Mary Needed Salvation Too

  MARY NEEDED SALVATION

Mary’s immaculate conception is completely unsupported by the Bible. The only two verses I am aware of from which all of Mary-ology is taught comes from Gen. 3:15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” and Luke 1:28 “And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”

This teaching of Mary being without original sin and living a sinless life comes solely from what I refer to as extreme extrapolation. Extreme extrapolation (my version at least) is the idea of taking one word or phrase and giving it an idea or concept that is not intended and then extrapolating on that idea which you generated and making it something unrelated to its original meaning. And then compounding those errors over and over until you create the idea that (for our example) Mary is enthroned in heaven as its queen all because Luke said she was ‘highly favored’ (or full of grace).

Look again at these two verses. Genesis 3:15 simply tells us that God would put “enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed.” He would put a barrier of hatred or contention between Satan and Eve's seed that would continue until Eve’s seed (Jesus) would finally defeat Satan and his minions. Mary is never in view here at all no matter how one might strain to make it so. And in Luke 1:28 all that is said is that she was blessed by God more than any other woman. Without doubt God was extremely gracious to her by allowing her to carry His only Son. No woman has ever been so blessed. But to use this single verse to create a demigod of Mary is in itself ungodly.

The Catholic Church teaches that Adam and Eve were both created without original sin. Adam and Eve fell from grace, and through them mankind continues to sin. Then they go on to say that Christ and Mary were also conceived without original sin (Immaculate Conception). But they remained faithful, and through them mankind was redeemed from sin. Christ is thus the New Adam, and Mary the New Eve (emphasis mine). This is the result of the ‘extreme extrapolation’ of Luke 1:28 as noted above. Mary is never said to be without sin at any time in any Biblical reference, although Jesus is. Continuing this extrapolation forces them to eventually make Mary the cause of salvation.

The Catechism notes: (catechism 494) . . . “As St. Irenaeus says, ‘Being obedient she became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race.’ Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert: ‘The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith.’ Comparing her with Eve, they call Mary ‘the Mother of the living’ and frequently claim: ‘Death through Eve, life through Mary.’”

But this flies in the face of New Testament theology. So many statements like these sound wonderful and filled with deep wisdom. Unfortunately, they are Biblically incorrect and nowhere remotely alluded to anywhere in Scripture. The teaching of original sin lies at Adam’s door not Eve’s. They teach that Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary’s faith. But that is nowhere to be found in the Bible.

Look at this simple passage penned by the Apostle Paul in I Timothy 2:14, “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.” Eve was in transgression because she was tricked (deceived) but Adam chose to sin, he was not deceived. Whereas Eve’s transgression was falling to deception. Adam’s sin was an active choice of his free will. The result of which is expressed by the same Apostle in his letter to the Church at Rome in Romans 5:12,14, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world (not by Eve’s deception but Adam’s choice to sin) and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…. (v.14) Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, (not from Eve to Moses) even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression (not Eve’s), who is the figure of him that was to come.”

No such passages from God’s Word can be found to support this shameful doctrine of Mary having no original sin and living her life free of any sin. How Mary must grieve with every recitation of the Rosary as she hears “holy Mary, Mother of God.” She indeed carried the physical body of his flesh (protected from original sin by the Holy Spirit) until the day he was born. But she is not God’s Mother. She sinned as we do and she was born with original sin just as we are. And she has nothing to do with our salvation except that she too stood in need of salvation. If we have no sin then we have no need of a Savior but Mary expressed her own need of salvation “And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior” Luke 1:47.

Mary needed to be saved, do you? If you have never been born again (John 3:3-6) you need to be. This Christmas may you receive the greatest gift of all.

You must admit that you too are a sinner, Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Understand there is a real payment because of that sin, Romans 6:23a "For the wages of sin is death…." Believe God loves you so much that He allowed Jesus to pay the price for your sin, Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us." And then simply receive His gift of salvation, Romans 6:23b "…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." When we are truly sorry for sin (repent 2 Cor. 7:10) and receive the gift of God’s love he promises to save us, Rom 10:9-10, 13 "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (v.13) "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Right now from your heart pray this prayer or at least something like this: God I know I am a sinner and I am sorry for my sin. And, right now, I ask Jesus to come into my heart to take control of my life and forgive me of my sin. I believe Jesus’ sacrifice was enough and that God accepted it and raised him from the dead. Thank you for saving my soul, amen.

EVOLUTION OR CREATION

                                                   EVOLUTION OR CREATION

Psalm 14a: The fool hath said in his heart, “There is no God.”

Romans 1:19-20  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. (v.20) For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse….

Evolutionists and Creationists begin with a similar premise; “if.” On the side of the evolutionist the argument begins, “if there is no God….” And, it is then followed by myriad suppositions, questions and unprovable conclusions of how absolutely everything came from absolutely nothing.

The creationist has one “if;” also. God. Everything is reasonable, logical and orderly…. If God.

Psalm 14a above shows why evolution has such difficulty. In their hatred of God they have tried to remove Him from His own creation. For the creationist, if God exists then His creation makes sense and it is understandable because it was created by an infinitely powerful eternal being. And, in his creation of each one of us, He has placed an understanding of Himself and all that is around us. We can see God in God’s creation.

Begin anywhere and the conclusion will be the same. That which should be simple, is not simple. Atoms, for example, should be simple enough. You see, evolutionists want to start with… something. But you can’t. You simply must begin with atoms. A simple explanation I was reading recently began with:

Atoms are the basic particles of the chemical elements and the fundamental building blocks of matter. An atom consists of a nucleus of protons and generally neutrons, surrounded by an electromagnetically bound swarm of electrons. The chemical elements are distinguished from each other by the number of protons that are in their atoms. For example, any atom that contains 11 protons is sodium, and any atom that contains 29 protons is copper. Atoms with the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons are called isotopes of the same element….

In order to understand how anything came into existence one must begin here. Where did the protons and neutrons in the nucleus come from? 

Before anything existed, in the great void that would one day become this great cosmos, why did a proton or neutron ever exist at all? And which existed first, the proton or the neutron? And why did the other come into existence? But even there, if we explained that issue, we would still need to discover why an electron, of any type, came into existence, and then why it decided to circle that first nucleus?

And of course, this conundrum goes on ad infinitum. That single first atom had to “decide” to “become” all of the variations in the universe we have today. And that, (how one atom ever decided to multiply and become everything in the universe) is only the issue with the atom. Other issues abound.

Here, evolution ignores the basic principle of cause-and-effect. If nothing caused it to come into existence, it would not. If nothing caused it to change from its original form, it would not. And yet for evolution to be true, the first atom must come into existence all by itself and then change trillions upon trillions of times without cause. 

Need something more complex? Below is a photo of who you are. And by the way, this is not the only part of the human which is complicated beyond comprehension, it is simply a prime example. As stated earlier, this is who you are. Your body operates in the way that it does in order to carry this to the various places it wishes to go and to communicate with others as it wills. The brain did not evolve. 

Spiritually speaking we have a soul which is not dependent on the body or the brain. Rather, the soul operates on the spiritual level and communicates with God and other spirits. However, on the earthly level we communicate with each other by means of this blob we call a brain. Our arms do not communicate, nor do any other parts or members of our body. Instead, our brain uses our body to function and to communicate as it needs. Evolution did not “create” such an amazing being. That mass protected within your skull is so intricate and technical it confounds the wisest among us. 

Did evolution decide people would be massive blobs? And then, “evolution” realized those blobs would need to be protected and so evolution placed them within skulls? And then, maybe, do you think evolution, seeing these blobs rolling around on the earth realized they needed to be able to move and so evolution then created our bodies?

Yes, I do know evolution tries to say it was micro-mutations over eons of time. That would still involve the foolish ideas presented above. First, there is no brain. Why would one ever even begin to develop? Or, first there is no body, just a simple, tiny blob lying on the ground. Neither of those could have occurred anyway because the atom is still lying helpless and alone. And if either those ever did occur, they would have remained the same forever because of the principle of cause-and-effect.

 

Need more? How do living organisms live within the 60,000 miles of blood vessels we have within these bodies? Living within our blood, as it passes through our bodies all day long every day are other living organisms; both good and bad. Just one example of this is the macrophage. It is a living entity in our blood that finds, engulfs and then digests bacteria and viruses, as well as clearing out dead cells and debris to help keep us healthy. Was our blood having trouble one day when evolution “decided” we needed help and “decided” tiny organisms could be placed within our blood stream?

And why 60,000 miles of blood vessels? If evolution were just hit and miss, wouldn’t it only have created about 37 feet of blood vessels and called it good? 60,000 miles had to be the creation of a true God.

The examples of evolutionary foolishness and Divine creation are endless. Nobody can scientifically hold to evolution. People hold to it because they reject God, it is a choice, “The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God.” It is a last-ditch effort to remove God; not a scientific journey.

 

Not now, then when?

  

NOT NOW, THEN WHEN?

So many people say, “When I stand before God I am going to tell him…..” Or, “When I stand before God I will just take whatever comes.” And for others the reaction is more like, “I know I need to do something, but not right now.” 

Please, look closely at this verse, “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works” (Rev 20:12). 

Notice very carefully that those who come into the presence of God on the Day of Judgment…are silent. Nobody is asked to defend their position, or to explain their situation or, and more importantly, nobody on that day is offered a second chance. The only thing that happens on that day, before God passes judgment, is “the books were (or will be) opened.” And if you read that verse one more time you will also notice that “another book was opened” also. Why two sets of books?

Today, as you read this, your name is in a book in heaven. And today, while you are still here on this earth and alive, you can decide which book your name is in. If we could go up into heaven right now, if we could enter God’s judgment hall today and open the books of heaven, your name would be in one of those books.

Far too often people get the idea that somehow if they can just do a few really good things God would let them into heaven. Which good things would that be? How many of those good things would it take? How would you know when you have completed just enough of those good things? And what if you died just before you finished that last really good thing? But, it just isn’t true. That is not the way God designed it. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  Jesus died as our sacrifice for sin so that our names might be written in the Book of Life. Jesus paid the debt for our sin. Our work, or our effort in any form, cannot ever pay for any sin. God will only accept the sinless blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ on our behalf:

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God….

Hebrews_9:22b …and without shedding of blood is no remission.

Hebrews_10:18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering (needed) for sin.

Looking at these passages, our names are already in His books if our sins have been removed by the sacrifice of Christ. Your name is either in the “books” or your name is in the “book” as we arrive at the judgment seat. The distinction between the “books” and the “book” is given in verse 15, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” The dead, those who are not saved, are judged out of the things written in the books (v.12-13). The final judgment is eternal and that judgment will be horrible if your name is in the books. It may be worse for one than for another but, eternity in hell is horrifying no matter how you may view it.

I have heard so many make jokes about it. I have heard people say, “Well, at least I will be with my friends and we will party when we get there.” In reality, it is more likely that we will blame one another for being there. And we will undoubtedly be praying that none of our family members ever have to join us there.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus shares the only instance we have of a real life record of a man going to hell. His response is not what so many joke about today. Instead, the man in hell (Luke 16) is in torment and begs for even a drop of water to cool his thirst. And his final thoughts are on his family. He pleads with Abraham to send Lazarus to his five brothers who are still alive on earth to warn them about this horrible place. Abraham’s response is unbelievable, but so true, especially when we understand how evil the human heart can be. He said that if they will not listen to the Word of God being preached here, while they are alive, they would not listen even if a ghost from hell (like Lazarus) appeared before them as a testimony.

How many times have you heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached? Every time you heard it you were given an opportunity to move your name from the books of judgment to the Book of Life. As you read this today you are being given one more chance. It could in fact be, your last chance. God does not owe us even one chance to be saved. If you have ever heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and been given one opportunity to be saved and have your name placed in the Book of Life, that was one more chance than God owes any of us. Did you receive Christ at that time? Did you get saved that day and have your name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life? Or, did you say, “Not now.” Will you wake up tomorrow morning and have one more chance? Or, will you discover your name was written in the books of judgment as God reads from their pages and proclaims, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41)?

If not now, then when? Normally, none of us plan to die. Most of us go to bed in the evening fully expecting to wake up here, on earth, in the morning. But, will we? A few months ago, a friend of mine was returning home from a doctor’s visit. He pulled his car to the side of the road, and died. Two months ago, another friend, riding his 4-wheeler on his farm, wrecked and died. January 16, 2023, I stopped my Versa at a 4 way stop sign. As I pulled through, I was broadsided by a Chevy Tahoe who never even slowed for the stop sign. Obviously, I did not die. But for a brief moment I believed I had. For me, it would have meant the glory of God and eternal joy.

If you died today, are you sure heaven will be your home for eternity? To find out how you can have your name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life go to: http://christxalted.blogspot.com/2016/01/how-to-be-born-again.html       (Or, click on "How to be Born Again" in the top left corner of this page.)

Are We Both Saved?

 

If We are Both Saved, Why the difference?

Romans 8:15-17 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (v.16)  The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: (v.17) And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. 

Some discussions have a way of being repeated ad infinitum through the years. Topics which seems to have no real resolution. Each person in a given discussion is some how able to support his view as well as we support our view which appears to be diametrically opposed to the other. Salvation is very much like that.

Myriad times, over the decades of my life as a Christian, I have engaged fellow believers in discussions about salvation. That is very common. And I am sure most of us have done the same. The road becomes a bit rocky though when we attempt to define ‘Christian’ in any concrete manner. Do Christians lie? Do Christians steal? Are Christians ever hateful? Parameters. We all want to set parameters. Because parameters help us to make concrete statements and definitions. We can define a Christian if we can decide on each of the defining parameters that make up the perfect Christian. Sadly, there is no such thing.

In many of the discussions I have been engaged in I have found it necessary to destroy parameters. The Law was a mega parameter. It was never intended to be one but religious society grabbed onto it almost as soon as it came down from the mountain with Moses. We want concrete barriers, laws, dictates that work like street signs for us, a list of all the daily mandates so that we can know, at the close of our day, we measured up.

Read the passage above again.  We have not received that old spirit which bound us by laws. When we got saved, when we realized our need of salvation and our utter incapability of acquiring salvation without Christ, he saved us by grace. He did not hand us a new law, no list of requirements to meet before salvation could be earned. Instead (v.15) we were given the Holy Spirit which placed us in the family of God by adoption. Did you ever see a baby earn adoption? Have you ever known a baby (properly adopted) who was given a list of things he must do in order to earn a true place in the family?

Our adoption goes one step further. Our Heavenly Father, by His Holy Spirit actually indwells us, He lives in us. We are His immediately and eternally. The Holy Spirit is our very proof of salvation (v.16) if we ever do doubt. This is what defines the Christian in that “concrete manner” we so often need. When doubt arises, we do not count our ‘good deeds’ and hope they are enough. We have the Holy Spirit of God within us reminding us that we are God’s family.

I believe this is what Paul had in mind when he said in 2Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” Examine yourselves to see if “Christ is in you.” In our passage above (v.16) the Spirit of God reassures the believer he is God’s child. God did not leave it up to a list of our good deeds. He placed His Spirit within us to give us daily assurance in a fallen world.

But look how far that assurance goes. Not only does He remind us of our status as children of God, but (v.17) we are assured that we are joint heirs with Christ as well. When Christ is glorified, we will be glorified with him. This is what stops us from sinning. This is our parameter. This is our concrete barrier against sin. When a true child of God sins (and we all do) we are brought back by the Holy Spirit’s reminder of whose we are. He reminds us who our father is. He makes real to us the offence our sin is to our Holy Father, the shame it brings to Him and the violence it does to our witness in this fallen world. We do not keep a new law of do’s and don’ts. We live in a new relationship with God where our behavior affects our relationship with God. We are His children (Hebrew 12:5-12). When children sin they still belong to their parents, but the relationship is strained and often the parent must punish the child. But they always remain family.

This is what I believe to be the difference discussed in our opening paragraphs; those times when I have engaged fellow believers in discussions about salvation and how one person could sin so much easier than another. And how we just could not agree on why so many professing believers could seem to live in sin and others, though they did sin, abhorred it and repented more quickly. I think the difference was this. In a false profession the Holy Spirit of God never indwells the unrepented heart. That individual is left to follow the law and live in bondage (v.15) and fear and never truly become a child of God. They are religious but lost.

God truly wants to bring us into His family, to make us His children and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. And when we truly do become His children His Holy Spirit is an ever-present reality in our daily lives. It is no longer a matter of keeping stringent rules and laws. We are brought into a loving family. It is our daily existence. It is our new life. Why do I serve God? Because serving God is the natural course of my new life.

Does your life belong to God?

We have this inheritance

 

We have this inheritance

     Just thinking ahead to that day when we will realize the substance of the promises we have held for so long.

     I Peter 1:4-5 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth 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.

     Not only are we given a living hope of an eternal existence, but we also as joint heirs with Christ receive an inheritance unlike any other. Peter uses alliteration in the Greek which we lose in the English to make his point; aphthartos (incorruptible) amiantos (undefiled) amarantos (never fadeth away). Each of the three epithets he uses here begin with the Greek ‘a’ possibly as a means of helping the reader to remember each; though we cannot be sure of that now. Notice also that each is written in the negative. It has been said that in describing things of eternal beauty we often look at the world around us and say what will not be found there in an effort to help others grasp its splendor. Sin has so corrupted the world we live in that to describe heaven we must include the absence of those things affected by sin or those things which are the direct result of sin here. As testimony to that concept read how John uses negatives to describe the new heaven and earth and the heavenly city in his vision: Rev. 21:1, Rev. 21:4, Rev. 21:22 (and I saw no temple therein...), Rev. 21:23, Rev. 21:27; Rev. 22:3, Rev. 22:5.

      “Incorruptible” describes that which is imperishable. The promise of wealth in this world will perish. It might be ours for a short time but it cannot last. The inheritance we have in Christ cannot perish. What a grand contrast, we surrender what cannot last for that which cannot perish.

       “Undefiled” expresses that which is without defect or flaw and cannot be stained or corrupted. The inheritance we have cannot ever be lessened in its quality in any way.

      “That fadeth not away” carries the idea of withering like a flower, no blight or drought can affect it. The beauty of heaven today is the same as it ever was or ever will be. We will stand amazed on our millionth year the same as we did on our first day in heaven.

      To this beauty and inheritance we have a reservation. It is not what we wish might be ours someday. Rather, it is what we presently possess that gives us hope to endure in this sin filled world. Unlike earthly reservations heavenly reservations can never be lost or canceled. And to ensure our confidence Peter reminds us that these reservations have been made for those who are “kept by the power of God.” Could there be any promise more secure? In the prayer Jesus offered in John 17 he mentions that we are kept by God and by Jesus himself, John 17:11-12 “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the Scripture might be fulfilled.”

      “Through faith” indicates the cause or agency of that reservation i.e., which are kept as a result of having faith or expressing faith. Our inheritance was obtained by faith and is seen as already accomplished; the end result of which we are about to realize. Peter viewed heaven as just a breath away, an event that was just through the next door. By faith we received salvation and now God preserves us as we wait with reservation in hand for the materialization of that promise. Compare this to Romans 8:30 "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."

      The work of God in salvation was His work not ours and it is a finished work. We who receive Christ as savior are kept by the power of God already justified, glorified, and in possession of reservations which will never fade away, become defiled or corrupted in any way. God deserves all of our praise each and every day.

It is with absolute certainty that we have this inheritance.

IMPOSSIBILITY OF HIS COMING

                                       IMPOSSIBILITY OF HIS COMING

    Thinking about the surety of the Word of God I wanted to make a simple statement anyone could understand, an idea most could grasp readily. I didn’t want to get all ‘preachy’ and lose those who seem to think anything not stated in scientific terms is just nonsense, even though science has been proven wrong myriad times over the course of history (Romans 1:22).

Does the Bible predict the coming of Jesus Christ and his life?

    1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 is agreed to be a mathematical impossibility, the point at which something is considered to be impossible. Also stated as 1 in 10 to the 50^th power. 1 in 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 [Keep in mind many in Christian circles believe there are over 200 prophecies of the Messiah] is the probability of any one person fulfilling even a mere 16 of these prophecies or 1 in 10 to the 45th power.  The chance that any one person could have fulfilled all 200 prophecies in just one lifetime of 33 years is an astounding, mind bending impossibility…or a miracle.

    Therefore the predictions of the Bible concerning the birth, life, death and ministry of Christ are an absolute impossibility. Or…they were a God ordained miracle showing the entrance of the Son of God into the World to redeem you and me. God sealed the argument with a staggering impossibility making a miracle the only logical conclusion. Science has proven that Jesus Christ could only have been the miraculous result of a Divine and loving God.

    The problem is not mathematics or science. The problem is the heart of man. Psalm 53:1-3 “The fool hath said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. (v.2) God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God. (v.3) every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” The evidence (and this is only the surface) is overwhelming and yet many still turn their backs on God and choose (it is a choice) to deny what in right in front of them. The Bible is the Word of God. Its declarations are sure and eternal:

    1. Man is a sinner, we all sin. Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”      We are currently sinners guilty before God.

    2. The wages (or payment) of sin is the death of the sinner. Romans 6:23a “For the wages of sin is         death (physical and spiritual)….

    3. The payment for your sin debt has already been paid by another. Romans 5:8 “But God                        commendeth (or proved) His love for us in that while we were sinner Christ died for us.” He did not        wait for us to become good (while we were yet sinners) because He knew we never could.

    4. The payment Christ made on our behalf is free to us as a gift. Romans 6:23b “…but the gift of God     is eternal life through (or by means of) Jesus Christ our Lord.” He grants salvation through His Blood     to us as a gift.  It is a gift that we must receive. Romans 10:9-10, 13 “That if thou shalt confess with        thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead,           thou shalt be saved. (v.10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth         confession is made unto salvation. (v.13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be     saved.”

    Have you received Christ as your Savior. You can. If you understand that before God right now you are lost and condemned to hell as a sinner. And if you are willing to repent of (turn away from) your sin and ask God to come into your heart to save you right now He will. Pray a prayer like this one:

“God I know I am a sinner and I am sorry for my sin. And, right now, I ask Jesus to come into my heart to take control of my life and forgive me of my sin.  I believe Jesus’ sacrifice was enough and that God accepted it and raised him from the dead.  Thank you for saving my soul, amen.”

    If you did pray today and ask God to save you please send me a message. I would like to help you get started in your new life as a believer. I currently attend South Side Baptist Church in Harrisville on route 16 just past the police station and invite you to join us. For more information please message me.

Which Door Would you choose

 Which Door?

I didn’t really mean to eavesdrop but sometimes you just happen to be in that perfect spot. Even at that, I would normally have made an effort not to listen even if I could hear. But this was different. I heard one man address another in a cordial manner as ‘preacher’ which, as you can imagine, caught my attention. I never could hear the “preacher’s” words. He was just out of earshot. So, some of what I was hearing I was interpreting based on a one sided conversation. The ‘preacher’ said something, after “hello”, about heaven. I am certain of that because the response that came caused me to want to jump up and interject. The other man simply said that when he stood before God he would take whatever comes.

I have heard people say this sort of thing before and it always strikes me the same way. They seem to have a casual nonplussed understanding of what that final day will be like. I had all I could do to retain my seating. I wanted desperately to jump up and join this man at his table for a lengthy conversation. However, not being invited to do so left me wondering how I might explain to my wife how I managed to get kicked out of McDonald’s. So, I reluctantly left this gentleman to his ‘preacher’ friend.

I wonder how many people allow themselves such a casual concept of the final judgment. If we understood what God has done to save humanity we would race to Him and flee the terrors hell. 

As I thought about his response to the ‘preacher’ I was struck with an image. Imagine sitting in a place like McDonalds. You see several gruff looking young men gather outside the exit door. And for no less than one hour you watch as people try to leave. But everyone who exits that door is beaten violently and left for dead on the sidewalk. Your meal is over. Your coffee is finished. You need to leave. No police have arrived to assist. Will you just get up and say to yourself, “Well, I will take whatever comes” and walk out that door?

Now imagine that just as you stand and begin your approach to that exit door someone reaches out and takes your arm. As they do they say to you, “Wait! Don’t go out there. There is another exit door over there just across the room. It is a safe exit.” Do you really suppose that you would simply say to your would-be-savior that you didn’t want to use the other door, and that you would just take whatever comes, knowing that you would be violently beaten without mercy? The answer is clear. Nobody would choose to suffer if the choice truly was their own.

So, why then, do so many make such foolish statements as our gentleman at McDonald’s? Because they don’t believe there is any real danger. They choose to ignore the warnings. Jude 1:13 “... to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.” Mark 9:43-44 “And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: (v.44) where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.” Luke 16:23-24 “And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. (v.24) And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.”

God really made it so easy. Yet, so many miss it. He will open the door of Heaven to anyone who will come, provided they come His way. He does not allow us to make our own path. All He wants for us to do is to understand that we really are sinful (Romans 3:23*), that there really is a payment or penalty for that sin (Romans 6:23*) and to understand that His Son Jesus Christ paid that penalty for us already (Romans 5:8; I Peter 2:24*). If we can honestly understand and acknowledge this then He says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13*).

How do we call upon Him for salvation? Romans 10:9-10 gives us the best example, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (v.10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Simply put, it would be a prayer something like this:

"God I know I am a sinner and without Jesus I am lost forever. I am sorry for all of my sin and today as best I know how I am turning away from sin and asking Jesus Christ to be my Lord. I believe Jesus died in my place to pay the price I owed. Right now I ask Jesus to come into my heart and save me. I believe Jesus was raised from the dead as evidence that my sin was forgiven. Thank you for saving me, Amen."

You see there really are only two doors exiting this life. One leads to eternal suffering the other to eternal joy. You can walk through the door of destruction but it will be your choice. You won’t be able to blame God because Jesus, all the while, is calling out to you from the other door having done everything necessary to ensure your safety.

Every time you hear this kind of message or read it, you make a choice. If you walk away without accepting Christ into your heart, without being born again, you have chosen the door of destruction…at least for that moment. If God has given you this one opportunity it is one more than He owes you.

What is your choice today, which door?

*Bible Passages cited:
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 5:8 But God commendeth (or proved) his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
1Peter 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Romans 10:9-10 (gives us the best example), “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (v.10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

It's a Fractured World

                                    It's a Fractured World

Troubles come and troubles go. Really? It seems to me more like, troubles come and keep coming. I love it when people tell me I am not alone. It sure feels like it. And how comforting do they think it is just to know that everyone else is suffering too? To me, we sometimes have a skewed view of the world we live in. We look at New York City, Los Angeles, Detroit, et. al. and think how much hatred resides in those towns. We see the murder rate in various areas of the world and are often taken back by the overwhelming numbers. Divorce is at or above 50% even in Christian homes. People are born with diseases and physical abnormalities that leave them all but helpless if not for the care of others. And poverty? People walking the streets without homes, many void of contact with their own families as a result. It is a fractured world.

But you say, “I live in Pennsboro, WV and we do not have those issues here.” Here they are not on the nightly news. Here they are not paraded before us every evening in the hope of making profit from the headlines. But they are here. They hide behind closed doors.  Most often they are not out in the open. Walk down any street in any town and you will find despair shrouded by a false smile. Houses with wheelchair ramps are common. You will see children in the care of single parents. You will see, even in the houses of worship, poverty so overwhelming it crushes the impoverished worshipper as he stands beside those who have plenty. Hatred lives here too, but it is more carefully covered up by silence, fence lines and exclusive social activities. Even in our town, we must admit it is a fractured world.

When we look at the difficulties, we face every day, we simply must put them in perspective or completely fall apart. “I am not alone,” actually can be a comfort, even if ever so slight. Take the difficulty most recent in your own life for an example. Regardless of what it was (or is) something very much like it was experienced by someone else today, and yesterday, ad infinitum. As Solomon said, Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. (v.10) Is there anything whereof it may be said, See, this is new...?” 

I am not saying that it is comforting to know that trouble and sorrow come to all of us. But sometimes a better perspective can relieve at least some of the distress we feel. Suffering is, and always has been, universal; Job 14:1-2 “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. (v.2) He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.” In the very first family on earth, there was trouble. Two parents (the only two) had the crushing reality that one of their own sons was a murderer. How can a parent deal with that level of trauma? How do we get up in the morning and face the next day knowing that one of our own sons murdered his brother? Trauma, literally, comes to all of us because…it is a fractured world.

When we consider the issues we face today, perspective can help. Prayer, the reading of God’s Word, the indwelling Holy Spirit, yes; but also, perspective. Where am in I in the Lord today? Am I walking close to God this morning? Being a child of God does not eliminate trials and troubles (look at king David). But it can help us to keep trouble from destroying us. Knowing that the troubles I see are evidence that God loves me, even in my trials, can bring comfort. And they are proof that Jesus had to die in my place, because I can certainly never earn salvation, as evidenced by my own broken life. My troubles and trials prove I could never be worthy of His great love, yet He loves me.

God came to redeem a fallen world, a world destroyed by sin. It is that world we see every day, and that we experience in our own homes as well. He would not have died to redeem us if we could have done something to redeem ourselves. Every pain, every heartache, every injustice we see is evidence of the great and overwhelming love of God (John 3:16), because he came to save even those who caused the pain, the heartache and the injustices we see every day. God loves, and died to redeem, those who are fallen…US, you and me. When we see the fractured lives of others, remember they see our fractured lives as well. Look at the trouble in our lives and remember, “God commendeth (or proved) his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8. While we were sinning, while we were actively rebelling against Him, He died to redeem us. The troubles we see in life should be a constant reminder of this amazing love.

This is a fractured world. It will always be full of trouble. But when Jesus saved us, He also made a great promise to those who would receive the salvation he offers: John 14:1-3 “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. (V.2) In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. (v.3) And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

When you see troubles in your life and all the fractured lives around you, try to also see the redeeming love of God reaching out to each one of them. It is a fractured world that Jesus came to save.

Shards or Gold

                                                                      Shards or Gold

Imagine you are sifting through the treasures of this life, much like a miner in the early days of the great west gold rush. You carefully remove layer after layer of sand, rock and other debris in search of that one great nugget. Most often as you sift through the river silt you find shards of glass or pottery. Hour after hour, day after day you bend into the river hoping for great wealth as you pan the river bed. The evidence is over whelming, gold is unlikely. The river is filled with shards of pottery more than nuggets of gold.

But you are only on one side of the river. A friend passes by and tells you the other side of the river has wealth you don’t have to work for. You don’t have to continue in your back breaking effort in hope of wealth. There, he says, are streets of endless length made completely of gold, solid pure gold. He says the gates leading into the city are actually made of pearls. Huge pearls. Each gate is actually a single pearl. As he talks with you he asks what it is you are doing. You respond, “I am looking for true wealth, wealth beyond compare. I am hoping to find wealth sufficient to carry me over the course of my life.” In stark amazement he looks at you with bewilderment and asks, “Have you not looked across this river? Look. That wealth is available right now, you don’t have to work so hard to attain it. The owner has already offered citizenship to all who wish to come.”

As he is speaking a memory of your childhood comes suddenly into your thoughts. Is the city just across the river the same city you learned about in church? Rev 21:18-22 “And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. (v.19) And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; (v.20) The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. (v.21) And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. (v.22) And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.”

Today are you sifting through the muck and the mire of the river of this life for wealth that cannot last? Are you only finding shards of broken dreams, dashed hopes, and pleasures that only last a moment? Look! Right across the river is a grand and glorious city which God promised to those who come to him by faith. Will you come? John 3:36 “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.”

STOP SPOON FEEDING THE CHURCH

 WE MUST STOP SPOON FEEDING THE CHURCH

    I have visited several churches. Many have a very nice social atmosphere. There is coffee in the vestibule with a selection of cakes or other snacks to help set the tone of a pleasant welcoming congregation. I suppose there really is nothing wrong with this in and of itself. Except that it helps to mask an underlying problem which has plagued our churches since my youth. The Apostle Paul pointed it out in Hebrews 5:12 "For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of mild, and not of strong meat." We have become a church of infants.

    There seems to be an innate fear within the leadership of the churches. A fear that says, "If we teach the Word of God with intensity, as we would in a college or seminary setting, the congregation would get up and walk out. They would be overwhelmed and leave our congregation." And so, in an attempt to cater to the immature and ensure the pews are filled we opt for socializing the Word of God, keeping it on an elementary level so as not to lose members. The result? We have many large congregations starving for spiritual nutrition. Most are remaining infants, "For everyone that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe" (Heb. 5:13).

    The Apostle Peter anticipated this problem as well. In II Peter chapter one he lays out a lengthy description of the believer's current position as well as his need to apply these truths and develop his character. In verses 3-4b we read, "According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: (v.4b) whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises...." He says, look at what we have. God has already given us everything we need as believers. And in our modern churches we stop here. We sing wonderful songs exalting this idea but we stop there. What does this mean? How does it occur? How does it become mine? What does it mean to me in my life? It makes for beautiful lyrics. But they become vain repetitions until we study the Word of God and discover the origin and purpose of these gifts.

    And then in verses 4b-9 Peter makes a point of saying that by these gifts and their application in our individual lives we become the saints of God we were meant to be. We become temperate, virtuous, knowledgeable, kind, and loving… but only as we learn what the Word of God teaches. When we fail to study as we ought, when the preachers and teachers fail to feed the flock, Peter says in verse nine that we become blind and even forgetful of how our salvation was ever obtained. We simply must teach the Word and stop entertaining in fear of losing members.

    In II Peter the Apostle goes on to say something I find fascinating. It seems to go against the prevailing wisdom of our day. In verse twelve he says, "Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them..." He says he is going to continue to teach what they already know over and over again. Do you think he was afraid of losing members? The remainder of verse 12 says that it is this which will establish them in the truth, or provide them with a firm foundation. But now look at verse 13, "Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance." As long as I am alive, as long as I have flesh and in fact (v.15) until the day I die I will continue teaching these same principles so that you will have them when I am gone. I will teach them over again with my last breath in order to shore up your faith.

    Why does the church feel a need today to provide flashy preaching, to find ways to entertain the congregation? Why are the preachers not preaching and teaching with an eye toward establishing the believer in the "faith once delivered unto the saints" (Jude 3)? Is the gospel of Jesus Christ no longer valid? Is the Word of God no longer a comfort (I Thes 4:18) to the soul? Does the preaching of the cross need enhancing to become attractive to this new generation? NO! We are moving away from the Gospel of Christ with every new idea we introduce. Our ideas and efforts are taking time away from the actual teaching of the Word. If we were to take time, time that is needed, to actually dig deep into the Bible and teach it as it was intended to be taught, we would not have time for all the nonsense we see in the churches today.

    We need fire in the pulpit, fire produced by the preaching of the Word empowered by the Holy Spirit of God. The church in America has become anemic. With all of our activities and social emphasis we simply do not have time for anything more than a gentle spoon feeding.

Christian, open the Book and study it. Church, Pastors and teachers, stop spoon feeding the Church.

How can you tell

                                                                      How you can tell

Am I a biker? Well, I ride a motorcycle. I put a helmet on my head (because I don’t trust me). I get on it. I start it. And I can drive it down most roads with little to no difficulty. However, I don’t get into the curves too fast or ride it on dirt tracks or mountain passes. Why? Because even though I am able to ride a motorcycle when the road is smooth and straight, I am not necessarily an accomplished rider. I don’t take long trips on a bike. I do not spend much time caring for the machine other than putting gas and oil in it. I did wash it once this year. I ride a motorcycle but I am not a biker. There is a big difference between a biker and a rider.

Christianity has similar distinctives. There are a good many people today who would claim to be Christian. They attend church when they have time as long as it is not too inconvenient. They are often seen putting some small amount of money in the offering plate as it passes. In fact, many who claim to be Christian even try to do things in public that look religious. Is church attendance worship? Does giving a small amount “appease” God? Is doing good things the same as being holy?

I was at the post office this morning. A middle-aged woman driving a pickup truck pulled into the lot. After she entered the office she began to tell a story to the post master. In that story she made no attempt to refrain from the use of common vulgarities. What she did and said clearly caused me to wonder if she had ever been saved. I felt sorry for her as I wondered about her eternal state. As I passed by her truck I saw a large Bible on the dash in clear view. Was it her Bible? Did she actually claim to be born again? Later in the day I was on the computer and was directed to the page of a friend whom I am fairly certain would claim to be saved. As I read the entries posted by my friend I was actually shocked and at times appalled by what was there. Were these people Christians? Think this through carefully, were they Christians?

Believers today (those who claim to be saved) have no real sense of holiness. There is no revulsion toward sin, no actual hatred of sin. Christians today essentially sin and say, “oops” and go on with life. God calls us to a holy, sin free, life. Jesus told the woman taken in adultery (John 8:11) to “go and sin no more.” 1Peter 1:15 says, “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation.”  And we are warned by the Apostle Paul that if we do sin God will punish us for it if we are truly saved, Hebrews 12:5b-6, “…My son despise not the chastening of the Lord nor faint when though art rebuked of Him. (v.6) For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” These two passages are most enlightening. If we are not living holy lives we are living in open rebellion against God. And the evidence that we are God’s children is the chastisement (punishment) that God brings into our lives every day because of our sin. Here then is the dilemma. If we are sinning without God punishing us, are we saved? If we can live in un-holiness without guilt are we truly the children of God? It is almost like we want to be bikers without being dedicated to biking. We are trying to be Christians without allowing God into our daily lives, without allowing His Holy Spirit to reign supreme in our hearts.

We do not perform all the things that Christians are known to do in order to be saved. BUT, if we are saved and God’s Holy Spirit is living in our heart, if we have truly been born again we will naturally be living differently, II Cor. 5:17 “Therefore, if any man be in Christ he is a new creature. Old things are passed away, behold all things are become new.” 

When people see you, what do they see? Do they see someone who is living a holy life in compliance with the command of God? Are there noticeable differences between your life today and the life you lived before coming to Christ? What words come out of your mouth during a conversation? Or, what do your text messages and facebook postings reveal about the heart you said was changed by the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ?

Jesus left us here in this world to be ambassadors for Christ, to represent Him here. Everything we do reflects on the name of our Lord positively or negatively. We are His ambassadors. With everything we say, everything we post on these computers and every text we send we are telling a lost world something about our God.

What did you, by your actions or words, tell the world about Jesus today?