Keep The Sabbath

 Ex 20:8-10
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy… Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:..But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work.

A lot has been written concerning the keeping of the Sabbath day. There are many who feel very strongly that the Sabbath should be kept to the letter of the law as described in the Old Testament, and others who feel it is no longer relevant to the dispensation of Grace. That Christ's death made the OT law obsolete.  I do find it relevant that the Ten Commandments include this law as part of God's standard of holy living. We know that Jesus says that, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” It was not to be a law that was a burden to keep. It was meant to provide a time of rest from the labors of life, a time set apart to focus our attention on worshiping God. A holy day to focus our time and energy on resting in the presence of Jesus. This law is different from the ceremonial laws given to us in the OT. The sacrifices required by God in the OT were fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross, once and for all. But, Jesus said to keep His commandment if you love Him. What laws were we to keep? The Ten Commandments were not done away with, but Jesus summarized them into two: “Love the Lord thy God with all your heart, and your neighbor as yourself.” To keep the Sabbath day is to rest in Jesus, and make Him Lord of our life.  The commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy is fulfilled in Christ, who is the Lord of the Sabbath. If He is the Lord of our life, we have perfect rest in Him. We set aside this 7th day to put aside the labors of life and the cares of life to rest in Christ. I don’t pretend to know in our current culture what labor is and not labor, and I will not judge people in regard to this, but I know that God is pleased when we take time to rest from the labors of the week and praise and worship Him, and to break bread with other believers. I believe that it is good to keep the Sabbath day special and use it to administer good works towards our neighbors and those who are needy. For those that need to work to provide income, I trust that God will open the doors and provide a way to meet your needs and let you take time to rest in Christ. He is the Lord of our Sabbath, and daily we can rest in Christ to meet our needs.

Nailed to the Cross

 Col 2:14
Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.

We are at the end of passion week. Jesus is living out his final few days on earth. Life on earth is about to enter a new age. Today, over 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ was nailed to a cross. He has suffered humiliation and shame and now hangs on a cross, a spear is thrust into His body, and His blood is spilled for you and me. On the cross, the nails that were hammered into His hands and feet, blotting out the law that condemned us to eternal damnation. The fountain of blood providing eternal life is open for all who will plunge in and be made clean from sin. For all the good reasons that Christ came to earth, this was His ultimate mission. He suffered on the cross to provide salvation, and to give us an example of what it means to give it all to the Father, and follow His steps. As follows of Jesus Christ, He tells us to pick up our cross and follow Him. He did not promise that the journey would be easy. In fact, He said that it would be one of suffering. On this good Friday, we thank God that His Son came to be nailed to a cross and die for our sin and give eternal life. Give Him glory for all He has done, for today, salvation has come.

Jesus Came to Save Sinners

 1 Tim 1:15
 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

Jesus came to earth for many reasons. He came to show us how to live and love. He was the supreme example, showing us how we should treat our neighbors and even our enemies. His message of the Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew chapters 5-7, is a call to a higher righteousness and a life of love, compassion, and selflessness, emphasizing humility, forgiveness, and living according to God's kingdom rather than worldly concerns. Many religious leaders and founders of various religions have also proclaimed this message. There is no doubt the centrality of human desire to those who want to live in peace on this earth is to follow this teaching. But man is born in sin and no amount of good works can alter the fate of man’s condition and ultimate fate.  For all have sinned and are eternally lost without God’s forgiveness. Christ came to earth to be the supreme sacrifice for the sins of humanity. He came into the world to save sinners. We may see ourselves as good people who desire to live in harmony with others. We may have lived respectable lives, keeping the law and doing good.  Surely, this is what it takes to enter eternal life with God after death.  Compared to the “chief of sinners” who surely desire eternal punishment, we would not commit such hideous acts. The reality is that without Christ and His death on the cross we would all be lost and are the “chief of sinners” in the sight of God.  Jesus, the greatest man to ever walk the earth, died to bridge the gap between man and God.  Yes, He came and preached love and forgiveness, but greater than all that, He came to the world to save sinners. I am glad He included me and you!

Receiving the Gift Through Confession

 1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Along with John 3:16, this scripture is used to stress what it means to believe in Jesus Christ. God gave His Son to die and paid the price for our sins, so that we would not die and go to eternal damnation. The message of the Gospel is one of good news, and the good news is that we don’t have to perish. But the good news does come with conditions. Believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and to confess our sinfulness to Him, and accept His forgiveness. It is not God's desire that anyone would die in their sins and go to hell. The message to believers is to go out and tell others of this great gift. This is the greatest gift given to man. We celebrate at this time of the year Christmas to tell the world that God gave the most important gift to mankind when He gave His son to be the supreme sacrifice for the sins of the world. Many will go through this season with the knowledge that Jesus came to this world, and lived among us, and celebrate this great event in history, but many have yet to come to the foot of the cross and confess their sins and to be cleansed from all unrighteousness. This is the reason for the season: Jesus, who was not only born into this world, but also gave his life as the greatest gift man has ever received. We received this gift by confessing our sins. He is faithful to forgive. 

Let Us Enter

Heb.4:16

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

The veil has been rented. The curtain, 4 inches thick, 15 feet tall, was torn apart from top to bottom in the holy of holies where the high priest made sacrifices for his sins and for the sins of the people. When Jesus died on the cross, He sacrificed His life once and for all for the sins of the whole world. He is our high priest, the earthly priest no longer needs to make blood sacrifices for the people. We now have access to the Father, through the blood of Jesus. We can now come boldly into God’s holiness. If we have confessed our sin and believed that Jesus paid the price to forgive our sins, we need not fear coming boldly to the throne where God will pour out His grace to meet our needs. It is only through Jesus that we now have access to the Father, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Act 4:12) Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”) God’s word makes it clear that coming to the Father (God) is only made possible through Jesus, the one who died for you and me so that we may approach the throne of grace with clean hands and a pure heart. Thank God! He is a God of grace and mercy, and as His child, we call Him Abba Father, and He pours out His grace to us in our time of need. Let us enter into His presence.

For Us, Against Us

 Mark 9:40
 For he that is not against us is on our part.

All doctrine is not critical to having eternal life. The Doctrine of the Church concerning Jesus Christ, who He is, and why He came to earth is essential to salvation. There are other teachings that are important and hinge on the person of Christ, but it is important to know that knowing Jesus to be God and coming to save sinners through His death and resurrection is crucial and essential to our beliefs and eternal salvation. “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers” (Titus 1:9). A church that does not hold to this sound doctrine, is not part of the universal church of Jesus Christ that encompasses all who believe that Jesus is Lord and Savior of the heart. They are against sound doctrine and people should be warned of their false teachings. God has a plan for each believer to fulfill the mission of the gospel of Christ. The world is filled with churches that seek to fulfill that mission. As believers, we desire to fellowship with those who are like-minded and share the same core values. Therefore, we may choose to attend and be a part of a particular church. If you don’t agree with those core values, then it is probably best to find a place where you can be effective in ministry to do what God has called you to do. We are too close to the end days and Jesus will soon be returning. We have kingdom work that needs to be done. We don’t have time to be fussing over non-essential doctrine. He that is not against us is on our side.

Name Written in Heaven

 Luke 10:20
Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

There is no doubt that God has the power to cast out demons from people who Satan has imprisoned and bound for years. He came to set the captive free, and empowered His followers to cast out demons in His Name. The ability to heal, or cast out demons is not done by our own power or any intrinsic value we possess. We see throughout the Bible the Apostles doing great things in Jesus' name. Jesus made it clear that doing such a task does not give you any assurance that you will have eternal life. Many will come to Him on that day and say “... Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name have done many wonderful works? (Mat 7:22). He will say to them, “depart from me you worker of iniquity, I know you not.” Their names were not written in heaven, their names could not be found in the book of Life. How does one get their names written in heaven (the book of life)? Those who put their faith in the Lamb of God who was slayed on the cross for the forgiveness of sin are written into the book of life. Jesus, the Lamb who was slayed from the foundation of the world, provided a way of escape from the lake of fire. Confess and believe He died for you, let Him into your heart. Let Him be Lord of your life. Rejoice that your name is written in heaven, and rejoice when a sinner who is lost in sin finds Jesus, and their name is also written in heaven.

Not By Our Works

 Titus 3:4,5
But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared,  Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.

It is a marvel to think that a holy God would consider dwelling with sinful humanity is beyond my comprehension. Man is inherently influenced toward selfishness. There is a part of man that desires to do good and will manifest this goodness through acts of mercy and human compassion. Humanity has the capacity to love, born from being made in the image of God. Civilization has worked to cultivate this goodness, creating laws and statues to help govern the behavior of people to act civilized. The influence of religious organizations has contributed to this influence by teaching us to be kind to each other. Jesus Himself, in the Sermon on the Mount taught us to love your neighbor as yourself. But being good is not enough, for all have sinned and come short of redemption. Our good works come short of meeting the requirement for atonement for sin. But God, in His tender mercy and love sent His Son to pay the price for our redemption. He died on the cross, the sinless One, the lamb of God who is able to take away the sins of the world paid the debt that was ours. Through His death and resurrection we now can have new life, The Holy Spirit is given to us, purifying our hearts by faith. The world is filled with good people doing their best, and only God knows the heart of man, but salvation does not come by good works that we have done, but by faith in the One who is able to save us to the utmost.

Learning to Forgive

Mat 18:27
Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
Jesus, desiring to show his disciples what forgiveness looks like, told the story of the king that forgave his servant, but the servant would not forgive the person who owed him money. The king, hearing about this, could not tolerate the injustice and changed his mind, and required his servant to pay it all. The moral of the story is, If you want forgiveness, you also must be willing to forgive others who did you wrong. Forgiveness is a willful choice that is made because the love of God constrains us to forgive. We realize that we are sinners and in need of forgiveness. Jesus, who died for you and me, paid the ultimate price and forgave us saving us from eternal damnation. When we feel that we have been betrayed or wrongfully accused by someone, it comes with real pain and disappointment. Forgiveness does not always come easy and sometimes over time, the pain eases up, but never goes away. David Branon writes in Our Daily Bread, “Forgiveness at its fullest can be realized when both parties move toward healing and reconciliation. And while it doesn’t remove the effects of harm done or the need to be discerning in how to address painful or unhealthy relationships, it can lead to restored ones—testifying to God’s love and power. Let’s look for ways to “extend forgiveness” for His honor.” We forgive because He has forgiven us, and He is our great example of how to live each day of our lives.

Reconcilation

 Romans 5:10
 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Basic Bible doctrine of the purpose of Jesus coming to earth, Why the Son of God was sent to walk the dusty roads of His own creation. Man’s disobedience caused him to fall away from a holy relationship with his Creator. All humans born into this world are born with the nature of sin in their heart, yet God left within man a desire to have fellowship with his creator. This is the struggle of good and evil. There is no amount of good that man can do to erase the evil (Sin) in the heart of man. To regain our relationship with our Creator and be reconciled, Christ had to die, pay the supreme sacrifice. We are made clean through the shed blood of Christ and now can come boldly to the throne of God. Reconciliation did not stop with his death, Jesus rose again from the grave that we could be saved by His life. Because He lives, we also can live a life that is holy and blameless without sin. I write nothing profound, I write the truth of God’s word, and I choose to believe it. Thanks be to God!

Plenteous in Mercy

 Psalm 103:8,9
The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.  He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.
Because God is a holy God, His anger toward sin and rebellion is evident throughout scripture. Humanity was born in sin and with a nature that is in enmity against God. Every child born into this world has inherited this nature. At some point in a person’s life, God holds us accountable for our sinfulness. The simple Gospel message is that Jesus came to earth, died, and rose again to provide a remedy for this sinful nature. It is God’s love and mercy for us that it is now possible to turn away the anger of the Lord. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us or our sins.” It is not our fault that Adam and Eve yielded to temptation and cursed the human race, but we are given the choice to believe in Jesus for the remission of sin and be made reconciled back to God. This free gift from God shows that He will not reprove us or scold us. His mercy is plenteous to those who call out to Him for forgiveness. He will not turn away a repented heart who cries out for mercy. He is loving and gracious.

He Loves Us

 Zephaniah 3:17

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

The judgments of God are real and He will someday judge each one of us of the deeds that we’re done with the time He has given us in this world. We will be judged on the choices that we have made. Did we choose to give our hearts to Jesus? There is a judgment day coming, but today we live in a time of grace. The good news is that Jesus loves us. He looks upon us with mercy, grace, and love. God the Father is not willing that any should be judged to eternal damnation. He loved us so that He sent His Son in the form of a man to die and take on the wages of sin, and sent the Holy Spirit to us to lead and guide us into all truth and holy living. His love will bring a rest to the soul, His love will quiet the trouble waters in our lives. His love will sing forth our name and give us peace.

Nailed To The Cross

 Colossians 2:14
 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

Our sin, our guilt has been nailed to the cross of Jesus. That is why He died for you and for me. It was to blot out our transgression, removing the guilt of sin from our lives. The cross is the emblem of our salvation, the nails put our sins to death and are forgiven, cast as far from the east as from the west. The life of the past is nailed to the cross, we have been born again, made a new creature in Christ. Sin keeps us from having perfect fellowship with God. It is the hindrance that separates us from having fellowship with a holy God. But sin no longer has dominion over us because it has been nailed to the cross. When Satan brings back the pass, point him to the cross and show him the nails. 

One Offering

Hebrew 10:12.14  But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;…  For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

Them that are set apart, believing that Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of our sins, He hath made them perfect in heart. Because of Adam’s transgression, all born into this world are born with sin, but God sent His son to be the one offering to redeem man from his sinful state. We have not yet arrived, and we are a work in progress. Perfect in heart, with a singleness toward the will of God. But we are earthen vessels, prone to weakness and failures. Our body and mind, and emotions are imperfect and subject to breaking down. God takes this vessel, fills it with His Spirit and uses it for His purpose. He is the potter, we are the clay. He is molding and making us into His perfect will. We need to keep are hands off the wheel and let Him do what He must to make us what we ought to be. 

The Hindrances to the Race

 Feb. 26^th, 2012 pm

The Hindrances to the Race.

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrew:12:1-2

Admonition is to the believers. To those who have found forgiveness through the shed blood of Christ on the Cross. Born again, new babes in Christ.

We witness the faith of those who have gone before us that they dared to believe God in spite of the circumstance.

We also have those who are now witnessing or watching us press toward the prize that is set before us. 

Or

The cloud of witnesses are those who have gone before us watching and cheering us on so that we do not give up and persevere to finish the race.

How important it is that we show the way for those who are watching- 

Or

Knowing that the torch of faith has been passed on to us, we don’t want to disappoint those who were willing to die for the faith.

Let us “lay aside” the Greek word:  Apo Pithimi.  Means to put away- to place or lay something down. The implication is to be far from you, leave it alone, have nothing more to do with it. 

The Weights: Ogkos- a burden, something heavy that impedes progress.

What weights impede you from going all out for Christ?

What keeps you from being a Spirit filled Christian?

Bad attitudes, self-gratification, critical spirit, foolish pride, ego, selfishness, lack of temperance, reckless behavior, carnal anger, fear & timidity to share the gospel, worldly pleasures that cause leanness of heart, uncooperative spirit, unwillingness to prefer others before you.

The Sin- singular, could be the one thing that always trips you up, or it also could imply THEE SIN- the carnal nature that wars inside the heart vying for your attention, always wanting to have its own way.

The theologian, John Wesley speaks of it as the sin of our constitution. That which always brings us down to defeat. 

The Race- The Christian walk or journey is given the analogy of running a race, a marathon with a prize to be awarded for completing the race. RUN with patience (long suffering, endurance, perseverance, through all trials and tribulations) 

Looking to Jesus- It is only through the Cross and the Holy Spirit that He promised that we are able to complete this race. Keep your eyes on the goal. He sees the race from start to finish. He knows the obstacles that you will be facing. Keep your eyes steadfast on Him. 

The Price has already been paid- He went to the cross, took on us the sin of us all. The remedy for SIN has been provided. We just must avail ourselves to the grace he provides by shedding the weights that hinder us from achieving the finish line.