I'm not blogging as often, 'cause the Good Lord is blessing me with plenty of work. I'm not participating in this global mess, but trusting my Heavenly Employer each & every day. He does provide.
I'm sure most of us are level-headed, hard working, take-care-of-our-families, thoughtful kind of people. It's those other people who are driving our nation and the world off the cliff. You know, those rich, power mad politicians & lobbyists in Washington, those madmen dictators & religious nuts in foreign countries. Right? NO, wrong...dead wrong. It starts much closer to home.
It starts within ourselves, then our families, our communities, expanding across our nation and around the globe. The influences we allow to foster & affect ourselves spread incrementally, permeating our thoughts & lives little by little, day by day. Whether it's the shows we watch on TV, the books we read, the people we listen to, the activities we engage in, and the philosophies we adopt, they all add up to the persons we are on a daily basis. Then, there are the little hidden indulgences we keep to ourselves; the one too many pills or drinks we take to "help us get by, or help us cope", the little lies we told to make things go smoother, the occasional gambling or pornography we dabble in, the advantage we took of our neighbor or a stranger at the store or driving on the highway, the self-pride we took over a co-worker who just got reamed by the boss. Then, it spreads to our relationships; the spouse we're always arguing with, the rebellious child who contends with everything we say, the in-laws who always get on our nerves, the neighbor who's ever encroaching in our space, or the boss who's constantly in your face.
And who do we most often ignore, curse, defile, blame in all of this? Our Creator, Our Maker God who quietly provides the sunshine that lights our day, the water we drink, the air we breathe, the food we eat, the material for the clothes we wear and the things we manufacture. Everything on this planet is on loan to us, and we never make a payment to the true owner, we never say thank you, we never honor or praise His Goodness. Sure, we always lay blame for the bad stuff, the disease, the poverty, the natural calamities, the unfortunate circumstances which befall us. But, all the things we take for granted everyday are entitled to us...Really? Will there ever come a time we have to answer for all which we have done?
The Word of God says, "For none of us lives to himself, and no man dies to himself...for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of the Messiah (Christ). For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then, every one of us shall give account of himself to God." Rom 14:7-12
No one today wants to hear the "sin" word. We pass it off as some irrelevant, ancient idea that has no meaning or bearing on us anymore. But, do we really understand what "sin" is? "Sin", in its simplest form is "missing the mark". Whose mark? God's mark, God's Bullseye. We do not live the lives our Creator intended, we fail miserably. The Ten Commandments (you remember them?) outline what God's Mark is, what the bullseye encompasses. Everyday, we miss this mark in one form or fashion, it's inevitable. It's in our nature, a willful flaw in our being.
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. (God's perfection)". Even more sadly, there is a penalty for missing the mark, "the wages (payment, reward, end result) of sin is death". Rom 3:23, 6:23
Thus, it stands to reason that mankind, for all his intellect & technology, cannot achieve perfection. He can never live in complete harmony with himself or one another. There is, has been, and always will be, strife, war, neglect, violence, and inhumanity. We can rack our brains, take all the social classes in the world, have the best parenting & education money can buy, and none of it will change our basic human nature. All of man's history, past, present & future gives irrefutable evidence to this simple fact. So, what is the answer? It's not what, but who.
Who stands above all the annals of history, exemplifies and satisfies all that God demands & requires from us? Who did completely what we cannot do? Who shields us from the penalty, wrath, & sting, of sin & death? Who empowers us to live holy, separated, pleasing, lives to God? There's only one who, who has rescued us from this body of death? Thank God through Yashua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) our Lord. "...the free gift of God is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.""God commended (showed, demonstrated) his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Rom 7:24, 6:23, 5:8
So then, how & where do we start? How do we appropriate this gift, this forgiveness, this empowerment? We do it by faith, and only by faith. Not by works, not by any good deed or deeds, not by any human achievement, only by faith. What faith? Faith in who?
"...the life which I now live...I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.""For it is by His grace we are rescued, through faith; and this is not of yourselves, but it is the gift of God." Faith is how we connect to Christ, through the Word of God. The instant of decision, sparked by the conviction of the Holy Spirit, is when we begin to believe God. For without faith, it is impossible to please God: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He rewards them that diligently seek Him (with greater faith).""And the scripture was fulfilled.., Abraham believed God, and it was imputed (credited to his account) unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God." Heb 11:6, James 2:23
The instant we realize God is right, we are wrong, we ARE sinners, and our salvation is only in Christ, we are reborn by His Spirit. We embrace who He is, what He has done, and is doing for us & in us. "Except a man be born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God...you must be born from above." Jn 3:3,7 Now, the real work begins; "...be you transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Rom 12:2
So, there is no other recourse. We either believe God or man. There is no middle ground. We know man lies & deceives, so how can we or could we put our faith in him? Man's answers all prove false. "Yashua (Jesus) said unto him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me." Jn 14:6 "The person who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in himself. The person who does not believe God has made (called) him a liar by not believing the testimony that God has given about his Son." I Jn 5:10 "In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the world began." Titus 1:2
In the midst of all that's going on in the world, and where it's headed, who can you believe? Right now, this moment, believe God.
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