"Perfection!"

 "For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." (Hebrews 10:14 KJV)

  "For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault." (Colossians 1:19-22 NLT)

 I know it might not feel as though we have been perfected, as we still struggle and stumble, as we live in this world trying not to sin; but as long as we believe and abide in Christ, these imperfections are all just temporary, just as this tent will be transformed, so too, we go from being sanctified to glorified, into His glorious presence. Have you made that something you expect to happen? 

 The whole point to the salvation we have in Christ, is more than just the struggles we deal with here on this earth, because all of us will be dealing with struggles from time to time, it is just bound to happen. If you don't think it could happen to you, beware! We must always know, that in our flesh, we all are subject to temptations and making wrong choices. Whenever we think that we have overcome certain things and defeated the struggle against sin, things will start to get testy.

 It is all about the power of God, to overcome! No matter how hard it gets, He is greater than your failure and struggles! It is like that illustration of God telling us to move a giant big rock. We push and push, trying as hard as we can to move that rock, all the while we feel defeated and sometimes want to give you. But after a while you just have to cry out to God, saying, "Why did you asked me to do something I can't do?" God will say, "Why are you complaining? You got stronger trying to move that rock; and besides that, you never asked for my help." 

 That is us trying to deal with something we just can't seem to overcome; sometimes, God just wants you to deal with it and keep asking for His help...

"You see, we don't go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made his light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile cray jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves." (2 Corinthians 4:5-7 NLT)  

"Expectation!" - Too

 "From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." (Hebrews 10:13 KJV)

  "So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back." (1 Corinthians 15:21-23 NLT)

 Hopefully this is something we can all agree upon, because this is pretty much what this journey is all about! We all are waiting for that glorious day when we will be united with Christ, whether it is while we are here living on this earth, or have already pasted on, when Jesus returns for His bride, both those who have already died and we who remain will be transformed and taken up, in the blink of an eye!

 Whether that is what you believe or not, you must still believe that He is coming back to take you home; in one form or another, you must have hope that everything He has said is absolutely true. God does not lie! When He says that something will happen, it will happen, one way or another. 

 As to that Parable of the Talents, all of us are given something to do, whether we know what it is or not, He is doing a work in us, one way or another. Get use to that term, because you must believe that your life in Christ does not exist without some sort of a meaning. Which reminds me of the Potter that makes things out of clay; some for something beautiful to be put into, and something to throw trash into; we really do not know which one we are, until we see the results in Heaven; at least that is the case for most of us. 

 It is just a thought, but sometimes just the encounter with one lost soul, is enough to cause a change in thousands of souls that are headed to hell! Think about that, because sharing Jesus with anyone, could be more profitable that you could ever expect...

"As the Scriptures tell us, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced." Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For "Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved." But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, "How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring the good news!"" (Romans 10:11-15 NLT)

"Expectation!"

 "From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." (Hebrews 10:13 KJV)

  "The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet."" (PSALM 110:1 NLT)

 As much as it is an expectation for the Lord, as He waits with anticipation, knowing full well that there will be complete and total victory; we are given the opportunity and the privilege to do the same, as we are expecting the completion of the salvation that He has promised!  

 I truly believe this is what we should be doing, no matter how long it takes, we must always remember that are real home is in heaven, and this place we are in right now is just temporary! Even though it is not our real home, we are also expected to be a vessel that He uses to share the same Good News that we have been given, much like that Parable of the Talents. 

 If you don't know what the Parable of the Talents means, it is about you doing what you can with what the Lord has given you to do. Pretty simple to do, but not all do! Some just hide it away and keep it to themselves, when it meant to be shared and multiplied through others. 

 The expectant servant is always looking for a way to please his Master, which is our reason to be here...

""Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and untrusted his money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last - dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on this trip. "The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. The servant with the two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master's money."" (Matthew 25:14-18 NLT)  

"Victory on the Cross!"

 "But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;" (Hebrews 10:12 KJV)

  "And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but God's free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:16-17 NLT)

 I am very certain that many of us don't plan for the Lord's return any moment; as we all pretty much live as if we need to keep going on with life; planning how to make it through the next month of bills and how we keep it all together. I know this, because it is true about myself, and just about everyone else I know; we must go on living! 

 That said, I also know that He is coming soon; but it doesn't mean that we stop providing for our family or paying the bills. What it means is that we are loving one another and expecting Him to come back at any time; while we still do all that we can to provide for our families and to be a good witness to the grace we have been given. 

 As far as this "Victory on the Cross", there are so many things we need to remember about how God's way of making things right, have practically nothing in common with our ways! I could not help but think about my growing up as a kid, thinking what a shame it was for Jesus having to die on that cross, and how He suffered for just being good and serving others. 

 You must realize that there are many that don't even know what that death on the cross even meant; let alone who He was and why He came to pull it off...

"The massage of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent."" (1 Corinthians 1:18-19 NLT) 

"Touching the Surface" - 2

 "And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:" (Hebrews 10:11 KJV)

  "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too. We know we love God's children if we love God and obey his commandments. Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome. For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God." (1 John 5:1-5 NLT)

 You might have heard about the Christian's that are being killed in certain countries; it is not really anything that hasn't been happening before, but it is something that should make us aware of the way that the world and the church are different from one another. We are blessed to live in a country that doesn't persecute those who believe in Christ Jesus; at least it hasn't happened yet! 

 This is the thing about sin, whether or not you have been saved from it! Those who have had their sins forgiven, can actually feel free from the power of sin and know that they have a Heavenly Father that loves them. Those who don't want to be forgiven of their sins, hate those that do; much the same as Cain hated his brother. 

 There really isn't much more I can say about that, but it is more and more something we are seeing in the news, because the news is more and more viewable. Everyone has a phone to take pictures and record the things going on, all over the world. You must realize that these truly are the last days! 

 Please be ready, the KING will be coming for His bride very soon...

"But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said. They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in this life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God's Spirit in them. But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God's love. And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives." (Jude 17-23 NLT) 

"Touching the Surface"

 "And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:" (Hebrews 10:11 KJV)

  ""O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God! I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer. But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it. Do I eat the meat of bulls? Do I drink the blood of goats? Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High. Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory."" (PSALM 50:7-15 NLT)

 There is something else that I failed to mention, which I have said previously, many times before. There is this thing called Sanctification, which is much like that dash on your grave marker, which is the life you live between you birth and your death. There is a major difference between the earthly dash and the one that is heavenly; the earthly one is your doing life and living in this world, but the heavenly dash is God's doing and living in you! 

 Just so you know, we are all just fragile jars of clay, breaking and spilling out over and over, while God keeps on fixing us and filling back up again, over and over again, throughout this wonderful journey! It might not feel as though He is working sometimes, but that is because we are really not paying attention: because He never stops working! 

 Besides all of that, mumbo-jumbo, I for one believe that we are already securely in a place called Heaven, from the time of our New Birth in Christ, we have entered into God's glory! That is what that title was meant for, "Catapult to Glory," because it is exactly what takes place when we are born again and entered into the Kingdom of God. We are now His children, and He is not letting go of us, ever...

""I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began! "O righteous Father, the world doesn't know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them."" (John 17:22-26 NLT)  

"Catapult to Glory" - Too

 "By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (Hebrews 10:10 KJV)

  "Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth we love by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything." (1 John 3:18-20 NLT)

 When it comes to gifts, the ones that we are given by God, every gift that He has given us, to actually be a gift, it must be put to use! In other words, if you have a gift, such as the gift of healing, if you have never actually healed anyone, then where is the proof of that gift? We are all given something, even the simple act of sharing the Lord to someone; but even that requires an action: You open your mouth and speak! 

 Real love is also a gift from God! We know this because He loves us; and because we know that He loves us, unconditionally, we have been given the gift of knowing God's love; that love then abides in us, but it isn't of any use, if it is not put into action! Therein is the point of learning to love! It requires us to do something we sometimes fail to do: We must die to ourselves, just as Jesus sacrificed Himself in order to give us life and right standing with the Father! 

 It just doesn't get more real than that! Yet there are certain things we all have in common, most of which is the fact that we are not perfect, and we will at times put ourselves first, even though we know it is wrong, we will do it anyway. Yes, it happens with the best of us, even with Paul, when he and his friend Barnabus had their argument about Mark. 

 Much of what we go though in this life is about learning; that is what Pilgrim's do, they learn how to get through this life and come out on the other side victorious...

"Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? And comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don't be selfish; don't try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don't look out for you own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross." (Philippians 2:1-8 NLT)     

"Catapult to Glory"

 "By the which will we be sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (Hebrews 10:10 KJV)

  ""I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one - as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me."" (John 17:20-23 NLT) 

 Looking at this from a different direction, there are several things that I feel could be challenging to just about anyone of us, if we don't learn how to love one another. There are several points of view on the way that works; some of which will say it is really not possible to learn love, that it is something given to us by God. Well, if that is something you believe, then why does God need to teach us how to love one another, instead of just giving us the ability to love as we should? 

 If you don't understand what I am talking about, learning to love, think about this basic principle of how God makes this work. If you pray for God to help you love others as you should, does He make them all warm and fuzzy towards you, or does He challenge you to love them unconditionally, as He loves you? 

 Hypothetically speaking, the Holy Spirit within us is able to assist us to love; but to be perfectly true to the facts of life, sometimes we don't want to do what we should, even when we are told to do it. The Holy Spirit is a Helper and Comforter, but when it comes to relationships and differences, there are times when we don't want help or comfort; we want justice and want to be proven right.  

 If you look at the prayer Jesus is asking for us, believers, the thing that He says repeatedly, is about being one; one is the thing we seldom think about when have conflict with one another. Instead, we break off the oneness, forgetting that each part of the body of Christ is needed! Whatever it is that is making you not love as you should, it is best to embrace it, own it, and then give it to God! That is how you learn to love! It might be easy, but it is hard to learn...

"And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice - the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don't think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are many parts of one body, and we belong to each other." (Romans 12:1-5 NLT) 

"OVERRIDDEN"

 "Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second." (Hebrews 10:9 KJV)

  "I will praise you in the great assembly. I will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who worship you. The poor will eat and be satisfied. All who seek the LORD will praise him. Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy. The whole earth will acknowledge the LORD and return to him. All the families of the nations will bow down before him. For royal power belongs to the LORD. He rules all the nations." (PSALM 22:25-28 NLT)

 There is really something important here, for us, those of us that have been born outside of the family of Isreal. I can recall being in church, at that compound, the one that I never wanted to go into; making it the place I never wanted to leave. There was at least ten or fifteen of us gathered in a circle, all of many races. We were singing and marching in step, bobbing our heads, and swinging our arms; singing that song, "Father Abraham, had many sons; Many sons had Father Abraham, and I am one, and so are you." 

 You would have had to be there, to really understand how important this was for all of us to be in one accord, without feeling any embarrassment, whatsoever! It definitely was the power of the Holy Spirit that was at work in that circle. Something I will never forget.

 There was something that is sometimes easy to overlook in that "Parable of the Evil Farmers", as it may be showing how the Gentiles replaced Isreal's position to watch over the garden. Not that God has made Isreal obsolete, because He has not! God does not abandon His children! We must believe that is so, because we are all broken and every one of us need to be saved; sometimes, more than once, if that is even possible...

"I want you to understand this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved. As the Scriptures say, "The one who rescues will come from Jerusalem, and he will turn Israel away from ungodliness. And this is my covenant with them, that I will take away their sins." Many of the people of Israel are now enemies of the Good News, and this benefits you Gentiles. Yet they are still the people he loves because he chose their ancestors Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. For God's gifts and his call can never be withdrawn. Once you Gentiles were rebels against God, but when the people of Israel rebelled against him, God was merciful to you instead. Now they are the rebels, and God's mercy has come to you so that they, too, will share in God's mercy. For God has imprisoned everyone in disobedience so he could have mercy of everyone. Oh, how great are God's riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! For who can know the LORD's thoughts? Who knows enough to give him advise? And who has given him so much that he needs to pay it back? For everyone comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen." (Romans 11:25-36 NLT)  

"Stepping Back" - Too

 "Above when he said, Sacrifice and offerings and burnt offerings and offerings for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;" (Hebrews 10:8 KJV)

  "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life." (PSALM 139:23-24 NLT)

 If you were questioning this title, "Stepping Back," it shows the importance of 'pausing or distancing yourself from an activity, problem, or situation in order the think about it calmly and objectively.' There is this thing that has made me think about certain instances in the Bible, where I feel as though God did something that seemed at tad-bit extreme; something that was a little too much.

 Case in point was the too points in the Old and New Testaments: the first being the death of Uzzah, who simply just tried to steady the Ark of God, because it felt like the right thing to do. Second, were the two deaths of a husband and wife during the start of the church: Ananias and Sapphira, who gave a portion of the land they had sold to the church, but gave the impression they had given it all. 

 All three of those who had their lives taken, but I do believe that we will see them in heaven as God was using them as an example of the justice and holiness of His law. In Uzzah case, there was a very strict law that only a very few were allowed to touch that Ark, and they had to be totally purified to do so. In the case of two that lied about what they gave, this was the beginning of the church, which was an example to show that God's Spirit meant business. 

 Don't get me wrong, because God has every right to do whatever He does, as He knows best what is good and perfect, even if we don't understand why, His ways are always perfect! In this regard, those who are giving the message, whoever they might be, are showing us that when it comes to His law, which is based upon His justice and holiness, what we do can never be sufficient enough to cleanse us by the sacrifices that we might give or any work we might do.  

 As the Bible clearly says, "We are all infected and impure with sin, when we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags." (Isaiah 64:6a NLT) This means that there is nothing that we can do in order to make ourselves worthy; we are all sinners that need to be saved from our sins, nothing we try to do on our own will save us...

""'What will I do? the owner asked himself. 'I know! I'll send my cherished son. Surely they will respect him.' "But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they said to each other, 'Here comes the heir to this estate. Let's kill him and get the estate for ourselves!' So they dragged him out of the vineyard and murdered him. "What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do to them?" Jesus asked. "I tell you - he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others." "How terrible that such a thing should ever happen," his listeners protested. Jesus looked at them and said, "Then what does this Scripture mean? 'The stone that the builders rejected has now become the corner stone.' Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on." The teachers of religious law and the leading priests wanted to arrest Jesus immediately because they realized he was telling the story against them - they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the people's reaction." (Luke 20:13-19 NLT)   

"Stepping Back"

 "Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;" (Hebrews 10:8 KJV) 

  ""Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died."" (Zechariah 12:10 NLT)

 Just so you know, this verse in Hebrews does not have any correlating verses listed. Why that might be the case, I really don't know; but the story must go on, regardless! Looking back to these last few verses, the whole reason for doing so, is that which would be the point, because there must be clarification for the reason. It's a lot like Christmas, when we say, 'Jesus is the Reason for the Season,' those who are not believers might require clarification as to why that is so.

 I truly believe that God was not a great fan of all those sacrifices; much as He wasn't all that thrilled about flooding the whole earth and killing everyone, as well as all those animals. When it says that the LORD was sorry, He had ever made man, we can just assume He felt that He made a mistake. God does not make mistakes! But He does feel the hurt and pain of what must be done. 

 With that, we just need to examine one portion of this verse, all about offerings, which is the part that says, "which are offered by the law." Yes, that is just the point, (no pun intended,) it is God's justice and holiness that causes Him to need to do that which He must do, even though it might hurt...

"Then surrounded by the Pharisees, Jesus asked them a question: "What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?" They replied, "He is the son of David." Jesus responded, "Then why does David, speaking under the inspiration of the Spirit, call the Messiah 'my Lord'? For David said, 'The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies beneath your feet.' Since David called the Messiah 'my Lord,' how can the Messiah be his son?"" (Matthew 22:41-45 NLT)  

"Full Speed Ahead" - 2

 "Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God." (Hebrews 10:7 KJV)

  ""I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life."" (John 5:24 NLT)

 As we must know, not only did Jesus pay the price for our sins, He has also given us new life, which is not a life that is wasted or left undone! As He said, 'The life He gives will be abundant!' I have thought about this so many times, even shared about it hundreds of times; because the thief on the cross, that died alongside Jesus, the new life he had been given, even though he didn't need to do any work, whatsoever, his salvation on that cross has caused a multitude of people to be saved; all because of the grace of God! 

 You know that, that thief most likely never thought his life mattered much at all; after all, he was on a cross, being punished for the bad things he did, preparing to die hanging on that cross. What kind of a testimony did he think his death might have made? All he could think about was being in Paradise with Jesus, that very day! 

 I know it might not have made the local news, as if anyone cared about him and whether or not he lived or died, because he was going to be dead on that cross; so, they might have thought! But he lives! Just as Jesus said he would, there was eternal life granted to him, an honest to goodness thief on a cross, who could do nothing but die on that cross. Think of all of those who have been saved from that one man's request to Jesus: "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."  

 This is not in the Bible for no reason, because I know for a fact that it changes lives! How important it is to know that you can be saved, even if you are dying! As long as you have breath in your lungs, you are able to be saved, if you will just believe and receive the gift that God has given. You're believing in the mighty work that was done through the cross of Christ, is more than enough to cleanse you of your sins; He gives you a new life also, to be with Him forever! 

 Maybe you don't understand the message that is shown in this, but it has caused countless lives to be saved, through almost two thousand years of being told: it is all about believing and receiving! Do you know what happens after that? God does His work through us, no matter if we are our body is alive or dead, we are not done...

"God saved you by his grace when you believed. You can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT)  

"Full Speed Ahead"

 "Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God." (Hebrews 10:7 KJV)

  ""The LORD formed me from the beginning, before he created anything else. I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began. I was born before the oceans were created, before the springs bubbled forth their waters. Before the mountains were formed, before the hills, I was born - before he made the earth and fields and the first handfuls of soil. I was there when he established the heavens, when he drew the horizon on the oceans. I was there when he set the clouds above, when he established springs deep in the earth. I was there when he set the limits of the seas, so they would not spread beyond their boundaries. And when he marked off the earth's foundations, I was the architect at his side. I was his constant delight, rejoicing always in his presence. And how happy I was with the world he created; how I rejoiced with the human family!"" (Proverbs 8:22-31 NLT)

 As many of you should know, Solomon was writing this in reference to wisdom; however, there are many things which are written, throughout the entire 'book' that illustrate and speak of Jesus, the Lord of heaven and earth! Much of what many of the authors wrote about, they might not have even know fully what it might have meant, or who it was that they were writing about; but the Holy Spirit was there, guiding and directing their every word.

 This is why we must remember what we read, even though we might not fully understand it all, that this Book that we read was not written by men, but by God's Spirit speaking through every word that was written! Interesting as it might seem, that was the reason John started his Gospel Message with those first 18 verses, illustrating the Jesus Christ was the Word of God. 

 When he was done with his writing, he illustrated how Jesus, being the Word of God, has done infinitely more than can ever be written...

"This disciple is the one who testifies to these events and has recorded them here. And we know that his account of these things is accurate. Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written." (John 21:24-25 NLT)   

"Placed in Neutral"

 "In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure." (Hebrews 10:6 KJV)

  "Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. But John tried to talk him out of it. "I am the one who needs to be baptized by you," he said, "so why are you coming to me?" But Jesus said, "It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires." So John agreed to baptize him. After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy."" (Matthew 3:13-17 NLT)

 Neutrality in the Bible is usually viewed negatively, much like the Jesus' message to the church of Laodicea, "But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!" (Revelation 3:16 NLT) Obviously, that is not what we want to be, lukewarm; yet it is really amazing to me that certain verses that are aligned with the address, 3:16, are actually verses that involve action and movement; and surprisingly enough, most of that movement involves God making the move! 

 Anywho, this is about something that takes some serious thought, when it comes to the reason God might not have pleasure in sacrifices for sin! Having been sharing this reason, over and over again, sin is the reason that Jesus was meant to come and die on the cross, to take away our sins. What were the actions God had to perform in order to make that happen?    

 If ever there was a reason for God have any pleasure in sacrifice, it was only the One that would work...

""For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life."" (John 3:16 NLT) 

"Switching Gears"

 "Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:" (Hebrews 10:5 KJV)

  "O LORD my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them. You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings. Now that you have made me listen, I finally understand - you don't require burnt offerings or sin offerings. Then I said, "Look, I have come. As is written about me in the Scriptures: I take joy in doing your will, my God, and your instructions are written on my heart."" (PSALM 40:5-8 NLT)

 This might be the time to show the difference between what is wasted efforts to share, and what is more about getting down to the matters that can really make a difference. The things we sometimes spend time thinking about that are out of our control, usually will be things that cause us to be weary and feeling empty; while all that time, we should have just given it all to God! 'Let go and let God!' is the real best thing we can do; especially when it is something we cannot control. 

 As I was thinking about this message, I couldn't help but wonder how Jesus grew up knowing what He was meant to do, and how peaceful He felt knowing that He had such an amazing purpose! Oddly enough, I truly believe we hardly really understand what our purpose is on this earth; most of what we do for God, is not really planned out by us, but is set up in advance by our Heavenly Father. We are just available and ready, but He has the plans for us, already prepared, and we will only see the real results in Heaven! 

 I can recall a song that I heard, long ago, which was about a man who felt he had wasted so much of his life, not feeling as though he made much of a difference. But, when he passed on into Heaven, there was such a huge crowd of those who were there to welcome him, because they were there because he did the things God gave him to do; even though he didn't think they did much, God used them for more than he ever imagined...

"Once again the people picked up stones to kill him. Jesus said, "At my Father's direction I have done many good works. For which one are you going to stone me?" They replied, "We're stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God." Jesus replied, "It is written in our Scriptures that God said to certain leaders of the people, 'I say, you are gods!' And you know that the Scriptures cannot be altered. So if those people who received God's message were called 'gods,' why do you call it blasphemy when I say, 'I am the Son of God'? After all, the Father set me apart and sent me into the world. Don't believe me unless I carry out my Father's work. But is I do his work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don't believe me. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father." Once again they tried to arrest him, but he got away and left them." (John 10:31-39 NLT)