The Christian Message

The Christian message
Yesterday was Christmas day. The day we Christians celebrate our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’s birth.
Two thousand years ago give or take a few years, the Apostle Paul was invited by the Stoic and Epicurean philosophers of Athens to speak to them about Christ. The message he gave is as relevant for today’s audience as it was back then. It is the reason we Christians celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ this Christmas season.
The book of acts states,
“While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols.  
So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.  
A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.  
Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?  
You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean.”  
(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.) 
“Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.  
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.  
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.  
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.  
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” 
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”  
At that, Paul left the Council. A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.” Acts 17:16-34
Thus the question becomes what do you think about Jesus?
Please think about it.

The Christian message

The Christian message
Jesus said,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30.
The Christian message in it’s simplest form is one of love. God’s love for mankind. Jesus said,
“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.” John 3:16,17  
Jesus when asked,
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  
This is the first and greatest commandment.  
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”   Matthew 22:37-40.
Jesus also said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,  
that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous...” Matthew 5: 43-45
Jesus is God showing His love in a tangible way to mankind.
The apostle Paul tells us,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
 Paul also noting,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23,24.
Sinning is falling short of what God wants for your life. Sin separates us from God.
The apostle John noting,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”   1 John 1:9,10.
Paul make it clear salvation is not something we can work for. It is a gift of God. Paul writing to the Ephesians stating,
“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
Ultimately however salvation is an act of faith, Hebrews stating,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him”Hebrews 11:6
Faith defined as,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”  Hebrews 11:1
What do you believe?
Think about it.

The Christian Message

The Christian message
Jesus calls to the world,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
        Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.
As Christians we know that what Jesus said is true. Following the teachings and lifestyle Jesus asks us to do is not a burden.
At the same time we Christians do not believe you can work your way to heaven or be good enough to stand before a Holy God.
C. S. Lewis explains it this way,
“The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.”  C.S. Lewis
 Paul writing to the Romans said,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23,24.
Sinning is falling short of what God wants for you life. Sin separates us from God
We Christians believe that if we confess our sins directly to God we will Get to heaven. The apostle John stating,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”  1 John 1:9,10.
The Apostle Paul tells us,
“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.
It is by the Grace of God that we get to heaven through faith in Christ.
The apostle Paul explains,
“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  
For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”  
For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,  for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" Romans 10:9-13
Faith is the key to the Christian walk.
The Writer of Hebrews stating,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him”Hebrews 11:6
Faith defined as,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1
Ultimately the choice is up to you the individual. You must decide what you believe. Who you believe Jesus is.
What I would ask is that you at least take some time to read the New Testament and see what believers in Christ truly believe.
Please think about it.

The Christian Message, Foolishness

The Christian message, foolishness???
The apostle Paul writes,
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,  but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”
         1 Corinthians 1:18-25
I think Paul says it all here. Those who do not believe in Jesus as we Christians do. Can look at us and think what we preach is foolishness. After all we believe God entered the world He created in the form of His One and only Son Jesus.
One of the big questions I get, is why would God enter the world He created? To which I think the answer is simple.
First God created man with a freewill allowing the individual to do as he wished. That includes the right not to believe in God. As a result as man progressed many people chose to turn away from God. Thus God entered the world to show mankind he was real and call mankind to himself.
Second I believe God had to enter this world to fully experience all it is to be a man and thus be able to judge man justly when the time comes. Because Jesus walked the earth and lived as a man we can never say he didn’t understand what it was like to me a man.
Thirdly and I think the words of Jesus sums things up nicely, when speaking of himself he said,
“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.”
      John 3:16,17.
At the same time God through Jesus gave us a waring again Jesus speaking of himself said,
“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 3:18.
The apostle Paul echoing what Jesus said when speaking to the Athenians said
“For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”
                                                                             Acts 17:31.
The message we Christians present to the world may seem foolishness but the Christian walk is a walk of Faith.
Christians are to my knowledge the only faith in the world that claims God reached down in the form of his One and Only Son Jesus Christ to offer redemption from sin.
The apostle Paul writes,
“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.
The writer of Hebrews tells us,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
                                                                                                        Hebrews 11:1
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
                                                                                      Hebrews 11:6
Faith in Christ, belief in His redeeming sacrifice on the cross is how Christians believe you get to heaven.
The question is do you believe this?
           Please think about it.

The Christian Message

The Christian Message
The Christian message has been spreading around the world for over two thousand years now. That message has never changed. As this is Easter weekend, the holiest weekend on the Christian calender I thought it only right that I present the Christian message by presenting what is perhaps one of the best sermons ever spoken.
It was spoken by the apostle Paul in Athens. The Book of Acts records,
“So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.  
A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.”    They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.  
Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?  
You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean.”  
(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.) 
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.  
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.  
And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.  
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.  
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.  
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” 
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”  
At that, Paul left the Council.  
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.”
                                                                                                    Acts 17:17-34.
Paul’s message is as important today as it was when he spoke it. It is a message I believe all people everywhere need to hear and decide for themselves who Jesus is.
So the question is, Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God the Saviour of Mankind or not. The decision is up to you.
Please think carefully about it.