The Ultimate Battlefield

The ultimate Battlefield
The ultimate battlefield is not waged by the armies of this world in great conflagration on the ground, at sea or in the air. The ultimate battlefield is within the hearts of men.
The book of Joshua records,
“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.  
But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24: 14,15.
Jesus said,
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.  
But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 
“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” Matthew 6:19-24.
Billy Graham the American evangelist said,
“The great question of our time is, 'Will we be motivated by materialistic philosophy or by spiritual power?” Billy Graham.
The choice is yours. From the moment you are born you start your inevitable journey toward eternity. I as a Christian believe that within that journey you must decide what you believe and whom you will serve.
The Atheist will state there is no God. Therefore we can do as we wish. Live for the now. As someone has said, “eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die.”
Christians on the other hand believe there is more to life than this life. That we live on through eternity.  That there is a God. The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes12:13,14. 
I Believe as we live the ultimate battle is taking place. The battle for a persons soul. That soul can either be won for God or lost for all eternity.
Each person whether they believe it or not is fighting that battle.
The world in which we live is like the battlefield it can be a confusing place, a cacophony of noise. Confusion and noise that we must decipher in order to win the battle. 
Each day we are bombarded with the ways of the world. We are offered by the world the latest, greatest thing that supposedly we absolutely need. Something that will make our life better.
Each day God is reaching out to each person saying I love you. The cry of Jesus to each and every person is,
“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 apostle John speaking of Jesus said,
“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” John 1:12,13. 
I and all Christians believe you have the choice here and now to become a child of God or to reject God. The choice is yours it is a choice that is with you until your dying breath. It is a choice only you can make. No one can make it for you.
If I am wrong you have nothing to fear. If I am right you at the very least have a great deal to think about.
C. S. Lewis said of Christianity and it’s message,
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” C. S. Lewis
Thus the choice is yours.
Please think about it.

To Save

To save
The Apostle John quoted Jesus, speaking of himself 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.” John 3:16,17.
This is what all Christians need to remember.

“...God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,

but to save the world through him.” 

                                                     John 3:17.

Christians have no right to judge anyone, especially when it comes to where that person will spend eternity.
The apostle Paul states,

“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.

Christians are only allowed to judge those within their own faith and then only to make sure they are teaching the scriptures correctly. We as Christians have no right to judge as to where an individual will spend eternity that is God’s job.
Billy Graham the great American evangelist said,

“It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God’s job to judge 

and my job to love,” 

                             Billy Graham.

The call of Jesus is,

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, 

and I will give you rest.”

                                   Matthew 11:28.

People will never hear that message if we as Christians are judging them.
Please think about it.

On "The Rock"

On "The Rock"
Jesus said,
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.   But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”Matthew 7:24-27.
As a Christian I am called to build my house, my faith, on the teachings of Jesus. That in doing so my faith will grow. This is not entirely a new thing.
The writer of Proverbs tells believers,
     “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”Proverbs 3:5,6
Christians believe that Jesus is God incarnate. God in the flesh which is another reason we should follow Him.
The teachings of Jesus are for the most part simple. They are Love God, your neighbour, and even your enemy.
Jesus told his disciples and through them us,
“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.
Telling people about Jesus and making disciples is an important part of Christian life.
As Christians we believe that Jesus is the way to heaven and as such is the most important message we can present to the world.  Someone who can give you rest for your soul.
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

Having Faith in Jesus, in God also gives us strength to go through the good and the bad times.  The writer of Psalm twenty-three states,

The LORD is my shepherd,

 I shall not be in want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures, 

he leads me beside quiet waters, 

he restores my soul. 

He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 

I will fear no evil, for you are with me; 

your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. 

You anoint my head with oil; 

my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, 

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. 

Psalm 23.

As a Christian now for over forty years I can testify to the fact that no matter what we go through God does indeed bring us through and give us peace.
Please think about it

Rest

Rest
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.

As I look around me here in North America I see a remarkable society that goes as they say twenty-four, seven. Here in North America you can get anything you want. You can live as you want. All of which is a good thing.
While there are some rough spots North America and particularly here in Canada where I live is all inclusive. Again a very good thing.
The one problem I find with our society here in Canada is that things never seem to stop. People never put down their electronic devices.
I watched one person walking in the downtown of our city interacting with his smart phone walk into a plant pot that was a metre high by three metre square. He wasn’t hurt. Still it could just as easily been a car with more serious consequences.
Phones and high tech devices aside in all major cities stores and restaurants are open night and day. Major cities do not sleep.
When I was young long before computers (yes I’m that old born two years before Sputnik) it was predicted that computers would make life easier and reduce the work week. It was predicted we’d have so much free time we wouldn’t know what to do with it. We know today they were wrong.
Computers have simply made it easier to take work home with us and to work from home. Experts tell us that especially here in North America many people don’t take all of their allotted vacation time. Many take work with them on vacation.
If ever there was a generation in need of rest it is we who live in the opening decades of the twenty-first century. Yet many are not finding that rest.
They work hard. They work long hours. all to get the so called “good life” our society espouses yet they either can’t enjoy it or can’t attain it. Many are disillusioned with life and society. Suicide rates are through the roof. Life for many has become meaningless.
The writer of Ecclesiastes makes three points that seem to agree with the meaninglessness of life up saying,
“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun”Ecclesiastes 1:9
“I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” Ecclesiastes 1:14
“To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” Ecclesiastes 2:26.
But there is hope.
There is a God who loves and cares for you. A God who can make life meaningful and rewarding.
The cry of Jesus to all people is,

“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.

You can find peace and rest for your soul all you have to do is accept the salvation gift God offers you through Jesus Christ.
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.
The writer of Hebrews states,

“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.

The writer of Hebrew also states,
“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.
To those who read this blog I would say there is a God who truly loves you. He has showed Himself through His one and only Son Jesus Christ. That by truly accepting Christ into your life you can and will find hope and rest for your soul.
Please think about it.