"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) 

"Powerless Sacrifices"

 "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." (Hebrews 10:4 KJV)

  ""You have heard that our ancestors were told, 'You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.' But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell. So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God."" (Matthew 5:21-24 NLT)

 Interestingly enough, there are several different ways to view this, somewhat simple lesson that Jesus is making regarding anger against someone; and yes, this is something that is associated with what is being said, as it involves the forgiveness of our sins.

 Not that I believe we can lose our salvation over anger against someone or that our foolishness will be something that condemns us to hell; but it surely will ruin our testimony and make life harder to deal with here on earth. There surely are consequences for the way we treat others, especially if we can't bring ourselves to try and make things right.

 Just so you know, the sacrifices of the bulls and goats were only meant to cover sins; they had no power at all to take away sins. Only the blood of Jesus can remove our sins! But, just as that foot washing Jesus did with His disciples, we still can sin; and that sin we commit is something that will need to be washed away! 

 Now, about these things we might have against someone, or someone might have against us; these can be something we can do to offend them, something they have done to us, or, without even saying a word out loud, we could just think it to ourselves, without them even knowing. As if all three of those issues were enough, the worst of all that we can do, is to talk bad about people behind their backs! 

 There is just something important about the commandments we must fry to follow, which are just predicated on just two commands: Love God and love others as yourselves...

"But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees with his reply, they meet together to question him again. One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: "Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?" Jesus replied, "'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments."" (Matthew 22:34-40 NLT)

"Sinful Memories"

 "But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year." (Hebrews 10:3 KJV)

  "Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, "I will confess my rebellion to the LORD." And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. Interlude" (PSALM 32:5 NLT)

 My heart aches for anyone that is unable to love someone that should be near and dear to their hearts. If there is anything that hurts my heart the most, it is remembering some of the very harsh things I might have said and done, not only to my wife, but also my son. The things we let ourselves do in a heated moment; it is really hard to take forget, especially when they are gone; and even more if they are still with you, but unable say they forgive you! 

 I was very serious yesterday about that message of loving someone you are meant to love, even though you might not feel like it. It is in those times that you really need to pray for God to give you the ability to love, even though you don't want to forgive them or even try to show them how much you care and love them. 

 For the sake of trying to share something that we be, even though it might be hard to do, we must know something that is very important, yet also very easy to forget: If we don't forgive others, then we will not be forgiven! Talk about sinful memories, that kind of memory is really not worth it...

"Therefore, let all the godly pray to you while there is still time, that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment. For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory. Interlude" (PSALM 32:6-7 NLT) 

"The Conscience"

 "For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have no more conscience of sins." (Hebrews 10:2 KJV) 

  "Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude" (PSALM 32:1-4 NLT)

 I am sorry if there was anything that didn't make sense from the last few days of posting, because there is nothing more important to me than trying my best to share honestly and completely what the Lord puts upon my heart. Besides that, I know full well that some things are hard to interpret, especially when they are hard to explain. Hopefully this will make it perfectly clear, as there is nothing more important to me than being right and following the complete truth of the Bible! 

 To that, I heard a message about allegories in the Bible the other day, and that the Bible actually does not contain them, because allegories are more or less a symbolic fictional narrative. Everything in the Bible is absolutely true! The parables that Jesus used to show things were real life issues and showed the things which are for certain and spiritual truths about loving God and each other! More importantly, that God loves us completely! 

 If you thought those two posts were weird or too hard to comprehend, then maybe you will think this one is also! God loves you and wants you to love Him, unconditionally, which means that you love Him even in the trials and storms of your life. In the same way, we are supposed to love each other that same way, making every effort to forgive and love one another, even if it means putting blame on ourselves in order to show them that you love them! 

 That said, I heard Pastor Jack sharing about the illustration Jesus gave about prayer, how important it is that we earnestly pray to our Heavenly Father! I really don't know how else to explain this, but if you are at odds with someone you are meant to love, then you must earnestly ask your Heavenly Father for help to love them unconditionally, regardless of what they might have done! Sometimes we just need to ask God to give us the love we need, because we won't get it on our own...

 "Then teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: "Suppose you went to a friend's house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of breed. You say to him, "A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.' And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, 'Don't bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can't help you.' But I tell you this - though he won't do it for friendship's sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.

 "And so I tell you, keep on asking and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

 "You fathers - if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him."" (Luke 11:5-13 NLT) 

"Adumbration" - 2

 "For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect." (Hebrews 10:1 KJV)

  "Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, "With the LORD'S help, I have produced a man!" Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD. Able also brought a gift - the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected. "Why are you so angry" the LORD asked Cain. "Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master."" (Genesis 4:1-7 NLT)

 Moving on, there is a whole complete picture presented in the illustration of Cain and Abel, as they were both offering sacrifices to God, but only Abel's sacrifice was accepted. Basically, it all was about the blood! If it was just based upon their actual jobs, and they offered based upon what they did, then it would have been a little more even. However, this is the whole point of that which is of works, and that which is giving the sacrifice of blood, from an innocent lamb! 

 I have been told that the Mormon Temple in Hawaii has a mural on the wall, as you would walk in, that has an alter with fruits and vegetables on it, while a lamb is laying, as if peaceful, right next to the alter. If that is true, then the picture presents that of works being the sacrifice, while the blood of the lamb being unnecessary to offer. 

 In a strange sort of way, this is the same way it works with the law, if that is, you are trying to be saved by keeping the law! Works will not save you, as the Scriptures say, "Our works are filthy rags to God." It is only by the blood of the Lamb of God that we are saved! Even still, there are those who believe that to be true, yet they still count all that they do as a portion of their salvation. We can add nothing to the price paid for our salvation! 

 Jesus paid the full price for all of our sins, not only for us that believe, but for the entire world; we just need to receive it and believe in the work that Jesus did, not the work that we have done or do. For the past few days, I have heard the same sermon on the radio from Pastor Jeff, which had to do with that parable of the Vineyard Owner.

 If you recall, the Vineyard Owner hired workers throughout the day, promising wages to those who started early, at a certain wage, yet he paid the same wage to those that started later. Each of the workers were all paid the same; those that worked 12 hours and those that only worked an hour. Yet even though those who worked all day received what they were promised, they were very angry at the Vinyard Owner, felling as though he cheated them, because he paid those who only worked an hour the same! 

 Do you see the connection with Cain and Able in that parable? There is something that is made perfect in believing in Christ, because Christ was a perfect Sacrifice to take way all of our sins! All other types of sacrifices do not make us perfect, because nothing but the blood of Christ can remove our sins! All of those who gave sacrifices at the altar, their sins were just covered, they were not removed. 

 As I was thinking about that yesterday, I was reminded about another parable which was very similar to the one about the Vinyard Owner, the one about the Unforgiving Debtor. If you didn't read my post about that, it was probably seven or eight years ago, maybe more; but my reason given for the servant that was forgiven, to then not forgive another fellow servant, was because he knew he would probably be in debt again. 

 Again, there is just certain things we need to be certain about, the main one is that the blood of Christ is sufficient enough to take away all of our sins...

"For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes - the Jew first and also the Gentiles. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, "It is through faith that a righteous person has life."" (Romans 1:16-17 NLT) 

"Adumbration"

 "For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect." (Hebrews 10:1 KJV)

  "There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. "Rabbu," he said, "we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you." Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God." (John 3:1-3 NLT)

 Before I try to express, what I feel is something that we should all clearly understand, I feel as though there needs to be something said about why the law is important to God; even though there is no way that anyone can keep from breaking its commands. Some say that the law started with Moses, yet the first law that God made known to man, was to Adam, when He told him, 'You can eat from every, except that one in the midst of the garden; for when you eat of it, you will die.' 

 Just as I shared about the law of gravity, so too, this was a law with certain properties and results, if you tried to break it: death! Interesting enough, we discover in God's word, that even then, before Adam had the chance to break that law, God had already decided that His Son would need to come and sacrifice Himself, in order to pay the price for our sins. 

 Stepping forwards into the time when Moses was given those ten commandments, these commands were real, much the same as that law of gravity; the thing that really blows our minds, is not that we cannot actually adhere to those commands, because we understand by our weakness to do so, that we can't! But, in the coming of Christ to die for our sins, we are given forgiveness, as if we never broke any of those laws! Not that this is any great mystery, because many of those who wrote about it, knew who and why; they just didn't know when. 

 Therein lays the reason for good things to come from the law, even though we obviously cannot keep it; it was never meant to be kept, but it was meant to show us we needed a Savior! Even Adam and Eve knew that there would be a Savior to come and undo the wrong that they did. Abraham too was very aware that He needed a Savior; that God was real and that He was capable of raising the dead, back to life again.

 The Scriptures shows us that Abraham knew he was a pilgrim here, that this was not his home; he was looking forward to a home that was eternal and built by God...

""What do you mean?" exclaimed Nicodemus. "How can an old man go back into his mother's womb and be born again?" Jesus replied, "I assure you, no one can see the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don't be surprised when I say, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you hear the wind but can't tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can't explain how people are born of the Spirit."" (John 3:4-8 NLT) 

 

"Christ's Sacrifice Once for All"

  "The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshippers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.

 "But instead, those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year. For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. That is why, when Christ came into the world, he said to God, "You did not want animal sacrifices. But you have given me a body to offer. You were not pleased with burnt offerings or other offerings for sin. Then I said, 'Look, I have come to do your will, O God - as it is written about me in the Scriptures.'" 

 "First, Christ said, "You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings or burnt offerings or other offerings for sin, nor were you pleased with them" (though they were required by the law of Moses). Then he said, "Look, I have come to do your will." He cancels the first covenant in order to put the second into effect. For God's will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.

 "Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the alter day after day. offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God's right hand. There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet. For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy.

 "And the Holy Spirit also testified that this is so. For he says, "This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds." Then he says, "I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds." And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices." (Hebrews 10:1-18 NLT)

  "Howbeit, we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory; which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Corinthians 2:6-8 KJV)

 There are certain things we know are easily understandable, and then there are things we understand, but we sometimes might think that they are not for certain. Much like certain laws of gravity or what might happen if could have the chance to go back in time and do something different. There are just some things that remain the same, only because they are what they are, and there is nothing we can do to change them! 

 If you jump off a cliff thinking that you can defeat the laws of gravity, you will discover that it is a law that cannot be broken; but you most likely will be! And if you think you can undo something you have done, it too will be impossible to defeat; but in this case, you can find forgiveness in Christ; which will make you right with the Father; but you the something you did, will still be here, in one way or another. 

 That is by far the most uncertain thing I believe we struggle with on this earth, knowing what we have done, and wishing it never had happened: wondering if we are really forgiven for doing it! We cannot undo anything that has already happened, but we can find peace and security in knowing that God has forgiven us, and our sins are no more; forever and ever, they have been taken away by the blood of His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ...

"So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up a fir tree, and instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." (Isaiah 55:11-13 KJV) 

"Waiting For Him!" - Again

 "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation." (Hebrews 9:28 KJV) 

  "Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. They will say, "What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the since the world was first created."" (2 Peter 3:3-4 NLT)

 Not so surprised about how this happens, but I must admit, keeping our focus on the Lord's soon return is sometimes overtaken by life's engagements and pleasures. It is really nothing we actually set out to do, but more about that which we find ourselves doing, all the while, we forget about the Lord's soon return, and focus more on living and planning a good life. 

 This isn't just a personal matter, because big plans are made over and over, even in the corporate settings of the churches. The show must go on, even while we wait, life and fellowship must keep going; and as it does, sometimes the times of planning and going through the trials of this life, keep us focused on the things we must do, and less time on being focused on His return. 

 What is a good pilgrim to do! We can't just neglect our responsivities of our work and families; I am certain that is not what the Lord is expecting us to do; but we also need to keep our focus on the fact that He is coming soon, making every effort to work His coming into everything we do. That includes the days when we are enjoying life's pleasures, such as golf, biking, and taking the family to the ski-park! 

 I say that, only because it is on my list of things to do; so please don't judge me for trying to enjoy time with the kids, as we practice snowboarding. There are certain things that require engagement with family, which is meant to show how much you care and love to spend time with them; something some of us forget to do also, in this busy life. 

 We can still wait for the Lord's return, even while we are riding on the chairlift...

""You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. A faithful servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. But what if the servant is evil and thinks, 'My master won't be back for a while,' and he begins beating his other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."" (Matthew 24:44-51 NLT) 

"Waiting For Him!" - Too

"So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation." (Hebrews 9:28 KJV)

  "For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control." (Philippians 3:18-21 NLT)

 If you have been following this blog for some time, you might have realized that I tend to get carried away from time to time, making more of a focus on the things which are wrong, and less of a focus on the things which actually matter most. It's not because I am not always looking for the positive things, because that is not my real reason, at all. There are just too many things I have seen happening in the church; some of which, I really wish I had not witnessed. 

 When you are an elder in the church, especially a small church of 200 or less people, things are usually not that easy to keep unnoticed; especially when it comes to the reaction of some to the things they might not agree with. Having been a witness to several of those things, I have learned that we really don't know who we are and what we are capable of doing, until it is actually done. This stands for everyone, including those that are leading in the church. 

 We must always pray for those in leadership, especially for those that are leading our churches! You just can't image the great bullseye they have on their backs; the more they serve and put forth sound doctrine, the bigger the bullseye gets, and the more the enemy tries to take them down. 

 Anywho, this might not sound as though I am staying in line with this Scripture, but without question, this is exactly in line with every single part of this, as we look for Him to appear! If there is something that is associated with the oil in the lambs of those ten virgins, that Jesus shared about, those five foolish virgins were not looking and waiting for His return. Yes, it could be the Holy Spirit, that is the oil in the lamps; or it could be an indication of their passion to see Him return. 

 Maybe there is something that is more about love, as in really loving one another, just as Christ loves us, giving up Himself for us...

""Be dressed for the service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants that are ready. "Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected."" (Luke 12:35-40 NLT) 

"Waiting For Him!"

"So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation." (Hebrews 9:28 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)

 If you really think about it, there must be some sort of mystery to this resurrection, as to what might be that of our soul, and that of the body. I know that when this body dies, I will immediately be with the Lord, this I have learned to understand, almost from the very beginning of this new life in Christ. Even so, I also know that there will be a resurrection of this dead body, if I have left this body already.

 Not that I know exactly how it all will work, but based upon the Scriptures I have understood, these earthly bodies will be changed into heavenly bodies, that will never decay or grow old. And this will happen to both, those who are dead already and those of us that are still alive, when He returns at the time of the rapture. 

 This is not just something I think will happen; this is something that I felt sure of, from the very moment I asked Jesus to come into my heart. Death was no longer the threat to me, from that very moment, I was given a peace that totally made me feel as though I was indestructible and nothing could kill my soul. All that was once something I worried about, became lifted off of my shoulders; I was free from that shadow of death! 

 I still don't know how it works, but I really believe it has something to do with eternity, which has no time involved with it, it is eternal; something we won't understand until we get there! I the meantime, I am waiting and looking for Him to come very soon; just as the Bible tells me to do...

"Jesus replied, "Marriage is for people her on earth. But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection." (Luke 20:34-36 NLT)    

   

"We Only Die Once!"

"And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" (Hebrews 9:27 KJV)

  "God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:20-21 NLT)

 As there is only once that we get to die on this earth, the death that accrued to was when we accepted Christ, was the final death we would go through; not including this tent that is called a body! The death of this tent is bound to happen; but we will be still alive and will just be moving on, to be with the Lord! To anyone that can't really believe that is true, I pray that you totally and completely make it true in your heart, and you not only believe it is so, but that you also have peace and hope for when it might happen! 

 This is really what our faith is meant for: To really positively believe that we have been given eternal life and that when our time comes, we will absolutely be with the Lord! If you don't really believe that, then what are you really looking for? If we can't really trust in what Jesus has guaranteed to us and what this salvation is all about, then what are we doing, accept wasting our time, playing church! 

 Nothing is more important than the salvation that we have been given; it is the whole reason that Jesus came down from Heaven to die on the cross, so that we could be saved and have eternal life with Him and the Father! That was the plan all along! And it was totally successful...

"Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask." Jesus told her, "Your brother will rise again." "Yes," Martha said, "he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day." Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believe in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this, Martha?" "Yes, Lord," she told him. "I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God."" (John 11:21-27 NLT)  

"Plainly Recognized" - To

 "For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." (Hebrews 9:26 KJV)

  "For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds." (Titus 2:11-14 NLT)

 There was something else I remember that might have been the reason for those times when I would feel as though I needed to get saved again, it was a night, maybe around a week or two after I first asked Jesus into my heart; one of the Officers at the facility was giving us a Wednesday Night Study, sharing about the Scripture we find in Psalm 103:12, which says: "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west." 

 After reading that verse, he described what that looked like, and how the Scripture said, east and west, not, north and south, illustrating the globe as if we were to go north to south, we would always be going to two different directions; but, by going east to west, we would always be going west. Then after giving this illustration, he said, "But you can always turn back to your sins and start walking east." 

 This is not just something that caused me to doubt my security in Christ, every time I sinned; but it made me feel as though I needed salvation again; which as we will see soon enough, is something absolutely wrong and impossible! Jesus died once and for all, and His death on that cross only needed to be performed once; so too, we are only born again once! 

 That doesn't mean we shouldn't rededicate our lives to Christ, whenever we might slip away, because I believe that is something needed, especially in a public church setting, where you are recommitting your life to the Lord, and illustrating the healing of being broken. Which is the primary reason the Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, because they were going to be cleansed, but their feet would surely sometimes get dirty. 

 Maybe that doesn't make much sense to you, as to the fact of east verses west; but that whole thing about walking east again, is the whole point; if you continue always going to the west, you remain totally clean, but going back to the east, you're going to need a little cleansing! There is something else I observed about the illustration of going east, instead of west: this direction of east to west might not charge are direction, but going west to east will make us see a new day every morning... 

"Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously." (Isaiah 55:6-7 NLT) 

"Plainly Recognized"

 "For then he must often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." (Hebrews 9:26 KJV)

  "This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ's suffering and his great glory afterward. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now the Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from Heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen." (1 Peter 1:10-12 NLT) 

 For such a time as this! Isn't it amazing to see what is happening everywhere, throughout this entire world; almost every kingdom and country is involved, in one way or another, to what end, I don't think they really know. But there is some kind of a connection to all that is taking place, which I pray will be the trigger that causes the Father to say, "Son, go get your bride!" 

 Much of what we see, plainly, is only sparsely noticeable and hard to determine what happens next; it is that way for us, as we are just pieces of God's tapestry, only able to see the horizon, never able to see the whole picture. But God sees everything, even the things which will soon happen! That just blows my mind and gives me a peace, the kind of peace that lets me know that He absolutely loves me! 

 As I have been trying to say these last few days, we must never quit believing that God loves us! Not only does He love us, but He is rooting for us, knowing full well that we will make it, because He is the one that decides who is are His children, and those that are not. That doesn't mean that we don't have a choice, but it does mean that we can be absolutely certain that He chose us, if that is never ever stop believing that He loves us and will never give up on us! 

 With all of my heart, I truly believe that is the truth, no matter what we might think or do, we are always still His children! Once you are made His child, you will forever be His! That is what I pray we will all fully recognize...

"So the trouble is not with the law, for it is good. The trouble is with me, for I am too human, a slave to sin. I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can't. I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong, it is sin living in me that does it." (Romans 7:14-20 NLT)  

"Won and Done" - Too

 "Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood for others;" (Hebrews 9:25 KJV)

  "My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins - and not only our sins but the sins of all the world." (1 John 2:1-2 NLT)

 Basically, it all comes down to our willingness to believe that Jesus' blood, shed on that cross, was all it took to cleanse us from our sins! Sad is it might be, but there are so many people that just can't come to grip the death of one man on a cross was all it took to cleanse us from our sins. Well, that might be easy to question the result, if you are believing that Jesus was just a man; but believing that He is God, that shines a whole new light on the power of the cross! 

 To be very honest about my understanding of who Jesus really was, the first few years of salvation, there were times when I doubted that He really was God. That was mostly because of the religion I grew up in, as they make every effort to believe that Jesus is not God; but if He was, the title would be a little god, much in the line of an angel; or even of Satan. 

 Not that it made me change my mind, because whenever I doubted who Jesus was, I would read those Scriptures that specifically say that He was indeed God, the True and Living God! Once we make that the Truth in our hearts, even when our mind may start to think differently, our heart will speak His love and sacrifice, which will trump every doubt, again and again.  

 As I have said before, and I will say it again: When I received Christ into my heart, I was totally undone; without even thinking twice, I was overwhelmed by the fact that the Creator, my Creator, was willingly crucified on a cross to save me from my sins! The image I saw of Jesus in my mind, was like a punch to my heart; it was so vivid, yet it just flashed into my mind. I knew right there and then that it really was the truth. 

 There is really nothing that can I think of that can stop me from believing that He saved me, and that He will get me to the other side! I don't believe that, even if I fall, my salvation will be lost, because He will not let me go! Not that there haven't been times when I felt as though I messed up, so badly, that He was not going to forgive me, because there were; but He always makes a way for us to stand back up again, and again!  

 Seriously, I picture it as if we are "Weebles," as it goes: "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down"...

"For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this 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 clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies." (2 Corinthians 4:6-10 NLT)

"Won and Done"

 "Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;" (Hebrews 9:25 KJV)

  "When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:14-19 NLT)

 When I was released from jail, in November of 1981, there were several times I remember thinking that I needed to get saved again; actually, there were probably at least six times; some of which included my wife, as we would both go up and kneel before the alter, asking and begging for forgiveness. This might sound strange, but those lase few months in jail, after I first got saved, there really wasn't any time that I felt the need to get saved again. Even though I had a few times when I sinned, there was really nothing that made me feel as though I wasn't really saved, I would just repent and ask for forgiveness. 

 To make any excuse for what I felt after my release, I would only say that I felt that I had real purpose in that place; so, I spent most of my time looking for way to serve the Lord, which I believe kept me alert to what the Holy Spirit was asking me to do. Once I was released, I spent more time getting to work on selling, and less time on serving the Lord. 

 Not that we didn't go to church or I didn't pray and read my Bible every morning and night, because I did; but in the real world, having a wife and kid, you feel an obligation to provide for your home. My wife didn't work, as I wasn't really wanting her to; she focused on making a happy home and raising our son. There might have been a few times when she would baby-sit for people, mostly at our home; but she never tried to get a job until around 1995 or 1996, when I was unable to give her the money I usually did; which was for her to shop and buy the things she wanted or needed. 

 One of our favorite things was to go the mall, where she would go shopping, and I would sit on a bench outside the store, reading a Chick Tract, waiting for someone to sit nearby. As soon as she came out of the store, I would sit the Tract down on the bench, walk away, and we would pray for the person to pick it up and really read it. 

 Wow, I really miss that! You really don't fully appreciate what you have until it is gone! The last time we did that was the Thanksgiving before her surgery, in 2002. The next Thanksgiving, I was taking care of her at our new home, my life turned up-side-down; but I still kept on serving the Lord...

"When you came to Christ, you were "circumcised," but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision - the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because or your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave your sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them at the cross." (Colossians 2:11-15 NLT) 

"The True Sanctuary"

 "For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:" (Hebrews 9:24 KJV)

  "Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God's curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay." (Romans 8:18-21 NLT)

 Looking at this from the way it is meant to be, there are certain things we need to understand about the way things really are, most of which, are the things that are really not our fault. The moment I was born into this world, I was destined to have a sin nature; not that I wanted it that way, but because it was passed down and, in my blood; that blood, which was in Adam, passed down through all generations.

 Most people don't really realize that, but we really don't have a choice; at least not until we are born again; then it is a whole different life, because we are living by the blood of Christ! Not that our blood has been changed, because it still remains the same; but by the blood of Christ, we who have been saved are completely purified and set apart. What was once something we could not control, has now become that which is controllable, by the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in us. 

 There is now a choice! If you really don't understand what I am talking about, it is really not that hard to figure out. The power of sin over our lives has been broken, the curse handed down from Adam has been removed, and we are no longer obligated to follow that old sin nature; we have been renewed and now obligated to walk in the Spirit! 

 This is not something we can do on our own! If we try to do it on our own, we will fail, again and again; over and over, until we become totally broken! Not really the kind of choice you want, because at that condition, your only choice is complete surrender...

"Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. But you at not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God." (Romans 8:5-10 NLT) 

"Heavenly Things" - Too

 It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these." (Hebrews 9:23 KJV) 

  "And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time as "foreigners in the land." For you know that God paid a ransom to save you the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but he has now revealed him to you in these last days." (1 Peter 1:17-20 NLT)

 Just so you know, that closing message yesterday was to demonstrate what it looks like for those who are chosen, such as Peter was, that the things we might do that are wrong, such as to deny that we know Christ, (which is not something any of us should do,) will not be the thing that causes us to forfeit the eternal life we have waiting for us in Heaven. I know that there are some who will not agree with what I just said, because of the verse that says, "But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 10:34)

 It might not seem right, but John's version of Peter's denial was covered over with that next statement of Jesus saying, "Don't let your hearts be troubled," With all the competition between Peter and John, John wrote his gospel message towards the end of his life here on earth; so there was no more worries over what either one of them might have done, they both died knowing full well that they were totally forgiven!  

 Interesting enough, Jesus never really was offended in Peter's denial, because He knew perfectly well that Peter would repent, as we see in Luke's Gospel, He says, "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers." 

 After Jesus said that to Peter, he proclaimed how faithful he was to the Lord; it was after that Jesus told him what he would be repenting about; that he would deny Him three times. And that is what exactly happened! So, what I am trying to say, hopefully without offending those who think differently, is that we have the kind of forgiveness that is foolproof and cannot be taken away! 

 What I know, and truly believe in my heart, is that there really is no condemnation for those who are in Christ, as long as we believe and ask for forgiveness when we mess up! And even if we are stubborn and don't think we need to be forgiven, God will correct us one way or another, as He will never leave or forsake us!

 Those who might not want to ask for forgiveness, may not have ever been really forgiven, not really believing how it all works. But each and every one of us are responsible for our own salvation, as to what we believe and hard we want to keep it; even though it cannot be taken away... 

"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. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God's one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God's light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants." (John 3:16-21 NLT) 

"Heavenly Things"

 "It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but rhe heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices that these." (Hebrews 9:23 KJV) 

  "Simon Peter asked, "Lord, where are you going?" And Jesus replied, "You can't go with me now, but you will follow me later." "But why can't I come now, Lord? he asked. "I'm ready to die for you." Jesus answered, "Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter - before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me." "Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will came and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going."" (John 13:36-14:4 NLT)

  Last night I watched a movie called, "What If...", which I have probably seen at least a dozen times. In this movie, Kevin's character goes to a hospital to minister to a rich guy that is getting ready to die. He starts out asking the man, "How would like to upset a lot of religious people?" He then goes on to talk about the parable of the vineyard owner, that hires workers throughout the day, to work in his vineyard.

 In this parable Jesus shows that the people who only worked for an hour, they received the amount of money for a whole day's wage. And those that worked all day long, felt as if they were going to get more than they were originally told they would get. But everyone was paid the same amount, no matter how long they worked, they were all paid the same. 

 Not that it is something that we don't already know, because the Thief of the Cross, basically was saved on the spot, without even needing to do anything but believe that Jesus could save him, saying, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom." Because anyone can be saved, even in their final minute; maybe even with seconds before they die. But it only takes a second to say good-bye...

"Then the two men from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how that had recognized him as he was breaking bread. And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. "Peace be with you," he said. But the whole group was startled and frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost! "Why are you frightened?" he asked. "Why are your hearts filled with doubt? Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it's really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don't have bodies, as you see that I do." As he spoke, he showed them his hands and his feet. Still they stood there in disbelief, filled with joy and wonder. Then he asked them, "Do you have anything to eat?" They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he ate it as they watched. Then he said, "When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. And he said, "Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: 'There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.' You are witnesses of all these things."" (Luke 24:35-48 NLT)   

"A Better Sacrifice"

 "That is why the Tabernacle and everything in it, which were copies of things in heaven, had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals.

 "For Christ did not enter into a holy place made with human hands, which was only a copy of the true one in heaven. He entered into heaven itself to appear now before God on our behalf. And he did not enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the high priest here on earth who enters the Most Holy Place year after year with the blood of an animal. If that had been necessary, Christ would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But now, once for all time, he has appeared at the end of the age to remove by his own death as a sacrifice.

 "And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him." (Hebrews 9:23-28 NLT) 

  "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." (Isaiah 55:6-7 KJV) 

 As I was thinking about this portion of Scripture, I remembered something that I was shown, not too long after my wife and I were married. To be truthfully certain, I needed to look it up for myself, because it was hard to believe, seeing that sinning was still something I still had to deal with, again and again! The best way for me to illustrate what it was, is the idea that God doesn't have favorites, and we are all equal in His sight; no matter what, we are all precious and loved the same! 

 It is kind of hard to believe it, especially when we might mess up from time to time; but it is something we must try and remember, He really does love us, all the same... 

"Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him." (Acts 10:34-35 KJV)