Category: Salvation

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Make A List

I sit here thinking about eternity…eternity! That’s a very long time, I said to myself with a smile.

But what I thought about the most was those who will be in the Father’s eternal heaven. Think about this for a moment. Make a list of twenty people who you would want to join you on an island retreat – not like survivor – but a nice retreat. There would be no TV, internet or computers. Just good old-fashioned conversation and friendship. Being with them for a week or two is one thing but what about eternity.

Now think about God and the fact that He has invited us to spend eternity with Him. (Let that sink in.)

Eternity.

His perfect love – mercy – grace, perfect God invited us to live in His presence for eternity.

He made His list and it included all of our names. We’ve been invited but sadly, not everyone will accept His invitation. Some will reject His invitation, but He has made it open ended.

“God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die.” John 3:16 CEV

“Christ is the sacrifice that takes away our sins and the sins of all the world’s people.” I John 2:2 CEV

King David thought about this when he wrote:

“ You are making a table of food ready for me in front of those who hate me. You have poured oil on my head. I have everything I need. 6 For sure, You will give me goodness and loving-kindness all the days of my life. Then I will live with You in Your house forever.” Psalm 23:5-6 NLV

Jesus said to the thief who was on the cross next to His:

“Jesus said to him, “For sure, I tell you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43 NLV

God the Father made His list of those He would like to spend eternity with and all of our names were on it.

“For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.” Romans 8:29-30 NLT

“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.” Ephesians 1:4-6 NLT

Some of you who are reading this I have never met before, but I am excited to think that I will get to spend time in eternity getting to know you.

I’m so glad the Father put us on His list!

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No Question About It

God loves you!

Let me say that again. GOD LOVES YOU!

The following comes straight from God’s word to you. I’ve read this over at least half a dozen times this morning. I hope you do the same and let it sink in. There’s no question about it.

God loves you!

“At one time you were dead because of your sins. 2 You followed the sinful ways of the world and obeyed the leader of the power of darkness. He is the devil who is now working in the people who do not obey God. 3 At one time all of us lived to please our old selves. We gave in to what our bodies and minds wanted. We were sinful from birth like all other people and would suffer from the anger of God.

4 But God had so much loving-kindness. He loved us with such a great love. 5 Even when we were dead because of our sins, He made us alive by what Christ did for us. You have been saved from the punishment of sin by His loving-favor. 6 God raised us up from death when He raised up Christ Jesus. He has given us a place with Christ in the heavens. 7 He did this to show us through all the time to come the great riches of His loving-favor. He has shown us His kindness through Christ Jesus.

8 For by His loving-favor you have been saved from the punishment of sin through faith. It is not by anything you have done. It is a gift of God. 9 It is not given to you because you worked for it. If you could work for it, you would be proud. 10 We are His work. He has made us to belong to Christ Jesus so we can work for Him. He planned that we should do this.” Ephesians 2:1-10 NLV

Let the love of God completely flood your heart and mind.

God loves you!

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Broken Bread

Very shortly Dave and I will be leaving for “Sonrise” Service. It’s going to be a beautiful crisp morning as we join with friends to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

But that first morning wasn’t a time of celebration for the apostles and Jesus’ followers. It was a time of mourning, a time to say a proper good-bye, a time of preparing His body for a proper burial.

How startling and frightening it was for Mary and the other women to arrive at the tomb and find it empty!

They ran back to the place where they were all gathered and told Peter, John and the others that Jesus was gone and the angels said He was alive. Peter and John ran to the tomb and found it empty. They went back to the others and reported that it was as the women had said. (John 20, Matthew 28)

It was in the garden where Mary saw Jesus and knew the Lord was alive, He spoke to her. He called her by name.

Next to see Jesus were two disciples walking on the road. (Luke 24) They were talking about everything that had happened in Jerusalem – the trial, the beating, and the crucifixion. Jesus joined them on the road and asked what they were talking about. They thought He was the only one in Jerusalem who didn’t know what had happened. When they got to their destination, they invited Jesus to eat with them, still they didn’t recognize Him but when Jesus took the bread and blessed it, they knew! Instantly, Jesus was gone from their midst.

“Joining them at the supper table, Jesus took some bread and gave thanks. Then he broke some off and gave it to them. 31 Just then the men were allowed to recognize him. But when they saw who he was, he disappeared. 32 They said to each other, ‘When he talked to us on the road, it felt like a fire burning in us. How exciting it was when he explained to us the true meaning of the Scriptures!’”Luke 24:20-32 ERV

The two ran back, seven miles to Jerusalem, to tell the others what had happened. They were behind locked doors because they feared the soldiers would come for them. It was the evening of that same day and Jesus appeared in their midst.

The breaking of the bread and blessing it was something they had probably seen Jesus do many times. It was familiar to them and they recognized this gesture.

“While the two men were saying these things to the other followers, Jesus himself came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’

37 This surprised the followers. They were afraid. They thought they were seeing a ghost. 38 But Jesus said, ‘Why are you troubled? Why do you doubt what you see? 39 Look at my hands and my feet. It’s really me. Touch me. You can see that I have a living body; a ghost does not have a body like this.’” Luke 24:36-39 ERV

Maybe some of you are troubled today, wondering if God has forgotten you. He hasn’t! God takes the ordinary things in life and makes them extraordinary. He gladly reveals Himself and His power to us in personal ways.

Welcome Him to your table and break bread with the risen Savior!

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What Happened in Hell?

After the crucifixion the world thought that Jesus was dead and no longer a threat but they were so wrong.

Jesus went to hell and defeated satan and his demons. When He rose from the tomb He emerged as the Champion of Champions.

“God lives fully in Christ. 10 And you are fully grown because you belong to Christ, who is over every power and authority. 11 Christ has also taken away your selfish desires, just as circumcision removes flesh from the body. 12 And when you were baptized, it was the same as being buried with Christ. Then you were raised to life because you had faith in the power of God, who raised Christ from death. 13 You were dead, because you were sinful and were not God’s people. But God let Christ make you alive, when he forgave all our sins.

14 God wiped out the charges that were against us for disobeying the Law of Moses. He took them away and nailed them to the cross. 15 There Christ defeated all powers and forces. He let the whole world see them being led away as prisoners when he celebrated his victory.” Colossians 2:9-15

Here’s a brief recap of the above.

All the fullness of God lives in Christ and since we are in Christ all God’s fullness lives in us. All of His power, faith, love and righteousness are ours – we need to renew our minds to what God has done for us!

By Christ’s death and resurrection, we have been raised to new life and our old sinful nature has been circumcised – it has been cut away. All of our sins have been forgiven and we have been made alive in God – a new creature, a whole new species of being.

God the Father wiped out all the charges of sin that were against us when He nailed them to the cross and they were blotted out by Jesus’ blood! I like to think of it as this – He crashed the hard drive, and all the evidence of our sin was lost forever!!!

Jesus defeated all the forces of hell, and He led them through the streets of the spirit realm, striped of power. The picture painted here is of a Roman ruler parading a defeated monarch through the streets of his capital city, naked. He did this to prove to the monarch’s subjects that their king had been defeated completely, humiliated and unable to control what was forced upon him. This is what Jesus did to Satan when he was placed in the tomb. He marched into hell; gather up Satan and paraded him through all the streets of hell – naked – striped of the keys of death, hell and the grave – striped of all his power – to prove that Jesus is Lord!

Oh my goodness, if you’re not shouting by now – you’re in need of resuscitation!

Sing it with me – He is Lord, He is Lord, He is risen from the dead and He is Lord! Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!

He did this for you and me. He didn’t have to come to earth to have power over Satan, He had it from the beginning. But He came to die and in death defeat Satan for us – we were the ones under his rule. What He did in hell, He did as our substitute, and he defeated the devil and sin on our behalf so that we could have the fullness of the Father operating in our lives!

Glory Hallelujah!!!

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It’s A Good Friday

This morning’s thought is going to be a bit different.

I know there are some of you who read my postings and you wouldn’t call yourself a religious person or even a Christian. I want to talk to you for a minute.

Years ago, I was leading a weight loss group, and it was attended by people from many different walks, some were church people and some weren’t. At the end of each class I would close in prayer. This one particular night I had a woman say to me in front of everyone, “I’ve never heard anyone pray like you do; you talk to God just like he’s your friend.” I smiled and said, “He is.”

This is Easter weekend and amidst the baskets and bunnies, the lilies and the eggs you will find an empty cross and an empty tomb. This is the place where my friend died. He wasn’t religious either. He came to replace religious tradition with personal relationship.

John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, saw Jesus walking up the road and he made this comment to those around him “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

Jesus came all those years ago to be our sacrifice, a lamb, pure and spotless as was required by Jewish tradition for a sin offering. He came to take away our sins and not just the sins of those who have already believed on Him and received Him as Savior but the sins of the WHOLE world.

“Jesus is the way our sins are taken away. And he is the way all people can have their sins taken away too.” I John 2:2 ERV

God knows more about our sin than we do. We have probably forgotten a lot of the ones that happened a long time ago, but God made sure that they were all covered by one sacrifice.

“ Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him would not be lost but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world. He did not send him to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17 ERV

Believe on Him? Believe that He is the perfect payment for sin. Jesus doesn’t want us condemned. He wants us to live free of guilt, worry, desperation and fear. He wants us to know we are forgiven.

If you haven’t received God’s free gift, the forgiveness of your sins, and His promise to make you an adopted child in the family of God then I encourage you to do that today.

It doesn’t require a lot of fanfare or bells and whistles, just simply a believing heart, accepting God’s gift of mercy and grace. God loves you unconditionally – He knows all about you, He’s always there for you and He’s reaching out to you now.

Come to Him and say, “Father God, you gave your only Son to die for my sins so that I can have a life and relationship with you. I believe that Jesus died for me and I accept His sacrifice as payment for my sin. I receive Your precious gift of eternal life and I thank you for it. In Jesus Name.”

If you prayed that prayer I encourage you to tell someone about this wonderful gift you have received and I encourage you to get to know Your Father.

He desires to be your Savior and your best friend!

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The Torn Curtain

There are so many events that happened in the days around the crucifixion of Jesus that deserve notice but one in particular came to mind this morning. It is deeply significant to me.

Let me give you the back story.

When the Lord instructed Moses to build the tabernacle, he was given a specific plan. In the interior was what is referred to as the Holy of Holies, or The Most Holy Place. The high priest was only allowed to go in there once a year and then only after offering the specific sacrifice for the atonement of sin.

The Holy of Holies was separated from the rest of the tabernacle by a tall, thick curtain.

“The stones with the Ten Commandments written on them were stored in the sacred chest, the place of mercy was put on top of it, and the carrying poles were attached. 21 The chest was brought into the tent and set behind the curtain in the most holy place. These things were done exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses.” Exodus 40:20-21 CEV

The curtain was used to separate God’s holy presence from people who were sinful and unreconciled to God.

Now, come forward to the day of the crucifixion.

“When Jesus died, the curtain in the Temple was torn into two pieces. The tear started at the top and tore all the way to the bottom. Also, the earth shook and rocks were broken.” Matthew 27:51 ERV

The high priest couldn’t enter the Most Holy Place without offering the perfect lamb as a sacrifice. But when Jesus, the perfect lamb, was offered for the forgiveness of sin the presence of Almighty God was available to everyone, not just the priests.

“The Law teaches that offerings and sacrifices must be made because of sin. But why did Christ mention these things and say that God did not want them? 9 Well, it was to do away with offerings and sacrifices and to replace them. This is what he meant by saying to God, “I have come to do what you want.” 10 So we are made holy because Christ obeyed God and offered himself once for all.” Hebrews 10:8-10 CEV

Yearly sacrifices for sin are no longer necessary. Christ made one sacrifice, and it covered all sin, once and for all!

“Even when we were God’s enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by the life of his Son.” Romans 5:10 CEV

We were like those people of the Old Testament, unworthy on our own merits to receive forgiveness but Christ…

“ When sins are forgiven, there is no more need to offer sacrifices. 19 My friends, the blood of Jesus gives us courage to enter the most holy place 20 by a new way that leads to life! And this way takes us through the curtain that is Christ himself. 21 We have a great high priest who is in charge of God’s house. 22  So let’s come near God with pure hearts and a confidence that comes from having faith. Let’s keep our hearts pure, our consciences free from evil, and our bodies washed with clean water. 23 We must hold tightly to the hope we say is ours. After all, we can trust the one who made the agreement with us.” Hebrews 10:18-23 CEV

The curtain in the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. No man tore the curtain, it was torn by Almighty God.

The sacrifice for sin is complete in Christ and now we can come boldly into the throne room of God. The curtain has been torn and we have access to the Father.

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Our Substitute

Yesterday I took our thoughts from Jesus’ teaching in John 10. He refers to Himself as the shepherd and that He came to give us abundant life in contrast to the thief who is working to steal, kill and destroy.

Jesus goes on further in that chapter to say this, ” “I am the shepherd who cares for the sheep. I know my sheep just as the Father knows me. And my sheep know me just as I know the Father. I give my life for these sheep.” John 10:14-15 ERV

Jesus willingly laid down His life for us!

Yes, He loved us that much. He willingly gave up His life to give us life. When he was dragged before Pilate, He kept quiet and offered no testimony in His defense. If He had, the power of His word would have acquitted Him. What a powerful love!! He became our substitute.

Substitute: Putting a person or thing in the place of another.

“The fact is, it was our suffering he took on himself; he bore our pain. But we thought that God was punishing him, that God was beating him for something he did. 5 But he was being punished for what we did. He was crushed because of our guilt. He took the punishment we deserved, and this brought us peace. We were healed because of his pain. 6 We had all wandered away like sheep. We had gone our own way. And yet the LORD put all our guilt on him.

7 He was treated badly, but he never protested. He said nothing, like a lamb being led away to be killed. He was like a sheep that makes no sound as its wool is being cut off. He never opened his mouth to defend himself. 8 He was taken away by force and judged unfairly. The people of his time did not even notice that he was killed. [b] But he was put to death [c] for the sins of his [d] people. 9 He had done no wrong to anyone. He had never even told a lie. But he was buried among the wicked. His tomb was with the rich.

10 But the LORD was pleased with this humble servant who suffered such pain. [e] Even after giving himself as an offering for sin, he will see his descendants and enjoy a long life. He will succeed in doing what the LORD wanted. 11 After his suffering he will see the light, [f] and he will be satisfied with what he experienced.

The Lord says, ‘My servant, who always does what is right, will make his people right with me; he will take away their sins. 12 For this reason, I will treat him as one of my great people. I will give him the rewards of one who wins in battle, and he will share them with his powerful ones. I will do this because he gave his life for the people. He was considered a criminal, but the truth is, he carried away the sins of many. Now he will stand before me and speak for those who have sinned.” Isaiah 53: 4-12 ERV

The Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, died for you! He gave His sinless pure life as a substitute for your sinful life. He took your place! If you haven’t received Him as your Savior, do so today. There’ll be no one else who has or will love you like Jesus.

If you have accepted your wonderful gift of salvation, then praise Him today for all He has done.

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Seek Jesus

This morning started with a song and then a verse. The song: In the morning when I rise, In the morning when I rise, In the morning when I rise, Give me Jesus!

Yes, Father let me see Jesus in His glory and His love. That’s my desire.

Then the verse:

“Turn to the Lord! He can still be found. Call out to God! He is near.
7 Give up your evil ways and your evil thoughts. Return to the Lord our God.
He will be merciful and forgive your sins.” Isaiah 55:6-7 CEV

Seek is an old-fashioned word. In this translation they use the word turn, in others they use search. The meaning is the same – look for the Lord.

When we rise each morning, we should be looking for the Lord. Great things happen when we seek Him. Let me give you just a few examples.

Of course, the most publicized seeking came from the wisemen. Their journey of searching lasted months, even possibly a year or two. (Matthew 2)

Nicodemus, the religious leader, came to Jesus at night. He was concerned about his reputation. (John 3 spiritual healing)

The woman who had a blood disorder braved the crowds coming to Jesus. (Mark 5 physical healing)

The man with leprosy did the same thing. (Matthew 8)

Then there was the army officer with the sick servant. (Matthew 8)

Let’s see who else sought to be in the presence of Jesus – the man whose daughter died, the demon possessed(emotional healing), the blind and the lame, those who had all kinds of diseases and sickness. They all came seeking Jesus.

Then one of my favorites is Zaccheaus. (Luke 19 healing from greed and dishonesty)

“Jesus was going through Jericho, 2 where a man named Zacchaeus lived. He was in charge of collecting taxes and was very rich. 3-4 Jesus was heading his way, and Zacchaeus wanted to see what he was like. But Zacchaeus was a short man and could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree.

5 When Jesus got there, he looked up and said, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry down! I want to stay with you today.’” Luke 19:1-5 CEV

Not once did Jesus turn any of them away. Not once did he say, “You’re not worth it. Go away you’re bothering me”. Jesus came to “Seek and to save the lost”. Luke 19:10

I hope you are saying with me, “in the morning when I rise, I seek You Jesus”. I can promise that when you seek Him, He will find you and life will never be the same.

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A Clear Conscience

We all have things we’ve done that we really don’t want anyone to know about. Simple embarrassing things, mistakes made in our youth and those hidden secrets we don’t want to share with anyone.

We know ourselves better than anyone else. We know our failures and our secret or hidden thoughts. But God knows those too and He has provided a way to be freed from a guilty conscience.

This is a longer read today but I’m sure you’ll be glad you took the time to read it over and let it sink in. Let it bring a change to your way of thinking. You are who God says you are, and He says you can have your conscience washed cleaned. Believe Him!!

“The law gave us only an unclear picture of the good things coming in the future. The law is not a perfect picture of the real things. The law tells people to offer the same sacrifices every year. Those who come to worship God continue to offer those sacrifices. But the law can never make them perfect. 2 If the law could make people perfect, those sacrifices would have already stopped. They would already be clean from their sins, and they would not still feel guilty. 3 But that’s not what happens. Their sacrifices make them remember their sins every year, 4 because it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5 So when Christ came into the world he said, ‘You don’t want sacrifices and offerings, but you have prepared a body for me. 6 You are not pleased with the sacrifices of animals killed and burned or with offerings to take away sins’. 7 Then I said, ‘Here I am, God. It is written about me in the book of the law.I have come to do what you want.’

8 Christ first said, ‘You don’t want sacrifices and offerings. You are not pleased with animals killed and burned or with sacrifices to take away sin.’ (These are all sacrifices that the law commands.) 9 Then he said, ‘Here I am, God. I have come to do what you want.’ So God ends that first system of sacrifices and starts his new way. 10 Jesus Christ did the things God wanted him to do. And because of that, we are made holy through the sacrifice of Christ’s body. Christ made that sacrifice one time—enough for all time.

11 Every day the priests stand and do their religious service. Again and again they offer the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But Christ offered only one sacrifice for sins, and that sacrifice is good for all time. Then he sat down at the right side of God. 13 And now Christ waits there for his enemies to be put under his power. 14 With one sacrifice Christ made his people perfect forever. They are the ones who are being made holy.

15 The Holy Spirit also tells us about this. First he says, 16 ‘This is the agreement I will make with my people in the future, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts. I will write my laws in their minds.’

17 Then he says, ‘I will forget their sins and never again remember the evil they have done.‘ 1 8 And after everything is forgiven, there is no more need for a sacrifice to pay for sins.

19 And so, brothers and sisters, we are completely free to enter the Most Holy Place. We can do this without fear because of the blood sacrifice of Jesus. 20 We enter through a new way that Jesus opened for us. It is a living way that leads through the curtain—Christ’s body. 21 And we have a great priest who rules the house of God. 22 Sprinkled with the blood of Christ, our hearts have been made free from a guilty conscience, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. So come near to God with a sincere heart, full of confidence because of our faith in Christ. 23 We must hold on to the hope we have, never hesitating to tell people about it. We can trust God to do what he promised.” Hebrews 10:1-23 ERV

Don’t struggle with a guilty conscience any longer. The blood of Jesus has cleansed us. God the Father doesn’t have a goodness chart where He checks off our good deeds and weighs them against the wrongs we have done.

No, He has one qualification for the forgiveness of sin. He asks if we have accepted the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. If the answer is yes – we are cleansed from sin. Free to live without fear. And if we haven’t accepted that sacrifice yet you can. “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved”!

Take a deep breath. Come to God with a sincere heart and be free from a guilty conscience.

That’s how good God is!

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Reflection

Sitting here this morning reflecting on all the activities of the last few days. The wonderful sound of laughter, phone calls filled with loving words, cards and letters from friends far and near, the presents, the food, the love…

God’s amazing love!

Man’s love may fail or wane, but God’s love is unconditional, it endures forever. With that in mind I’d like to share one of my favorite passages with you again. Time and again I find myself reflecting on this chapter.

King David had experienced so much; he never took God’s love and mercy for granted. I pray that my heart always stays soft and open to the mercy and grace of God.

“With all my heart I praise the Lord, and with all that I am I praise his holy name!

2 With all my heart I praise the Lord! I will never forget how kind he has been.

3 The Lord forgives our sins, heals us when we are sick, 4 and protects us from death.

His kindness and love are a crown on our heads.

5 Each day that we live, he provides for our needs and gives us the strength of a young eagle. 6 For all who are mistreated, the Lord brings justice. 7 He taught his Law to Moses and showed all Israel what he could do.

8 The Lord is merciful! He is kind and patient, and his love never fails.

9 The Lord won’t always be angry and point out our sins; 10 he doesn’t punish us as our sins deserve.

11 How great is God’s love for all who worship him? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth!

12 How far has the Lord taken our sins from us? Farther than the distance from east to west!

13 Just as parents are kind to their children, the Lord is kind to all who worship him, 14 because he knows we are made of dust. 15 We humans are like grass or wild flowers

that quickly bloom. 16 But a scorching wind blows, and they quickly wither to be forever forgotten.

17 The Lord is always kind to those who worship him, and he keeps his promises to their descendants 18 who faithfully obey him.

19 God has set up his kingdom in heaven, and he rules the whole creation. 20 All of you mighty angels, who obey God’s commands, come and praise your Lord! 21 All of you thousands who serve and obey God, come and praise your Lord! 22 All of God’s creation and all that he rules, come and praise your Lord! With all my heart I praise the Lord!” Psalm 103 CEV

No better way to start the New Year than reflecting on God’s goodness with a heart full of praise!

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