". I am afraid for a vast majority in the modern church the answer to that question is an unequivocal "NO" because most have not read, at least not studied. They may know the "milk" but they do not know the "meat".

The quickest way to get from the milk stage to the meat stage is to grow up spiritually. The first way to do this is to study the Word and apply what is learned. However, most in the modern church do not study (nor do they seem to feel it is important.... what with life getting in the way and all). It is impossible to digest something that is never taken in.

The modern church has eschewed the fundamental means of teaching the body (Sunday school) with the new wave of "small groups". The concept of small groups would be fine if people 1) actually joined a small group, 2) the small groups met on a consistent basis, and 3) when they do meet they actually dig into the Word and not turn it into a social event only. The majority of modern church goers will only do anything spiritual on Sunday mornings. At least with Sunday school classes many would attend since it was right before the service. So few seem interested enough to do anything spiritual on the other 6 days of the week which is the biggest fallacy of the small group movement. The small group concept is much like Liberal politics where intentions are the same as results.

I for one have become Lactose intolerant. I am blessed that I am in one of the rare small groups that actually meets every week year round (imagine that concept) and that we actually dig into the scriptures and learn. In fact, a majority of our small group members would be capable of leading another small group and showing them how it is done.

On The 1st Day of Christmas the Lord Revealed To Me ......

....... that once we are adopted, He NEVER sends us back and loving us means "NEVER letting us go".

Good Morning America interviewed Melissa and Tony Wescott, who are fighting to return their adopted 11-year-old son to the state of Oklahoma because he has severe psychiatric problems. They say loving him now means "letting him go."

Scripture reference: Ephesians 1:3-14
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he has made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he has abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he has purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fullness of times (the 1,000 year reign of Christ on the earth known as the Millenuim) he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom you also trusted, having believed the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: you were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest (downpayment) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory."

To use a word from Christmas shopping lexicon, the earnest downpayment until the redemption of the purchased possession is like being put on "lay-a-way" only God doesn't pay for us a little at a time and then redeems us, He purchased us in full at the cross but is waiting until the Rapture of the Church to rightfully claim us.

From the Scofield Reference Bible note on Ephesians 1:5
"Adoption" (Greek huiothesia, meaning placing as a son) is not so much a word of relationship as of position. In regeneration a Christian receives the nature of a child of God; in adoption he receives the position of a child of God. Every Christian obtains the place of a child and the right to be called a son the moment he believes (Gal 3:25-26). The indwelling Holy Spirit gives the realization of this in the Christian's present experience (Gal 4:6); but the full manifestation of his sonship awaits the resurrection, change, and translation of saints, which is called "the redemption of the body" (Eph 1:14 & Rom 8:23).

Notice that the Holy Spirit Himself is the seal. In the symbolism of scripture a seal signifies 3 things:
1) a finished transaction
2) ownership
3) security


Question... if the giving of the Holy Spirit has taken place to a believer, one adopted as a child of God based on trust in Christ, and the Holy Spirit seals the believer instantly, how could said believer ever be lost?

Answer... they can't. As noted above, this is a finished transaction where the believer is no longer their own but they are owned by God. God is not going to let anyone or anything take an adopted child away from Him... no matter how badly the adopted child acts. If the adopted child is rebellious, God has a way of dealing with them (see Hebrews ch. 12).

On The 2nd Day of Christmas, the Lord Revealed To Me ......

....... the greatest gift of all is absolutely free.

What do you think about getting something for free? where you don't need to travel a long way to get it? with no hidden conditions? where it could not be taken from you for any reason? And you would never have to take it back for an exchange?

We have all probably heard the expression "if it seems to good to be true, it probably is". Well there is one BIG exception to this statement and that is Slavation through Trust in Jesus and Grace. Unlike the cartoon above, you don't even have to pay 50 cents for it. It is absolutely free. Not only that, God wants everyone to have it. 1 Timothy 2:3-5 "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."

There is ONE thing that prevents all men from being saved, free will. God does not force Himself on anyone. While it is true that He wills that all be saved, we can override His will (even though it is an incredibly foolish thing to do).

So while we may receive some gifts on the 25th that we may not like or may need to return because it is the wrong size, this special free gift is "one size fits all".

So the question is, how do we get in on this gift? The answer is very simple. We trust that Jesus' death, burial and resurrection was sufficient to pay the penalty for our sin and make us righteous in the sight of a Holy God all on the basis of that trust. It's not something we have to work for or bargain for or plea for. We don't ask Jesus "into our hearts" or any of that bologna. We trust in what Jesus did for us and the moment we do, the Holy Spirit comes to endwell us permanently.

Don't be deceived, salvation is a very simplistic process. It is not so high few can reach it, it is so low that few get down to it. 2 Corinthians 11:3 "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ."

So the thought is ... keep it simple, keep it real, keep it real simple and if you have accepted the free grift, rejoice. If you have not, now is the time. Do not wait. We never know when our time of earth will be over.
2 Corinthian 6:1-2 "And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain--
for He says,
"AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU,
AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU."
Behold, now is "THE ACCEPTABLE TIME," behold, now is "THE DAY OF SALVATION".

It's time to get simple, get real, and be set free. Do it now.

On The 3rd Day of Christmas, the Lord Revealed To Me ......

..... that Jesus did not come to bring peace.


Matthew 10:34-39
"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me, is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for me will find it”

Our Lord sets down the more general principle in the Gospel of John:

“If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own. But because you do not belong to the world, but I chose you out of the world, for this reason the world hates you. Remember what I told you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed my word, they will obey yours” (John 15:18-20).

Let those who would follow our Lord take note that when we follow Christ, men will respond to us as they have to Him. Jesus was rejected by His family; we should expect that this may be our experience as well. If we would be disciples of Jesus Christ, we must love Him above family and, if need be, we must choose Him and renounce family.

I am amazed at how casual people are today about Jesus. They politely speak of Him and think fondly of Him at special times like Christmas and Easter. They casually brush aside His claims, as though they are not worth getting excited or upset about. But the simple fact is this: either Jesus is correct in what He says, or He is a deceiver, worthy of death. If Jesus is the Son of God, as He clearly claims, then He speaks for God, as He also speaks as God. According to Him we are sinners, deserving of God’s eternal wrath, and our only hope is by faith in His sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. If He is the Son of God, we must fall before Him as our Savior and Lord. If we do not do so now, we will fall before Him as the Savior we rejected when He comes again, but not as our Savior:

And if Jesus is not who He claims to be, then we should just as passionately reject Him as a fraud and a deceiver. In this sense, the Jews of Jesus’ day—as wrong as they are—are right in taking His claims seriously. We should do the same. Let me ask you, then, “Who is Jesus?” Is He the Son of God, who came to give His life as a ransom for many by dying on the cross of Calvary for your sins? Or is He a fraud and a deceiver, who deserved to die for His own sins? These are the only two options. Which have you chosen? You decide. Who is Jesus Christ? Is He a deceiver, or the promised Messiah, God’s only provision for your salvation? Your decision, by our Lord’s words, determines your eternal destiny.

Now, having said all that, Jesus does bring peace to those who trust in Him as savior, a peace of mind, not peace in your everyday life. Jesus never promised to keep us out of trials, but to protect us. Reference the verses below.

John 17:15:"My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one."

John 14:26-27: "But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Phillipians 4:6-8 "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

If you know someone struggling, share with them the peace that comes with having a relationship with Jesus Christ. If you know a fellow believer who is going through a difficult time, remind them of the peace they have in Christ if they will only seek Him.

On The 4th Day of Christmas, the Lord Revealed To Me ......

......... the meaning of Tabernacle.


This was written by Lenny Cacchio. It is so good I had to share it.

"More than one hundred years ago the scholar E. W. Bullinger published his Companion Bible, popular for its scholarly appendices and insights. From internal Scriptural evidence, Bullinger makes the case that Jesus could not have been born in December. More than likely his birth was in the fall of the year, specifically during the High Holy Day season at the Feast of Tabernacles.

His complex but understandable explanation is a little too involved to explain here, but if Bullinger is right, the theological typology of the birth of Christ can lend even more hope and comfort to a world in need than even the traditional Christmas story.

To the Israelites the Feast of Tabernacles depicted their forty years of wandering in the wilderness before entering the Promised Land. During the feast they lived in "booths", or "tabernacles", which were temporary dwelling places. This was to show that they were strangers and pilgrims in the wilderness and that their permanent home awaited elsewhere. (See Leviticus 23:34-43). In synagogues today the book of Ecclesiastes is read during the Feast of Tabernacles, for that book laments the temporary nature of life in the flesh and the futility of life without God. Both Peter and Paul referred to our physical bodies as tabernacles, or temporary dwellings (II Corinthians 5:1-4, II Peter 2:13-14).

Anyone with just a passing acquaintance with Christian theology knows that the death and resurrection of Christ are central to salvation. I agree with that. But Jesus' first coming has a rich connection with this ancient festival, and the typology overflows with encouragement in what might seem like hopeless times.

In John's gospel we read that "the Word became flesh and dwelt [or 'tabernacled'] among us" (John 1:14), the point being that this one who was the Word from the beginning actually emptied himself of his immortality and became a man. He took on a temporary nature and became a stranger and pilgrim. It's a noble thing to put one's life at risk for another, but it is love without limit to risk one's eternal life for those who are undeserving. That is precisely what the one called the Word has done. He emptied himself and became subject to the same aches, pains, and temptations that we have.

Put differently, Jesus understands whatever you are going through because he has been there. Have you been lonely, tempted, or afraid? Have you been wracked with pain or hungry beyond measure? Have your friends betrayed you? Have you suffered through imprisonment? Have you felt forsaken by God? Have there been times when your family didn't believe in you? Have you been hounded by your enemies or sycophants, have no where to sleep, or so beset upon that you have no time to eat? Well, because Jesus chose to tabernacle with us, he understands it all, for in the days of his flesh he experienced all those trials and more.

The writer of Hebrews says, "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:15-16)

Jesus was born, and we recognize that. But too much richness is lost by misunderstanding the context of his birth. He tabernacled among us! He understands our struggles in a way that comes only through experience. He can sympathize with our weaknesses. That's a wonderful message of hope."

If we think about it a little further, we are also "tabernacling" here on earth in a tent, a temporary dwelling place called our physical bodies. Much like the booths represented the Israelites before they entered the Promised Land, so our bodies represent the same before we enter the Promised Land of Heaven.

In the first chapter of John’s Gospel, he introduces Jesus as “the Word,” the One whose origin is not to be traced to a manger in Bethlehem, but One who is Himself the origin, the Creator of this world. Through Him, the world was spoken into existence. In the course of time, “the Word” became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus was born of a woman, fully God as much as He was fully man. If Jesus is the “Creator” in John chapter 1, and in chapter 2 (when He turns the water into wine), He is also the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (1:29, 36), and the greater “temple” (2:13-22). He is foreshadowed by the bronze serpent, lifted up by Moses in the wilderness (3:14-15), and the One who is greater than Jacob, offering men and women “living water” (4:10-14). In fact, He is the ladder Jacob saw in his vision on his way from Beersheba to Haran (Genesis 28:10-17; John 1:51). He is the Messiah (4:21-26), the healer of the sick on the Sabbath, who claims the right to do so because He is God (5:1-18). Jesus is the “true bread” from heaven (6:22-71), who gives eternal life to men (much better than the manna that God gave Israel in the wilderness). He is the One who is greater than Moses (1:17; 5:43-47; 6:30-33; 9:27-33). John is telling his Jewish readers that Jesus is the fulfillment of everything in the Old Testament which looks forward to the coming of Messiah.