May the Force NOT Be With You!

The Holy Spirit in the third part of the Trinity, and is not an it and is not some kind of force in the universe. The Holy Spirit is a person. The Holy Spirit speaks, not may the force be with you. We need to understand that and whenever we come across that in the Bible, when it refers to the Spirit, with a capital S, it is referring to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity.

Most people's views in the world are pretty narrow when it comes to death. They simply want to avoid the subject all together, but from a believer in Christ's point of view, the Bible is clear, "to be absent from the body, is to be present with the Lord. The world's view of their god is limited to this world because they don't want to believe that there is life after death. We are simply a breath away from the arms of God.

If you consider the entire birth process and how comfortable the environment is for a baby awaiting to be born. All of its needs are met and the temperature for the most part is a consistent 98.6 degrees. There is an adjustment that comes through the birthing process as they baby is physically expelled from the womb and the environment now changed drastically for that baby. Bright lights, cold, and the way the baby is handled from birth to being cleaned off is pretty harsh compared to what it has been used to. The baby simply doesn't understand that this harsh awakening offers a better life soon. As believers in Jesus, we are just passing through the doorway at that moment into the eternal presence of God.

Jehovah's Witnesses don't believe in the Holy Spirit as an actual person so Revelation 14:13 should keep them up at night.

Revelation 14:13b ~ "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!"

The Spirit referred to here is with a capital S, meaning the Holy Spirit. He is speaking. An it or a force can't speak. This is not Jesus, or God the Father speaking either, but the Holy Spirit. There are countless times in the Bible where the Holy Spirit spoke to people. It is here that the Holy Spirit comments! Notice that is in reference to labor (sufferings) and works (deeds).

Most parents with children who work with no time to spare, are the ones who serve the most in church and in ministry opportunities. It is the people with the most time who hardly serve at all. There is a rest coming to the people of God. Single people should be pouring their lives into serving in the church. The Bible commands it. A Spirit-filled life will produce biblical fruit. The fruit of the Spirit is the production of biblical works.

John 15:15-16 ~ "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you."

Jesus wants to call us friends. Tell all your friends from other religions that!

John 15:8 ~ "By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples."

John 15:1-2 ~ "I am the true vine and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear much more fruit."

John 15:4-5 ~ "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me, you can do nothing."

Galatians 5:22-23,25 ~ "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit."

Matthew 7:16 ~ "You will recognize them by their fruits."

Colossians 1:4-6 ~ "since we hard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing - as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth"

Ephesians 5:8-10 ~ "for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light  in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true). and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord."

Romans 6:22-23 ~ "But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

There is an expert witness regarding our lives that will testify and that is the Holy Spirit! He knows us!

Acts 1:4-8 ~ "And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." So when they had come together, they asked him,"Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

Zechariah 4:6 ~ "Then he said to me, This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts."

It is the Holy Spirit that guides us to the work that God has called us to do.

Acts 13:1-4 ~ "Now thee were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. So, being sent out, by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus."

Hebrews 6:10 ~ "For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do."

Romans 8:16 ~ "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God."

Ephesians 2:10 ~ "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

Galatians 6:9 ~ "And let us not grow weary for doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

You'll be blessed by well doing in your life, even if no one else notices. God does!

How Can the Dead be Well Off?

There is an old Puritan saying, "If you're born once, you die twice, and if you're born twice, you die once. What this means is that if you're born once, physically through birth and never accept Jesus during your life time you will die twice, once physically through your body and the second time spiritually in which you will inherit hell. However, if you're born twice, through physical birth the first time, and then accept Jesus, you become born again spiritually, when you die, it will only be your physical body that dies and you will inherit heaven instead.

The Bible is very clear on this subject even though it is one most people don't want to accept. It is simply because they don't want to come to terms with the fact, that there is judgment coming for the things we do wrong in this lifetime, most notable rejecting Jesus, the Bible and all that goes with it. Jesus makes people accountable, and they don't like being told what they're doing is wrong. There are even those who would argue that the portion of Scripture in Luke 16:19-31 is merely a parable. It is not an actual event, it's simply a story Jesus is telling.

In order to understand parables that Jesus spoke, He never used names when He told them. However in this portion of Scripture, He names names. He is giving us insight and He is warning us. People don't want to admit to a place called Hell or that at some point in their lives they will enter into a place of judgment so they simply cast off this portion of Scripture as a parable instead.

Luke 16:19-31 ~ "There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed what fell from rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, "Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.' But Abraham said, "Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from her to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us. And he said, "Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house - for I have five brothers - so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' And he said, "No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent." He said to him, "If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead."

The Lazarus mentioned here is not the same Lazarus we would affiliate with Martha and Mary. Notice that the rich man is burning but he is also not being consumed by the fire. When God refers to Moses and the Prophets, He is telling him to read the Bible, his brothers can read the Bible for the truth. It is in verse 31 that refers specifically to Jesus. He died and rose from the dead, and even today, people refuse to believe in Him and they refuse to believe the Bible or anything it has to say.

Every one has the right to choose where they will spend their eternity.

Revelation 14:12 ~ "Here is a call for endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus."

When you hear the word "commandments" it should not provoke a negative reaction in you. The commandments of God should never be burdensome, impossible, legalistic and the Bible is quite clear, they are not impossible to follow. Did you know that there are over 170 commandments in the New Testament alone? Things like to esteem others better than yourself, to bless others, feed the poor, care for widows and orphans, to believe in Jesus Christ, to love one another. Jesus fulfilled all the law of God on the cross. We are now free from the law because the Holy Spirit now dwells within us making obeying God easier to do.

What does God say to us if we are quiet and willing to listen? "I love you." "I forgive you."

You know if you fall away from God, one of the things you are likely to hear is you can never go back or come back to God. Even if you think you are forgiven and repent, God will never use you again. What church would have you? You're a loser!

You are living under a cloud and you want to know what the Bible has to say about that?

Romans 8:1 ~ "There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Jesus Christ."

You need to simply let the cloud go. Jesus is faithful and just and willing to forgive us. Even if no one else will forgive you in your life, Jesus will!

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." 

Start claiming that promise if you ask Jesus for forgiveness in your life. Claim that promise of God and begin to walk in faith and move forward in that victory, even if people in your life continue to remind you daily of your past sins. God forgets our sins when we ask for forgiveness. As far as the east is from the west. They are forgotten. We might not forget them when we confess them, but God does.

We need to have faith in Jesus just like Revelation 14:12 claims. Faith in our prayer is heresy. We need to have faith in God. Our prayers should be based on faith, but we can't hold God hostage by them, contrary to what some "Christian" pastors and ministries would lead you to believe.

Revelation 14:13 ~ "And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "That they may rest from their labors for their deeds follow them!"

This "voice" is not an angel. From what we have read whenever John hears the voice of an angel, he states that clearly. Anytime a voice is heard from heaven, it is referring to God the Father, The Almighty God, Himself speaking. When He refers to being "blessed," think of it as better, happy, better off, well off instead. How can the dead be well off? If you know Jesus, you can't be petrified of death. We know where we are going when we die, it's the physical aspect of dying or the dying process itself that we are fearful of. It's hard for us to believe, but why?

During the Tribulation Period, the things that are happening and will happen imply that the believer living during that time would be better off to die than to continue to live through the horrors that are coming to them. If you're a Christian now, we will not be a part of any of the Tribulation period. The Tribulation believers, however, death is better than living during that time. The Bible refers to believers as saints and we will dwell with Him in heaven forever.

Psalm 116:15 ~ "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of the saint."

The Invitation is Here, What Will Your Response Be?

Is it possible to pray directly to the Holy Spirit? Since the Holy Spirit speaks to us directly we should remember the pattern. Pray to the Father, in the Spirit, in the name of Jesus. Yes you can pray to the Holy Spirit but keep to the pattern as part of your prayer.

Through Chapter 14 we have been learning that this is a parenthetical insert of snippets of information from God not in chronological order and we have learned the 4 fundamental reasons why God justifies the torment of humans in hell. (1) mankind's rejection of God's rule in their life, (2) mankind's rejection of God's will for their life, (3) mankind's rejection of God's Son, Jesus and (40 mankind's rejection of God's Word. When mankind rejects all these things there is nothing left but judgment. God's judgment is perfect, it is necessary and it is without error.

God is a God of love and does not delight in judgment of any kind.

We read in Matthew 23:37 ~ "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her winds and you would not!" 

Jesus understood the heart of the nation. He wants to gather us together under Him, but the nation of Israel rejected God when He came and America will face the same consequences. We will not escape judgment for rejecting God.

We will learn more about the fate of Babylon mentioned in these verses later, but understand that it is a false church under a strange manifestation of all the worlds religions coming together as one church. An unification of all the world's religions, a global faith. We all worship the same God after all will be their premise.

There is only ONE living God and only ONE way to heaven. The world rejected Him then and they will continue to reject Him now and even in the future. .It will be those differences that separate the real Jesus from the false Jesus'.

Revelation 14:8-11 is all about making choices. Choose to worship the Antichrist, the false prophet and accept his mark , or his security requirement on their right hand or forehead. Those that reject this will be beheaded.

From verse 9 -10 will define the fate of those who make a choice and accept the mark. Remember the verse states "If anyone... doesn't mean that people will have to do it, it will be a personal choice...but those that do, will drink the wrath of God.

Revelation 14:9-10 ~ "And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, "If anyone, worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God's wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb."

The rejection of Jesus warrants eternal torment forever because the price Christ paid, because it was holy and pure, and they choose to reject it. We know in every decision, choices must be made and there are those that will have physical consequences, and those that will have spiritual consequences. We need to be sure we are making the right ones because eternal heaven or eternal hell await every single one of us based on what we will choose. Now is the time to make the decision. No one is guaranteed a tomorrow so if you are feeling a nudge to make a decision for Jesus today, jump on that. The invitation is addressed to you, all you have to do is simply except! It's all be paid for in full for you to attend. God is waiting on your RSVP! You can't show up at the door with it in your hand. He needs to know your coming!

Simply tell Jesus Christ, you accept Him. You accept everything about Him. That he came here to die for your sins, that He was buried for three days, but on the third day, He rose again. He now sits in heaven with God the Father. Tell him you repent of all your sins and to help you to go forth and make better choices with His help. Ask him to come into your heart and guide you in the ways you should go and to fill you with His love and Spirit. Thank Him for all He did to get you into heaven and to restore and redeem you today in Jesus Name ~ AMEN!!!

If you prayed that prayer with all sincerity in your heart, God has heard your prayer and you now have a new heavenly and eternal address that awaits you in the future some day. A day and a decision you will NEVER regret. Welcome to the family of Jesus Christ!

Every Single One of Us is Pro-Choice!

Poor atheists! They never really have a happy relaxing day. They always wake up thinking about God, thinking about the God that doesn't exist. Always battling things. They see a sunset and we would say, "Praise God!" They get upset, over everywhere we look, even misery and mishap. The Bible answers that even that comes from man's rebellion against God and demonic powers that are warring against God. Every good thing comes from God above. Atheists have to battle these realities 24 hours a day. It's gotta be tough to do that every single day.

Don't confuse Christianity with church. Jesus Christ is how you get to heaven.

Do you realize that we are God's only creation that He has blessed with the ability to choose our own path? There are only 2 choices. If we do not choose Jesus, we will continue on the path to death, because we rejected God, and therefore will inherit hell.

Revelation 14:8-13 is all about choices.

When people hear the words "Pro-choice," they think abortion, but I will ask you to think outside of that box.

Pro-choice does refer to life, everything about life, from what we eat, to what we wear, every little aspect of your life, it's all about our choice. We have been granted by God, the right and ability of choice. To remove the ability to choose is totalitarianism, but even then you still have the ability to make some choices, from what you wear, what you eat, we are all pro-choice in those matters.

Pro-life is something I am a firm believer in from everything to do with the spiritual and physical matters. God creates all life and woe to the man who tampers with what God has created. Our system in the world today, including in our schools, is to teach " do what feels good to you." "Do what feels right to you."

They want you to be independent thinkers in what you ought to do, but don't stand out, for the good or bad, because there are rewards and ramifications for every decision we make. We will either experience the benefits or deficits from those decisions, do you get that?

There is fall out from every decision we make good or bad, both spiritually and physically. God offers you a parachute or a lane change from the path you are headed on without Jesus. If you consider this, if you're going to jump out of an airplane if you had to, would you choose to do so with a parachute or without one? Seems like a simple question with a clear cut answer, I mean why would anyone choose to jump out of a plane without a parachute? So why do you choose to live your life, without "THE Parachute?"

Some people will simply gamble their life away to wait and see what happens in the end, but the Bible is clear, by that time, it is too late!!!

Choose Jesus Christ and live!! That you can be in heaven forever with Him.

People who go to hell have to work hard every day to get in there. You want to know why people are working so hard to get crosses eliminated on hillsides and everywhere they have been placed? Because when they find out what the cross means, that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, they become offended because everytime they see it, it is a reminder that they need a Savior. Removing the cross doesn't change anything.

See I'm going to heaven with or without you. I know that for a fact! I am 100% sure!

So the next time you see someone with a "Pro-Choice" sign, run up to them and tell them how grateful and happy you are that they are pro-choice. Tell them to choose Jesus Christ and live!

It may not be popular, but it is what they need to hear. Eternal life is free, it won't cost you anything, but it cost God every thing!

What will you choose?

Whom will you choose?

As Christians, in this world, we suffer temporary pain and suffering, but one day we will have an eternal life of rewards and blessings. See Jesus did all the work for us. He died in our place.

Will you receive this invitation?

We have to agree to receive, and all of us are responsible for our choices. This isn't about religion, but about a relationship, with Jesus Christ. Choose Him today!

We can't do anything without the power of the Holy Spirit in our life, to guide us, empower us and the commission us. We need to remember to lean on Him, every day for our success.

How Does Someone Qualify for Hell?

Isaiah 46:9-10 ~ "Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still t come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please."

We need to know history or His-story, God's dealings with the world if we are ever to have any hope of understanding that God is a God of love. We need to understand that God knows the future. He is not wringing His hands with worry when something happens in the world. He knows everything. Nothing surprises Him. So why do we worry?

When we worry, we are assuming a responsibility that God has never intended to be ours!

As we continue our study into the Book of Revelation, we need to remember that Chapter 14, is a parenthetical insert. God's giving us snippets of things that will happen during the Tribulation period but not in chronological order.

Revelation 14:8-13 ~ "A second angel followed and said, "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries." A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice, "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. Then I heard a voice in the heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."

The final verse in Revelation 14:13 is the most exciting thing in these study of the Scriptures and we will learn more about that in our future study. Today we will study and answer the questions, "Will people really be tormented in fire for rejecting God? How can God, who is a God of love, send people to hell?

We need to understand that God doesn't want anyone to go to hell, but there are those who will inherit hell based on their own choice. 

How does God justify hell and eternal torment regarding humans? How does a person go to hell? There are 4 ways.

1. Mankind's rejection of God's rule in his life. It's saying you don't want God in your life. Every human will at least have one prayer answered by God before they die. That one prayer is to those who say, "Get out of here Jesus. I don't want anything to do with God, Jesus or the Bible." Guess what? God will answer their prayer, tragically.

Understand this. God is no terrorist. He doesn't force His way into your life. He will never force Himself on someone. You have to chose.

2. By mankind's rejection of God's will for our life. God's has engineered our lives for a purpose. Some find it early in life. Some find it late in life. Some find it just before they die. But all of us have been uniquely created for a purpose.

3. By mankind's rejection of God's Son, Jesus. Jesus is no joking matter. Neither should His name be a cuss word. He is a living person. He is real. He lived the life that we can all read about in history. Even ancient Rome does not deny that Jesus existed.

4. By mankind's rejection of God's Word. It includes all of the above... when you hear the gospel, if you reject it, you are rejecting God and all He offers.

How can God, therefore, justify sending someone to hell?

John 3:16 ~ "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life."

Insert your name in the place of world and whosoever. Even if no one else existed in this world, God loved You!

So what is wrong with accepting that invitation of accepting Jesus into your life?

Nothing, it's perfect! It came from the mouth of God. We apparently don't understand the price that was paid for our sins. Why?

Because we have a very low view of our offenses. Whenever we do something wrong, we don't see it as so bad. We can simply apologize for it and it's over. Never under-estimate man's own ability to justify his sins. It just doesn't look so bad in our own eyes. But if we see someone else do it, it looks really bad. Our own sin just doesn't look so bad to us, until someone else does it.

Sin, put Jesus on the cross. That's how bad our sins are. We have a thought, no one heard it but God, yet it still put Jesus on the cross. Even if you were the only person created by God, your sin put Jesus on the cross. We can't escape it. People fail to understand, what price Jesus had to do. Because it is free, we think it's cheap.

It took God to the brink, Jesus Christ died for us as God in human flesh. Every single one of us is sinners. No one is perfect except for Jesus. He lived a perfect life and it cost God everything. That is how hideous the debt to sin is, and only God could pay it.

Jesus Christ's offering was so precious. He was like a Lamb, innocent, but He never defended Himself, because He has nothing to defend Himself for. That is why He said nothing. He had to pay the price in His own blood to set us free from sin. The Bible says that the wages of sin is death. Without Jesus' sacrifice as payment for those sins, all of us would die forever. Jesus set us free!

By faith, sin is so bad, that He sent the perfect offering in my place, that I have to accept this offering in faith alone. The offering of Jesus cancelled the debt, but we all have to make a choice. No one can do it for us.

Most people misunderstand God. They picture Him as a God of wrath, angry all the time, but He is a just and holy God. When man rejects God, there are consequences for our actions. He wants to save you. He doesn't wish that any should perish but all should have eternal life, but we have to be the ones to chose that. Why would anyone give that up?

You have to qualify for hell, by rejecting God every single day. It is harder to qualify for hell than it is to qualify for heaven. We must accept what Jesus has done for you and asking His forgiveness of your sins. That is a whole lot easier, than waking up every single day and pushing and kicking God away.

But more on that tomorrow. Today I hope and pray that you will choose Jesus and eternal life. If you want Jesus as Lord and Savior in your life today, simply pray this prayer and believe it with all your heart.

Lord Jesus, 

I know I am a sinner, and without Your sacrifice and payment on the cross I would have no hope. You came to save me from my sin and from death and I ask for forgiveness of my sins. I believe that You came to earth, died on the cross for my sins, was buried and was raised again to life on the third day and I surrender my life to You. In Jesus Name ~ AMEN!!

That is all you need to do. Your life has been redeemed by the only one who could save you. Welcome to the first day of your new life in Jesus. If you have prayed this prayer, I would love to chat with you and welcome you into the family. Please email me at Stevenkat27@gmail.com.

You Can't Sit It Out!

Tell people!

The greatest news we have is that gospel message to share with every single person we meet but we don't. What we fail to realize is that the mission field has come to our neighborhood now with the recent influx of immigrants coming to America. I challenge you for the next 30 days to tell one person every single day and see what happens.

John 3:16 ~ "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish but have everlasting life."

This sums it all up. It is that simple and that is all you have to share with people. We don't need to over-complicate it. That is all we need to share Jesus with others. We all feel unqualified, and most of us are terrified to share because we don't want to mess it us.

Eternity is coming and we need to faithfully serve Him with the time we have remaining.

Don't ever doubt your self worth. So many people are caught up in self esteem but we need to understand God-esteem instead because of how much God loves us, but we don't believe it. God desires all mankind to be saved with Him.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 ~ "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

God reaches out to every single one of us. He is offering salvation to us and we all need to make a choice. He is extending His hands to us and it's our choice what we decide to do with it.

Romans 1:19-22 ~ "since what may be known about God is plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to wise, they became fools"

You have no excuse to hide behind anymore, so what is yours?

It is said that wisdom is the application of what you know. The gospel was given in totality.

Galatians 3:6-9 ~ "Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham:"All nations will be blessed through you." So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith."

Abraham was declared righteous by the Lord, prior to the giving of the law, because even though the gospel had yet been given through the prophets and new testament authors; the "Applied" gospel to Abraham. Believing in God and trusting in God are two different things. Saying that you know God and having faith in God are two different things. Make sure that your knowledge of God, leads to your faith in God. Make sure when you say you know God, that you are trusting God. Don't just be acquainted with God.

It is the one True and Complete Gospel in totality.

Acts 20:24 ~ "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me - the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."

Romans 1:16-17 ~ "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written:"The righteous will live by faith."

1 Thessalonians 2:9 ~ "Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you."

Ephesians 6:14-15 ~ "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." 

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 ~ "And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

Mark 1:14-15 ~ "After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said, "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"

1 Peter 4:17 ~ "For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?"

Romans 15:18-19 ~ "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done - by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ."

Ephesians 1:13 ~ "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,"

This is an everlasting gospel.

This is what the Gospel is NOT.

Galatians 1:8-9 ~ "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!"

You were created to reverence God, to glorify God, to honor God and to worship God.

Psalm 19:1-6 ~ "The heavens declared the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens, he has pitched a tent for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming froth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat."

The gospel was given to be understood. We have celestial evidence, we have terrestrial evidence, we have oceanic evidence and we have hydrokinetic evidence. Streams of water. Did you know that there is more fresh water below the surface of the earth than above it? That there are subterranean rivers beneath the earth? That since creation, God has not created any new water.

So how can we reverence, glorify and honor Him?

By what we think, by what we say, by what be believe and by what we live for. Honor means to live in a way that points others towards Him!

Make sure that heaven is your eternal home!

God Sets the Terms of Salvation, Not Us!

There are a lot of religious people sitting in hell. I know some of you might not appreciate or like that statement at all but it is true whether you believe hell exists or not! That's because religion won't save you only a personal relationship with Jesus Christ will. That might seem narrow to some, but it is true none the less. People are so lost because of religion, not a relationship!

Atheists protest that they don't believe in God, but if you talk to them long enough, you will understand one thing. They do place their faith in religion. Their faith is in anything else, but God or Jesus Christ, whether it is Darwinism or some other ism, but when rubber meets the road, and adversity hits, they don't hold on to Darwin or cry out for the latest book by Richard Dawkins or Christopher Hitchensen. There is no evidence to support what they believe in, but they have a lot of faith to what they believe in, that makes atheism a religion. I'd rather believe in the God who is, over the god who isn't.

God is the One that defines the terms to salvation. We don't get to come to Him and say, "THIS is the way it's going to be!" Can you imagine that?

Many people today are scared simply because they think the terms are too hard. The Bible says to believe in Jesus Christ, is that too hard?  Jesus is the One who said to trust in Him alone. Believe in Him!

Salvation or the Gospel is sustained by God. It's God who calls us to faith. It is an eternal and lasting gospel. It has always been since before the creation. It was so God could show His grace. Since He knew man would blow it from the beginning, you would wonder why God wouldn't simply scrap the whole human kind thing, but He didn't. He didn't want to throw mankind away and start over. That is how valuable we are to God because we have been created in His image. That is why we need to share the Gospel message with people but the problem is that most people don't know how or even what to say to share it with others. We simply need to share it and let the Holy Spirit use what we say in a supernatural way.

John 10:27-30 ~ "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them , and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

You don't have to prop up the gospel. Just give it.

Hebrews 7:25 ~ "Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them."

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 ~ "Do you know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

When you look at the list of those who can't get into heaven without Jesus Christ, who wouldn't want to sign up for this? The world is longing for good news and we have it for those of us that have been saved through our faith in Jesus Christ. It is not news we want to selfishly keep for ourselves.

Revelation 1:5 ~ "and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood."

This means that there is no sin except for one that can keep us from obtaining eternal life and having that assurance of heaven when we die. The one sin that is unforgivable is to blaspheme the Holy Spirit. What does that mean? To not accept Jesus Christ as Savior.

Remember it is not our way, it is God's way and His terms that define how we will have eternal life and how to get to heaven when we die. The gospel message was given to ALL mankind.

Revelation 14:6 ~ "Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth - to every nation, tribe, language and people."

A decision must be made each time someone hears the gospel and choices are made that have eternal consequences. God created us uniquely His - our worth. Jesus died to redeem us, not the angels who can't be redeemed. We are created in God's image. We are like spoiled children sometimes who push Him away. Don't ever doubt your self worth before God. God has instructions for your life. But most of us have no idea on just how valuable we are to God! Jesus died for you personally to set us free from sin and give us eternal life.

How could we simply not chose this?