Rights and Freedoms
Tony Campolo the American evangelist wrote,
“I contend the state ought to do its thing and provide legal rights for all couples who want to be joined together for life. The church should bless unions that it sees fit to bless, and they should be called marriages.”
Tony Campolo.
Campolo makes a compelling point, after all we live in a secular democracy. And it is the government and people of that democracy that choose what is called what under the law.
The democracies we live in, in the west are at least as diverse as the Roman Empire and they as such do their best to accommodate all their citizens.
The Roman Empire had things going on that Christians and Jews would have found contrary to their moral and ethical standards. Yet the Bible does not mention anywhere that the disciples or Jesus spoke out against Rome’s authority.
In fact with the Emperor Nero in power and persecuting Christians the apostle Paul wrote,
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”
Romans 13:1
The Gospel of John records this exchange at the trial of Jesus between Pilate and Jesus,
“Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?”
Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above...”
John 19:10,11a
As Christians I believe we Christians need to respect the government and the beliefs and lifestyles of those around us.
Only when governments or others start to restrict our rights or the rights of others should we be speaking out against the government or other groups.
Tony Campolo also makes another important point,
“These issues are biblical issues: to care for the sick, to feed the hungry, to stand up for the oppressed. I contend that if the evangelical community became more biblical, everything would change.”
Tony Campolo.
I as a Christian extend the hand of friendship to those of different faiths and lifestyles. I believe Jesus died for each and every individual irrespective of who they are. That Jesus offers redemption from sin to everyone.
I believe it is my duty to God to present all who will listen to me of the salvation message Jesus has to offer, not force it on them. I do it because I believe it is the most important thing I can present to those I encounter.
Jesus said,
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6
Paul writing to the Romans said,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8
Paul also writes,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”
Romans 3:23
That all means just that all. Every man and woman that has ever lived has sinned. Have fallen short of what God wants for their life and Jesus died for those sins.
C. S. Lewis stated of Jesus,
“He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.”
C.S. Lewis.
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.
When Jesus said all he meant all. All who believe in Him can enter into his eternal rest.
Jesus never said it was a select group that could enter His eternal rest. That could obtain salvation. He made it clear all could.
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.
Christians believe that it is God who reached down in the form of His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. That salvation and eternal life with God is a choice and an act of faith.
A person must believe that Jesus is the Son of God. That he died for their sins. That you must confess your sins directly to God. That it is the Holy Spirit that convicts men of their sins not man.
We also believe the Salvation is a personal thing between the individual and God that only God knows the heart of the individual. That no one on this earth can judge whether or not you are saved. You and God alone know that.
Please think about it.
Tuesday, 14 July 2015
Monday, 13 July 2015
A Legacy
A Legacy
"You speak of Caesar, of Alexander, of their conquests and of the enthusiasm which they enkindled in the hearts of their soldiers; but can you conceive of a dead man making conquests, with an army faithful and entirely devoted to his memory? My armies have forgotten me even while living, as the Carthaginian army forgot Hannibal. Such is our power.”
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
“I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel. Neither history nor humanity, nor ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.”
Napoleon Bonaparte
Politicians and others, even terrorist groups want to leave a legacy to the world. Sadly all too many times that legacy is negative. Hitler and his henchmen left a legacy of genocide and destruction in their attempt to build the thousand year Reich. In today’s world the Islamic state are doing the same.
There are of course men and women who have left positive legacies. Churchill who stood up to Hitler. Mother Teresa who cared for the poor. These are legacies that will be remembered in history.
But no legacy is greater than that of Jesus Christ. He literally changed the world. His legacy is eternal. James Alan Francis in the 1920's wrote of Jesus,
“Nearly two thousand years ago in an obscure village, a child was born of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village where He worked as a carpenter until He was thirty. Then for three years He became an itinerant preacher.
This man never went to college or seminary. He never wrote a book. He never held a public office. He never had a family nor owned a home. He never put His foot inside a big city nor travelled even 200 miles from His birthplace. And though He never did any of the things that usually accompany greatness, throngs of people followed Him. He had no credentials but Himself.
While He was still young, the tide of public opinion turned against Him. His followers ran away. He was turned over to His enemies and sentenced to death on a cross between two thieves. While He was dying, His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – the simple coat He had worn. His body was laid in a borrowed grave provided by a compassionate friend.
But three days later this Man arose from the dead – living proof that He was, as He had claimed, the Saviour whom God had sent, the Incarnate Son of God.
Nineteen centuries have come and gone and today the risen Lord Jesus Christ is the central figure of the human race. On our calendars His birth divides history into two eras. One day of every week is set aside in remembrance of Him. And our two most important holidays celebrate His birth and resurrection. On church steeples around the world, His cross has become the symbol of victory over sin and death.”
Dr James Allan Francis
Think of it Jesus never raised a sword in anger yet today approximately two and a half billion people believe in him.
Napoleon got it right when he said,
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
Napoleon
Force of arms does not change the hearts of men only love can do that.
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
The Apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8.
This is the difference between Jesus and the leaders of any movement. Christ died for those He knew were sinners. Not only that He died for the sins of those sinners. He could do this because He was the one and only Son of God.
C. S. Lewis said,
“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.
Lewis also points out,
“He (Jesus) died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.”
C.S. Lewis.
This is something no leader of any terrorist group today I’m sure would ever do. Jesus however proved he loved us by dying for us. For each and every man and woman.
Jesus died for you.
The Apostle Paul wrote,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:6-8
Please think about it.
"You speak of Caesar, of Alexander, of their conquests and of the enthusiasm which they enkindled in the hearts of their soldiers; but can you conceive of a dead man making conquests, with an army faithful and entirely devoted to his memory? My armies have forgotten me even while living, as the Carthaginian army forgot Hannibal. Such is our power.”
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
“I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel. Neither history nor humanity, nor ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.”
Napoleon Bonaparte
Politicians and others, even terrorist groups want to leave a legacy to the world. Sadly all too many times that legacy is negative. Hitler and his henchmen left a legacy of genocide and destruction in their attempt to build the thousand year Reich. In today’s world the Islamic state are doing the same.
There are of course men and women who have left positive legacies. Churchill who stood up to Hitler. Mother Teresa who cared for the poor. These are legacies that will be remembered in history.
But no legacy is greater than that of Jesus Christ. He literally changed the world. His legacy is eternal. James Alan Francis in the 1920's wrote of Jesus,
“Nearly two thousand years ago in an obscure village, a child was born of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village where He worked as a carpenter until He was thirty. Then for three years He became an itinerant preacher.
This man never went to college or seminary. He never wrote a book. He never held a public office. He never had a family nor owned a home. He never put His foot inside a big city nor travelled even 200 miles from His birthplace. And though He never did any of the things that usually accompany greatness, throngs of people followed Him. He had no credentials but Himself.
While He was still young, the tide of public opinion turned against Him. His followers ran away. He was turned over to His enemies and sentenced to death on a cross between two thieves. While He was dying, His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – the simple coat He had worn. His body was laid in a borrowed grave provided by a compassionate friend.
But three days later this Man arose from the dead – living proof that He was, as He had claimed, the Saviour whom God had sent, the Incarnate Son of God.
Nineteen centuries have come and gone and today the risen Lord Jesus Christ is the central figure of the human race. On our calendars His birth divides history into two eras. One day of every week is set aside in remembrance of Him. And our two most important holidays celebrate His birth and resurrection. On church steeples around the world, His cross has become the symbol of victory over sin and death.”
Dr James Allan Francis
Think of it Jesus never raised a sword in anger yet today approximately two and a half billion people believe in him.
Napoleon got it right when he said,
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
Napoleon
Force of arms does not change the hearts of men only love can do that.
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
The Apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8.
This is the difference between Jesus and the leaders of any movement. Christ died for those He knew were sinners. Not only that He died for the sins of those sinners. He could do this because He was the one and only Son of God.
C. S. Lewis said,
“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.
Lewis also points out,
“He (Jesus) died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.”
C.S. Lewis.
This is something no leader of any terrorist group today I’m sure would ever do. Jesus however proved he loved us by dying for us. For each and every man and woman.
Jesus died for you.
The Apostle Paul wrote,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:6-8
Please think about it.
Sunday, 12 July 2015
The Question
The Question
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
John 11:25,26.
Here is a simple statement spoken by Jesus himself that every man and woman that has ever been presented with the gospel of Christ must answer. Who do you believe Jesus is.
C. S. Lewis wrote,
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
For those who doubt that Jesus is indeed God incarnate, God in the flesh, I would suggest you read C. S. Lewis’s book Mere Christianity. He for me presents an excellent case for Jesus.
Either way God has given each and every person a free will to choose the path they follow. That free will includes the right to reject the claims of Jesus and the gift of eternal life that he offers.
Jesus said,
... “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6.
The decision as to who you believe Jesus is however remains up to you the reader.
I a Christian would ask one thing of you the reader. Please read at least the New Testament with an open mind and no preconceived ideas before you make your final decision about Jesus.
Please think about it.
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
John 11:25,26.
Here is a simple statement spoken by Jesus himself that every man and woman that has ever been presented with the gospel of Christ must answer. Who do you believe Jesus is.
C. S. Lewis wrote,
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
For those who doubt that Jesus is indeed God incarnate, God in the flesh, I would suggest you read C. S. Lewis’s book Mere Christianity. He for me presents an excellent case for Jesus.
Either way God has given each and every person a free will to choose the path they follow. That free will includes the right to reject the claims of Jesus and the gift of eternal life that he offers.
Jesus said,
... “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6.
The decision as to who you believe Jesus is however remains up to you the reader.
I a Christian would ask one thing of you the reader. Please read at least the New Testament with an open mind and no preconceived ideas before you make your final decision about Jesus.
Please think about it.
Saturday, 11 July 2015
An Obligation
An Obligation
“Not until the creation and maintenance of decent conditions of life for all men are recognized and accepted as a common obligation of all men and all countries—not until then shall we, with a certain degree of justification, be able to speak of mankind as civilized.”
Albert Einstein
As soon as I’ve posted this I will be going to the Jesus festival held annually in our city. It’s a time when the predominantly smaller churches get together to celebrate Jesus in a park in the centre of our small city.
We give away free food and other things without obligation to anyone who comes.
As I prepared things for it I was curious to find out what Canada’s poverty level was. I knew it was in the teens.
According to the Canada without poverty website an anti-poverty website,
“1 in 7 (or 4.8 million) people in Canada live in poverty.... Marginalized Groups: Members of society that are especially vulnerable to poverty including persons living with disabilities, single mothers, Aboriginals, elderly individuals, and racialized communities
21% of single mothers in Canada raise their children while living in poverty (7% of single fathers raise their children in poverty).
People living with disabilities (both mental and physical) are twice as likely to live below the poverty line.”
The United States is not much better, according to one source
“In 2013, 45.3 million people lived in Poverty USA. That means the poverty rate for 2013 was 14.5%.” (That’s more than the population of Canada)
The same report says,
“Poverty does not strike all demographics equally. For example, in 2013, 13.1% of men lived in Poverty USA, but 15.8% of women. Along the same lines, the poverty rate for married couples in 2013 was only 5.8%–but the poverty rate for single-parent families with no wife present was up to 15.9%, and for single-parent families with no husband present over 30%.”
These are appalling statistics for two developed countries.
Sheldon Danziger the director of the National Poverty Centre at the University of Michigan said he was especially impressed by a figure showing Canada and the U.S. have the same relative child poverty rate -- 25.1 The chart also showed that after government taxes, benefits and other social programs, Canada's child poverty rate drops to 13.1, while America's barely budges, hovering above 23.1 percent.
The thing is be it 13.1% or 23.1% this is an horrible statistic. That no civilized society should stand for.
I believe it was Saki Knafo writing in the Huffington post in 2012 quoted, Jane Waldfogel, a professor of social work at Columbia University, who wrote about how the labour government in the United Kingdom approached the poverty problem, she writes
“that the Labour Government's efforts to combat child poverty in the U.K. were "larger and more sustained than in the United States." Shortly after he became prime minister in 1997, Tony Blair found himself staring at a UNICEF report similar to this new one, except that England's child poverty ranking was much higher.
So Blair's government instituted programs modelled after former U.S. President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty. The U.K. developed Sure Start -- an early-care program for low-income children similar to the U.S. Head Start. British families could apply for the Working Tax Credit, similar to the U.S. Earned Income Tax Credit.
The Labour Party spent more on these programs, even as the U.S. spent less, and within five years the number of children living in "absolute poverty" in the U.K. had fallen by half. According to the UNICEF report, 12.1 percent of British children now live in relative poverty -- nearly half the percentage of American children.”
Twelve point one percent is still high but a step in the right direction and it shows if there is a government will poverty can be reduced if not eliminated.
We as individuals need to be speaking to our Government representatives and urging them to do more. After all what better way to spend tax money than directly on the poorest members of our society.
I as a Christian ask Christian to heed the words of James when he wrote in his Epistle,
“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?
Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.
If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?
In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.
You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?”
James 2:14-20.
The Talmud states,
“When a man appears before the Throne of Judgment, the first question he is asked is not, “Have you believed in God?” Or “Have you prayed and observed the ritual? “He is asked: “have you dealt honourably and faithfully in all your dealings with your fellow men?”
The Talmud
Whether we are a Christians, a Jews, someone of other faiths or for that matter atheist, is not showing compassion and helping the poor anyway we can only the humane thing to do?
Is not helping the poor of our society a way of dealing honourably with our fellow man?
Please think about it.
“Not until the creation and maintenance of decent conditions of life for all men are recognized and accepted as a common obligation of all men and all countries—not until then shall we, with a certain degree of justification, be able to speak of mankind as civilized.”
Albert Einstein
As soon as I’ve posted this I will be going to the Jesus festival held annually in our city. It’s a time when the predominantly smaller churches get together to celebrate Jesus in a park in the centre of our small city.
We give away free food and other things without obligation to anyone who comes.
As I prepared things for it I was curious to find out what Canada’s poverty level was. I knew it was in the teens.
According to the Canada without poverty website an anti-poverty website,
“1 in 7 (or 4.8 million) people in Canada live in poverty.... Marginalized Groups: Members of society that are especially vulnerable to poverty including persons living with disabilities, single mothers, Aboriginals, elderly individuals, and racialized communities
21% of single mothers in Canada raise their children while living in poverty (7% of single fathers raise their children in poverty).
People living with disabilities (both mental and physical) are twice as likely to live below the poverty line.”
The United States is not much better, according to one source
“In 2013, 45.3 million people lived in Poverty USA. That means the poverty rate for 2013 was 14.5%.” (That’s more than the population of Canada)
The same report says,
“Poverty does not strike all demographics equally. For example, in 2013, 13.1% of men lived in Poverty USA, but 15.8% of women. Along the same lines, the poverty rate for married couples in 2013 was only 5.8%–but the poverty rate for single-parent families with no wife present was up to 15.9%, and for single-parent families with no husband present over 30%.”
These are appalling statistics for two developed countries.
Sheldon Danziger the director of the National Poverty Centre at the University of Michigan said he was especially impressed by a figure showing Canada and the U.S. have the same relative child poverty rate -- 25.1 The chart also showed that after government taxes, benefits and other social programs, Canada's child poverty rate drops to 13.1, while America's barely budges, hovering above 23.1 percent.
The thing is be it 13.1% or 23.1% this is an horrible statistic. That no civilized society should stand for.
I believe it was Saki Knafo writing in the Huffington post in 2012 quoted, Jane Waldfogel, a professor of social work at Columbia University, who wrote about how the labour government in the United Kingdom approached the poverty problem, she writes
“that the Labour Government's efforts to combat child poverty in the U.K. were "larger and more sustained than in the United States." Shortly after he became prime minister in 1997, Tony Blair found himself staring at a UNICEF report similar to this new one, except that England's child poverty ranking was much higher.
So Blair's government instituted programs modelled after former U.S. President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty. The U.K. developed Sure Start -- an early-care program for low-income children similar to the U.S. Head Start. British families could apply for the Working Tax Credit, similar to the U.S. Earned Income Tax Credit.
The Labour Party spent more on these programs, even as the U.S. spent less, and within five years the number of children living in "absolute poverty" in the U.K. had fallen by half. According to the UNICEF report, 12.1 percent of British children now live in relative poverty -- nearly half the percentage of American children.”
Twelve point one percent is still high but a step in the right direction and it shows if there is a government will poverty can be reduced if not eliminated.
We as individuals need to be speaking to our Government representatives and urging them to do more. After all what better way to spend tax money than directly on the poorest members of our society.
I as a Christian ask Christian to heed the words of James when he wrote in his Epistle,
“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?
Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.
If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?
In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.
You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?”
James 2:14-20.
The Talmud states,
“When a man appears before the Throne of Judgment, the first question he is asked is not, “Have you believed in God?” Or “Have you prayed and observed the ritual? “He is asked: “have you dealt honourably and faithfully in all your dealings with your fellow men?”
The Talmud
Whether we are a Christians, a Jews, someone of other faiths or for that matter atheist, is not showing compassion and helping the poor anyway we can only the humane thing to do?
Is not helping the poor of our society a way of dealing honourably with our fellow man?
Please think about it.
Friday, 10 July 2015
The Way
The way
“If, then, you are looking for the way by which you should go, take Christ, because He Himself is the way.”
Thomas Aquinas
Over the years I’ve had the privilege to speak with men and women who are rich and famous. Sadly so many have reached the height of their fortune and fame only to find the top of their mountain to be a very empty and lonely place.
Now there’s nothing wrong with being rich and famous. But it will not necessarily bring you peace and contentment.
General George Patton one of the most successful generals of world war two wrote,
"For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honour of triumph, a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeteers, musicians and strange animals from conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conquerors rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children robed in white stood with him in the chariot or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror holding a golden crown and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting."
Gen. George Patton.
There’s an old saying in Christian circles that goes like this,
“We have only one life it will soon be past only what’s done for Christ will last.”
Everything we have in this world will stay just where it’s at when we die. Our possessions will be divided up among family and friends and our name will pass into memory.
For a few years even a generation stories will be told about us. Still as the years, the decades pass even the stories will fade until we will be known only to God.
The nice thing in all of this if you have given your life to Christ. If you have bowed you knee and said
‘Lord Jesus I am a sinner in need of your saving grace. Please come into my life today.”
You will be assured of eternal life with God. A life in paradise.
On the day Jesus was crucified God showed us the choice we have,
Luke’s Gospel recording,
“One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’”
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23:39-43.
Question: At the end of your days where will you spend eternity?
Please think about it.
“If, then, you are looking for the way by which you should go, take Christ, because He Himself is the way.”
Thomas Aquinas
Over the years I’ve had the privilege to speak with men and women who are rich and famous. Sadly so many have reached the height of their fortune and fame only to find the top of their mountain to be a very empty and lonely place.
Now there’s nothing wrong with being rich and famous. But it will not necessarily bring you peace and contentment.
General George Patton one of the most successful generals of world war two wrote,
"For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honour of triumph, a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeteers, musicians and strange animals from conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conquerors rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children robed in white stood with him in the chariot or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror holding a golden crown and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting."
Gen. George Patton.
There’s an old saying in Christian circles that goes like this,
“We have only one life it will soon be past only what’s done for Christ will last.”
Everything we have in this world will stay just where it’s at when we die. Our possessions will be divided up among family and friends and our name will pass into memory.
For a few years even a generation stories will be told about us. Still as the years, the decades pass even the stories will fade until we will be known only to God.
The nice thing in all of this if you have given your life to Christ. If you have bowed you knee and said
‘Lord Jesus I am a sinner in need of your saving grace. Please come into my life today.”
You will be assured of eternal life with God. A life in paradise.
On the day Jesus was crucified God showed us the choice we have,
Luke’s Gospel recording,
“One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’”
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23:39-43.
Question: At the end of your days where will you spend eternity?
Please think about it.
Thursday, 9 July 2015
A Book of Mercy A Warning of Judgement
A book of Mercy a warning of Judgement
“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
First of all as stated above Jesus was with God in the beginning, Jesus is God he was there at the beginning of the world. The world was made by Him. Not only that but God became flesh and dwelt among us in the form of Jesus Christ. He did this for two reasons,
First to show His mercy to mankind.
The bible first of all is a book of mercy.
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
Jesus himself makes it clear that his primary job when on this earth was to save mankind, 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.
The second reason is to my mind to fully understand what it is to be man so as to more rightly judge us.
If Jesus had not come to this earth and experience all it was to be a man then we could potentially say to Him on judgement day you being all powerful do not know what it’s like to be tempted to under go trials, temptations and even loss of a loved one. Therefore you cannot judge us rightly.
Jesus in coming to this world however experienced all that it was to be a man up to and including dying for a crime he didn’t commit.
As a result he can judge us fairly for not only does he know what it is to be a man, because he lived as one. But also because he is God, He knows our very heart and why we do things.
God in creating mankind gave us all a freewill and offers us a choice Jesus saying,
“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.
If those words of Jesus are not true you have nothing to fear. If they are you have a lot to fear. For your eternal resting place depends on who you think Jesus is.
Please think about it.
“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
First of all as stated above Jesus was with God in the beginning, Jesus is God he was there at the beginning of the world. The world was made by Him. Not only that but God became flesh and dwelt among us in the form of Jesus Christ. He did this for two reasons,
First to show His mercy to mankind.
The bible first of all is a book of mercy.
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
Jesus himself makes it clear that his primary job when on this earth was to save mankind, 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.
The second reason is to my mind to fully understand what it is to be man so as to more rightly judge us.
If Jesus had not come to this earth and experience all it was to be a man then we could potentially say to Him on judgement day you being all powerful do not know what it’s like to be tempted to under go trials, temptations and even loss of a loved one. Therefore you cannot judge us rightly.
Jesus in coming to this world however experienced all that it was to be a man up to and including dying for a crime he didn’t commit.
As a result he can judge us fairly for not only does he know what it is to be a man, because he lived as one. But also because he is God, He knows our very heart and why we do things.
God in creating mankind gave us all a freewill and offers us a choice Jesus saying,
“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.
If those words of Jesus are not true you have nothing to fear. If they are you have a lot to fear. For your eternal resting place depends on who you think Jesus is.
Please think about it.
Tuesday, 7 July 2015
Your Choice
Your choice
“The Bible does not defend itself. It was written to people who accepted its message and therefore spends little time convincing its readers of its authenticity.”
Author unknown
I could write volumes is defence of the Bible’s authenticity. At the same time I could speak for hours giving proof of that God exists and Jesus is God incarnate but it would not convince some people.
Some people just want to believe what they want to believe. They believe there is no God so they view only the facts that say there is no God.
They will not accept the accuracy of the Bible and dismiss its truths as being bias.
As far as I’m concerned that is all well and good.
God when he created mankind gave him a freewill. That freewill gives each and every person the right to believe in God or not. God will not force anyone to believe in Him. It’s that simple.
God want’s our belief in Him to be an act of faith. 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
The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is the Son of God, and that the Son
“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 1:3.
The Bible notes Jesus gave a choice when 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. 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.
Therefore the choice is yours dear reader. Believe there is a God and Jesus is his one and only Son. The Saviour of the world or not.
There is no middle ground.
If I am wrong and there is no God. Then you have nothing to fear, but if I am right then you at the very least have a lot to consider.
Please think about it.
“The Bible does not defend itself. It was written to people who accepted its message and therefore spends little time convincing its readers of its authenticity.”
Author unknown
I could write volumes is defence of the Bible’s authenticity. At the same time I could speak for hours giving proof of that God exists and Jesus is God incarnate but it would not convince some people.
Some people just want to believe what they want to believe. They believe there is no God so they view only the facts that say there is no God.
They will not accept the accuracy of the Bible and dismiss its truths as being bias.
As far as I’m concerned that is all well and good.
God when he created mankind gave him a freewill. That freewill gives each and every person the right to believe in God or not. God will not force anyone to believe in Him. It’s that simple.
God want’s our belief in Him to be an act of faith. 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
The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is the Son of God, and that the Son
“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 1:3.
The Bible notes Jesus gave a choice when 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. 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.
Therefore the choice is yours dear reader. Believe there is a God and Jesus is his one and only Son. The Saviour of the world or not.
There is no middle ground.
If I am wrong and there is no God. Then you have nothing to fear, but if I am right then you at the very least have a lot to consider.
Please think about it.
God Exists
God exists
“It is incomprehensible that God should exist, and it is incomprehensible that he should not exist.”
Blaise Pascal
The Psalmist wrote,
“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
Psalm 14:1.
The Apostle Paul wrote,
“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.
Put simply God does things His way not the way man thinks he should do things. God asks all people everywhere to have faith in Him. The writer of Hebrews saying,
“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.
C. S. Lewis wrote,
“A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.”
C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
Being an Atheist is also an act of faith. To be an atheist you have to have postulated that for whatever reason there is no God. You have to have come to the conclusion that simply because you can’t see God he doesn’t exist.
To my mind it’s like saying you can’t see you brain therefore you don’t have one.
The psalmist wrote,
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
Psalm 19:1.
Think about it the universe from the most distant galaxy to the smallest sub atomic particle is in perfect balance.
I listened to a scientist not long ago that said everything in the universe no matter how minute effects life on this earth. From the light of distant stars to our sun to the smallest sub atomic particle. Everything is in balance. Adjust that balance ever so slightly and life as we know it on this earth would not exist.
For me creation proves there is a God who made it.
Ben Zion Boskser wrote,
“I have not seen the robin but I know he is there because I heard him singing through my window from the tree-top outside.
I have not seen God. But I have looked at my child’s eyes, and have been overwhelmed by the miracle of unfolding life.
I have watched the trees bedeck themselves with new garbs of green in the spring, and have been stirred by the miracle of continual rebirth.
I have looked at the stars, and have been overcome by the miracle of the grandeur and majesty of the universe.
I know that God exists, because I have heard the song of His presence from all the tree-tops of creation.”
Ben Zion Bokser.
Please think about it
“It is incomprehensible that God should exist, and it is incomprehensible that he should not exist.”
Blaise Pascal
The Psalmist wrote,
“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
Psalm 14:1.
The Apostle Paul wrote,
“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.
Put simply God does things His way not the way man thinks he should do things. God asks all people everywhere to have faith in Him. The writer of Hebrews saying,
“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.
C. S. Lewis wrote,
“A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.”
C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
Being an Atheist is also an act of faith. To be an atheist you have to have postulated that for whatever reason there is no God. You have to have come to the conclusion that simply because you can’t see God he doesn’t exist.
To my mind it’s like saying you can’t see you brain therefore you don’t have one.
The psalmist wrote,
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
Psalm 19:1.
Think about it the universe from the most distant galaxy to the smallest sub atomic particle is in perfect balance.
I listened to a scientist not long ago that said everything in the universe no matter how minute effects life on this earth. From the light of distant stars to our sun to the smallest sub atomic particle. Everything is in balance. Adjust that balance ever so slightly and life as we know it on this earth would not exist.
For me creation proves there is a God who made it.
Ben Zion Boskser wrote,
“I have not seen the robin but I know he is there because I heard him singing through my window from the tree-top outside.
I have not seen God. But I have looked at my child’s eyes, and have been overwhelmed by the miracle of unfolding life.
I have watched the trees bedeck themselves with new garbs of green in the spring, and have been stirred by the miracle of continual rebirth.
I have looked at the stars, and have been overcome by the miracle of the grandeur and majesty of the universe.
I know that God exists, because I have heard the song of His presence from all the tree-tops of creation.”
Ben Zion Bokser.
Please think about it
Monday, 6 July 2015
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 this. Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour 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
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 neighbour as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40.
The Bible also makes it clear how we get to heaven. It come down to who you think Jesus is and what his purpose on this earth was for,
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 answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6
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.
Isaiah telling us,
“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.”
Isaiah 64:6
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. 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 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.
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 this. Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour 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
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 neighbour as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40.
The Bible also makes it clear how we get to heaven. It come down to who you think Jesus is and what his purpose on this earth was for,
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 answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6
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.
Isaiah telling us,
“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.”
Isaiah 64:6
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. 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 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.
Sunday, 5 July 2015
You and Jesus
You and Jesus
“Then Jesus cried out, “When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.
When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.
I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.
“As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.
There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.”
John 12:44-48.
Dear Heavenly Father,
I recognize that Jesus is your one and only Son.
That he came to earth to die for my sins.
I confess I am a sinner and that I fall short of what you want for my life.
Please forgive me of my sins and come into my life.
That I may spend eternity with you
In Jesus name I pray
Amen.
Please think about it.
“Show me, O LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting is my life.
You have made my days a mere hands breadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Each man’s life is but a breath.
Psalms 39:4,5“Then Jesus cried out, “When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.
When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.
I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.
“As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.
There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.”
John 12:44-48.
Jesus said,
‘Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.’
Revelations 3:20
The Apostle Paul wrote,
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—
and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God—
Ephesians 2:8
The writer of Hebrews wrote,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for
and certain of what we do not see...
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 11:1,6
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father
except through me.”
John 14:6
Where will you spend eternity?
Will you accept Jesus Christ into your heart and life today?
Will you pray.Dear Heavenly Father,
I recognize that Jesus is your one and only Son.
That he came to earth to die for my sins.
I confess I am a sinner and that I fall short of what you want for my life.
Please forgive me of my sins and come into my life.
That I may spend eternity with you
In Jesus name I pray
Amen.
Please think about it.
Friday, 3 July 2015
Who is Jesus
Who is Jesus?
I as a Christian believe I must present my beliefs to anyone who would listen but nowhere does Bible tell me to impose those beliefs on anyone or attempt to restrict the beliefs of others.
I believe simply that Jesus is the Son of God, that he died for the sins of each and every man and woman irrespective of who they are. That each person must make the choice for themselves as to who Jesus is. To accept Him as the Son of God or not.
At the height of the civil rights movement in the United States Kenneth Waters wrote this description of God
I have been a Christian since I was nineteen I’m now sixty-one, you do the math. Throughout that time I have strived to present the Good News of Jesus Christ is a pure a form as I can.
The more I read it the more I realize the importance of presenting the teachings of Christ to this world.
For me the apostle Paul when speaking at the Areopagus in Athens presented the message of Christ in the best way possible, 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.
The choice as to who Jesus is, is the same today as it was in the time of Paul. Thus I ask you to think about it.
I as a Christian believe I must present my beliefs to anyone who would listen but nowhere does Bible tell me to impose those beliefs on anyone or attempt to restrict the beliefs of others.
I believe simply that Jesus is the Son of God, that he died for the sins of each and every man and woman irrespective of who they are. That each person must make the choice for themselves as to who Jesus is. To accept Him as the Son of God or not.
At the height of the civil rights movement in the United States Kenneth Waters wrote this description of God
So then, just talk about Spiritual colour and tell them:
Whatever colour love is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour justice is, that’s that colour of God:
whatever colour peace is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour freedom is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour joy is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour healing is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour salvation is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour power is, that’s the colour of God:
whatever colour truth is, that’s the colour of God:
So, then, regardless of who we are or where we come from,
regardless of our own skin colour or racial identity,
we should strive to be God’s (spiritual) colour.
Amen.
Kenneth WatersI have been a Christian since I was nineteen I’m now sixty-one, you do the math. Throughout that time I have strived to present the Good News of Jesus Christ is a pure a form as I can.
The more I read it the more I realize the importance of presenting the teachings of Christ to this world.
For me the apostle Paul when speaking at the Areopagus in Athens presented the message of Christ in the best way possible, 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.
The choice as to who Jesus is, is the same today as it was in the time of Paul. Thus I ask you to think about it.
Freedom
Freedom
“It is imperative that freedom of judgement should be granted, so that men may live together in harmony, however diverse, or even openly contradictory their opinions maybe. In proportion as the power of free judgement is withheld, we depart from the natural condition of mankind.”
Baruch Spinoza
I am speaking here as a Christian appalled at the way Christian groups especially in the United States are reacting to the gay marriage and the gay, lesbian and transgendered community in general.
The United States and all western democracies are just that democracies. They are not “Christian democracies” they are “secular democracies”. There is no such thing as a Christian government on this earth at this time. Therefore like it or not the democratically elected government has the right to say what things are, even if Christians disagree.
Living in a secular democracy is something the apostles knew very well. They lived in the Roman empire an empire as ethnically diverse as any nation today. An empire that was filled with pagan practises that the average Christian or Jew at the time would have disliked immensely.
Yet nowhere in the New Testament do I see Jesus or his disciples speaking out against the civil secular authorities.
Jesus even when brought before Pilate never said anything against the civil authority of Rome. In fact to Pilate the Roman governor Jesus said,
“You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.”
John 19:11a
The apostle Paul while living under one of the worst Emperors, Nero said,
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you.”
Romans 13:1-3
Someone years ago once told me, when you restrict someone else’s freedom you ultimately restrict your own.
It is my feeling that provided the freedoms granted to any group does not infringe on my freedoms to believe as I wish as a Christian then they should have the right to believe and do as they wish.
I as a Christian hope I can extend the hand of friendship to the gay, lesbian and transgendered community. They are no different from anyone else in the world.
A pastor I know when confronted by a gay friend who said “I bet you think I’m the worst of sinners.” to which he replied, “Your sins as a gay man are no worse than my sins as a strait man.”
Besides the apostle Paul who was a trained Pharisee prior to his conversion said of himself,
“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.
But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.”
1Timothy 1:15,16
The job of the Christian was laid down by Christ himself 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
Christians are to preach the good news of salvation to the world not get involved in politics and attempt to restrict the rights and freedoms of others.
What Christians should be doing in my opinion is illustrated in the following.
The apostle 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.
By all, Paul meant all. Sin is falling short of what God wants for our lives. We all sin and the Bible makes it clear Jesus can cleanse us from our sin.
The apostle John writing,
“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.”
1John 1:9-10.
These words were written to every man and woman that has ever lived. Jesus did not play favourites.
He made the following very clear statements for all to accept or reject.
“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
Jesus made it clear who he was when he said,
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6
“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
The apostle Paul wrote,
“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 saying,
“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.
Please whoever you are think about it.
“It is imperative that freedom of judgement should be granted, so that men may live together in harmony, however diverse, or even openly contradictory their opinions maybe. In proportion as the power of free judgement is withheld, we depart from the natural condition of mankind.”
Baruch Spinoza
I am speaking here as a Christian appalled at the way Christian groups especially in the United States are reacting to the gay marriage and the gay, lesbian and transgendered community in general.
The United States and all western democracies are just that democracies. They are not “Christian democracies” they are “secular democracies”. There is no such thing as a Christian government on this earth at this time. Therefore like it or not the democratically elected government has the right to say what things are, even if Christians disagree.
Living in a secular democracy is something the apostles knew very well. They lived in the Roman empire an empire as ethnically diverse as any nation today. An empire that was filled with pagan practises that the average Christian or Jew at the time would have disliked immensely.
Yet nowhere in the New Testament do I see Jesus or his disciples speaking out against the civil secular authorities.
Jesus even when brought before Pilate never said anything against the civil authority of Rome. In fact to Pilate the Roman governor Jesus said,
“You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.”
John 19:11a
The apostle Paul while living under one of the worst Emperors, Nero said,
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you.”
Romans 13:1-3
Someone years ago once told me, when you restrict someone else’s freedom you ultimately restrict your own.
It is my feeling that provided the freedoms granted to any group does not infringe on my freedoms to believe as I wish as a Christian then they should have the right to believe and do as they wish.
I as a Christian hope I can extend the hand of friendship to the gay, lesbian and transgendered community. They are no different from anyone else in the world.
A pastor I know when confronted by a gay friend who said “I bet you think I’m the worst of sinners.” to which he replied, “Your sins as a gay man are no worse than my sins as a strait man.”
Besides the apostle Paul who was a trained Pharisee prior to his conversion said of himself,
“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.
But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.”
1Timothy 1:15,16
The job of the Christian was laid down by Christ himself 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
Christians are to preach the good news of salvation to the world not get involved in politics and attempt to restrict the rights and freedoms of others.
What Christians should be doing in my opinion is illustrated in the following.
The apostle 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.
By all, Paul meant all. Sin is falling short of what God wants for our lives. We all sin and the Bible makes it clear Jesus can cleanse us from our sin.
The apostle John writing,
“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.”
1John 1:9-10.
These words were written to every man and woman that has ever lived. Jesus did not play favourites.
He made the following very clear statements for all to accept or reject.
“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
Jesus made it clear who he was when he said,
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6
“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
The apostle Paul wrote,
“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 saying,
“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.
Please whoever you are think about it.
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