Right and Wrong

Right and Wrong

•  Ex 20:13 “You shall not murder. 
•  Ex 20:14 “You shall not commit adultery. 
•  Ex 20:15 “You shall not steal. 
•  Ex 20:16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. 
•  Ex 20:17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 

“If there is no master creator of the Universe, then who’s to say Hitler did anything wrong. 
For that reason there has to be a creator of the universe who writes upon the hearts of all humanity irrefutable laws of right and wrong.”
                                                                      Author unknown

The last five of the ten commandments deal with man’s relationship to man. They are the basic moral code all humanity lives by even if they are not a Christian, Jew or Muslim.
Those five rules You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor, You shall not covet, are necessary rules to stop civilization from slipping into anarchy or worse extinction.
Hitler showed what happens when these rules for living are disobeyed. The death count was in the tens of millions.
No matter where you go in the world. No matter who a person is or their status within a community. No matter what their religious beliefs are, or if they’ve read the Bible or not, each person knows instinctively the last five laws of the ten commandments.
I as a believer in the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob. A believer in Christ cannot believe that these laws simply evolved by chance.
If they were not there from the day man walked upon the earth we would have gone extinct before civilization had a chance to get started.
I cannot believe that Homo habilis, and Homo erectus or for that matter Homo sapiens sat down in committee and said these are the moral laws we are going to live by.
Nor can I believe moral laws evolved.
I know there is a God that wrote these laws on the hearts of all mankind I firmly believe the words of the gospel of John 1:1-3
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”

The Quintessence of Christian Love

"Jesus said to him, ‘you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment and the second is like it you shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’”

                                            Matthew 22:37- 40

“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you”

The words of Jesus Matthew 5:44

“Now abides faith hope and love but the greatest of these is love.” 

                                                                                1 Corinthians 13:13

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, 

I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, 

and if I have a faith that can move mountains, 

but have not love, I am nothing.   

If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, 

I gain nothing. 

 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, 

it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails.” 

I Corinthians 13:1-8a

The verses quoted above say it all. God set an example, He loved the world so much he sent His one and only Son to die for us.
There are no records of Jesus ever complaining about the treatment He received here on earth.
He spoke out against those within his own Jewish community that would misinterpret scripture or were hypocritical in their ways. But he never spoke against the secular authorities or those of other faiths or beliefs.
  He showed only love to even His worst persecutors.
The same is true throughout the New Testament with regards to the apostles. They followed the example of Jesus. They never criticised or berated anyone. They presented the Gospel to their world in obedience to the command of Christ. In so doing they built the early church. They reached out to hundreds of ethnic groups and brought many to Christ.
The apostle Paul wrote this in Romans 12:9-21

“Let love be without hypocrisy.  

Abhor what is evil. 

 Cling to what is good.

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love,

 in honour giving preference to one another;

 not lagging in diligence,

 fervent in spirit,

 serving the LORD, rejoicing in hope,

 patient in tribulation,

 continuing steadfastly in prayer,

 distributing to the needs of the saints,

 given to hospitality.

 Bless those who persecute you, 

bless and do not curse. 

Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 

Be of the same mind toward one another. 

 Do not set your mind on high things,

 but associate with the humble. 

 Do not be wise in your own opinion. 

Repay no one evil for evil.  

Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 

If it is possible, as much as depends on you,

 live peaceably with all men. 

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath, for it is written:

 “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the LORD. 

Therefore“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; 

 If he is thirsty, give him a drink;  

For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

 Do not be overcome by evil, 

but overcome evil with good.”

The Eleven O Clock Prayer

It’s eleven o clock. Inside the court house a judge is about to make his ruling. A community, a nation waits.
Will the new law be legal?
Outside the court house men and women with placards chant.
On one side of the street stand a group of gay men and women. All in favour of the new law.
On the other side of the street separated by a line of police stand radical evangelicals, denouncing the new law.
One man among them screams angrily . “HOMOSEXUALS ARE GOING TO HELL!!!”
Approached by the media he says it again, “homosexuals are going to Hell.”
From my office window I watch asking myself the question, ‘is this man an Christian?”
Wasn’t it Christ who told us not only to love our neighbour but our enemy also?
Wasn’t it Christ who told us not to judge, lest we be judged likewise?
Wasn’t it Christ who said go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation?
Is this man showing love?
Is this man judging another?
Can this man be effective in reaching the whole world of which a percentage are homosexual?
Is this man even a Christian?
A question keeps rolling through my mind for which I know the answer, “Can we truly know what is in someone else’s head?
Do we really know why a person is like they are?”
For a moment I stare down at the crowd. All the time asking myself who is on the way to Hell this day, and how can I reach them for my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ?
Turning away from my window I kneel down and pray, “Lord guide me this day. Let me make the right decision on this law.”

A comment

Jesus never said a gay man or woman couldn’t get to heaven. He didn’t say a bigot couldn’t either.
The Bible makes it clear that only sin separates us from God. And God through the Holy Spirit convicts people of their sins.
Salvation is a very personal thing. It is between you and God no one can tell you if you are saved or not.
Salvation is not conditional on your life style, your race of ethnicity.
It is conditional on your accepting the free gift of salvation from God.

The Way to Heaven

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” 
                      John 3:16-18.
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
The above verses make it abundantly clear what Christians believe with respect to getting to heaven. There is only one way to get to heaven, through Jesus Christ the One and Only Son of God.
The Apostle Paul writing to the Romans states,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and (those who believe Jesus is God’s One and Only Son) are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus”
          Romans 3:23,24
John’s epistle quoting Jesus, makes it clear that,
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” 
                              John 10:10
Paul writing to the Corinthians said,
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance : that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,”  
                              1 Corinthians 15:3,4
John writes,
“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
                            John 1:12
Paul makes it clear that we do not have to work for our salvation it is a free gift from God himself to mankind.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” 
                                                                        Ephesians 2:8,9
Knowing you are going to heaven is as simple as a prayer. I have included such a prayer below,

A Salvation prayer
Dear Heavenly Father.
I recognize I am a sinner. That I fall short of what you want for my life. Please forgive my sins. I recognize and believe that Jesus Christ is your One and Only Son. That he died for my sins.
I ask Him now to come into my life and show me how I can love and serve you better. 
Amen. 

Think about it.

Images of a Woman

Images of a Woman

That morning, Margaret Elizabeth got up extra early, readying herself for the day.  She would get only one chance to make an impression.  To that end, she applied her makeup with extra care.  Chose the black ankle length wraparound skirt, white turtle neck top and black jacket, her children had given her as a gift, while in hospital.  She limited her jewelry to a simple pair of diamond studied earrings, that had been her grandmother’s and small bracelet given to her by her daughter-in-law.
That done she took the ten minute drive to the modest size church she attended. Meeting with the pastor in the office.
For a few minutes they talked and passed the time of day. Then seeing the time she proceeded to the pulpit.
Leaving that office, to walk to the pulpit was the hardest step, she ever had to make.  Her heart pounded and by the time, she stood behind the pulpit she was visibly shaking.
“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Margaret Elizabeth Williamson and just before Christmas, I underwent Sexual Reassignment Surgery.” she said relief surging through her body, as silence engulfed the assembly.  I know that many of you, maybe uncomfortable with that.  That is why I have asked to speak to you, to give you my testimony and then allow you to ask questions.
I have felt like a woman trapped in a man’s body for my entire life.  I was married for over thirty years to a wonderful and accepting woman, who died several years prior to my coming to this assembly.  I have a wonderful family, all of whom support me and are here today.
Believe me, I did not choose this course of action lightly.  I did so after much personal anguish and a great deal of prayer.
For a little over two years prior to my complete transition, I have lived my life as a woman: I was doing so when I came to this church and I think I did it well enough that no one knew.  If they did no one commented.
I have no apologies to give for what I did, or who I am, because I do not believe I did anything wrong.
I accepted Jesus as my Saviour over thirty-five years ago, and asked Him to remove from me what at times, has been a difficult burden.  He has chosen not to and thus, I have accepted that I am what I am.  A child of God, who knew me according to the Psalms in my mother’s womb.
I have no intentions of preaching a sermon here today, only to ask you to accept me as I am.  In fact, the only reason I stand before you today, is because I was asked to come onto the staff of this church and wish to be completely honest with you.
Now, I will open the door to all questions and endeavor to answer them to the best of my ability.  After which, I will ask for a vote and abide by your decision.”
There were many questions answered. Then finally the pastor came to the front.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, it is now time to take a vote.”  He said.  “If you wish Margaret Elizabeth to become a part of our pastoral staff, please rise to your feet.”