Our Hope Endures

When I came in to work this morning I was told the news that a co-worker and friend, Tony Ponga, who had been battling cancer passed away last night. Many people had been praying for Tony's recovery and I am sure his family took comfort in those prayers. While Tony did not ultimately recover in his physical body from the cancer he made the best recovery of all, in his spirit.
Tony was raised in the Catholic faith but did not have a personal relationship with Christ. In the midst of the tragedy of cancer, God was with him and drew Tony to Him. Several months ago, Tony was baptized into Christ after coming to a believing faith in Jesus. Not only Tony, but his wife and daughter also.
The tragedy is not that Tony's physical life has come to an end (as sad as that is). The real tragedy would have been if Tony's life had ended with him not knowing Christ as his savior. In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Paul writes:

"13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 14For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

Paul also wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:12-19 these words:

12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.

Since we believe in a bodily resurrection we have a hope that the non-believing world knows nothing about. When they die physically, it is their end to eternal damnation. These are to be pitied more than any others. When a child of God dies physically, it is far from the end. In fact, the Bible calls it a state of "sleep". But one day those of us who have fallen asleep will hear the voice of Jesus and be raised up to meet Him. Rather than being pitied, we have that blessed hope. Despite the outward circumstances and no matter how bleak things look, we have the eternal hope of Christ in us. There is a song by Natalie Grant that describes this very well. The refrain speaks volumes when it says "Emmanuel.. God is with us" and "El Shaddai.. all sufficient". God is always with us and He is also all sufficient for us. No matter how bad things may seem to get, our hope endures.

Our Hope Endures - Natalie Grant
You would think only
So much can go wrong
Calamity only strikes once
And you assume that this
One has suffered her share
Life will be kinder from here

[Chorus:]
Sometimes the sun
Stays hidden for years
Sometimes the sky
Rains night after night
When will it clear
But our hope endures
The worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
Let the Earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

How do we comprehend
Peace within pain
Or joy at a good man's wake?
Walk a mile with a woman
Whose body is torn
With illness
But she marches - on

[Chorus]

[3x]:
Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient

We never walk alone
This is our hope
Our hope endures
The worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
Let the Earth quake
Let the Earth quake
Let the Earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

A Sign of Their Times

As I have stated in prior posts, and firmly believe, it is crucial when trying to understand a passage of scripture that you acknowledge at least some of the following criteria: Who is writing the passage? Who is it written to? What is the reason it is written? I bring this whole topic up because in our recent bible study we were led back once again to James 2:17 which has the famous phrase “faith without works is dead”. This is one of the most controversial passages in the Bible because many do not know the proper interpretation of the verse. Many see this verse as contradicting the verse in Ephesians 2:8 when Paul writes that “By Grace are you saved through faith and not of yourselves.” Now on the surface these verses seem to contradict one another. However, we know that the Bible is the inspired word of God and does not contradict itself. Anyone, and I mean anyone, who tries to tell you the Bible is contradictory is doing the work of Satan himself and I don’t care what earthly title or degree he or she may hold.

So, since the Bible never contradicts itself, yet these verses on the surface appear to be opposites, we need to go below the surface and run these verses through the criteria I mentioned. Let’s examine the passage in James. First, James is the writer and he is a Jew. He is writing to fellow Jews. The reason he is writing this message to them is to exhort them to righteous living and good conduct. In biblical times Jewish people always required a sign before they would believe. How do I know this? Scripture tells us in 1 Corinthians 1:22 “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom.” This is the reason the temporary gift of tongues was given … to give the Jews a sign. This is the primary reason Jesus performed so many miracles during His earthly ministry.... to help them believe that He was the Messiah (and even after all of that many still failed to believe). Remember doubting Thomas? He would not believe it was really Jesus he was seeing until Jesus showed him the nail pierced hands. Remember what Jesus told Thomas? In John 20:29 Jesus said, Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

The reason James is telling his fellow Jews that faith without works is dead is because he understood that Jews required a sign to believe anything. In order for a person back in biblical days to have someone truly believe they were a follower of Christ, they needed to have good works in the way they lived their lives as evidence of their faith. Now, we need to also define two words here … “works” and “dead”. What kind of works is James talking about? Keeping the law? Of course not. He is talking about good works such as showing love and kindness for a fellow person. It ties in with what Jesus said the two most important commandments were… “Love God with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself”. What does dead mean? In the Bible, dead does not mean non existent, it means separation. Spiritual death does not mean the person ceases to exist. It means they are separated from God. In like manner, faith without corresponding action is separated and that person has no outward appearance of being a believer in Christ.

In a nutshell what James is saying is if we have authentic faith in Christ that we should have corresponding actions that accompanies that faith. Lack of corresponding works does not mean that a person’s faith is illegitimate. It means they are not living as they ought. Good works are a visible sign that other people can tell you are a follower of Christ without even knowing you personally. We as people see the outward appearance of others and focus on their actions. God sees the inner man. 1 Samuel 16:7 states But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

We can be deceived by outward appearance. Think of Judas. Outwardly, he seemed to be one of the best of the disciples for he was the treasurer and only a well thought of person is left in control of the money. However, when the rubber hit the road his true colors were found out that he was not a believer at all. We can get ourselves in a whole lot of trouble if we try to determine who is a Christ follower and who is not simply based on their actions. You may want to read the parable of the wheat and the Tares that Jesus told in Matthew 13:24-30.

When "R" rated is a good thing

Many well intended people this week will be wishing me a "Happy Easter". I cringe when they do. I do not celebrate "Easter" nor do I celebrate "Christmas". Both are man made "Holi-Days" that were established to circumvent the true "Holy-Days". I like to make this time of the year "R" rated. What I celebrate this time of the year is the "Resurrection" of Jesus Christ. I prefer to use the expression "Happy Resurrection Day". I choose the "R" rather than the "E".

Easter's origin is pagan and is named after a fertility goddess by the name of Ashtar. This is why the "tradition of men" at this time of the year is to bring out "Easter eggs" and "Easter bunnies". Both eggs and bunnies are symbols of fertility, reproduction and sex. Keep in mind, there is a reason that the girls are called "Playboy Bunnies".

This has no place in the Holy celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Anymore than Santa Claus and a tree have any place in context with the birth of Christ. Our focus should be on Jesus and not on the frivolity of lilys, eggs and bunnies.

I found a great article on this subject by the late Dr. Hank Lindstrom. He explains it much more succinctly than I can. Enjoy.

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GOOD FRIDAY?

Have you ever wondered how Jesus Christ could be crucified on Friday and be resurrected on Sunday after being buried for three days? Well, that's impossible! You cannot squeeze three days between Friday and Sunday. By no stretch of the imagination is it possible to stretch the period from Friday evening to Sunday morning into "three days and three nights".

We believe that Jesus Christ died on a Wednesday. We do not believe that Jesus died on Friday. Let's turn to Matthew 12:40, and notice Christ's own prophecy pertaining to His death, burial, and resurrection. "For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth (Matthew 12:40)." "Three days and three nights" means seventy-two hours. Jesus defined the length of a day in John 11:9. Our Lord said, "Are there not twelve hours in a day?" Well, if there are twelve hours in a day, then there are twelve hours in a night. And therefore, three days and three nights would be 72 hours. Anything less than 72 hours would not fulfill the prophecy of Jonah or the words of Jesus Christ.

Perhaps you're wondering why the vast majority of Christians accept the Friday-to-Sunday burial of Christ if it is wrong? The only answer that can be given is tradition. "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ (Colossians 2:8)." This is a tradition not taught in the Bible. Ash Wednesday and Lent also are not in the Bible. Even the word Easter is pagan, and it is not found in the Bible. In the King James Version the word "Easter" does occur in Acts 12:4, but is a mistranslation. The word Easter comes from the word Ish-tar and is the same as Astaroth, a pagan deity. We celebrate the resurrection of Christ again from the dead.

In order to explain the Good Friday tradition, the proponents say that Christ was buried during parts of three days and nights. That is Christ was buried for part of Friday, part of Saturday, and a part of Sunday.

Sometimes people ask, "Didn't the Jews count part of a day a whole day or part of a night as a whole night?" Whenever you have the expression "day and night" mentioned together in the Hebrew Scriptures, it always means a full day and a full night. For example, "And the evening and the morning were the first day (Genesis 1:8)"; "And the evening and morning were the second day (Genesis 1:13)"; "And the evening and morning were the third day (Genesis 1:13)"; and so on. Other examples are Esther 4:16; 5:1; II Samuel 30:12-13 and Jonah 1:17, where you will find the expression "three days and three nights," and in every instance it means full days and full nights--not part of a day and part of a night.

Let's see what the scriptures teach us as we look at an example in the life of Christ. The Scripture says, "And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered (Matthew 4:2)." Jesus fasted forty days and forty nights. If we say, as some do, that "three days and three nights" does not mean "three days and three nights", then we must also say that "forty days and forty nights" does not mean "forty days and forty nights". Where do we stop? Do we say that we really can't be sure about anything? Of course not! We believe the Bible to be literal.

Part of the confusion has come from verses like John 19:31. This verse says, "The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the Sabbath day (for that Sabbath day was an high day), besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away." The Sabbath in John 19:31 is not the regular Saturday Sabbath. It was the Passover Sabbath, which occurred on Thursday of the crucifixion week. Note that John 19:31 says, "For that Sabbath day was an high day." If it were talking of the Saturday Sabbath, then Christ would have been crucified on Friday. All the feast days God gave to Israel were considered Sabbaths though they did not fall on Saturday. Jesus was crucified on the preparation (Wednesday) of the Sabbath (Passover Sabbath) which was Thursday.

Now at what time of the day did Jesus die? It was around three in the afternoon on Wednesday. "And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: And having said thus, he gave up the ghost (Luke 23:44-46)." When it says the ninth hour, it means the ninth hour since the break of day. In other words, it was three o'clock in the afternoon. Jesus was taken away from the cross and hurriedly buried the same afternoon before sundown or 6:00 P.M.

Now remember that the Jewish day always begins at sundown or at about 6:00 P.M. Our day begins at midnight, but the Jewish day began at sunset. In Leviticus 23:32, the Lord said, "From even unto even shall ye celebrate your sabbath.

If you count 72 hours from late Wednesday afternoon at around 6:00 P.M., then Jesus would have been in the tomb until late Saturday afternoon at around 6:00 P.M.

So, a Sunday morning resurrection is not what the Bible teaches. We believe that Jesus was resurrected on Saturday evening at about 6:00 P.M. Jesus was placed in the tomb at around 6:00 P.M. on Wednesday. Seventy-two hours later would be at around 6:00 P.M. on Saturday, exactly when the first day began (Sunday).

When the women arrived at the tomb early Sunday morning, Jesus was already gone. The Gospel is summed up in I Corinthians 15:3-4, "...Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." Those who arrived early Sunday morning simply discovered an empty tomb. The angel said, "He is not here, for He is risen (Luke 24:6)."

One objection to a Wednesday crucifixion is found in Luke 24:21, which says, "But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done." This conversation takes place on Sunday, the day of resurrection. The answer is found in the word "since." Counting from this verse, Sunday is the third day, Saturday the second day, Friday is the first day SINCE the Passover. The Thursday Passover (Jewish reckoning) had its night on what we would call Wednesday night and twilight of that night, meaning between 3:00 P.M. and 6:00 P.M., is when Christ was crucified. The twilight of Thursday afternoon would have counted as the twilight of Friday night which began at 6:00 P.M. by Jewish reckoning. So we see there is no conflict.

The real issue is not really what day was Christ crucified on, but the need to be careful Bible students, lest we miss what the Bible teaches about how to be saved. We know that nothing could wash away our sins but the blood of Jesus Christ. If you have not trusted Jesus Christ and His shed blood as your only means of reaching heaven, then do so now.

When A Little "Give and Take" Is Not Such A Good Thing

Revelation 22:17-19
"17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that hears say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. 18 For I testify unto every man that hears the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book."

In our social system we have always been taught that when there is a disagreement that we should work out a compromise with the other person. In the vernacular the term is "Give and Take". This all sounds good, but when it comes to the scriptures and sound doctrine we dare not give in to error.

In the above verses from the Book of The Revelation ch 22 we see the golden bow that God wraps up His word with. We are not to add to it (Give) or take away from it (take); to do so leads to great consequences. Let's analyze this passage one verse at a time:

Verse 17: this verse is talking to the unsaved. The only way the unsaved can come to a saving faith is by means of the Holy Spirit and the bride (also known as the church). The members of the church are responsible for sowing and watering the message of the Gospel to the lost and the Holy Spirit is responsible for reaping the harvest. Note also in this verse, that the invitation is open to anyone, anywhere at anytime no matter what they have done in the past. For those who "hear" the calling to come to Christ they are free to come. The Bible calls these people the "whosoever wills". Whosoever is exactly as it sounds... whosoever. This means ANYBODY no matter what sin or so called "unpardonable sin" they may have thought they committed. The only unpardonable sin is to refuse the Holy Spirit's call to come to Christ. When someone does that, they are in danger of having their heart so hardened that they will not come to Christ in the future. If they are at the point where they still seek Christ, then they have not committed this unpardonable sin.

Verse 18: The apostle John is testifying (based on Divine intervention) that the Bible is the infallible word of God and is not to be amended in any way. He begins by addressing the people who would add to the Word (the givers in our title). Who are the givers? These are those who would add to the plan of salvation. Salvation is through trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ that He is God and that His death, burial and resurrection is enough to justify us before a Holy God. See 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 where Paul lays out the Gospel message in 4 simple verses. So what do these people add? Simply put.. works. In biblical days these people would add circumcision as a prerequisite for salvation. Today, some add baptism, speaking in tongues, helping the poor, following sacraments, etc. None of these things save. Not only do they not save, they can prevent salvation from ever taking place. If a person believes they have to perform some duty in order to be saved they are saying that they do not trust that what Christ did on the cross was sufficient to justify them, ergo these people fall short of being saved. The bible calls this falling from grace in Galatians 5:4.

Next John addresses those who would take away from the message of the Bible. How do they do this? By simply denying the Deity of Christ. Christ can not forgive sins or be any one's savior if He is not co-equal and co-eternal with God the Father. Jesus Himself proclaimed this in John 8:58 "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am." We know that the name "I Am" is the name God used for Himself when He showed Himself to Moses at the burning bush. The Jews that Jesus told this to knew what He meant because in verse 59 it says they took up stones to stone Him for proclaiming He was God. In verse 24 Jesus makes this statement to let everyone know that if you do not believe He is God in the flesh that you shall die in eternal damnation of Hell "I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins." While it is true we should not judge others as to whether they are saved or lost (only God knows their heart) we have an obligation to tell people that if they do not trust Christ that they will not be saved. Jesus said they will "indeed die in their sins". If Jesus says it so emphatically I dare not water down the message because it sounds harsh. It's supposed to be harsh. Pardon the pun but it is meant to scare the living hell out of people. I would much rather scare someone into heaven than to lull them into hell by preaching a "feel good" type of Gospel. I will have to give an account to God for how I shared the Gospel and I do not want to face Him knowing I compromised the true message of salvation simply so people will feel better about themselves.

What will God do to those "take-away'ers"? He will take away their part of the book of life. This is important to understand. By inference, this passage clearly states that all people (that's A double L, ALL) people's name are initially in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world. When we get saved our name is not added to the Book of Life, it simply means that God won't blot out our name from the book. The people who take away the Diety of Christ do not have saving faith themselves so as night follows day their names will be blotted out from the book upon their deaths.

We may not understand everything in the Bible, but those of us who are born again understand enough to not add to the message of salvation by adding works and we understand enough to not take away the Diety of God. If we misinterpret other scriptures in the Bible, it is not quite so critical, but if we misinterpret these it is deadly.

If you are unsure of your salvation now is the time to get it settled. You must believe (which means to trust with all your heart) that Jesus is God and that His death, burial and resurrection is the only way to justify you in the eyes of God and the only way to come into God's eternal family. Once you do this, you should then be baptized as an outward testimony of your inward faith. The baptism is not a necessary part of salvation but it shows your obedience to Christ's commands. I don't know of anyone who has truly come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ that did not want to tell everyone they know about it. Baptism symbolizes Christ burial just as we are buried under the water and come up out of the water a new creation.

No if's, and's, "But God"

If you are like me and most everyone else, there are times in our daily lives that we go through stresses of daily life that seem overbearing. It is as if we feel like we are under attack spiritually from the devil, and in these instances we may very well be. We may think "Satan is trying to discourage me, Satan is trying to hurt me, etc. In our own strength we are no match for our foe the Devil. However, greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world (John 4:4). There are two very important words we need to remember when we are under attack and don't feel as though we can win the battle... "But God". We need to think, "I can't do it, but God can".

In searching the scriptures, the two word phrase "but God" appears 43 times. Here is the list:

1. Genesis 20:3
But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou has taken; for she is a man's wife.

2. Genesis 31:7
And your father has deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me.

3. Genesis 45:8
So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

4. Genesis 48:21
And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.

5. Genesis 50:20
But as for you, you thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

6. Exodus 13:18
But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.

7. Exodus 21:13
And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.

8. Judges 15:19
But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.

9. 1 Samuel 23:14
And David abode in the wilderness in strong holds, and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand.

10. 1 Chronicles 28:3
But God said unto me, Thou shalt not build an house for my name, because thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed blood.

11. Psalm 49:15
But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.

12. Psalm 64:7
But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.

13. Psalm 68:21
But God shall wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goes on still in his trespasses.

14. Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart fails: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

15. Psalm 75:7
But God is the judge: he puts down one, and sets up another.

16. Proverbs 21:12
The righteous man wisely considers the house of the wicked: but God overthrows the wicked for their wickedness.

17. Isaiah 17:13
The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.

18. Jonah 4:7
But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.

19. Mark 2:7
Why does this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God only?

20. Luke 5:21
And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?

21. Luke 12:20
But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

22. Luke 16:15
And he said unto them, You are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

23. Acts 7:9
And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him

24. Acts 10:28
And he said unto them, You know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God has showed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

25. Acts 13:30
But God raised him from the dead:

26. Romans 5:8
But God commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

27. Romans 6:17
But God be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

28. 1 Corinthians 1:27
But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty

29. 1 Corinthians 2:10
But God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God.

30. 1 Corinthians 3:6
I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.

31. 1 Corinthians 3:7
So then neither is he that plants any thing, neither he that waters; but God that gives the increase.

32. 1 Corinthians 6:13
Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.

33. 1 Corinthians 7:15
But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God has called us to peace.

34. 1 Corinthians 10:13
There has no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it.

35. 1 Corinthians 12:24
For our comely parts have no need: but God has tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacked.

36. 1 Corinthians 15:38
But God gives it a body as it has pleased him, and to every seed his own body.

37. Galatians 3:18
For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

38. Galatians 3:20
Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.

39. Galatians 6:14
But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

40. Ephesians 2:4
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us

41. Philippians 2:27
For indeed he was sick near unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.

42. 1 Thessalonians 2:4
But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which tries our hearts.

43. 1 Thessalonians 4:8
He therefore that despises, despises not man, but God, who has also given unto us his holy Spirit.

Now keep in mind, to get the most out of what these verses are saying, we may need to read the preceding verses because the phrase "but God" is being used to contrast something that was just said. Sometimes it does this all in one verse but many times the previous verse is being referenced.

So the next time you are feeling spiritually down or under attack, just remember that you aren't able to win the fight on your own, "but God" can and will (if we humble ourselves and ask for His protection and guidance). If we go at it pridefully, God has no obligation to come to our defense.

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.