Sunday, November 28, 2010

The Crucified Creator

You're a sinner, that's for sure, and someone must pay for all of your sins. You must have a Substitute to take your sin’s punishment before you die, or you must suffer for all your sins for eternity in Hell. You have offended God by your open and secret sins and rejection of Christ; God must punish sin, He could not be a just God unless He did; it is a fixed eternal law that all sin must be punished. Your own conscience tells you that God must punish sin. You’re a sinner, the Bible says you are; you know it, and you feel it. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. There is not a just man upon the earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.

You’ve sinned and violated God’s laws and spurned God’s love and shed blood, you’re always sinning, and you must die an eternal death for it. All have sinned, and “the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” There is but a step between you and death; and even if your life is prolonged for a little season, yet it will soon be over. You will die physically before long – it is inescapable, but the second death is eternal death in Hell, separation from God forever and ever. Human sin is a devilish thing, which God’s justice must punish. The penalty for sin is eternal death. Your lies, lusts, greediness, and envy transgress God’s law daily. Your sin is on your soul right now and the wrath of God abides on you – and unless you repent, you must die in your sins and perish forever. Be sure your sin will find you out – God will bring every secret work of yours into Judgment. Seek ye first the kingdom of God. Christ is the Creator of the universe that was crucified in your place.

God Almighty in the person of Jesus Christ made a free way for you to escape the damnation of Hell. There is only one way – Substitution – that is the word! And there is only One Substitute for the ungodly sinner: The Lamb of God sent from Heaven is the only Substitute for sinners: God became a human being in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, and suffered for sinners what they ought to have suffered. Christ Jesus came into the world to seek and save lost sinners just like you. He is the one and only Substitute for your guilt. Jesus Christ, the God-Man, lived a sinless life and glorified the law of God. He kept the law of God perfectly for you; the law of God that you have broken all your life. Christ Jesus went to the Cross of Calvary, and offered up Himself as a sinless blood sacrifice in your place. “The blood of Jesus Christ God’s Son cleanseth us from all sin.” God laid your sin on Jesus, and He bled to death for you. Jesus Christ bore your sins in His own body and suffered the wrath of God in your place. Christ died for the ungodly, not the good and respectable. Your good works are good-for-nothing.

This is the most beautiful thing you’ll ever hear: One day 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem’s manager, God became a Jewish man, Christ Jesus was His name. He died to save sinful men. He was bruised, beaten, and then spilt His blood for your sins. Judas Iscariot betrayed Him; Pontius Pilate falsely condemned Him. On His precious head was placed the crown of thorns you deserved, and the lips of the angry mob cursed Him and cried out in their scorn as He bore the Cross. JESUS was the Holy Sacrifice required for your sins. His Divine Blood Sacrifice alone pleased the justice and vengeance of God. The weight of your sin bowed Him down on Calvary's tree. Your sins were the nails in His hands and feet. The unbelief of your vile heart was the spear in His side. Christ cried out in anguish as He bled there for you. The wrath of Almighty God was poured out that day on the Sinless Lamb of God, God's dear Son. God the Father turned His face away and forsook Jesus that day because of your sins. Christ was made SIN for you, and suffered untold agony in your place - He was God's Sacrifice of Love for you personally. Then He was buried, and rose again the third day according to the scriptures. Ye must be born again.

If you take Christ, He’ll take you. Your human goodness and morals can never save you. You have transgressed God’s law – you need the Substitute. Don’t toy with sin – repent and trust Christ’s precious blood before it’s too late. You must have the Substitute before you die – nothing else will do. Jesus is God, but He is man, He is the Substitute for real sinners; He is willing to receive all who trust Him. He will save you right now, if you will simply rely on Him. Now, you can never be saved from your sins until first you come to the Cross, and see Jesus Christ dying there for you, as your Substitute. You must trust Him alone — the moment you do, all your sins are laid on Him, you are eternally saved and clear of the penalty for your sin. The sinner who rejects the Bleeding Substitute who died upon the Cross will bring eternal ruin to his soul. Please don’t reject the Bleeding Substitute, for if you do, you must perish in your sins without hope.

You can only come to know Christ personally through trusting, or simply believing like a little child. Simply rest on Christ’s Blood Atonement alone. Stake your soul's eternal destiny on Christ's finished work; leave your sins with Him for time and eternity. God’s way of salvation is for you rest and rely on Christ alone. Christ offered Himself to God as your Substitute: through faith you receive Him: and from that moment on God accepts you. Believe in the finished work of Christ alone for yourself. The Blood of God will certainly save you if you place a simple childlike trust in the Substitute for sinners. Plead God’s precious blood! You have God’s word on it. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. God be merciful to me a sinner for Jesus’ sake.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Waiting and Looking for HIM

Waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ. Turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And wait for God's Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints. Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

For you know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. Ye do shew the Lord's death till He come. The day of Christ is at hand. The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither.

Love His appearing. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. The Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom; And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: Which in His times He shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. And now, little children, abide in Christ; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as Jesus is pure.

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry. But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. Grace be unto you, and peace, from Jesus which is, and which was, and which is to come. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself. So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Jesus said, "I will come again."

Friday, November 19, 2010

Come to your senses

Let's spell it out plainly so you won't miss Him - *J-E-S-U-S*, you must implicitly trust *HIM*, and not yourself. The righteousness you will need to get to heaven on your own is 100% perfect righteousness without sin from the day you're born, until the day you die. Anything less, and you're not good enough to go to Heaven. Whatever religion you follow, whatever works you do, it won't matter. If you have sinned one time in your life (and you have), that means you're not good enough to go to Heaven. If after that one sin, you never commit another one, you can never undo that one sin against God. You need to stop trying to pay for your own sins - you can't. Christ died for the ungodly.

Your present condition is that you are insecure and deteriorating; you're falling apart every day. You've made a mess of things. You don't need a new leaf, you need a new life. You can't cover up your sins with your good works. You've got into sin that you can't get out of. You've rejected Christ, and thought you could live without Him. It's a lot easier to get into sin, than to get out of sin. You're going nowhere fast. If you fool around with sin, the first thing you know, it's got you. He that commits sin is the servant of sin.

You're a sinner by nature, and you can't stop sinning, period. You have built up a sin debt that is going to send you straight to Hell. No 'religion' or program or pill on this earth can help you - you're in a real mess. You have sin trouble. You are were born in sin, you are a sinner by nature and by practice. You are lost in the darkness of sin, condemned, and under the wrath of God (John 3:36). You are dead in trespasses and sins, you are alone in the world without hope and without God. Your bad outweighs your good, because you have no good. You are sitting in the cell of Sin on Eternal Death Row awaiting execution. You're going to have to face your record at the White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15). Sin has definitely complicated your life. You need help from on high - Ye must be born again of the Spirit of God (John 3:8). Your filthy rags of self-righteousness don't impress God one bit.

Only Jesus Christ can bail you out of the deadly mess your sins have gotten you into. Jesus will take your all indebtedness and pay for it, if you will simply yield, submit, and let Him do the work within you. You'd be crazy to turn Him down, and lose your soul in the Lake of Fire. Come to your senses sinner. You have a sin debt you can never pay, but God's Son paid for all your sins with His own blood. Go to HIM now by Faith, and exchange your sins for His Righteousness. Jesus is the real deal. You can never be sufficiently righteous in yourself to make it to Heaven. Fix all your faith and confidence in the Bleeding Lamb of God who died that sinners might live. The real Gospel is never popular with self-righteous, sin-loving human nature. Humanistic self-loving sinners hate the free Gospel of the Grace of God.

It doesn't matter if you see yourself better than most people. You must be Perfect in God's sight, not in your sight. In God's sight, no sinner is good enough. Jesus Christ is 100% Righteous, you are 100% sinful, you must forsake yourself, and rely on His Blood and receive His Righteousness to cover your naked sinful soul. Christ's Righteousness is the ONLY way to Heaven. There's no one good enough to go to Heaven, you must repent and abandon your trust in your vain religion and self-righteousness. You'll die in your sins without Jesus Christ. At Calvary's Cross you are now freely offered a full pardon of all your sins. You can't get any glory, and you don't get to boast in anything you've done, you must trust and glory only in what Christ Jesus has done FOR YOU - this is the Gospel. Your only hope of Heaven is Christ's Righteousness, and not your own. Just as you are without trying to better yourself, simply come to Christ for everything you need - that is all.

You must personally ask Jesus Christ Himself to give you His Righteousness, because you have no righteousness at all. You're not good enough, and you can't *live it*. Never trust yourself, the only way to be saved from your sins is simply to believe in the LORD JESUS CHRIST. Abandon your self-righteousness now. Flee from the wrath to come on your sins. Say this, "God be merciful to me a sinner." Religion says that a man can help save himself from sin by his own good works, but that is a lie. You have failed, sinned, transgressed, and come short of the glory of God. You've never been good enough, and you'll never be good enough - Submit yourself Now to the Righteousness of God - Jesus Christ Himself. There's no way to please God without HIM. Jesus has already paid for ALL your sins, they are all completely paid for - Simply Trust His Blood Atonement Now. Come to your senses. Believe that Jesus Christ was God manifest in the flesh, He was virgin born, sinless, crucified, buried, and risen from the dead for ruined sinners. And then stop trusting your human goodness, stop trusting your efforts, and place all your trust on the Person and Blood of Jesus Christ. Christ died for the ungodly, and whosoever believeth in Him hath everlasting life.

Christ Jesus, God Manifest in the Flesh, came into the world to save sinners, especially you. You want to go to Heaven, trust Jesus Christ's shed blood; you want to go to Hell, just trust something else. Please have mercy on your sin-laden soul, take it to the only Person who can save and protect it from the Wrath of God (John 3:36; Romans 5:9; John 19:30). Give up your evil practices, renounce your sins, abhor your own righteousness, trust in nothing but Jesus' doing and dying. Atheism is simply a devilish hostility and hatred of the Holy Scriptures and Jesus Christ Himself - THE TRUTH. Human nature naturally hates the holiness and goodness of God. Genuine faith and trust in the Sinless Blood and Perfect Righteousness of Jesus Christ will eternally protect your soul from the wrath of God.

Religion teaches that if you're good enough, long enough, you may eventually earn the favor of God and eternal life. Religion says believe in yourself, and you'll get past the White Throne Judgment. Trust in self, and any confidence in your own efforts will surely land you in the Lake of Fire. Believing in yourself, helping yourself, esteeming yourself, and doing the best you can - this is the fastest way to Hell. You must have the absolute Righteousness of God, or you will never please God, because He is *HOLY*, and you are not. To believe in Christ is to *give up* trusting in yourself and to wholly trust in the Person and Blood of Jesus Christ Himself. It is all about HIM, not you. The Gospel offends human nature. If you are weary of striving to earn heaven, come to Jesus and He will give your lost soul REST. God's own Purity and Holiness is given to needy sinners as a free gift at the foot of the Cross. Only the Imputed Righteousness of Jesus Christ to your soul can make you acceptable in God's Sight. Come to your senses about your danger and guilt, and then come on to the Cross with the rest of us sinners.

Do (or) Done (3)

Most people down deep in their heart, they want to believe they are good – even good enough to earn a favorable Eternity. Most people you talk to today want to believe they are ‘pretty good.’ Yet, I’ve never met someone who would go so far as to say they are ‘perfect.’ That’s interesting isn’t it? We wouldn’t say that we are ‘perfect,’ but we don’t want to be called ‘bad’ either. Somehow as self-righteous humans we’ve created this uncritical gray area that you might call “not too bad.” This ‘neutral gray area’ soothes the guilty conscience for just about everybody, because we each draw our own lines and standards, and there’s always somebody “worse than us” to whom we compare ourselves. Generally, we reason that we are “pretty good” so long as we can point to someone who is worse than we are! We deceive ourselves into thinking that we’re okay with God. But everybody is bad, I’m bad, you’re bad, everyone breathing is bad. You may not consider yourself “too bad” or “really bad” – but you know as well as I do that you’re not perfect either. Only Jesus Christ was perfect.

Here’s what God says about all of us, “Romans 3:23” Romans 3:10; Simply put, nobody is perfect. We all fall short of God’s glory or God’s perfect standard—absolute sinless perfection. Think of it this way. What if God commanded all of us to jump to the moon? You might be able to jump higher than I can, and I might be able to jump higher than one of my children, but in the end, we all fall ‘way short’ of the commandment. Simply put, God says to the human race, “You have a deep problem – You sin. You are imperfect. You fall short of my glory. You are sinful.” You must be willing to admit that the sin problem exists in your soul. For most people, this is the biggest hurdle for them to get over.

Remember, God doesn’t compare us to someone other sinner. God using His own sinless perfection (Jesus Christ) – His own glory as the standard for righteousness. No matter how good you think you are, when compared to God’s holiness, we’re all bad – real bad. God holds us to a perfect standard. You ask, “Why would He hold us to a perfect standard when He knows that it is impossible for us to meet that standard? There’s only one conclusion. To help us realize that it’s not about DO, it’s all about DONE. It’s not about jumping high enough, it’s about admitting that we can’t jump high enough, and then trusting in Someone more powerful than ourselves to lift us up high enough!

If God literally required us to jump to the Moon to get to Heaven, would you try? Would you despair, or would you ask for a miracle? One thing is for sure, you would immediately conclude that you couldn’t get there on your own. It would take a miracle. And it will take a miracle to save a sinner like you and me. That is what God means in Ecc 7:20. God says that our sins make even our good works worthless in His eyes, because our sins literally take us away from Him. See Isa 64:6. God wants us to admit and accept the conclusion that we can’t get to Him on our own.

God says there is a great distance between Him and sinners – a distance created by our sin. And doing things in our own self-righteousness cannot close the gap. Doing ‘good stuff’ doesn’t pay for ‘bad stuff’ anymore than ‘not using my Visa card’ would pay for my previous credit card debt. Being a good person or ‘turning over a new leaf’ cannot negate you sins of the past or in any way undo the iniquity that you’ve committed in thought, word, and deed. You’re in way over your head in sinfulness, and you were born that way. (See Psa 51:5) Sin is buried deep in your nature and sin isn’t a ‘performance’ problem or a ‘behavior’ problem. It’s not a ‘doing’ problem, it’s a ‘being’ problem.

When you were a child, hopefully no one ever taught you to sin. Yet, before you could even talk or walk, you were selfish. Shortly thereafter you started to disobey, display a bad attitude, and throw temper tantrums. Just a few years later into your life you started to lie, fight, argue, steal and even intentionally hurt others. Where did this nature come from? The answer is found in Romans 5:12. Simply put, sin is in every one of us on the planet. From the cradle, every one of us has the natural tendency to do what is wrong. But please understand, it’s more than just “doing wrong.” It’s a state of being. We have a sin nature, and we need a new nature. Sin is in us, like a deadly disease – a fatal spiritual birth defect. You and I, because of our sin, are naturally separated from God – dead to God because of our sinfulness. We are imperfect, we fall way short of God’s glory; and Sin, our spiritual birth defect, has caused a massive separation between us sinners and our Creator.

This is pretty bad news, but just like when you go to doctor; sometimes you have to accept bad news before you can apply the good news. For example: If the doctor gave you a physical and the blood tests identified that you have cancer, and the doctor tells you, “You’ve got cancer…BUT…we have the cure! Well, before you can receive God’s cure, you must receive God’s diagnosis. God’s diagnosis of all us is simple. “We are born spiritually defective (sinners) and we are incapable of keeping God’s perfect standard. Something supernatural must be done IN US to bring us back to God.

Do you know what is so difficult about salvation? The hardest thing about salvation is realizing that you NEED it. The most difficult thing about salvation is realizing you can't save or 'help save' yourself. "As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country." (Prov 25:25) The good news about salvation is that Someone else did everything for you out of love, and that you only have to receive Salvation Freely by faith, without your own works playing a part in it at all. "And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." (Rev 22:17)

There is only one religion in this world that demands 'sinless perfection.' It is isn't Islam, it isn't Buddhism, it isn't Hinduism, it isn't Taoism, it isn't Catholism, it isn't Atheism. No religion demands sinless perfection as the key to heaven except 'Biblical Christianity.' It's the only one. All the other religions have very low standards.

All other religions have exceptionally inferior standards. "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish 'their own righteousness,' have not 'submitted' themselves unto the 'righteousness of God.' For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." (Rom 10:3-4) The word "BELIEVE" in the New Testament means to entirely trust in, absolutely rely on, to solely rest on, completely lean on, totally depend upon, or wholeheartedly count on). Be honest with your own soul: Have you ever truly 'believed' in the Blood of Christ to wash away your sins. No other religion is set up like Biblical Christianity. Every other one is man's religions and tradition trying to tell you, "If you do this, and do this, and don't do this, and don't do that, and hold out to the end, you 'MIGHT' make it. Religion will always try to get you trust in it, or try to get you to trust in yourself, never in Christ Jesus alone. The Bible says, "If you do this and this and this, and don't this and don't do that, you'll still go to hell like a bullet. All your do's and don'ts do make any difference, you have sinned and you are dead in sins, and your so-called good works are called 'dead works' in the scriptures. They are called 'dead works' because a dead person is doing them. You need 'life' from the Lord Jesus Christ FIRST, and then He will give you the power to do 'living works' for His glory alone.

Religion will tell you, "If you just do this and do this, and don't do that, you might get to heaven. But the Bible says, "Do all you can, and stop all you can, and you'll still end up in hell. Do you know what the Bible demands for you to get to heaven? Perfect Sinlessness. You say, "I can't make it then." I gathered you'd think that. You're right. Do you know who made it for you? Only one: the Lord Jesus Christ. Do you see how simple that thing is? All God demands from you is absolute sinless perfection, that's all He demands. And since 'you' can't do it, God will give Christ's Righteousness to you, if you will only humble yourself, admit your sinful condition, acknowledge you cannot attain to the sinless perfection that God demands, and then simply receive Christ's righteousness (absolute sinless perfection) as a gift. Simply put, just trade your rags (dead works) for Christ's riches (perfect righteousness).

The Gospel of God says, "Since you can't do this and can't do that; and should've done this and didn't do it; if you've done this, and messed up and didn't do that; and rebelled and did this; and was lazy and didn't do that. Dear Sinner, If you truly realize that you are a sinner, and that can't do the right thing at all to save your own soul, here's the good news: I have sent Someone into the world 2,000 years ago, that did the whole thing for you, and attained the Sinless Perfection (Righteousness) your soul needs to face a holy God, and if you will only trust (totally depend) in Him and take Christ's Righteousness (absolute sinless perfection) as a free gift, I will save you by My grace. God says, You must receive Christ's Righteousness as a free gift, OR ELSE. Jesus said, "He that believeth on the Son 'hath' everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the 'wrath of God' abideth on him." Salvation is that simple.
Salvation is as easy as taking a drink of water. You can be saved just as easy as bending over at a water fountain and taking a drink. Your thirst draws you to the fountain. You then bend over (humble yourself) and swallow (receive the water freely) and your thirst is quenched. It is the same with your soul. Your soul is thirsty because of your sin, and only the water of life (the Lord Jesus Christ Himself) can take away your sin and satisfy your soul's thirst. Isn't that easy? It's SO easy. Come to the water of life (the Lord Jesus Christ) and drink, yea, drink abundantly right now. Jesus said Himself, "I will 'give' unto him that is 'athirst' of the fountain of the water of life freely." Give up your evil practices, renounce your sins, abhor your own righteousness, trust in nothing but Jesus' doing and dying.

Do (or) Done (2)

Now, let’s look at the other word – DONE. Done means finished, complete, full, ended, ready, accomplished, fulfilled, perfected. What a great word! The true message of Biblical Christianity is DONE. In other words, everything necessary to bring you to God and into eternal life with Him has already been DONE by Christ Jesus. But you still must ‘trust’ what Christ has DONE, and receive Him (Christ the living God) freely, in order to obtain eternal life and peace with God. When Jesus was dying on the cross, He cried out these words, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) The phrase literally means “paid in full.” DONE. DONE says “there’s nothing more to DO.” The price is paid. The atonement is complete. If you try to earn it, work for it, or DO something to get it, you’re wasting your time. It’s already DONE for you.

Imagine that you’ve prepared a wonderful Christmas morning for your family. You’ve saved up all year, shopped, wrapped, decorated, and made all the preparations. In spite of all your efforts, your children come running downstairs eager to celebrate Christmas, but rather than sitting down to open their gifts, they begin feverishly doing things for you to earn their gifts. They start cleaning the garage, washing the cars, doing the dishes, vacuuming the house, ironing clothes, and whatever else they can find to do. Other than having a heart attack, you would probably be disappointed. You would stop them and ask, “What you are kids doing? This isn’t the time for good works, this is the time for receiving gifts!”

Suppose their response goes something like this, “Dad and Mom, we’ve realized that we don’t deserve your gifts to us, and so we’ve decided to earn them. We’ve decided to serve you and do things so that we can deserve your kindness.” What would you do? You would probably explain that this is totally unnecessary! You would tell your kids how much trouble you’ve gone to in saving, shopping, and purchasing gifts. You don’t want their service (at least not yet) so much as you just want to enjoy Christmas morning and present them with their gifts – your free expression of love to them.

This is the ‘Gospel Message’ of God to the sinful human race. “So long as you are busying yourself with DOING, you’re missing what I’ve already DONE for you through my Precious Son.” The gift of eternal life has been worked for (Christ’s sinless life) and purchased (Christ’s shed blood). There’s no need for you to DO anything more, but to just trust Christ Himself (His doing and sufferings) to save you from your sins. All the work and preparations have been made for you. Christ paid it ALL, there’s nothing for you to pay for, nothing at all. Stop trying, and simply TRUST HIM with your soul. Come now, let us reason together, saith the LORD. His invitation to you is not to DO for Him, but rather simply come to Him as a helpless, hopeless, and guilty sinner, and RECEIVE from Him. There is all the difference in the world between the world's religions that are made up of “Do, do, do” and the Bible's religion that is spelt “D-O-N-E, DONE.” He who has the Bible religion of “It is all done,” loves God out of gratitude, and he serves God, because he is saved freely for Christ's sake; but he who has the religion of “DO” is always a slave, never gets salvation, but perishes in his own doings, as they deserve to do who look to themselves instead of looking to Christ alone.

This is the remedy for your disease of sin and for the disease of your heart—TRUST Jesus alone! There He hangs on yonder Cross for you. Look to Him! Trust Him! You say “I cannot realize that He is mine.” Did I tell you to realize that? Trust Him! “Oh, but I do not feel as if I had a good heart to bring to Him.” Did I tell you to bring Him anything? Just Trust Him! Forsake all other carnal and religious trust and look to the Lamb of God and His bleeding wounds. Look your doubts and sins away at the foot of the cross. Trust Christ Jesus alone! Oh sinner, this is the essential lesson for you if you would enter into the Light of God and peace—TRUST!

You may say, “But I have so many sins.” TRUST! “But I have such tendency tendencies to sin.” Trust Him to overcome those tendencies. “But I have tried.” No, I did not say, try, but TRUST. “But I, I will try.” No, do not try. I did not say, try. “Sir, I was going to say I will try to trust.” I did not say try to trust! Trying to trust is the very reverse of trusting! If Christ is a liar, do not trust Him. If He is true, TRUST Him. If He cannot save you, do not trust Him, but as He is the Almighty Savior sent from the Father, TRUST Him. So, with all the religions in the world, are there really only two? That’s the bottom line, just two. DO or DONE.

If there’s a way to know for sure where you would spend eternity, wouldn’t you want to know? This is the trouble with the “DO” religions. They leave you wondering rather than knowing. They trap in a system of doubt and uncertainty, that keeps you coming back to them for more help, and they enjoy your contents of your pocket book all the way to the bank. The other trouble with the “DO” religions is they leave you thinking “Have I done enough? Have I done the right stuff? Have I done it right? Ultimately you’re left wondering “Where am I really headed?”

Perhaps you are wondering – Can you really know for sure you are going to Heaven when you die? Well, the Bible says in I John 5:13, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.” Did you catch that? God says, “You may know that you have eternal life!” But most religious ‘do’ systems will never show you this verse. Think about that for a moment, let it sink in. God want you to know (that’s for sure) where you’re going. God doesn’t want you to wonder, fear, doubt, or regret. He wants you to KNOW. That’s what the Bible SAYS, not some religion.

Now think about this question. Do you know where you are going? You may hope. You may be sincere and thinking optimistically, but do you KNOW? The word KNOW implies full confidence and understanding, just like you KNOW what your name is and the day you were born. True faith from God removes doubt, hesitation, or questions. Faith rests on FACTS rather than wrestling with doubt. Faith trusts TRUTH rather than being frustrated in fear.
True knowledge and faith completely remove the fear of death. This is the greatest single fear in all the world in every man’s heart before his sins are forgiven through faith in the blood of God. True knowledge of God removes all doubts. No fear! Just as God says in II Timothy 1:7. Look it up in the Bible. Don’t take my word for it. Your soul’s eternal destiny is at stake.

True knowledge of Christ allows you look forward to something beyond death. In short, you would have HOPE! You don’t have to live a life of religious doing, and doom, and dread. Dear friend, you are going ‘somewhere’ when you die, there is no escaping death and eternity. And God that sent His Son to die for you, doesn’t want you to wonder and fear where you are going. He wants you to settle this matter. He wants you to REST in what you KNOW. He wants you to be sure of what will happen to you after you die. God wants you to KNOW that you have eternal life. (See I John 5:13; 2:25; 5:20; John 6:47; 5:24; 3:5-16; 6:40; Romans 6:23) Remember, Grace is everything for NOTHING to those unworthy sinners who don’t deserve a thing.

Do (or) Done (1)

So, with all the religions in the world, are there really only two? Yes, that’s the bottom line, just two: DO (and) DONE. First of all, you have the “DO” religions. Their central message is “What you must ‘DO’ to gain the favor of God and to ‘earn’ entrance into Heaven.” In “DO” religions, sinful man is separated from God by his sins and must DO something to be restored to God. They believe that God is expecting everyone to make up for their wrongs by DOING good things and attempt to compensate or atone for their failures by doing ‘good deeds’ or ‘religious things’ for God. The essence of all “DO” religion message is simply this, “DO.” They say this, “Do the right stuff, don’t do the wrong stuff, and somehow maybe ‘your good’ will outweigh ‘your bad’ and ‘maybe, just maybe,’ God will grant you acceptance into Heaven, but you can never know this for sure until you die.” The substance and central message of all “DO” religions are identical – “God is upset with you, so you’d better start doing good things to make Him happy!” Simply put, you must work your way to God, you must perform their list of do’s and don’ts, DO God’s demands, try to appease God’s anger, and earn God’s forgiveness, and do your best.” But, this is nothing but religious bondage that holds the sinner hostage to fear, and he is bound by a religious system that tries to convince him the system can restore him to God and ‘maybe’ give them eternal life, if he plays his cards right.

Every one of the “DO” religions has a different list of “Dos” and Don’ts.” Some of their lists are short and some of them are long. The lists are as endless as the imagination of men. Every day new “DO” religions are popping up with their new lists, such as “be good, be nice, and try to outweigh your bad works by your good works.” In ‘DO’ religions, God is a taskmaster and we humans are the slave labor. The saddest thing about religious systems is they offer only despair and bondage. They leave the human heart feeling ultimately rejected by God and forever wondering “Have I done enough?” These “DO” systems fill the heart with nagging doubts and apprehensions about death. What if I missed something? What if I haven’t believed right? What if I haven’t lived up to God’s demands? What if I’m doing the wrong list? Have I been good enough? How good is good enough? These ‘DO’ religions only enslave people by guilt, shame, and fear; but they can do nothing to remove the inner fears and longings of the heart and soul, or heal their troubled conscience.

Very few people understand this truth, but to accept ‘any’ of the “DO” religions, you must basically throw away the central teaching of the Holy Bible! See Titus 3:5 (You cannot gain God’s favor by doing good works.) Read Romans 3:20 (You cannot justify yourself in God’s sight by doing good deeds.) Study Romans 4:5 (God only justifies bad people; there is no hope for good people.) Learn Gal 2:16; Eph 2:8-9 (God’s favor cannot be earned.) Are you stuck in a “DO” religion? Are you trapped in a religious system of performance thinking you’re headed in the right direction? Are you trying your best to earn your way to God? Friend, are you stuck on DOING? If so, you’re missing the root message of the Bible. If you trust a works-based system of religion, you’re missing the boat and God’s true way of coming to Him. What do you say to this question: What are you trusting? DO (or) DONE? Do you just have a religion or a true heart relationship with God and His Precious Son?

Does doing a “DO” religion’s list gain you any ‘brownie points’ with God? If you do them, will God approve of you, accept you, forgive you, or love you more? The “DO” religion says, “Yes…so long as you are doing our list, and giving your attendance and money to us. Only then, you may have eternal life, but no one can know for sure till they die.” This is risky business when your immortal is at stake. “DO” religions keep you working, wondering, guilty, and guessing in order to keep you coming back to them. God says in the Bible over and over again, “You cannot earn your way to me. You cannot DO anything to gain my favor or earn my salvation.” See Isa 64:6. Even our ‘best’ behavior is worthless in the sight of God. The conclusion of the matter is this: “DO” doesn’t cut it with God. Doing good works will never gain favor with a holy God. Why? God isn’t as concerned with how you ‘behave’ as He is with who you ‘are.’ He isn’t impressed with your religion; He wants a relationship with you. You must born into His family. Jesus said, “Ye must be born again.” You need a new nature from God; your ‘sin nature’ that you born with is corrupt and will damn you, and you can only be changed by God’s power, not your own. You need a miracle to happen in your soul. Religion can’t do this for you.

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Take Heed What Ye Hear

When a rich loved one has died and the funeral and weeping is over, then comes the reading of the will. The loved ones are all gathered at the home and present to listen closely to the reading of the deceased's "last will and testament". Everyone is anxious about what the will contains. No one falls asleep during the dull reading no matter how long it lasts. The lawyer reads long paragraphs and mispronounces some words, but no one cares. It may be a very dry reading, but they are all ears to hear what the lawyer is saying. Oh, how they listen! They open their ears to catch every sound. They are all expecting something - they lean forward and sit on the edge of their seats. When a person's name is mentioned, he doubles his attention to the lawyer's voice. He catches every syllable. If they miss a word concerning them, they request that piece of the will be read again. It is deeply interesting to them, because it concerns them personally. All present are attentively listening to see what has been left to them in the will. Likewise, that is the way a sinner should be listening to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Take heed what ye hear. Listen to the Gospel personally, attentively, retentively, earnestly, and obediently. Obey the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit that says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved."

Listen now, lend me your ears, thoughts, and heart a few minutes.... Hearken diligently, give your best attention to God's message of free grace and bleeding love, Chase away the vanities and distractions which are buzzing around in your mind now. Hear the Gospel personally - Consider and remember the guilt of your past sins. Your sins should alarm you; number them if you can, your sins are innumerable. The denial of your sin only multiplies your sins. Great is your guilt, you have sinned against light and knowledge. When you sin, your conscience pricks you, but you sin anyway. You have sinned continually all your days. Plead guilty to it. You may think you are as good as most, and if you have sinned, you are not utterly lost. You have no idea how desperately depraved you are, and that you are rotten at your core. You think there is no need for you to be born again, no necessity for you to repent. You think the Gospel is only for those foul, open sinners. You are too good, rather than too bad. Your self-righteousness has made you stone-blind to your fatal condition.

Remember your sins against your mother and father, friends and coworkers. God shall judge the secrets of every man by Jesus Christ according to the Gospel. Check your lusts. By nature you are a despiser of God. You may have a healthy body, but you have a perishing soul. What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? The threatenings of the Law of God trouble your mind and conscience. It is a dreadful thing to sin against your Maker; there is no light penalty for sinning against the Almighty God. Rejecting Christ will cost you your soul. Sin pollutes and defiles the soul of man. Only the Holy Spirit can give you a true and real sense of your sins. You cannot hide your sins, only the Blood of Christ can do that. The Man Christ Jesus is the one sole object of faith for the pardon of sin. The filthy devil of licentiousness, and the clean devil of self-righteousness - both will destroy you. Every licentious look is adultery in the making. The very desire to do that which is evil condemns the soul. You cannot right your wrongs, you need the Savior to do that for you. Stake everything on Jesus' word and blood. Believe on Christ, and be saved. Trust your soul to Him. Remember that your main business is with Jesus Christ Himself.

The sentence of God's condemnation has gone out against you. You are condemned already, your trial is over, your sentence has been handed down, you are this day condemned before God. Why? Because he that believeth NOT on Jesus Christ is condemned already. Your eternal death warrant is already signed, sealed and stamped. There is only one way of escape from the condemnation of God (John 5:24). Your sin and condemnation should alarm you. But on top of that, your helplessness and utter inability to save yourself should trouble you. You are dead in trespasses and sins. You are lost, ruined, undone, and you cannot do anything for yourself. You are guilty of past sins, condemned before God for them, you are unable to save yourself. Your nature is too vile to help itself. You must bow and plead for mercy and cry for pardon. But you are so bad that you hate your only mercy. Your sinful nature hates the Savior who died for you. Believe in Christ, surrender yourself to Him. Man hates to be saved, he loves darkness and sin with a fatal infatuation.

We have all sinned personally; and we shall all perish unless we find all our salvation in Christ. Salvation is deliverance from the guilt of our sins. Every one of us have broken God's laws. We have all wandered on the downward dark road of sin. Salvation is the blotting out and remission of all sin, purging from all guiltiness, that we may stand accepted before the great Judge. Salvation is deliverance from the power of sin. We are all fond of evil, we run after it greedily, we are bondslaves of iniquity, we love the darkness and bondage. A man learns that sin is evil, regards it as such, loathes it, repents that he ever loved it, turns his back upon sin. Men love their sins, they desire to follow the imaginations of their corrupt heart. Bad habits, unclean desires, carnal passions, vile imaginations. Salvation from sin, escape from the corruption which is in the world through lust. Salvation is the deliverance from the present wrath of God which abides upon the unsaved man every moment of his life.

Every sinner who is unforgiven is the object of divine wrath. God is angry with the wicked every day. The wrath of God abides upon every unbelieving sinner. Every soul that is unreconciled to God by the blood of Christ is in the gall of bitterness. You are in a state of danger and alienation from the life of God. Deliverance from the dominion, curse, guilt and power of sin, and from the present and future wrath of God. To die without Christ is to enter into eternal damnation. Christ Jesus bore the wrath of God on our behalf, so that we might never bear it. Christ shed His blood and made a full Atonement to the justice of God for all your sins. The moment you trust His blood, there remains no more record of guilt for you. Hate sin not because it will damn you, but because it does God wrong. The "last will and testament" of Jesus Christ (the Gospel) says, Regeneration is mine, justification is mine, forgiveness of sins is mine, adoption is mine, sanctification is mine, Christ is mine, heaven is mine, resurrection is mine, eternal life is mine, yea all things are mine freely.

The only remedy for your sins is this: God Himself was made flesh, and dwelt among men. God put Himself into human form as a Jewish man - His name was Jesus of Nazareth. God did this so He could be capable of suffering, bleeding, and dying for sinners. In due time Jesus took upon Himself the sins of the whole world, and suffered for it in His own body on the tree, that your sins might be put away by the bloody sacrifice of Himself. Your sins were laid upon Jesus, yes, your sins. By His death upon the Cross, Jesus made the full Atonement for the sins of man, and the sinner who believeth in Jesus is delivered from his evil and its consequences. The main point is that Jesus died for sinners, the Just for the unjust. His atoning blood is the kernel of the Gospel. Be in earnest to receive and trust the Savior's finished work. Take heed what ye hear.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Qur'an, Shari'a, Taqiyya

Here are three words I bet you don't know much about in the Muslim faith. The godless news media will never tell you about these words. Most Americans today listen to the news media and think that Islam, Christianity, and Judaism are all the same, but they're not. Please read on.

1. The Qur'an:
Islam has not been hijacked. Non-Muslims naturally assume this because they assume all religions are the same. The reason non-Muslims are so easily confused is that most of them don't realize the difference between the Qur'an and every other religious book they are familiar with. The Christian Bible is a collection of writings from various authors written sometimes hundreds of years apart, with actual history, commandments, parables, proverbs, advice, and prophecy - these are all collected in one Book. The same goes for the Jewish Torah. Even for those in the West, who are neither Christians nor Jews are still familiar enough with these religions know this much, and therefore assume the same is true for the Qur'an.

But the Qur'an is only one book, written by one man in his own lifetime. The Qur'an is meant to be taken literally, and it is not full of symbolism or vague analogies. It is mostly direct commands. Of course, the Qur'an contains contradictory statements just like most other religious books. But the Qur'an itself provides the reader with a way to know what to do with the contradictions. It's explained in the Qur'an that if you have two passages that contradict each other, the one written later supersedes the one written earlier. Most Westerners are unaware that the peaceful and more tolerant passages were written early in Mohammed's prophetic writings. According to the Qur'an, those passages have been abrogated by later, more violent and less tolerant passages.

So, when most Westerners hear Islamic jihadists quoting violent passages from the Qur'an, and then peaceful Muslims quoting peaceful passages, they interpret that the way they would as if someone was quoting the Bible or the Torah. They think to themselves: Oh, there must be many different and contradictory passages, like there are in most other religious books, so Muslims can pick and choose what they like and justify whatever actions they want to take. But the Qur'an is nothing like that. There is no picking and choosing, it says very explicitly and in no uncertain terms that a Muslim must not alter or ignore any part of its very clear and direct message, or they will burn in a fiery torment forever.

2. Shari'a Law: In Islam, striving to institute worldwide Shari'a Law is a religious duty. In Shari'a Law, only one religion should have liberty and that is Islam. Many people don't realize how politically-oriented Islam is at its core. In fact, Islam is less of a "Religion" that it is a a "Religious Ideology." Islam includes a mandatory and highly specific legal and political plan for the whole society - this is called Shari'a. There is no separation between the religious and the political in Islam, rather Islam and Shari'a constitute a totalitarian means of ordering society at every level including spiritual worship, transactions, contracts, diet, dress, morals and manners, beliefs and punishments. In the Qur'an, Allah makes it clear that man-made governments (such as a democracy) and free speech (such as criticizing the Qur'an) are abominations and must be eliminated. The modern expression "Creeping Shari'a" is used to describe the Slow, Deliberate, and Methodical advance of Islamic law in non-Muslim countries. Official Shari'a courts already operate in the United Kingdom handling cases ranging from divorce and financial disputes to domestic violence. Attempts to introduce Shari'a in the legal system in Germany, Sweden, and other European countries are ongoing. While Shari'a already has a foot in our door in the matter of minor disputes like inheritance and domestic violence, it should concern you that Shari'a Law commands the following:

*Drinkers and gamblers should be whipped.
*A man can have four wives.
*Allows husbands to discipline and hit their wives.
*Allows an injured plaintiff to exact legal revenge, literally an eye for an eye.
*Denies the equality of rights to women.
*Denies the freedom of speech.
*Commands that a thief must have a hand cut off.
*Commands that homosexuals must be executed.
*Orders unmarried fornicators to be whipped and adulterers to be stoned to death.
*Orders death for both Muslim and non-Muslim critics of Mohammed, the Qur'an, and even Shari'a itself.
*Orders apostates (Christians and Jews) to be killed.
*Commands offensive, aggressive, and unjust jihad.

As written in the Qur'an, Shari'a is the law of Allah. Any other form of government other than Shari'a is a sin. It the duty of every Muslim to keep striving until all governments have been converted to Shari'a Law.

Da'wah is the first step to Shari'a Law. Da'wah is the invitation and call to follow the commandments of Allah and Mohammed prior to invoking jihad. In Islam, you cannot declare jihad on any people unless you first invite them to Allah and attempt to proselytize them to accept Islam. The end goal of Islam is to form an Ummah, that is, a one world community which is unified and following Islam.

3. Taqiyya: Muslims are allowed to deceive non-Muslims if it helps Islam. For non-Muslims, this principle, called Taqiyya is another surprising concept of Islam. While other religions speak highly of truthfulness, the Qur'an instructs Muslims to lie to non-Muslims about their beliefs and political ambitions to protect and spread Islam. There are many examples of today's Islamic leaders saying one thing in English for the Western press, and then saying something entirely different to their own followers in Arabic a few days later. Deceiving the enemy is always useful in war and Islam is at war with the non-Islamic world until the whole world follows Shari'a Law. All non-Muslims living in non-Islamic states are therefore enemies. So deceiving Westerners is totally acceptable - even encouraged - if it can forward the goals of the spread of Islam. As a recent example, the Islamic American Relief Agency was seemingly raising money for orphans, but in fact giving the money to Islamic terrorists. They deceived good-hearted Western infidels into giving their money to charity organizations that were actually and actively killing Western infidels. Don't believe what this says, do the research yourself, this is not an isolated case.

Muslim organizations worldwide often declare that Islam is "a religion of peace". But what does that really mean? It seems easy for a Muslim to quote a peaceful verse from the early parts of the Qur'an, while by following the principle of Taqiyya neglecting to mention the fact that it has been officially abrogated by later more violent verses. According to the Qur'an, the world will be at peace only when Islam and Shari'a Law reign in every country on earth - and never until then. This is why every Muslim can truthfully say that Islam is "a religion of peace", because they believe that only their violent religion will bring true peace on earth. And this so-called 'true peace' will not come on earth until Islam covers the globe and every one of us Submits to Allah and his prophet, Mohammed.

Where does the Koran say that Muslims should kill infidels?
1. Slay the unbelievers wherever you find them (Surah 2:191).
2. Make war on the infidels living in your neighborhood (9:123).
3. When opportunity arises, kill the infidels wherever you catch them (9:5).
4. Kill the Jews and the Christians if they do not convert to Islam or refuse to pay Jizya tax (9:29).
5. Any religion other than Islam is not acceptable (3:85).
6. The Jews and the Christians are perverts; fight them (9:30).
7. Maim and crucify the infidels if they criticize Islam (5:33).
8. The infidels are unclean; do not let them into a mosque. (9:28).
9. Punish the unbelievers with garments of fire, hooked iron rods, boiling water; melt their skin and bellies (22:19).
10. Do not hanker for peace with the infidels; behead them when you catch them (47:4)
11. The unbelievers are stupid; urge the Muslims to fight them (8:65)
12. Terrorize and behead those who believe in scriptures other than the Qur’an (8:12).
13. Muslims must muster all weapons to terrorize the infidels (8:60).

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Breaking News

The Good News that Christ Jesus saves guilty sinners through faith in His precious blood is what everyone needs to hear today. This news breaks the hearts of sinners - it is only the Breaking News of the Gospel that rents the hearts of poor sinners. This Good News is new everyday. God pardons guilty sinners for Jesus' sake, not for your sake. Face it - You can't ever get your act together enough for God to accept you in yourself. People not getting punished for their sins seems wrong to human nature. God's grace doesn't make sense to human nature, because God's grace is not of man. Human nature thinks that people should get what's coming to them, and that you should get what you deserve. But that is not the way of the Cross. At the Cross, gross sinners get off scot free because of what Jesus did for them. Human nature thinks you should work like nobody's business to earn the mercy of God - work, work, work. All of your works are bad, like vomit and filthy rags. Your stinky deeds can't help save you. Jesus earned God's favor on the sinner's behalf.

You see - you must be saved and pardoned by Blood. God freely pardons sinners like you, because Jesus loved you to death, so He could save you from the eternal death which your own sins deserve. God's pardoning grace is free to the most vile and immoral person, and it's also absolutely free to the most orthodox, loyal, self-righteous, professional religionist. God can love us freely now, because He loved us and gave Himself for us in the person of Jesus Christ. God will never love you because you're good, and not because of anything you are, or do. Human nature doesn't want to deal with God the Creator about its sins. Human nature doesn't want to confess its sinfulness and inability. You can't clean yourself up, you can't make yourself likable so God will accept you. You can't get yourself cleaned up at all; you can't purge yourself of any of your sins, not even one. If you lived a thousand years, you could never atone for just one of your lies. Jesus must purge and put away every one of your sins with His precious blood, and you can't get any glory or credit at all for that. This is the offence of the Gospel.

Come to the Cross with a broken heart and contrite spirit, this is all the work of the word of God and the Spirit of God. You have broken God's law by stealing, lying, and lusting. You have broken God's heart by rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ. But despite what you have done, God is good, and He will still have mercy on your guilty soul, God delights in mercy. The Gospel is hard for a self-righteous man to grasp, because he wants to help save himself by his own doings. Your heinous and perverted sins can now be forgiven freely, because Jesus bled for you. No sinner can ever deserve God's love and mercy. It's not what you've been, or will be: It's all about who Jesus is, and what He has done and will do for you, for His name's sake. It's amazing that a holy God would even love someone like you, but He does for Jesus' sake, not because of anything in you. Human nature will not have Jesus to reign over it. Remember - He who saves you must reign over you. His precious blood cleanses us and then His constraning love rules us. He saves us from our sins, rebellions, revoltings, stubbornness, and love of sin. Redemption by Precious Blood is the sum and substance of the Gospel. You cannot see anything until Jesus is your Light. Look at everything through the Cross and your blinded eyes will be illuminated.

You are in extreme danger while you remain in your Unbelief and Self-Righteousness. Your evil thoughts, hidden sins, impure desires, and vile imaginations defile your soul every day. You have spoken many sinful, unkind, untruthful and proud words. You haven't lived even one day of your life perfectly before your Maker. You have broken all the commandments of God, and rejected God's Son on top of that. “There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. All we like sheep have gone astray, we've turned every one to his own way. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. There is none that doeth good, no, not one.” A sinner could never atone for a sinner. You need a Sinless Man to pay for your sins with His own Blood, and you know there is only one Sinless Man that shed His blood for sinners in all of human history - that Man is the Lord Jesus Christ. And since you're a sinner for sure, you better trust HIM.

This is the Great secret, the Heavenly News, the Gospel of salvation, that human sin is justly put away forever through Faith in the Blood of Jesus Christ alone. God only forgives sin to purify the sinner. The Atonement of Christ is the death of your sinfulness. The Holy Ghost must first help you understand your need for the Atonement, and the guilt and evil of your sins. Only a sinner needs an Atonement. Human nature loves the forbidden. Our Sin is an evil thing which God hates. The very thought of iniquity is abhorred of God. You're in a whole heap of trouble because you have sinned against God and rejected His Son's Blood and Righteousness. The very thought of sin is hated by God, His nature detests all sin. He who trusts and loves Christ, hates his sins. The love of Christ kills our love for sin. The constraining love of Jesus consumes our sins, and purifies our heart.

The main work of the Holy Spirit is to strip you of Self, and to bring you to receive the simple word of God. Human nature kicks against the Gospel, because it is so very simple. The simple act of trusting Jesus' blood bring free justification instantaneously. Eternal salvation comes by the simple act of trusting in the SAVIOR of sinners. Depend upon Christ alone. Trust ascribes salvation only to HIM who saves; True faith never robs God of His glory. Self-denying grace is what is needed most. Human nature wants to get along with everyone, impress folks, and be accepted by man; but not God. Human nature magnifies human accomplishment. Christ's sinless blood sacrifice is the essence of the Gospel - His blood and merits are fixed and settled forever. The very center of Christianity is Substitution - Christ Himself bleeding and dying for sinners on Calvary's Cross. "But", one may object, "does not Christianity fail at its very foundation by basing everything on substitution?" Substitution will not stand thoughtful investigation. Substitution makes Christ, the Innocent, bear the penalty for the guilty and thus lets the guilty go free. It is diametrically opposed to our every idea of justice, for we believe that justice should protect the innocent and bring the full penalty upon the guilty. Justification by faith in Jesus' blood alone is the vital truth (Romans 3:23-25).

There is no possible way for you to purge away your own sins. Your sins must be put in check. You must be get rid of your sins, just like a dying man must get rid of his cancer. Submit yourself, turn yourself completely over to the Great Physician. Nothing of your own can remove the horrible blot, the fatal stain of sin on your soul. There is no means of removing human sin but One - God's Blood that flowed from Jesus' veins. God delivered up His own Son to death, so the sin of man could be purged and put away forever. The Sacrifice of the Lamb of God is the only hope of guilty sinners. No doings of yours can ever purge your sins; in Christ lies the only help for sinners. Jesus was taken to the Cross, our sins were laid on Him, there He died the Just for the unjust. Jesus was made to be Sin for us, that we might be made the Righteousness of God in Christ. Jesus is the divine Satisfaction for human sin. God's justice was satisfied at the Cross. God's Eyes of divine justice see all the black deeds of your past that no one else knows about.

Man is a very fickle creature; no dependence can be wisely placed in yourself. The more you look at Jesus Crucified, the more you will mourn for your sins. Hate your sins that crucified the good and gracious Incarnate Creator. The stripes and blood of Jesus applied to our heart works Repentance in us, and we hate our sins, because they made Jesus suffer, bleed, die. Look much to Jesus Christ, and you will hate your sins much. Live and look at Calvary. Look to the Cross till all that is on the Cross is in your heart. Look to Jesus until He looks at you. Steadily and fixedly view the Suffering Savior. Jesus suffered in the place of guilty men like you, the Substitution of Christ for the sinner is the essence of the Gospel. The main topic should always be Christ crucified for sinners - this is the chief attraction for sinners who feel and know their guiltiness before God. The core meaning of the Cross is Substitution. The bleeding Substitute bore your guilt, and you don't bear it any more, no condemnation to you any more. You are safe only because Jesus died for you, and you are acceptable before God, because Jesus' Finished Work is accepted by God the Father. The chief delight of God the Father is His dear Son. God is well pleased with His Son, not you. Behold the Savior, trust His pardoning love. Look to Jesus, come to Jesus, rest in Jesus, follow Jesus in gratitude - let that be the complete description of your life. Rest in Christ's Great Sacrifice for sinners more and more every day, rest more implicitly in His Finished Work. Love Jesus best of all. Dwell at Calvary.

Think more and more of Christ Jesus who loved you to death to save you from eternal death. This is the central truth - God was manifest in the flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. The Creator of the universe showed up here on earth as a virgin-born Jewish baby, and then to sinlessly and selflessly live and die for sinners. Faith in Jesus' atoning sacrifice saves sinners from the Lake of Fire. Getting saved makes sinning very complicated. After the New Birth, you begin to worry about and detest your sins. The unregenerate sinner worries about everything but his sins and the salvation of his soul.

First of all - I would persuade you to Think much of Jesus. Read about Him, hear about Him, study about His person, blood, righteousness, finished work, and character. Think much about the Cross - sitting and seeing the Son of God dying for you is the only way to get true Faith. You must first know what to Believe. Read the Bible very carefully and prayerfully. Meditate on the living Christ Himself. Secondly - I would persuade you to Trust Him alone. Jesus is worth trusting, He died for you. Where else can a sinner place his trust? Faith is not merely believing facts, but real Faith is trusting to a living Person. The glance of Trust, look to Christ now and trust Him. Away with your "buts". Whosoever believeth on the Lord Jesus Christ hath everlasting life. Trusting in Jesus' blood is the essence of saving faith. Jesus' blood was shed to pay the penalty of divine wrath due to your sins. Thirdly - I would persuade you to Testify of the Savior. Tell others that He has saved your soul. Make it known publicly that you now belong to Him.

Monday, November 1, 2010

God is great, God is good

God is very great, God is truly good, you can trust Him completely, you can depend on Him to do what is right and give you what is good. Enjoy the goodness and grace of God. The Lord Jesus is trustworthy, He wants to save you; He has your best interests at heart; He offers you all His goodness, mercy and life freely; He is worthy of your trust, love, and loyalty. Go to Heaven! The forgiveness of all your sins is offered to you freely now through the Precious Blood Atonement of Jesus Christ - JEHOVAH manifest in human flesh.

The atheist stubbornly keeps on doing wrong. If you die in your sin, your eternal destiny will be fixed forever. Every day you grow harder in unbelief. The Gospel is the aroma of death to the atheist - he wants nothing to do with the good news, it stinks and wreaks in his nostrils, it repels him in disgust, and brings anger and ridicule. The atheist mocks the God who feeds him every day. The Gospel is to the atheist that perishes foolishness. The atheist glories in his unbelief, and he becomes more filthy and guilty as time goes on. The atheist has a false sense of security because of his continual mocking.

You don't go to hell because you are bad, and you don't go to heaven because you're good. Sin begins with yielding to an unlawful desire, and then willfully thinking and acting in disobedience to the divine law of God, which only leads to death. Sin looks good, sin looks fun and like popularity, pleasure, power, personal satisfaction, true love, a pay raise, or maybe a promotion. If you continue on in your sin and cherish it, it will lead you into eternal death. Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you far more than you want to pay. Lust is the unlawful desire toward any forbidden object. Your evil desire baits the hook, and your disobedience bites the hook. Wake up to Reality! Sin is deceiving you, your lust blurs your thinking and leads you to justify your sins, hate the truth, reject Christ, and believe a lie. Stop being deceived by sin and Satan. Without Jesus Christ, you only have a death-like 'existence' here on earth, that is all.

Jesus is the first and the last, the beginning and the end. You will have to face HIM sooner or later. You don't have a sin gene, you have a sin nature which is Satanic. Full and final judgment is coming. You won't be able to pass the buck at the Judgment - your sins are your fault, without Christ your sins will belong to you for all eternity. The hardest thing for an atheist to admit is: "I'm guilty, my sin is my fault, I am completely wrong." You think, you plan, you look at, you long for, you say, you do things that are wrong, you know it. Which way are you going today? The Way (John 14:6), or the Broad way to Hell? Trust in the sinless, sacrificial atoning cross-work of Jesus Christ. Christ's blood sacrifice can wash all your sins away. You have nothing to offer God but your sins. Come on to Jesus now.

The atheist chooses his sins and loves his filthiness; he lives only to sin and forget God. The atheist wants his sin more than he wants the Savior, so he winds up in Hell where he belongs. What have you chosen and cherished? Sin or the Savior? You are guilty of every sin in the Book (James 2:10), you have fallen way short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), the wrath of God abides on you (John 3:36), you are corrupt (Eph 4:22), and in deep trouble with God. Come to the Lord Jesus Christ's Blood by Faith at Calvary's Cross. Thirsty, bankrupt sinners are welcome at the Cross today. Surrender your weapons to the Savior, stop hiding behind your sins and pride, come and sign your name to the peace treaty of eternal life. Then in trials, be passionate about patience, and in temptation be passionate about purity. God is great - He died for my sins; God is good - He saved me from my sin. Let us thank Him for His Son.