Who's the fool?

  Who’s the fool?

The Psalmist writes,

"The fool says in his heart, 

"There is no God." 

                                 Psalm 14:1.

The question comes down to who’s truly the fool? Those who believe in God or those who do not believe in God.

Blaise Pascal wrote,

“Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists.” Blaise Pascal.

Please think about it.

Because God is Love

 Because God is Love

The apostle John writes,

“Whoever does not love

 does not know God, 

because God is love.” 

                        1 John 4:8

We have just come through Easter weekend. The most holy time in the Christian calender. A time when we who believe in Christ Jesus believe that God showed how much He loved us by allowing His one and Only Son to die for our sins and rose again to sit at the right hand of God. As a result we who believe in Christ believe that everything we do should be motivated by love. Love for God, our neighbours and even our enemy.

When I was in my teens before I became a Christian I watched a movie musical called good by Mister Chips. It’s theme tune has resinated with me all the years since. It reads,

In the Morning of My Life

                         by Leslie Bricusse 

In the morning of my life

I will look to the Sunrise

At a moment in my life 

When the world is new.

And the Question

I shall ask only God can answer.

Will I be brave and strong and true,

Will I fill the world with love my whole life through?

Will I fill the world with love my whole life through?

In the evening of my life

I will look to the sunset

At a moment in my life 

When my life is through.

And the question I shall ask only I can answer 

Was I brave and strong and true.

Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?

Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?

                                                                   Leslie Bricusse   

At the end of your life will you be able to honestly stand before God and say you filled the world with love your whole life through?

                     For...

"Whoever does not love

 does not know God, 

because God is love." 

                        1 John 4:8

Please think about it.

Only You can Answer

 Only you can answer

Jesus said,

"Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'  

Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'" Matthew 7:22,23.

Question; will you hear these words of Jesus quoted above?

The people Jesus is talking about here are church people. People claiming to be Christians. They follow the ritual. They know what to say and when to say it. They claim to be doing things in the name of The Lord. Yet they do not have a personal relationship with God.

So what is your relationship with God. Do you without reservation truly believe in God and His One and Only Son Jesus Christ?

It is a question only you can answer.

Please think about it.

A sermon for an Easter Sunday

A Sermon for an Easter Sunday
Today is Easter Sunday 2019. The day we who believe in Christ Jesus believe Jesus rose from the dead.
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. I put it hear for you to think about.
“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 believe about Jesus?
Please think about it.

It's all about Jesus

It’s all about Jesus
The writer of Hebrews states,
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” Hebrews 12:2.
Here is something everyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus must remember. Our faith is all about Jesus. He is “The Author and Perfecter of our Faith”.
If we as believers are focussing on anything else no matter how good it may be we are not serving God correctly.
Jesus gave his followers a job to do when he said,
“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”Matthew 28:18-20.
It is the most important job God has ever given to any group of individuals.
A great light shines on believers in Christ Jesus. It is through the words and deeds of believers that people will see Jesus.
Our words and deeds can have eternal consequences. Thus our faith in Christ must be as pure as is humanly possible. We cannot afford to mix or faith with politics or philosophy or anything else that would dilute it’s message.
The apostle Paul writing to Timothy said,
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”  2 Timothy 2:15.
Thus the question becomes, if you claim to be a believer in Christ Jesus,
 Are you as far as humanly possible presenting the world of God in it’s purest form, or are you mixing it with things of this world?
Please think about it.

False Teachers

False Teachers
The apostle Peter writes,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 2:1-3.
The apostle Paul writing to Timothy states,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.
As believers in Christ Jesus it cannot be emphasised enough that we must be on the lookout for false prophets. For false teachers.
In our multimedia world where anyone can preach anything from anywhere in the world and make it sound good. It is essential that we carefully check what we are listening to with regards to biblical teaching.
It is therefor essential we know what we as believers in Christ Jesus believe. That is why we must read and study the Bible for ourselves.
Now while there may be slight differences about how we should worship and other minor points in the scriptures we as believers should at least have an understanding of the basics all Christians the important things that make us believers in Christ.
For me the key points that make a person a believer in Christ Jesus is expressed in the Apostles Creed. While it was not written by an apostle of Jesus it expresses the basic doctrine all believers believe.
The Apostle Creed reads,
1.I believe in God the Father the almighty maker of heaven and earth
2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.
3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin        Mary
4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.
5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.
6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost
9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,
10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.
11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.
12. I believe in life everlasting.
Question, Do you believe these twelve points? Do the men and women that you listen to, that claim to be believers in Christ Jesus believe this?
Please think about it.

Sound Doctrine

Sound Doctrine
The apostle Paul writes,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.
There are times when I listen to men and women calling themselves Christians in the media and wonder where they get their information from. They are certainly not preaching the word of God. They may sound like it but they are not.
I know there is a lot of diversity in Christianity, that is to be expected. We within Christianity have various denominations and church congregation which at times will disagree with one another over the interpretation of certain what amount to minor parts of scripture or for that matter how best to worship God.
This for the most part is not a problem.
I personally believe God allows that diversity so that people of all backgrounds and lifestyles have a choice as to how they want to worship God.
The problem comes when people calling themselves Christians fail to correctly administer the word of God.
The apostle Paul tells us,
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15.
If we are not doing this we God will judge us.
Christians are told by the Apostle Paul,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
Notice he told the church not to judge those outside it. That is God’s job. However we have the right to judge anyone who calls themself a Christian in order to see that they are administering the world of God correctly. If they are not we are to expel them from our congregations.
Core Christian beliefs I believe are expressed in what is called the Apostles Creed. While not written by one of Christ’s apostles it is scripturally based. It states,
1.I believe in God the Father the almighty maker of heaven and earth
2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.
3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary
4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.
5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.
6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost
9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,
10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.
11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.
12. I believe in life everlasting.
The Writer of Hebrews tells us,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3  
The apostle John states,
“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.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men....
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ” John 1:1-4,14.
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 we are saved, by having faith in the salvation Christ Jesus offers. Jesus himself saying,

“...“I am the way and the truth and the life. 

No one comes to the Father except through me.” 

                                                                     John 14:6.

John’s Gospel also quoting Jesus as saying,
“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
These are very basic beliefs of all who would call themselves Christians. You cannot believe anything else and be truly Christian.
Please think about it.

God is There

God is there
C. S. Lewis speaking of God said,
“He shows much more of Himself to some people than to others-not because He has favourites, but because it is impossible for Him to show Himself to a man whose whole mind and character are in the wrong condition.”  C. S. Lewis.
The way I interpret this is we have to at the very least have an open mind as to whether God exists. If we close our mind to the existence of God then we will never see Him.
The Bible does not debate the existence of God. It opens with the words,

“In the beginning 

God created the heavens and the earth.” 

Genesis 1:1.

Believing in God is an act of faith. Billy Graham the great American evangelist said,
“I can't prove it scientifically, that there's a God, but I believe.” Billy Graham.
God asks the individual accept by faith He exists, but not blind faith. He shows himself to all those who cares to look.
The psalmist states,

“The heavens declare the glory of God; 

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” 

Psalm 19:1.

The writer of Hebrews tells us,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3.
Ultimately what you the individual believe about God comes down to an act of faith as to whether He exists or not, for that is what God asks of each individual. The writer of Hebrews stating,

“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.

Thus dear reader the choice is yours. Do you believe in God?
Please think about it.