Okay i definitely have been working on my next post. I am actually teaching on it on a wednesday night at my church back home. And i know that some of them actually read this so i don't want to spoil the surprise so i will post it after i speak on it, sometime after wednesday November 3rd. I will tell you what it will be about though. I am studying on John 15:1-17 a.k.a. the vine and the branches. I am so pumped for getting to teach about the passage. This is now my new favorite passage. It is so much deeper than i would have thought. For at least 4 days i have been looking at this passage and every time i look at it God shows me more and more of what he wants me to get out of it. It is truly a wonderful feeling. This passage has been my quiet time for the past 3 days and now i look forward to getting into it again later on today. It is truly just a blessing what God is showing me and maybe after the 3rd you will understand too, i really hope so. God Bless!
P.S. if you are going to read this passage also check out Ezekiel 15:1-5. it helped me understand some things in it! Also, for those of you who read the bible, i would suggest getting a bible with a concordance. they are wonderful for relating scriptures! (any translation is fine with me, i am no bible scholar but all of the translations i have come in contact with so far seem to be fairly close)
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
God's Seed
In Luke 8:4-15, Jesus gives the parable of the farmer that is sowing seeds. Many are familiar with the story but i feel like it is necessary to tell the story anyway and also tell you how i see it which i feel is how God allowed me to see it. A farmer is scattering seeds in a field as he walks. Each seed can fall in one of 4 places. Some fall on a path, some fall among rocks, some in weeds and thorns, and some fall on fertile soil. As you can already tell only one of these places sound even remotely good for a new plant. Jesus explains how each of the situations turned out.
Since Jesus mostly spoke in parables some people did not understand, so the disciples asked him what he meant by this story. Jesus first told them he spoke in parables so that some may understand and that some cannot. Through people's faith they are aloud to understand. This all goes back to the faith discussed in pervious posts. In other words, how can you understand the word of God if you do not have faith in God? (hope that makes things clearer) Jesus then says the the seed is the word of God.
The seeds that fell by the road get walked on my humans as well as animals, get eaten by birds, and since the ground is hard and worn, the seeds never go down into the soil to allow roots to catch. Jesus explains this by saying that the seeds that fall here are the one who have heard the word of God, but Satan comes and prevents their hearts from believing causing them to not be saved. Think about it like this. A seed falls on the path. The seed gets walked on by a mule or cow or ox and gets cracked and dries out. The seed is no longer good and will have to be replanted. Also if a bird eats the seed it is no longer there and will also have to be replanted. Satan is the one who walks on the seed and is the bird that eats it: through temptation, ignorance, hard times, or things such as those.
The seeds that fall among the rocks will begin to grow but will die due to lack of moisture. Jesus explains this by saying that this circumstance represents those who hear the word and receive it, but because of temptation fall away. They have no roots because the rocky soil prevents roots from going very deep and traps the moisture away from the seed. In my words--If you have never been out in the wilderness you won't understand thins, but in my mind i see it a little like this. If you pick up a rock on a hot day, you will find there is moisture underneath it. Even in the desert there will be at least a small amount of moisture under a rock. Since Jesus is from the Middle East, you can assume that the moisture from a rock would prevent a plant in a dry area from getting moisture. Temptation that comes from friends and the world is the rocks. They can easily prevent someone growing in the Lord as the should. The rocks provide a cool place for the moisture to easily reside so that the seed won't reach its full potential. The seed here is still God's word but the moisture can be related to God's help. The rock, which is Satan, prevents the help of God from reaching the seed that has already been planted inside of you. (i know as of right now its a little hazy where i am going with this but at the end it will all tie together, i hope)
Some of the seeds fell among weeds and thorns that choked the planted out before it reached its full potential. Jesus' explains it this way: these are the ones who hear the message but fall back into the world before they have a chance to grow. The thorns and weeds here are the ones people surround themselves with.. The seeds get to the ground, even possibly decent ground to grow in, but because the plants that are around the seeds are so bad, the plant never even have a chance. The people you surround yourself with can make or break your Christian walk. The word of God can be planted in decent soil but if other things are in that same soil then more than likely the plant is not going to make it. They suck up all of the moisture from the younger plant and cause it to wither and die, wasting the seed. Your friends and family can be your downfall whether you want to admit it or not. It takes a very strong person to surround themselves with ways of the world and still be faithful to God.
The last scenario is about the seeds that fall onto good soil. These seeds grew and produced crops 100 times as great as the original seed. Even though the explanation is self explanatory, Jesus explains it just to make sure everyone can understand this: these seeds represent good hearted people who receive the word of God, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest. My words may seem even more redundant than that, but because i am me, i am going to put my two-cents in. The word that falls into a good heart that is in a good place with good surroundings will prosper and make multiply. If you receive the word and keep it in your heart and surround yourself with good people you can make God's kingdom grow.
This is where i make my attempt to pull it all in together. The seed is God's word in all situations. The location of the soil is the hearer of the word in all situations. In order for the word of God to be useful in your life you have to make your soil the good, fertile soil. you must not let the word of God to be planted and be wasted. It is up to you, the soil, to change the soil. (if that makes sense to you, hopefully it does) Satan is the one who gets everything going against the seed. Satan wants nothing more than for the seed to be planted and die and never come back. The traffic on the road, rocks, and thorns all separate you from God. These things all keep what is necessary for growth from getting to the seed. God's help is what is necessary for the seed to grow. He helps you let his word(aka Him) grow in you. without any hindrances the word can grow into the plant that should be your life. Though by now we know that no one is perfect and we all let our seeds get stepped on, or get choked out and wither. God is always there to keep us in his word. Keeping his seed growing.
One last thing before i close. Do you remember in 1st grade when your class put a few seeds in a moist paper towel in a zip-lock bag and put it in your window? You notice that after a few days, given the circumstances, the shell of the seed begins to split open. Everyday you run in the classroom and run to the window to find your bag to see what has happened since you last saw it. You start to notice that the shell of the seed has almost all fallen off. The roots have started to grow downward and the plant itself has began growing upward. Due to the pure living conditions for this new plant the plant can grow without any concern of being choked out. Eventually the plant is separate from the shell of the seed. Not to say that the seed(God) is not there anymore, but because of the "soil" the seed was planted in the seed transformed into a full plant. The full plant is now visible and able to produce fruit. (which gives me an idea for a post in the next few days.) The fruit is the seeds that reproduce the plant and make the 100s more Jesus talked about. The plant you grow in your heart produces fruit you are allowing God to plant seeds in other's lives. When the plant in the bag is mature enough it can be placed out into the real world where living conditions are not always perfect. If the plant is mature enough it can live among the thorns and rocks without fear of withering. The same goes for the living word inside of you. If you let the roots from Gods seed deep enough into your soil, you can be anywhere and be able to stand your ground against thorns, weeds, and rocks.
I really hope that I have not lost you anywhere in this post. If i have in this, or any post for that matter, please contact me so we can talk. the last thing i want is confusion.
Okay, so it has been about a week since i posted last. This week has been a busy one for some reason. Not that much to do but a lot going on. I am sure you all have had weeks like this one. I wanted to post this yesterday but i got caught up in setting up for a camping ministry that my friends and I have been trying to put together. A few friends and I have a passion for two things. Being outside and spreading the word of God. Most of us are a rather rough looking group of guys, most of the time we are dirty due to what we have been doing out on the farm where we camp; no matter what we look like we all try to live for the Lord everyday. A local farmer has been gracious enough to let us camp in the field he keeps his cows in. Anyway, we had our first real campout last night. We invited some people, though not the turnout we expected, and cooked a big pot of chili. A few people made it out there and we had a really awesome time. A friend of mine did the bible study later on that evening and talked about keeping the faith even in times of trials. His message was really great and may even be brought up in a future post if i can remember it all. I will keep you all updated on this ministry and how things go as time goes on. Until next time, May the roots of God be deep within your heart. thanks for reading!
Since Jesus mostly spoke in parables some people did not understand, so the disciples asked him what he meant by this story. Jesus first told them he spoke in parables so that some may understand and that some cannot. Through people's faith they are aloud to understand. This all goes back to the faith discussed in pervious posts. In other words, how can you understand the word of God if you do not have faith in God? (hope that makes things clearer) Jesus then says the the seed is the word of God.
The seeds that fell by the road get walked on my humans as well as animals, get eaten by birds, and since the ground is hard and worn, the seeds never go down into the soil to allow roots to catch. Jesus explains this by saying that the seeds that fall here are the one who have heard the word of God, but Satan comes and prevents their hearts from believing causing them to not be saved. Think about it like this. A seed falls on the path. The seed gets walked on by a mule or cow or ox and gets cracked and dries out. The seed is no longer good and will have to be replanted. Also if a bird eats the seed it is no longer there and will also have to be replanted. Satan is the one who walks on the seed and is the bird that eats it: through temptation, ignorance, hard times, or things such as those.
The seeds that fall among the rocks will begin to grow but will die due to lack of moisture. Jesus explains this by saying that this circumstance represents those who hear the word and receive it, but because of temptation fall away. They have no roots because the rocky soil prevents roots from going very deep and traps the moisture away from the seed. In my words--If you have never been out in the wilderness you won't understand thins, but in my mind i see it a little like this. If you pick up a rock on a hot day, you will find there is moisture underneath it. Even in the desert there will be at least a small amount of moisture under a rock. Since Jesus is from the Middle East, you can assume that the moisture from a rock would prevent a plant in a dry area from getting moisture. Temptation that comes from friends and the world is the rocks. They can easily prevent someone growing in the Lord as the should. The rocks provide a cool place for the moisture to easily reside so that the seed won't reach its full potential. The seed here is still God's word but the moisture can be related to God's help. The rock, which is Satan, prevents the help of God from reaching the seed that has already been planted inside of you. (i know as of right now its a little hazy where i am going with this but at the end it will all tie together, i hope)
Some of the seeds fell among weeds and thorns that choked the planted out before it reached its full potential. Jesus' explains it this way: these are the ones who hear the message but fall back into the world before they have a chance to grow. The thorns and weeds here are the ones people surround themselves with.. The seeds get to the ground, even possibly decent ground to grow in, but because the plants that are around the seeds are so bad, the plant never even have a chance. The people you surround yourself with can make or break your Christian walk. The word of God can be planted in decent soil but if other things are in that same soil then more than likely the plant is not going to make it. They suck up all of the moisture from the younger plant and cause it to wither and die, wasting the seed. Your friends and family can be your downfall whether you want to admit it or not. It takes a very strong person to surround themselves with ways of the world and still be faithful to God.
The last scenario is about the seeds that fall onto good soil. These seeds grew and produced crops 100 times as great as the original seed. Even though the explanation is self explanatory, Jesus explains it just to make sure everyone can understand this: these seeds represent good hearted people who receive the word of God, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest. My words may seem even more redundant than that, but because i am me, i am going to put my two-cents in. The word that falls into a good heart that is in a good place with good surroundings will prosper and make multiply. If you receive the word and keep it in your heart and surround yourself with good people you can make God's kingdom grow.
This is where i make my attempt to pull it all in together. The seed is God's word in all situations. The location of the soil is the hearer of the word in all situations. In order for the word of God to be useful in your life you have to make your soil the good, fertile soil. you must not let the word of God to be planted and be wasted. It is up to you, the soil, to change the soil. (if that makes sense to you, hopefully it does) Satan is the one who gets everything going against the seed. Satan wants nothing more than for the seed to be planted and die and never come back. The traffic on the road, rocks, and thorns all separate you from God. These things all keep what is necessary for growth from getting to the seed. God's help is what is necessary for the seed to grow. He helps you let his word(aka Him) grow in you. without any hindrances the word can grow into the plant that should be your life. Though by now we know that no one is perfect and we all let our seeds get stepped on, or get choked out and wither. God is always there to keep us in his word. Keeping his seed growing.
One last thing before i close. Do you remember in 1st grade when your class put a few seeds in a moist paper towel in a zip-lock bag and put it in your window? You notice that after a few days, given the circumstances, the shell of the seed begins to split open. Everyday you run in the classroom and run to the window to find your bag to see what has happened since you last saw it. You start to notice that the shell of the seed has almost all fallen off. The roots have started to grow downward and the plant itself has began growing upward. Due to the pure living conditions for this new plant the plant can grow without any concern of being choked out. Eventually the plant is separate from the shell of the seed. Not to say that the seed(God) is not there anymore, but because of the "soil" the seed was planted in the seed transformed into a full plant. The full plant is now visible and able to produce fruit. (which gives me an idea for a post in the next few days.) The fruit is the seeds that reproduce the plant and make the 100s more Jesus talked about. The plant you grow in your heart produces fruit you are allowing God to plant seeds in other's lives. When the plant in the bag is mature enough it can be placed out into the real world where living conditions are not always perfect. If the plant is mature enough it can live among the thorns and rocks without fear of withering. The same goes for the living word inside of you. If you let the roots from Gods seed deep enough into your soil, you can be anywhere and be able to stand your ground against thorns, weeds, and rocks.
I really hope that I have not lost you anywhere in this post. If i have in this, or any post for that matter, please contact me so we can talk. the last thing i want is confusion.
Okay, so it has been about a week since i posted last. This week has been a busy one for some reason. Not that much to do but a lot going on. I am sure you all have had weeks like this one. I wanted to post this yesterday but i got caught up in setting up for a camping ministry that my friends and I have been trying to put together. A few friends and I have a passion for two things. Being outside and spreading the word of God. Most of us are a rather rough looking group of guys, most of the time we are dirty due to what we have been doing out on the farm where we camp; no matter what we look like we all try to live for the Lord everyday. A local farmer has been gracious enough to let us camp in the field he keeps his cows in. Anyway, we had our first real campout last night. We invited some people, though not the turnout we expected, and cooked a big pot of chili. A few people made it out there and we had a really awesome time. A friend of mine did the bible study later on that evening and talked about keeping the faith even in times of trials. His message was really great and may even be brought up in a future post if i can remember it all. I will keep you all updated on this ministry and how things go as time goes on. Until next time, May the roots of God be deep within your heart. thanks for reading!
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Patience is a Virtue
Today, like all other days I have been doing alot of thinking. For many that statement means to run as far from this blog as possible because normally you are going to be in for a long read. Today, however, I am going to keep it short. Some things stay on my mind alot and keep bugging me so I am going to metaphorically tell you a story about a time when my lack of patience ruined a good thing. This story actually happened but relates to another story almost perfectly.
It was the first day of deer season. I was excited to pop a big buck on the first day mainly to brag to my friends about it. I was sitting in my deer stand and the day was as perfect as you can imagine. Blue sky, 80 degrees and a slight breeze. As i waited patiently for the big buck to come out i was thinking about that trophy buck hanging on my wall to show off to all of my friends. In the middle of my daydream, i catch a deer in the corner of my eye standing in the field. Not the trophy i had my eye on but still a beautiful deer in every way. Symmetrical antlers and a healthy body with beautiful fur. I was so anxious to kill a deer I started to raise my gun, completely forgetting about the trophy I really wanted. For some reason my gun strap got stuck on the deer stand and frightened the deer out of the field. This should have been where I realized i should just be patient, but for some reason the deer came right back out into the field. This time i was not messing up. I slowly raised my gun, put the deer in my scope and pulled the trigger. I had bagged the deer. At the instant I pulled the trigger, another animal ran away from in the woods. it has been standing at the edge of the field. I am even willing to bet that was the trophy I was after.
Because of my impatience I was stuck with the choice I had made. The other deer became a rival hunter's trophy and i kicked myself for not waiting. Due to the circumstances I lost the trophy buck and am left wondering "what could have been?" The trophy buck can never be mine because of my stupidity. If i had only pursued the trophy buck and been focused on him instead of the next best thing, it would be my trophy. My deer is beautiful and I am not ashamed of it in anyway. I am proud of the deer i killed but just the same would have really liked to kill the trophy. Overall, i have learned to accept the fact that everyone makes mistakes and is impatient. I know that if God wants me to have a shot at another trophy buck he will send it my way. This time around i will not settle for the first thing that walks out. I will sit back, wait, and pursue what i really want. And when the time comes I will pull the trigger and never look back again.
Its late, goodnight. Until next time, Remember God loves you.
It was the first day of deer season. I was excited to pop a big buck on the first day mainly to brag to my friends about it. I was sitting in my deer stand and the day was as perfect as you can imagine. Blue sky, 80 degrees and a slight breeze. As i waited patiently for the big buck to come out i was thinking about that trophy buck hanging on my wall to show off to all of my friends. In the middle of my daydream, i catch a deer in the corner of my eye standing in the field. Not the trophy i had my eye on but still a beautiful deer in every way. Symmetrical antlers and a healthy body with beautiful fur. I was so anxious to kill a deer I started to raise my gun, completely forgetting about the trophy I really wanted. For some reason my gun strap got stuck on the deer stand and frightened the deer out of the field. This should have been where I realized i should just be patient, but for some reason the deer came right back out into the field. This time i was not messing up. I slowly raised my gun, put the deer in my scope and pulled the trigger. I had bagged the deer. At the instant I pulled the trigger, another animal ran away from in the woods. it has been standing at the edge of the field. I am even willing to bet that was the trophy I was after.
Because of my impatience I was stuck with the choice I had made. The other deer became a rival hunter's trophy and i kicked myself for not waiting. Due to the circumstances I lost the trophy buck and am left wondering "what could have been?" The trophy buck can never be mine because of my stupidity. If i had only pursued the trophy buck and been focused on him instead of the next best thing, it would be my trophy. My deer is beautiful and I am not ashamed of it in anyway. I am proud of the deer i killed but just the same would have really liked to kill the trophy. Overall, i have learned to accept the fact that everyone makes mistakes and is impatient. I know that if God wants me to have a shot at another trophy buck he will send it my way. This time around i will not settle for the first thing that walks out. I will sit back, wait, and pursue what i really want. And when the time comes I will pull the trigger and never look back again.
Its late, goodnight. Until next time, Remember God loves you.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Salvation is Here
The blog I posted around eleven today was actually supposed to be yesterday’s post but the internet at school mysteriously would not let anyone on any websites after about 8:30. Since that was yesterday’s I am going to post another today. Today I have been doing a lot of thinking about what my post can be about. (in case you were wondering I think an awful lot) I decided since my two previous posts were about Christianity, I would elaborate a bit on Christ’s Saving Grace. Again this post will be just a general overview and will have to be discussed in deeper detail at a later date. These posts are in no way meant to be the only knowledge you or anyone else should have regarding faith and do not fully convey the fullness of mine or many other Christians’ faith due to the briefness of these posts.
To start off, I am a Christian- a born again believer of the Lord, God and his son Jesus Christ. Through Jesus’ death on Calvary’s cross all of my sins have been forgiven. He was sent through a virgin who gave birth to baby Jesus. When Jesus was born he lived a perfect life, to ultimately forgive people of their sins through his death on the cross. After 3 days of being in a tomb, he rose from the dead. During the time He was on the earth he never sinned, even when Satan himself tried to tempt him at Jesus’ weakest moments (when he was fasting and praying separate from everyone else). Throughout his time on the earth we live in, he traveled from town to town speaking, teaching and preaching. Jesus spoke to thousands and performed countless miracles to the people who had faith in his power. All of these statements can be found in the Gospel books of the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).
If you have ever read the Gospels you will probably be wondering why all of the gospels tell pretty much the same story, yet differ in their own ways. This is because each of them have different authors and were written at different times ranging 100 years apart even. Which is right, you ask? ALL OF THEM! That’s right, all of them. It will be a hard thing to wrap your mind around as a non-believer or new believer. It was difficult to understand my first time hearing that; the first time I figured out they were all different was about two years ago, after being a believer for several years. They are all correct because the Bible is God’s holy word to his people. Human author’s who were overcome by the Holy Spirit wrote them. We, being his people, are all different and the Gospels differ due to the audiences they address. Matthew is to the Jewish people (who were familiar with the Old Testament prophesy), Mark, Luke and John were more than likely all written to a gentile audience (you and me). John is probably my favorite because it differs from the rest and speaks louder to me for some reason.
I am currently reading in Luke for the second or third time around and this time I am learning more and more about it. This time, not sure why it didn’t ‘click’ before but, I started seeing things Jesus said and now they make more sense about salvation and how one is to obtain it. Luke 5:12-23. Jesus is in a town and a man with leprosy is there. His case is more severe than most, and the man asks Jesus to heal him if He is willing. Jesus tells the man He is willing and instantly the man is healed. After that Jesus was talking to a crowd of people in a house. Some men carried a paralyzed man on a mat to see Jesus, but the house was so crowded they could not even get in the door. They went to the roof of the house and pulled the roof apart to lower their friend down to Jesus. Seeing they had faith that He can heal the sick to go to all this trouble, Jesus said, “young man, your sins are forgiven.” The Pharisees and the Sadducees, who hated Jesus because they felt he was blaspheming the Lord, began mumbling amongst themselves. They asked each other who-He-thought-He-was to be telling people that their sins were forgiven, for that is God’s place only. Jesus asks them “is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven!’ or ‘Get up and walk?’
It took me until yesterday reading through book to see that salvation is actually simpler than I thought. Like I stated above, Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of all our sins so that we can be saved. If you paid attention to the paragraph above, Jesus healed the people by telling them their sins were forgiven. He had not died on the cross yet, but because He is the Son of God in the flesh he has the power to do all things. Salvation is much like Jesus saying our sins are forgiven. Think about it like this, before we have accepted Jesus into our life we are dead, Romans 6:23 “for the wages of sin is death.” Sinning makes us spiritually dead and in a way is our sickness. Jesus told the men that because of their faith their sins had been forgiven. Because of my faith that Jesus Christ died on the cross to forgive me of my sins, I have been forgiven and healed by the power of His great mercy and love. The same goes for you too! If you admit to God that you are a sinner, and you believe that Jesus is God’s son whom he sent to die on the cross to forgive us of our sins (John 3:16), all you have to do now is confess your faith to him and the world. Jesus said, “Anyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will acknowledge before my Father in heaven” Matthew 10:32.
Luke 5:27-32 tells a short story about Jesus meeting a tax collector named Levi. In those days, tax collectors were more unwanted then that they are now. People always saw tax collectors, back then, as corrupt thieves who could easily steal their money due to the lack of an advanced money and communication system between the government and the people. Pretty much what a tax collector said you owed, you had to pay, and anything that isn’t paid to the government is his to keep. People despised the tax collectors, but one day Jesus met one, Levi. He told Levi to follow him and be his disciple and Levi did. Later, Levi held a banquet at his house with Jesus as the guest of honor. Levi’s friends, who were also tax collectors, all came to this banquet. The Pharisees were there to criticize again. They complained to the disciples of Jesus, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?” Jesus answered them, “Healthy people do not need a doctor, sick people do. I have come not to call those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.” The story here is short but is very deep. Jesus was eating with sinners because sinners are the ones who need saving. Sinners are the sick who need healing; the dead that need resurrection. Eating with the ones who think they are perfect would have been a waste of Jesus’ time, not that Jesus couldn't do that because if he wanted to he would have, but because those kinds of people are the ones who will never change their mind. Jesus ate with the “unclean” so that he could show the world that he has the power to make them clean again. Jesus calls everyone but only those who admit they are in need of saving can actually be saved. You must be willing to accept the call.
Jesus’ saving grace is a marvelous thing that I will definitely come back to time and time again. My words could never fully explain it to you, for God is indescribable. Though there may not be many people at all reading this, Jesus is calling you to him. He already paid the price for your sins and you will be forgiven if only you ask. He is waiting for you to ask him to be a part of your life. During my time reading God’s word, that I try to have daily, I found something different today that I had never paid attention to before. Its not that I did not read it, its just that I hadn’t meditated on the passage before. This is why constant reading of the word is so beneficial to a Christian walk. It is so easy to get caught up in the ways of the world and to fall back into your old life.
There is only one who is perfect, Jesus Christ. No Christian is perfect and through our own power we can never be. Everyday we sin and bring down the name of the perfect God. Romans 2:24 “As it is written, the name of God is blasphemed everyday among the Gentiles because of you.” This statement is from a letter the apostle Paul wrote to the people of Rome. Mainly people of Rome at this time were people of the Jewish faith and this particular section of the letter is directed toward Jews. Paul’s words here, in this part of the letter, can be directed toward gentiles as well as Jews. The verses prior to verse 24 talk about a person who claims to be a Jew. The verses point out that the Jew claims to be a leader or teacher or something of that nature. The paragraph that contains the verse asks the “teacher” if he actually practices what he preaches, if that person really holds up to the standards he makes others live under. Then it tells about verse 24. Saying that everyday we all sin. Everyday each one of us shows that the immediate gratification of sin is worth more to us than to the God in which we say “Is our everything.” Everyday we blaspheme God by saying there is no God by our lifestyle. Sin is a way of denying God and God said that no sin will enter heaven Sin separates us from God. Thank God, literally, for sending his son Jesus to die in advance for our sins that would occur over two centuries later! “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sin.” Romans 3:23-24. It is beyond my comprehension why a God who has everything would even care to send his son, not to mention his one and only son, just to save a sinner like me. I will praise him every chance I get thanks to his amazing love and kindness he has shown to me and every other believer.
One small story before I close. A friend and I were conversing outside of our dorm one afternoon. He said the previous weekend he had been to a conference or some sort of preaching event where the speaker told a story. I do not remember the exact story but I will do the best I can with the details I remember, the more important details. The man was speaking about how an atheist was talking to a Christian. The atheist told the Christian that he could never be a Christian because every Christian he knows is a hypocrite. This Christian must have had a bit more knowledge of God’s word than the Christians the man had spoken to and declared to the atheist that Christianity is not about being perfect. We as Christians are expected to be perfect not only by the world but by our own standards. Backed by scripture he told the man that all men are sinners and fall short of God’s glory. He then told the man that by Jesus’ grace and God the Father’s mercy we were forgiven in advance for everything we have or will ever do against the Lord. God’s knows we will never be perfect that is why he sent his Son to die for us in advance. If anyone other than the Lord Jesus Christ had the ability to be perfect, then Jesus’ mission here on earth would have been in vein. Jesus was able to be perfect because he was the Incarnate God, who is one in the same with the “word” from Genesis’ “in the beginning.” (I wish I would have included that into my “In the Beginning” post but oh well). The Word is with God, the Word is God, Jesus is God in the flesh therefore Jesus is the incarnate Word as well. Jesus knew the Word because he is the Word. Jesus is perfect because his Father is perfect. He overcame sin because He is perfect and IS the perfect Word of God. My friend restated that Christianity isn’t about being perfect, its about knowing your not, and knowing Who is. And by knowing who is you also know who forgives you. He then told the man all he has to do is accept Jesus and believe Jesus died for our sins, and the sins will be forgiven, forever!
Here is where most people will fall off track. Many will disagree on the forever part and for a long time I partially did too, but for a long time ‘forever’ meant something different. Forever, for ME, meant that God wouldn’t be so cruel as to keep someone from coming to heaven based on one unforgiven sin before they died. Yes, no sin will enter into Heaven as said in revelation 21 and explained further in chapter 22. But John 3:16 says something that I caught a while back “whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” The key thing I will start off with is Believe. If you believe in Him, Jesus, and what he did for you then you will have eternal life. (Yes I know it goes much deeper than that but based on the scripture that’s what it means. Future posts will tell of this in more detail I Promise!) So now forever, in regards to ‘forgiven, forever’, means something different to me. Now it means that if I believe in what Jesus did and follow the steps to salvation, then I will always be forever forgiven. No, I do not believe someone could lose his or her salvation. Everything I believe in, that I truly believe in, I will never change my mind about. Therefore if you believe, if you truly BELIEVE, that Jesus died on the cross for your sins then you will be forever forgiven, because in my opinion if you ever “lose your salvation” or “do not believe anymore” then you never truly believed to begin with. Its all in faith. You have to have faith in order to believe.
Ok I hope I did not leave anyone hanging somewhere in the middle. I have been typing and gathering research for this since about 3pm today. My eyes are actually starting to hurt from staring at this screen for so long. If I did leave you hanging, anyone who actually finds my page, please leave me a message and I will get back on what you have questions with ASAP. Thank you so much for reading my page and bearing with my long posts. I pray that God uses this blog to change people’s lives and that I do not misguide anyone in anyway due to any of my faults.
One last thing, I promise! All of the beliefs shared here today are my beliefs as of today based on the scripture I have read, studied and meditated on. Tomorrow God could show me a path completely different from the ideas I have taught about tonight. If it is His will, may it be done in my life. Thanks again! Until next time, to God be the glory!
'Cause I know my God saved the day
And I know His word never fails
And I know my God made a way for me
Salvation is here
Salvation is here
Salvation is here and He lives in me…
Let My Lifesong Sing
Today's post is going to be centered on worship. I will try to include verses and favorite songs, which i find my inspiration. The discussion will be very broad and will definitely need to be discussed more in depth at a later date. Throughout today I have been doing a bit of thinking. Thinking about what, you may ask? Though there may or may not be anyone even reading this blog, I will tell anyway.
As I walk to and from my classes throughout the day I see many things on campus. I see people sitting in the student center. I also see people outside of the student center: in the benches of the courtyard, in the gazebo, under the pavilion. Some alone and others chatting away with friends. Without really meaning to I tend to observe the people as I walk (I know it sounds creepy, but I can assure you I am no creep!). Just passing by in the few seconds I see them, I notice that they all have different habits. More than likely, on any given day one will see these people doing the same things at almost the exact same time. I am not saying these people are worshipping the things that they do, but simple habits can often lead to worship whether we want to or not. By this point most of you are thinking "there is no singing or praise to God." And you are right, God may never even be mentioned in the things that a person worships.
For my first point in my discussion of worship, I think it is important to tell you that worship doesn't have to be directed toward God. Worship is simply anything that you do that shows what is most important in your life. At the end of this summer a good friend of mine put together a beach retreat and the focus of the weekend was worship. I taught a small group during this weekend and I found out many things about worship while studying for the retreat. The whole lesson-plan for the weekend came out of Louie Giglio's Book Wired For a Life of Worship. (I strongly recommend reading this) As I read through the sections that my friend had taken from the book, to point out the main points in worship, I realized I had been worshipping many things. Much to my surprise those things were not God. I had been worshipping my friends, my girlfriend, my job, my cell phone and many other things. The book teaches that worship is anything that you do that shows what is important to you. By spending all of my time with the things mentioned above, instead of worshipping God, my creator, I was worshipping everything but him. And much to my surprise i realized that everything that I put in front of God became my god. God wants to be the center of our lives, and to be the center of our lives we must worship God with everything we do. Then and only then, will he be the one we are living for. 1 Cor. 10:31 "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
To kick off the weekend my friend made a wall with cardboard that had words written on them. The words were things that she had gotten the youth to write down at the beginning of the summer about things they were having trouble pushing God past in their life. The band played a song and as the song was played chaperones for the trip, one by one, took one piece of cardboard off of the wall. One by one the words sex, friends, school, clothes, cell phones, masturbation, boyfriends, girlfriends, sports, pornography all came off of the wall. Many of the kids started to see that the things that were before God in their lives were their own personal gods that they were worshipping. One of the ten commandments is "You shall have no other gods before me" Exodus 20:3. It is all too easy to worship something other than God. With the way our lives are it’s a wonder we can even know where to find God due to busy schedules.
The basic point I am trying to make, whether I have made it clear or not, is that we all worship something. No matter where we are or what we are doing we worship one thing or another. Here at school I see people worshiping things every single day. Not saying this is a fact but the kid who always running and making sure he doesn't eat one ounce of fattening food before he goes to the gym for the 5th time since lunch is more than likely worshipping one of two things - either he is worshipping his body/ego, or he is worshipping the women that think the kind of body he is so desperately trying to achieve is "HOT."I am not saying that he isn't putting God first at all, I am simply saying that it is very possible that working out comes before God in his life. Probably you are thinking, this must be a guy that is jealous of the body the other guy is getting. In a way you could say yes, I am, but if he is putting that before worshipping God than that is not right at all. I do believe that you should eat healthy and stay in shape because your body is His temple. 1 Corinthians 6:19 states "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?"
By now your whole view of worship is either a bit hazy or completely blurred so bare with me as I explain. (I know I have kept you reading long enough). Worship is something you do everyday. Worship can be expressed through a song, which is most everyone’s favorite way to worship. I would encourage you to listen to Casting Crowns’ song Lifesong. The song gives examples of how we should live for God. Part of the chorus says “I wanna sign Your name at the end of this day, knowing that my heart was true. Let my Lifesong sing to You!” it is saying that he wants to bring glory to God in the day and at the end of the day he wants to feel accomplished because he worshipped the lord through his life. Letting your lifesong sing means that you are letting your life be the song that sings to God, instead of just the songs we sing on Sunday morning along with the church.
I know this post has been more long-typed than either of us had expected. To tell you the truth worship is something I will touch on again someday because it, like creation, is much deeper than just one time to sit down and tell about. To properly convey God’s message concerning worship I will have to do a bit more studying of the word to make sure I give everything involved proper credit. I hope I have touched a few bases covering the topic today and possibly in a post in the near future I can explain a bit further.
One last thing before I go. When I said I had been doing a lot of thinking today, it did not just mean about worship. I thought a lot today and last night about where this blog is going and what exactly it is for. I believe God has given me the ability to write decent stories and blogs so that I can convey his message to the world, one small post at a time. What does that have to do with you? Well, a lot! By me telling you about the Lord you can tell others and possibly even tell others to read my posts. I am going to start using this blog as a ministry to the world. If even one person reads my posts and has a life change, all of my work will be worth it. I wish to bring glory to God through my posts and to relay his message, the Word, to you. Until next time, God bless you.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
"In the Beginning"
Well hello world of bloggers. This is my first blog and i am not 100% sure how to do this so i am just going to start typing and see where it goes. As of right now I am sitting alone in my dorm room. My roommate has gone back home for the night and will return in the morning so I am enjoying the peace and quiet that comes with temporarily having no roommate. This is my first time ever attending college away from home and I must say I thoroughly enjoy being somewhat on my own. In my future posts I will attempt to tell the world a bit about my life and also give my views and opinions on everything I believe in.
For my first attempt at giving the world a taste of my life I am going to start off with my beliefs about this world we live in and how it came about. In the beginning of time God created everything. I know people will disagree with me on this and will even tell me I am stupid for believing this, but nonetheless, I stand firm on what I believe in. In case you are wondering, yes, I am a Christian. I one day hope to be pastor of a church where I can help lead others to Christ through the unchanging word.
Back to the beginning. When God created the earth He also decided to make people. People did not come from monkeys, and monkeys did not come from some radioactive ooze from a pond formed from the "Big Bang." You may say, "The big bang is what started this whole process of evolution." To that I will reply, Where did all of this material come from? Other Galaxies? Where did that stuff come from? I say, if there was a "Big Bang" The Living God made it happen. He made the materials for the earth to be created. He, God, spoke and it came to be. That is all there is to it.
A former pastor of my home church once told us a joke, or story: Two scientists one day discovered the formula for creating a human life. They were so proud of their discovery they call God and told him " God, we don't need you anymore. Thanks for everything, but we have got it from here. You see, we have figured out how to make humans." With half a grin God said "OK show me what you have come up with." The scientists then knelt down and started gathering up dirt to make the human, God said "Oh no no no! thats MY dirt!"
Though you may or may not believe God is the creator of the universe, He is! God created everything. I have skipped around a little from where i started talking about humans so i will return to them now. Humans were made by God. When He made man, yes man was first, He named him Adam. To give Adam a companion God took one of Adam's ribs and formed Eve, the first woman. This is why women have one more rib than men. Go ahead, count them. In the garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve were created, is where the first sin came about. To save time, and to get the exact details, read Genesis in the bible. In a long story made short Satan, disguised as a serpent, convinced Eve to eat the forbidden fruit the Lord had instructed her and Adam not to eat. It was the only fruit they were told not to eat. Eve then persuaded Adam to eat the fruit as well. God found out and the two were banned from the garden. Because of this, sin was brought about. But don't go blaming them for it because if not them it would have been you or me. I feel like this paragraph has gone too long and I am getting into something much deeper than the creation story, so I will hold the rest for a future post.
Though this blog doesn't fully grasp the whole picture of creation, I have tried to briefly scratch the surface. In future posts I will try to come back to this and give a few more details here and there. I hope you have enjoyed this first blog and i also hope that i have not strayed anyone from my future posts, because the best is yet to come. Eventually I will give my views on Christ, the son of God. Though all of my posts may not be about God and Jesus and creation. I hope that at least one person will have an interest in what I have to say and hopefully come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. I appreciate your time and I apologize if this was in anyway boring. Until next time, may the Lord be with you.
For my first attempt at giving the world a taste of my life I am going to start off with my beliefs about this world we live in and how it came about. In the beginning of time God created everything. I know people will disagree with me on this and will even tell me I am stupid for believing this, but nonetheless, I stand firm on what I believe in. In case you are wondering, yes, I am a Christian. I one day hope to be pastor of a church where I can help lead others to Christ through the unchanging word.
Back to the beginning. When God created the earth He also decided to make people. People did not come from monkeys, and monkeys did not come from some radioactive ooze from a pond formed from the "Big Bang." You may say, "The big bang is what started this whole process of evolution." To that I will reply, Where did all of this material come from? Other Galaxies? Where did that stuff come from? I say, if there was a "Big Bang" The Living God made it happen. He made the materials for the earth to be created. He, God, spoke and it came to be. That is all there is to it.
A former pastor of my home church once told us a joke, or story: Two scientists one day discovered the formula for creating a human life. They were so proud of their discovery they call God and told him " God, we don't need you anymore. Thanks for everything, but we have got it from here. You see, we have figured out how to make humans." With half a grin God said "OK show me what you have come up with." The scientists then knelt down and started gathering up dirt to make the human, God said "Oh no no no! thats MY dirt!"
Though you may or may not believe God is the creator of the universe, He is! God created everything. I have skipped around a little from where i started talking about humans so i will return to them now. Humans were made by God. When He made man, yes man was first, He named him Adam. To give Adam a companion God took one of Adam's ribs and formed Eve, the first woman. This is why women have one more rib than men. Go ahead, count them. In the garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve were created, is where the first sin came about. To save time, and to get the exact details, read Genesis in the bible. In a long story made short Satan, disguised as a serpent, convinced Eve to eat the forbidden fruit the Lord had instructed her and Adam not to eat. It was the only fruit they were told not to eat. Eve then persuaded Adam to eat the fruit as well. God found out and the two were banned from the garden. Because of this, sin was brought about. But don't go blaming them for it because if not them it would have been you or me. I feel like this paragraph has gone too long and I am getting into something much deeper than the creation story, so I will hold the rest for a future post.
Though this blog doesn't fully grasp the whole picture of creation, I have tried to briefly scratch the surface. In future posts I will try to come back to this and give a few more details here and there. I hope you have enjoyed this first blog and i also hope that i have not strayed anyone from my future posts, because the best is yet to come. Eventually I will give my views on Christ, the son of God. Though all of my posts may not be about God and Jesus and creation. I hope that at least one person will have an interest in what I have to say and hopefully come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. I appreciate your time and I apologize if this was in anyway boring. Until next time, may the Lord be with you.
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