Unconditional Love- Thankful

Romans 5:8 
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

I’m Thankful for His unconditional love. For when we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. We don't deserve His love. “He paid the debt he did not own. I owned the debt I could not pay, I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing a brand-new song, "Amazing grace" Christ Jesus paid the debt I could never pay’”. For God so unconditionally loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.” Unconditional love means He loves you in spite of your imperfection and failures. He does not require you to change who you are to love you. His love will cause you to want to change to please Him. He loves you too much to leave in your sin. His love will cause you to love yourself unselfishly (Love your neighbor as yourself) because you are special to Him. His love will put in your heart a desire to love others unconditionally, and to love even your enemies. His love will give you the grace to forgive others, because He forgives you. How great is His love. It is unfathomable, inconceivable, relentless, and will keep chasing you until the end of your days. Be THANKFUL that He pursued you and did not give up on you. Be THANKFUL that His love is unconditional.

Living without Sin

 1 John 3:6
Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.

I am not a Greek scholar, but I desire to read God’s word with an open heart.  Sin takes place when we break God’s law. It is a willful transgression against the known will of God. We are born into this world with a sin nature, and we come to realize that we are spiritually lost without a Savior. Christ, who knows no sin, came to earth to give His life as the supreme sacrifice to forgive us of our sin. This is salvation in a nutshell. By confessing our sins to Christ, we have acknowledged that we are sinners. We now abide in Christ and have turned away from our sinful way. We no longer willfully commit sin when we abide in Him. A person who willfully goes against the known will of God is ignorant of God and God’s will to set them free from the bondage of sin. We realize that we are human and born into a world where sin is ever before us. Temptation is real and Satan is relentless in his attempt to cause a follower of Christ to violate one of God’s commandments to live holy and righteously in this present world. Many Christians have fallen for the traps of Satan and have fallen into sin. Many have made shipwrecks of their lives and have left the Way for whatever reason. It is not God’s will that any person be lost, but His will that we live in fellowship with Him. God’s word is full of dos and don'ts, and keeping track of every law leads one to live in bondage and fear, but Jesus simplified it all by telling us that the law can be wrapped up in two statements. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. So how does one live a life without sin? Are our words and actions pleasing to Jesus? The Holy Spirit came to dwell in us and to guide us in all we do. We sin not, because we know Him, and because we know Him and love Him, we desire to please Him.

Passing The Test

 Gen. 22:1,2
God tested Abraham…And He said, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”

The scripture application to this passage is one of full surrender to God. A willingness to give up what you love dearly to serve God. I certainly don’t claim to understand the mind of God in this requirement. Yes, this was a test to see if Abraham was completely sold out to mind God, but on the other hand, I can see why some would question God’s requirement to have Abram kill his firstborn. In our day, if someone did this, they would be charged with murder and sent to prison for life, or given the death penalty, regardless of their religious beliefs. This subject, no doubt, has been debated and discussed for centuries, so I am not even going to attempt to explain this paradox. 
Looking at it at face value and deeper meaning, this is also prophetic in that God was willing to give His only-begotten Son. This same God, who commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son on the altar, sent His Son to earth, to live among us and sacrifice His life to save ours. 
As we walk with God, we are faced with many trials, tribulations, and tests. Trials and tribulations are given to all who walk this life, but tests are given to see what we are made of. Test of character, test of integrity, test of loyalty, and test of faithfulness are all given for the purpose of bringing glory to God. In our day, God has spoken through His word. When we hear the voice of God, it will not go contrary to His word. We need to test the spirits to see if they are of God. God grants us the wisdom to discern His voice and the strength to pass the test He sends our way.
 

The Love of God

 John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The old familiar Bible verse rings loud and clear during the Christmas season. Truly, this is the center of the Christmas story. God sent His Son to earth in the form of a baby. Wise men from the East saw the star and came to worship Him. The Shepherd gathered in the field and heard the angel proclaim His coming. Mary pondered in her heart the miracle of the newborn baby. The demonstration of God's love was manifested to the world when He gave Himself to die for the sins of the world. The song says it so well, “The love of God is far greater than tongue or pen can ever tell; it goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell. The wand'ring child is reconciled by God's beloved Son.”- Frederick M. Lehman. Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us, God’s love poured down from heaven above. His love reaches you and me desiring fellowship, a relationship that will be everlasting. Jesus grew to adulthood, showed us how we were to love one another. His love allowed the Roman soldiers to pierce the nails in His hand. His love took on the sins of the world. “He paid the debt He did not owe, I owe a debt I could not pay.” The Christmas story, the greatest love story ever told! Oh, The love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong!

Abundant Grace

 1 Tim 12:14
And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
Paul claimed to be the worst of all sinners. His life before coming to Christ was filled with unbelief and evil intent to hurt those who were followers of Jesus. There are many who have given testimony to a life that is wicked and evil, and how God’s grace through faith and love in Christ lifted them out of the pit of sin and gave them a new beginning. But the truth of the matter is that we ALL are sinners. We may have been brought up in a home that taught and trained us to be good and decent people. To be kind and considerate to others. The rich young ruler was such a person. Jesus told him to keep the commandment he said,  “All these things have I kept from my youth up.” Being a good person was not enough. Jesus did come to teach us how to be good people, but His main purpose for His coming was to save sinners. No matter the depth of our sinfulness, His exceedingly abundant grace reaches each one of us with His love. “In that we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Whether you are the chief of sinners or raised to be a good person, we all need His grace. We all have sinned and come short of God’s glory. Believe in Him and His abundant grace will save you!

Crucify the Flesh

Gal. 5:24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Jesus was crucified on the cross, died and shed His blood for our sins. We who have been forgiven of our sins and have accepted Jesus into our lives identify with His death. We also have been crucified with Christ. The life we now live is not ours, but it belongs to Christ. Our sinful affections and our lustful desires to live for self have been nailed to the cross. We no longer yield our members to the things that have been crucified. Those affections have been forgiven and put to death. Through Christ, we yield our hearts to live a life that is holy and pleasing to God. We our to be a reflection of Christ in how we act and live. As we walk in the light of Gods word, he leads us to a complete surrender of our whole body, soul and spirit. Our hopes, our ambitions and everything that we live for is brought to the foot of Jesus. The fullness of His spirit is manifest in the actions and reactions of our lives. The fruit of the  Spirit now rules without command in our hearts. 

Good Friday

Heb. 10:10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

We are not made holy through any thing that we do. He commands us to abstain from all appearance of evil, yet it is not living a sinless life that make us holy. God says, “Be ye holy as I am Holy”. “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect”. This standard of living is impossible for man to reach. We can only be made perfect through the cross. Jesus who offered up Himself as the supreme sacrifice for sin, took our sin, it was nailed to the cross and we bear it no longer. Through the blood of Christ we can now be made whole and sanctified. We are made clean and can now come boldly to the throne of God and make our request known to Him. Once and for all, the blood was shed, no need for any other sacrifice. Today is Good Friday, good because the price has been paid and we no longer have to sacrifice animals for sin offerings. Good because we now can be made holy and pure, not of any works we can do, but through faith in the cross that Jesus died for us to set us free from the bondage of sin and has written the law of God in our hearts. His commandments are still required, but they are not what makes us holy.

Behold the Cross

Luke 23:48 And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned.

Behold and see what God has done! Gave His son to die on the cross to save the likes of you and me. Gaze upon the cross, and behold the things that sin will cause people to do. The heart of man is wicked and destructive. Anything that reveals the sinful nature of man causes man to revile in hatred against that which condemns their heart. Behold Him there hanging on the cross between two sinners, the Holy one of God who healed the blind, fed the thousands, made men to walk, and loved sinners regardless of their social statues. Behold how He breathes words of forgiveness to those who put Him on the cross. “Forgive them, Lord for they know not what they do”. Behold Jesus, as He looks toward heaven and exclaims, “It is finished”. The ultimate price was paid, Jesus, the God-man who came to earth and lived among us to show us how to live. Gave His life, paid the penalty for our sins that we may behold eternity and see Him someday face to face.

Whiter Than Snow

Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Sin is not removed by the acts of good deeds. It is a stained that is stamped deep in the heart of mankind. The root of evil is rebellion against God and an unwillingness to believe that God is holy and just. Sin, conceived in the heart of man since the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of creation rules the nature of man. But also within the heart of man is a desire to know God, and to find meaning in life. Though our sins be as a stain that cannot be removed, God entreats us to come to Him. Christ died to remove the stain of sin from our heart. He, who is sinless, gave His life for you and me. Even if our heart is wicked, heinous, and commits immoral acts, we can come to Him in confession. God is not unreasonable. He is a God of grace and love. No matter the sin, He is willing to forgive and remove. He is able to wash our sins away and give us a heart that is whiter than snow.

Behind the Veil

Matt. 27:51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

Behind the veil in the temple was the Holy of Holies. It was the sacred place know to the Jews where God’s presences was known. Only the high priest entered into this place, and only once a year. On the wondrous cross, in a spring day of the holy land, Christ was put to death by the people and the rulers of that day. Jesus, the God-Man, He who was without sin died to take on the sin of the human race. From the creation of Adam and Eve, to the birthday of a new born child in 2017, He died for you and me. The veil that separated man from God’s Glory was rent in two from top to bottom giving all access to the throne of grace. He paid the price that we may come boldly into His presence without fear of condemnation or judgment. He who believes that He died and rose from the dead is given power to be called the sons of God. Let us now walk through the rented veil and give Him glory, honor, and praise!

Loved By God

Roman 5:8 “But God commendeth His love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”-

What value does a sinner have? A person who is self-centered and lives to please their selfish desires is difficult to even like. All who are born to this world are born with sin in their heart. The symptoms of this nature is seen even in little children who hardly know they are even doing wrong. As sinners, we do not measure up to God’s holiness, we are yet sinners and the wages of sin is death. But God who reaches out to us in our lost  condition loves us. He made us in His image, and values what He made. Sin has twisted that image, but His love toward us wants to redeem that image, to transform it into the image of Christ. His love was willing to send His Son, Jesus to pay for our sin and take on the penalty that we deserve. Christ died for us, to set us free from sin. Where we were once sinners, we are now made partakers of His love and remade into His image.  No longer sinners, but loved by God and a child of the King.