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Tag: Christ

A Personal God – Jesus

Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. – Isaiah 26:4 ESV

… and he would have given you living water.” – John 4:10b

“I and the Father are one.” – John 10:30

Setting aside for a moment your personal preferences for worshiping God; whether ritualistic routine, overflowing emotion, singing, shouting, standing, sitting, hands held up, heads bowed low, knees on the floor or feet off the ground; on the scriptural presumption that Jesus and God are one, let us examine two things:

The Person of Jesus and His personal mission for each of us.

Before Christ became God in Person on this earth as the Son of Man, some worshiped God and some worshiped worship. Some worshiped the Law, some worshiped family and forefathers above the Living God. Though Moses stood in the Presence of the Living God, the people worshiped God only in the fear and emotion of the moment.

Exodus 20:

18 Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

22 And the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven.

Followers feared Moses only when he reflected the glory of God, yet would not obey the commands given to Moses by the God they feared.

The Prophets spoke God’s word and demonstrated the truth of God’s refining exhortations. Generation after generation, God’s worshipers assumed a posture of disobedience and self-righteousness; for by their witness they forgot the fear of God. By their witness they failed to please the LORD with the same love and compassion the LORD had shown them from generation to generation.

The worshipers of God would not listen to Moses. The worshipers of God would not listen to the Prophets.

Therefore, God intervened in time in the Person of Christ Jesus to redeem a sinful world from the futility of death and the inevitability of judgment.

Jesus Christ lived in Perfect righteousness on the earth. NO man of any religion on the earth has lived in the righteousness of Christ. Men of every era have lived agendas of purpose for the earthly agendas of man; not the will of God for a Heavenly Kingdom.

Jesus did not come into the world for worship of holy mothers or ancient fathers. Jesus did not come into the world to win a war by peaceful protest or by sword. Jesus did not come into the world to work miracles to impress or heal men who will die.

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…

1 Timothy 1:15a

Jesus became the sacrifice to God for the redemption of sin – sins you and I have committed in God’s Holy presence.

The gospels testify to the glory of Christ Jesus, the Word of His instruction and the Life of His own witness.

Our God is a Personal God and He IS present in the Person of Jesus Christ.

By the perfect and sinless example of Jesus Christ we have assurance of forgiveness for our many sins and eternal life for our soul, which does long for the embrace of God through the love of His perfection.

Fear the God Who IS. Give thanks to the One who has formed your flesh and summons your soul.

Jesus Christ was witnessed by the Apostles, including Paul who was blinded by His presence. Jesus Christ was witnessed by disciples who believed (as well as those who refused to follow Him).

The Apostles stood and sat and ate in the presence of the Person of Jesus from day to day and after the resurrection of His crucified body. They are witness to the Person of God in Him.

And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” – Mark 4:41

Acts 9 (excerpt) … and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. 4 And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing.

God and Jesus pursue sinners personally – sinners like you and me.

Jesus taught us how to live as a perfect son (which I am not) and how to approach God as a perfect father (which I am not). We are neither perfect son nor father, perfect daughter nor mother; yet because Christ Jesus has taken our sin from us, He presents us to God the Father as blameless to do the will of our Father and Lord, as He would have done ‘on earth, as it is in Heaven.’

Our Personal God and Father has sent Himself in His only Son, Christ Jesus, to us; as example for a personal obedience to His will on earth in this day and until the day He has appointed for our finished work, the witness of His love, to complete His purpose for our mortal life.

In Christ Jesus, our Lord, my soul stands before God and man as witness to hope eternal and witness to eternal life daily.

In you, our Lord has placed an eternal voice and temporal call to a personal relationship of love to fulfill His purpose for your mortal life on this earth.

God has something He has sent your soul here to do in the flesh. The Person of God has a mission just for you.

Will you do it?

Will you listen to God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord?

To be continued, God willing

October 7, 2014
He has put eternity in their hearts
It is no longer a question of God: God IS – and we all know it. Our question and quest for knowledge and power over our own lives and circumstances only asks: will I bow down to the eternal God?

We have knowledge, near complete and inexhaustible. We have Bibles we refuse to read and evidence to which we turn our backs.

God created. God judges. God punishes. God redeems. God forgives. God loves.

And God has sent a Savior and Redeemer to the world in the Person of Christ Jesus.

The decision is in the heart and response of each created being – each man; each woman.
- Will you bow down to God the Father, Eternal Creator of all the world and all mankind?
- Will you receive the love and sacrifice of God the Son in Christ Jesus; who IS and who was and who will return to judge your soul?
- Will you open your heart of stone to God the Holy Spirit, turning from your sin and following the love of Christ’s example?
God has put eternity in your heart. The world knows eternity and God, yet cannot accept the limits of each breath and heartbeat to sustain our soul, our mind, our failing flesh and crumbling bones.

Loved ones

gasp for breath,

wait for the strength

of another heartbeat,

search faulty thoughts for

what was once recalled,

walk tenderly on bones

once thought sturdy

and measure days

till the grave

by mem’ries

and dreams of our past.

LORD GOD,

will I finally remember

eternity of my soul,

saved for your love

by your love,

saved from just punishment

for my many sins,

by your own Sacrifice

of Christ Jesus –

will I remember

the eternity you have placed

in my heart

before the end of the days

you have created

for this failing flesh?

God test us, that we may see that the end of our earthly days will be no different than animals, that in the end our ashes return to ashes and our dust to dust.

Yet only man has a soul made in the Image of God!

And only Christ Jesus lived as a sinless man in the Image of the sinless God of eternity.

By the sacrifice of Jesus only – by the blood of Christ only – by the love and grace of God only do we yet have the choice for repentance from our sins and life eternal for our soul – life eternal without blame in the Presence of the love of God our heavenly Father; Christ Jesus who loved us even to the death and IS eternal for us in the resurrection; of the Holy Spirit who would even now break through the hardness of our heart toward the loving Father and bring our prodigal soul home forever.

You may ask in these passing days of passing seasons, ‘Where have I heard that He has put eternity in my heart?’ How do I know that my soul lives life once and will sleep until the judgment?

It is written in God’s Holy Bible. Have you read it?

Do you read (in these passing seasons of your flesh) God’s intention and purpose for your remaining measured days?

Ecclesiastes 3

NKJV

To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die…

9 What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied.

11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.

12 I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, 13 and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.

14 I know that whatever God does,
It shall be forever.
Nothing can be added to it,
And nothing taken from it.
God does it, that men should fear before Him.
15 That which is has already been,
And what is to be has already been;
And God requires an account of what is past…

17 I said in my heart,

“God shall judge the righteous and the wicked,
For there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.”

18 I said in my heart, “Concerning the condition of the sons of men, God tests them, that they may see that they themselves are like animals.” 19 For what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity.

20 All go to one place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust. 21 Who knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, which goes down to the earth?

Christ Jesus said:

I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.

John 12:46

Do you yet live in the darkness of your sin? Or does your soul embrace the light of life in Christ Jesus?

To everything there is a season

A time to every purpose under heaven.

A time for repentance

Or a time of judgment,

A time of sin

Or a time of grace,

A time of darkness eternal

Or a time of light.

I pray for your heart and soul to embrace the love and grace of Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

Amen.
September 29, 2014
Define God

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke… Hebrews 1:1 excerpt

So you ‘go to church’ to hear a man say what God has said. Or you read a book by a man (supposedly of God) who will tell you what God has said. Or you will agree with nearly anyone who will mention God in conversation, even if they say Allah is god or Jehovah is god or Buddha is god or best of all, god is in everything.

What do you believe about God? Can you define it? Can you define God?

Genesis 1:

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth… And the Spirit of God… And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light… And God made… And it was so.

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.

Who IS this God who was in the beginning, who created; this Spirit who said and made and it was? Who is this God who said, “Let us…” let the reader understand, ‘us, plural; “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness?” What Spirit can say, “Let us make man in our image?” How can the likeness of God live in the flesh of a man? How can the image of God exist in the image of a woman?

One of many supposed preachers of the Gospel, a wolf clothed as a sheep who would claim that nearly all paths could lead to God, has written a book asking the reader to consider his understanding of the all-inclusive forgiving nature of god to include unrepentant sinners. (That is not how he states is, but that is what he preaches.) A promotional review of a supposedly traditional protestant denomination states of his book (and definition of God): “Good news for people who want nothing to do with religion; better news for those of us who are deeply committed to the faith, but see that religion is way off track.”

Really? A book with only a passing, eventual reference of Jesus Christ, Son of God, proclaims an all-inclusive grace for unrepentant sinners apart from the purification brought forth by a permanent change and repentance to our sinful nature.

Religion, which the world maligns, is much more than a feel-good routine. Religion is a dedication of purpose to a constant worship of God in our very life, created in His Image. For the purpose of definition: Religion – The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.

We had best be clear that the distinctive of Christianity is Christ. How can a book, preacher or christian claimant speak of God without pointed reference to Christ Jesus?

Perhaps the one who references ‘god’ does not have any more commitment to faith in all of God’s word than one who claims many gods or even the one god of the deceitful heart.

Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.” – John 10:30 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. – John 14:6

If any preacher, author or friend would claim a religion other than what Christ Jesus teaches in the Gospel – yes, forsaking our sinful flesh for a new life in Christ is Good News – let us remind the one who would re-define God what Holy Scripture has instructed. Perhaps they will tell us, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” – Matthew 7:1 (a favorite of many of the unrepentant) Let us remind them of the rest and the context of Jesus’ teaching.

Matthew 7:13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

‘God’ or ‘god’ is many things to many people. The Bible contains more than four thousand references to ‘God.’ Perhaps it is time for some of us to review just a few of these and renew what it is we believe in our faith in God. Are we not called by scripture to ‘in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you… – 1 Peter 3:15

Our Lord cautions us: “For many are called, but few are chosen.” – Matthew 22:14 We cannot define God with only slight mention of Christ Jesus, and that not as a true Lord of our life. We cannot define God without support of faith in the Gospel or without belief in the truth of all of scripture. We cannot have god serve our flesh, while we will not worship Christ our Lord, who was sacrificed for our sins.

You may certainly ponder our Creator in the light of John’s introduction to the Gospel. You know well John’s description of Jesus love for the world; that is, sinners like you and me [John 3:16].

It is not enough to just smile and pitch love without repentance and change. Jesus also cautions: … but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”

How dare we claim Christ without mention of His Lordship over our will! May Thy will be done.

The writer of Hebrews finishes his description of God in the context we must consider and believe to have true faith in the One God who IS and was and will be.

God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,

“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”?

Or again,

“I will be to him a father,
and he shall be to me a son”?

6 And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,

“Let all God’s angels worship him.”

No, our “religion” is certainly not about angels or spirits, worshiping earth or the heavens, conjecture in aliens or chance, teaching from prophets or authors. Our religion and faith is in the One hope of all mankind for the forgiveness of sins and the resurrection of our spirit into the very presence of God our Father, the love of Christ Jesus the Son, who became Holy sacrifice for our sins, and eternal life in fellowship with God the Holy Spirit; our God Who IS and was and will be forever. Amen.

September 22, 2014