Quench Not The Spirit!

"Live by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature," (cf. Gal. 5:16).  

Paul exhorts us two things regarding the Spirit not to do:  quench not and grieve not. God feels our pains and when sin.  We are not to put out the Spirit's present fire nor to be a source of sadness to others or God, in that when we sin or go astray from the truth it hurts God more than us and He must chastise us to bring us back and get our attention (cf. Job 36:15).    We can quench the Spirit even in others by being argumentative, divisive, judgmental, or contentions.  Remember, the servant of the Lord must not quarrel (cf. 2 Tim. 2:24) and also that party politics can divide an otherwise healthy church--people have their personal and political loyalties too. 

It is wise to leave one's politics at home and be one in the Spirit at church, even loving those of the opposite persuasion.  It is a bad sign when you get bummed out going to church because of some offensive believer who chooses to parade or flaunt his freedom in Christ and take stands that are not harmonious or seeks validation for his personal agenda. Remember the axiom: bad news travels fast, especially gossip or useless information.

Some brethren can get a reputation for having an insider view or private heresy that he is nursing or even propagating.  One stipulation of the body is to have a basic agreement in foundational Christian doctrines (cf. Psa. 11:3) you would expect in any Christian church. The chief problem of division is that it encourages rogue leaders and failure to be submissive to the church program or discipline.  Members may not even know who to go to in times of need or who are the spiritual leaders.   

This is where lack of leadership, even hypocrisy come in and further erode the fellowship. A certain amount of self-discipline is expected and the church cannot be another playground to advance one's personal program but must get with the program. In sectarian spirit, the problem isn't lack of knowledge as if all believers need is enlightenment to get their thinking straightened out, but to learn how to show love, first to those in their own sphere of influence or circle of friends, within the church and then without.

We all must learn to walk in the Spirit not to give in to the desires of the flesh, which has a tendency to divide and conquer just like the devil's chief strategy (cf. 2 Cor. 2:4).  There may be feuds or even bad blood in the body to be reconciled, even in the most harmonious of churches.  Now, we may have trials, tribulations, adversities, afflictions, or tests of our faith and we must settle the lordship issue of giving ownership of our lives over to Christ.  The joy comes only when we own Him as Lord and the fellowship of His suffering.  We can defy our circumstances, live above them, and even praise God for our trials because they build character and patience.  The more we yield to God's sovereignty, or give Him lordship, the freer we are--slavery to Christ is the way to be set free as Christ said: "If the Son shall set you free, you shall be free indeed."

A key dictum of St. Augustine was "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity."    We are never to find a case against one another that we hold a grudge. It's not that those who disagree with you need a lecture or to become informed as much as you need a lesson in loving those you disagree with and in your tolerance of them.  Once we learn to stay in fellowship by keeping short accounts with God, coming clean, and being sensitive to the Spirit, we can then be a blessing to others and contribute to the growth of the body and not just be one to get a blessing.  

This is where fellowship and family come in to play: we are one body in Christ, one in Spirit, and one body to work together for all as a community being sensitive to the needs of the body, submitting to one another in the spirit of love and cooperation   Some of us may need an awakening and to be encouraged in the Word or the fellowship of the body but the same Spirit dwells in each of us and we  are all partakers of it and made to drink of the same Lord (cf. 1 Cor. 12:13)

We are exhorted to constantly seek His face and presence by drawing near to God (cf. Js. 4:8) as Brother Lawrence, the seventeenth-century Carmelite monk, wrote in his book, The Practice of the Presence of God. We can do as he was wont to do and always take it to the Lord in prayer but be supported by the giving or our burden to Him and admitting our needs--nothing too trivial nor big for God.  We can know that the Lord is near and experience His anointing too--when we become sensitive to the leading of the Spirit.  

What we must learn is to acknowledge and praise God for who He is and thank Him for what He's done--that's worship. then we will experience intimacy with God and find joy in the circumstance because we are in a win-win situation with God who is on our side (cf. Psa. 56:9) and we are more than conquerors through Him (cf. Rom. 8:37).  In sum, if we learn to walk in the Spirit not quenching it, we will have the fruit of the Spirit manifest in joy.        Soli Deo Gloria!

Our Eternal High Priest

"... For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more," (Jer. 31:34, ESV). 

Now the Law was only a shadow of good things to come (cf. Heb. 10:1) in Christ and Christ fulfilled it to the letter as well as the spirit of the Law.  But before a person is saved, there is a huge gap between them and God--a chasm only transversed only bridged Jesus through the cross.  In the Old Testament, this was represented by the huge curtain that separated the Holy of Holies and the fact that only the high priest could enter it once daily on the day of atonement. But when Christ died, this curtain was torn in two and entree had been granted to the believer in Christ. Now we can boldly enter the throne of grace into God's presence via the blood of the Lamb shed on our behalf.  That's the good news:  God is now approachable as it says in James 4:8,  "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

Thus only Christianity makes full atonement for our sins and thus provides complete propitiation or payment for our sins so that we can be saved by grace through faith.   The problem with the sacrifices before Christ was that they were not perfect and had to be offered yearly and only gave a reminder of sin with no permanent forgiveness. Now we can boldly approach God in prayer (cf. Heb. 4:16) and don't need an earthly high priest.  Jesus is our permanent High Priest who intercedes for us when we sin, sympathizes with us in our needs (cf. Heb. 5:14), mediates for us in life (cf. 1 John 2:2), and has offered Himself as the ultimate, perfect sacrifice that satisfies God's wrath against sin. "For by one offering He hath perfected forever those who are sanctified," (cf. Heb. 10:14, HCSB). NB: He doesn't need to sacrifice daily for sins, but offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice once for all. 

For the Law stated that "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins" (cf. Heb. 9:22; Lev. 17:11).  We now enter God's sanctuary by the blood of Jesus and draw near to God in a heart of faith.  There is no need for any further sacrifice!  The work of Jesus is done as He pronounced on the cross in toto:  "Tetelestai," or "Paid in Full," i.e., salvation is a done deal.]  We ought not to worry about a bill or debt that's already paid!  Jesus is not to be compared to any other priest for He is --superior to Aaron and the Levites, also to Melchizedek who was the priest that blessed Abraham.  We don't compare, we contrast and see that Jesus is one of a kind and not to be surpassed or equaled.  God the Father has declared Christ a priest forever "after the order of Melchizedek."

The chief benefit of having a personal High Priest in Christ is that He always lives to make intercession for us (cf. Heb. 7:25) whenever we do sin and making our case before the Father so that we are never judged or condemned.  Therefore, since we have this access to God's throne and the right to boldness, we ought to live our lives in full assurance without a doubt about our relationship with God and position in Christ that cannot be altered but is sealed in His blood.   In short, He's now the Mediator of a New Covenant (cf. Heb.9:15) in His blood that we are partakers of through faith--we're free from the penalty of our sins and can freely enter God's presence as royal members of His family.

We must reckon Christ's penal substitution as efficacious enough to atone or make final payment for all our sins once for all, with no need for further sacrifice.  Jesus didn't offer a bull or goat or any animal but offered Himself, and He was perfect because He was without blemish with no sin living under the Law.   And He didn't do this in Jerusalem's temple but before God's Holy of Holies. Therefore, "Since then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession...." (cf. Heb. 4:14).

In closing, let me mention in passing that our righteousness is God's gift to us, to our gift to God (cf. Isaiah 45:24) and that it is real and forensic, as God declares us just, not making us just till we reach glory, and not that it is in God's perfect righteousness and justice that He is both just and the justifier.   "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (cf. Gen. 18:15), "For God is just, and His justice will not sleep forever."  ---Thomas Jefferson     Soli Deo Gloria!

No Greater Nor Expected Prophet

"The Lord GOD has spoken!  Who can but prophesy?"(Amos 3:8, NKJV). 
"Let us prophesy in proportion to our faith," (Romans 12:6, NKJV).
"For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy," (Rev. 19:10, NKJV).  
"Desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy," (1 Cor. 14:9 NKJV).  

Basically speaking, prophets comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable; they have a message for all time and for everyone--past, present, or even future in application.  There are no prophets per see in the church today, though the gift of prophecy is often exercised as seen when one offers a word of wisdom or edification to the body.   Actually, when the preacher exhorts his flock and speaks a message given by the Lord, it is a prophetic word to be heeded nevertheless (that's why we must take him seriously).  Jesus was a "Prophet mighty in word and deed," (cf. Luke 24:19).  Jesus was indeed the One whom Moses spoke of when he said, "The LORD will raise up for you a prophet..."   (cf. Deut. 18:15).

But Amos warns of a time when the prophetic word will become rare and people will yearn for a word from the LORD and it won't come (cf. Amos 8:11). If we ignore and don't heed God's Word, He may cease speaking to us and be silent.  Just as the Samaritan woman recognized Jesus as a prophet, we ought to recognize this gift in the church body today--"let all things be done for edification."  "Let him who prophesies edify the church," (cf. 1 Cor. 14:4).

"The law came through Moses, grace and truth through Jesus Christ," (cf. John 1:17).   Jesus came to bear witness of the truth!  Those who heard Him knew that what He taught was of the truth and those of the truth heard Him.  Being the personification of truth, He came to set us free from the lies of Satan, and only a Great Teacher could open the eyes of the blind and be the light that lights every man (cf. John 1:9).  We are to be witnesses of the truth also as we abide in Him and His Word.  This is the chief function of prophets: to show the truth to the blind!   No greater message, no greater truth, no greater teacher, and finally, no greater prophet than Jesus!  We must follow in His steps and make our stand for the truth and not stand in the sidelines of neutrality!

Jesus is our prophet, priest, and king in His threefold offices, but especially as a prophet we see Him as our Great Teacher who shows us our sin, opens our eyes, convicts us, and shows us the way.  Jesus was considered greater than Moses and Elijah, who were the two greatest prophets, by His transfiguration and God the Father telling the disciples to listen to Him. God gave His official stamp of approval on Jesus' ministry--"Listen to Him." Jesus told us He never spoke on His own accord but what the Father had told Him to say--He wasn't out to promote His will or Himself, but the Father's.    What really made Christ's preaching so unique and great was that He always practiced what He preached and preached what He practiced without any duplicity. Most of all, Jesus was a man with a message and a man on a mission to do His Father's will and be about His business.

The people were looking for a prophet to come as well as a king to deliver them, as well as a priest greater than Aaron to bring a New Covenant and sacrifice.  They probably thought that three Messiah figures would come.  Israel had not heard from a prophet in over 400 years and finally, God's silence broke and the people sensed a prophet had arrived--"Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD."

We must note that we cannot compare Jesus to any other figure but only contrast Him.  He is greater than Moses, Aaron, Elijah, Melchizedek, David, etc.  To compare them is to do Jesus injustice and to insult His superiority.  It is especially important that Jesus is greater than Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the prophets) because they were probably considered the two greatest figures in the OT --there would be no doubt He was "The Prophet who is to come," like, unto God Himself, even His life was a message to heed. In the final analysis, Jesus will never be surpassed.

The people were expecting one "like God," in whom they must listen.  He was greater than John too who had come in the spirit of Elijah and was considered a prophet by the people.  The fact that Jesus was recognized as a prophet doesn't mean they listened to Him and obeyed Him--they were fickle and would only hear what they chose to hear and what suited their agendas or needs.   People want a certain kind of prophet that fulfilled their needs and He didn't quite fit the bill, so eventually, they turned on Him.  That is to say, we may be let down if our expectations are wrong.  People hear what they desire.

His message was a thankless one of repentance and salvation, but they wanted deliverance from Rome and a military hero, not a pacifist.  He clearly wasn't the conventional Messiah they expected and they certainly didn't heed His message to repent and seek the kingdom of God--most people followed Him from curiosity, getting their free meals, or seeing signs and wonders as a curiosity.

Anything less than the truth is a lie, or a caricature and is actually idolatry and not worship.   The great lesson is that Jesus is who He is and we must accept Him that way, He is not who we want Him to be--He's not all things to all people; if you want a genie to fulfill your wants He will not foot the bill.  We must beware of those who preach "another Jesus" and not the Lord who demands us to lay down our lives and follow Him even to the point of death, denying ourselves. He demands obedience:  "To obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams," (cf. 1 Sam. 15:22).

He is the Great Prophet in that we must listen or ignore at our peril and He is God's last word to mankind.  We must consequently heed every word, obey His message, and follow Him going on to proclaim His message.  We must be able to practice His message and to apply it to everyday life.  No cross equals no crown!  Christ isn't our enabler in sin but calls us to holiness and loving Him.  Remember, the immeasurable cost He paid for our souls and the least we can do is to obey Him to show our love.       Soli Deo Gloria!  

What Makes The Bible Unique? ,,,

1. Over 2,000 fulfilled predictive prophecies in great detail, not just a few lucky guesses.
2. Historical accuracy that is even corroborated by secular sources, even about Jesus—it dehistoricized, it’s totally discredited (and some have tried).
3. Archaeological digs verifying its references (over 25,0000)—as Jesus said, “The stones cry out….” (cf. Luke 19:40).
4. It has been the most translated book in history (over 1800 languages) and has had more impact and influence than any other book in history.
5. It has meaningful miracles that are not just helter-skelter or random; it’s the only holy Scripture that, if you remove the miracles, it is meaningless.
6. It was written by over 40 men over 1500 years and has no contradictions, unexplained.
7. it is inspiring and changes lives of those who read it—it claims inspiration of God—it’s the most quoted book in history.
8. It says, “Thus saith the LORD,” or its equivalent over 3,000 times—it claims to be the Word of God unlike any other “scripture.”
9. The Bible can prove itself if one gives it a chance and only reads it.
10. It has no scientific anomalies, but makes many statements ahead of its time that have been proven true—the Bible is the foundation of the philosophy of science saying there are laws of nature (cf. Job 38:33).

Promoting Our Brand Of Christianity

"... You are always on their lips but far from their hearts," (cf. Jer. 12:2, NIV). 


Many believers err in being converted to the program, not to Christ!  Those who fail at seeing the light in service within the church don't do Him justice as servants--we are here to grow up into a mature person able to serve Christ within the capacity of our spiritual gifting.  While others love Christ and are anti-establishment, fearing and disrespecting any organization.  The church is not an institution or organization so much as an organism, a living body of believers learning to interact and connect with others, serving Christ in concert and set up for its purpose of fulfilling with a great commitment to the Great Commission.

But there are believers who push their brand of Christianity as if they are right and everyone else is wrong by default.  That's what defines a cult!  No church has a monopoly on the truth and we are all in this together as one church in Christ though there are many local bodies of believers.  Many churches are too involved in programs such as charity or relief efforts and not in spreading the good news of Christ.  We must turn stones into bread but not at the expense of the Great Commission or the sharing of the gospel message--some don't even know it.

We all have a place in the church body and we must seek to find a church not only that we can agree with but where we can feel at home and even serve in the body; after all, the Great Commission was given to the church at large as well as the believer--we must not shirk our duty in either capacity.  Being a member of a church and not an attendee who has no commitment is also vital for growth.  Just as we are dedicated to Christ we must not avoid dedication and service to our church.  Belonging to a church fulfills us in the sense of feeling a sense of belonging that may take away our desire to belong to the world and its entities.  The divine order is to believe, then belong, and then to become.

Finally, we bear Christ's image and become a living and serving member in the body doing His will.  We must never forget that our paramount belonging is to Christ and we must never compromise our faith.  It is the duty of the church to prepare the body for service and application of the faith within their spheres of influence. A genuine believer can worship in any authentic Bible-believing church, but that doesn't mean we are to become interdenominational or come to the conviction that doctrine doesn't matter in the church's teaching--we must adhere to sound teaching and always fight heresy that can creep in. But for cooperation purposes, it's not wrong to be nondenominational and some churches label themselves that because they only want to be known as Evangelicals that are not necessarily affiliated. But note that we are not trying to impress a church or advertise and promote it, but must keep our eyes on promoting Christ and promulgating the gospel message in its purity.

Sometimes churches can become dysfunctional!  Some members are in rebellion and refuse God's will and go astray and disobey the gospel.  We should never be offensive believers, neither in the body or without. We must remember that Satan fosters rebellion and desires to split the fellowship into factions or parties.  This can happen when zealous believers (but not according to knowledge) favor their own agendas and hobbyhorses and don't seek God's will but only ask God to bless their wills.  We must realize that there is authority in the body for a reason and Christ commands the respect of authority as well as purity of doctrine.

So then, we must refrain from playing church and even doing church or our version of it and submit to all authority, even in the body.  All of us contribute and are meant for a purpose in Christ, He has a place for us in His body and can give us purpose, meaning, and dignity within it.  One's church ought to be known by its message, fruit, and mission.  "For lack of vision, the people perish," (cf. Prov. 29:18).  Churchgoing isn't a passive activity,  but being involved and a chance to connect and take a spiritual checkup or workout and to examine our fruit!

Christ is perfect as the head and we must all remember that we are imperfect, we still can be used by God, but also that God has chosen to use us as vessels of honor to do His will and we can do everything to the glory of Christ and in His name--that's why we are known by how we exalt our Lord and give Him preeminence. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom!  (cf. 2 Cor. 3:17). We shouldn't be known by our doctrines or distinguishing teachings as much as how we are obedient to the Great Commission and provide a place for the members to fit in and grow together as a functioning body. 

So what is Churchianity?  

Some Christians "play" church and go through the motions of worship and never go for the right reason--to worship God--they say, "I didn't get much out of worship today!" (maybe they should concentrate on what they put into it). God condemns us for having worship without our heart in it or hypocritical worship, this is just "memorizing the Dance of the Pious." A real hypocrite (hypocrite means wearing a mask, or acting in a play) is not one who falls short of his ideals, but one who uses religion as a cover-up and knows he is insincere.

The theme of Psalms is Ps. 29:2, "Ascribe the Lord the glory due to His name, worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness." Deut. 17 condemns insincere and dishonest worship or sacrifice. Amaziah (cf. 2 Chron. 25:2) was known for doing the will of the Lord, but not with a true heart. Malachi condemned the lip service of his day. Jer. 12:2 and Isaiah 29:13 also bemoan lip service and insincere worship not from the heart.

Someone has said that there are four persons that we show: The one God sees; the one you see; the one the world sees; and the one your intimate friends see. Let's be careful not to just have a "public persona" and parade our spirituality or piety. Worship should be a delight and our feelings should be in it (or we are blaspheming God, which is like doing it as a "duty" not because we want to) as the command "Delight yourself in the Lord..." says.

In summary: Psa. 84:1 says, "My soul longs, even faints, for the courts of the Lord" and Psa. 122:1 says, "I was glad when they said unto me, 'Let us go into the house of the Lord.'"  "Blessed are those who hear the joyful shout," (cf. Psalm 89:15).

We can worship or be edified in a "crowd," but we need to function in a local body of believers with our spiritual gift. Rick Warren says that there is no "one-size-fits-all" for worship and there are many ways to worship.  We are to be committed to our church as a token of our commitment to Christ--they go hand in hand--and then we will grow and be accountable.

I  denounce and disapprove the legalistic crowd that goes to church thinking that will make them a Christian, like going into a garage will make you a car, or eating a donut will make you a cop. They are called the "nod-to-God" crowd, which thinks it is fulfilling its obligation by a short visit to the local church, just out of guilt. The true Christian wants to worship God fellowship with other believers with whom he is a "fellow on the same ship."

I think some megachurches miss the boat in worship, they don't know the preacher nor each other (and is the worship in the Spirit and in the truth?). But different people are at different stages and God has a purpose for their existence--megachurches aren't where I'm at though.

Some think their religious performance is enough to save them. To some, it's only a formality and not a relationship. John MacArthur says, "We can't enter through our religious emotion or our sanctified feelings...Lip service is no good--there must be obedience...You don't get into the kingdom by sincerity, by religiosity, by reformation, by kindness, by service to the church, not even by simply naming the name of Christ; you get there only by personal trust and faith in [the person and work of] Christ." We can have a form of godliness and be empty. The church at Sardis had a reputation that it was alive, yet it was dead (see Rev. 3:1). We can even have "sanctimonious emotions" and be sentimental and not know Christ. There is a difference between knowing the Word and knowing the Author of the Word.

We can have many experiences in church and everyone has a different one, but I believe we should test our experiences by the Word of God and not the Word of God by our experiences. That's an important concept--we are not to become either rationalists nor empiricists (going by reason or experience only), but belief in the Bible (revelation) and anchored in sound teaching or doctrine (cf. Titus 2:1).

The more we learn, the more we realize where the wiggle room is and what is not worth fighting about--they generate more heat than light and are not worth the adrenaline.  We are to "maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace," (cf. Eph. 4:30).  Sectarianism is a sin according to 1 Cor. 1, and we shouldn't divide into factions if we can help it. As Augustine said, "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity."

In sum, we must not major on minors and be certain to keep the main thing the main thing; they will know we are Christians by our love. Soli Deo Gloria!

The Difference Jesus Makes

All religions are not basically the same ideals under different wraps, as the Baha'i religion would have you believe. Even many Americans believe they all pray to the same God under different names! Some faiths say that all are equally valid beliefs and what matters is what works for you. But two contradictory views cannot both be equally valid, logically speaking. The funny thing about religion is that most people are misinformed or uninformed and even have disinformation from propaganda sources that spread their faith by name familiarity or blitzing the public.

For instance, did you know that Buddha (Enlightened One) never claimed to be God or even a god but was an agnostic who only sought enlightenment; saying that if there was a God, He couldn't help you with finding enlightenment, you must find it on your own--by the way, Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) only sought to reform Hinduism and not start a new faith that is the predominant worldview of the Orient religion-wise. In contrast: Jesus said, "[And] you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32, ESV). He is the embodiment and epitome of truth to be known in Him.

Every faith has its own idea of who Christ is: Mormons believe He achieved godhood or became a god and is our elder brother; Buddhists just believe He was another enlightened teacher; Jews believe He was a gifted, miracle-working, misunderstood, but deceiving rabbi; Muslims believe he was a great prophet and even the Messiah, but lower in rank than Muhammad himself, who is the greatest and final prophet. Jehovah's Witnesses see Him as the first created being and a lesser god, unworthy of worship though; even Scholars believe He is someone special, even if a great moral example or ethical person who died a martyr for a good cause. The point is that if you don't figure out who Jesus is, you are in heresy. "Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God..." (2 John 9). So who is He? He is the one and only Son of God, co-equal, co-eternal, and co-existent with God the Father.

Buddhists believe in going ultimately to nirvana or being snuffed out like a match in the ocean or candle on a birthday cake when they die. Achieving nirvana is likened to total nothingness: They refer to the extinction of all desire which leads to the cessation of pain and suffering caused by it, via many reincarnations. The Hindus, on the other hand, see nirvana as a reunion with Brahma, after numerous reincarnations or transmigrations. Hindus are pantheistic (all is God) and have many gods (millions--no one knows for sure!) and for this reason, are also polytheistic. 

Jesus was real in saying He was going to prepare a "place for us"(John 14:1-2) and heaven is a real place in Christianity, not of man's imagination, such as the paradise of Islam, where they get 72 virgins and live a life of wine, women, and song for eternity because they abstained from this on earth. Only heaven is beyond that which we could imagine or conceive and is divinely revealed. "But, as it is written, 'What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him'" (1 Cor. 2:9, ESV).

The whole point of Christ calling us is to spread the Word of the gospel and increase the kingdom of God, because He said His kingdom is not of this world--however, Muslims believe in world hegemony and have geopolitical considerations in their faith and believe Christ is coming to force everyone into Islam, hence "submission." Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world." You must be born again to "see" the kingdom of God, and it is like the wind that we don't see, but can see its effects on earth and what it is doing. 

But God opens our spiritual eyes to His truth in the Word and we are made alive spiritually, restoring our relationship with God--this is true salvation! Because of Jesus' resurrection, we have evidence and proof of our final resurrection, and it is not just pie in the sky without any objective, historical fact to back it up like the competing faiths.

It was Judaism that introduced the world to monotheism and Christianity is the fulfillment (not replacement) of this faith. Islam believes that their faith supersedes and replaces or cancels out Christianity and Judaism, not just fulfills them. Muslims have no assurance of salvation unless they die in a Holy War or Jihad (this is a great recruitment tool and why they are so fanatical and have geopolitical considerations). The religion, known as the "religion of the sword," is based on total submission, in fact, Islam means "submission" and a Muslim is "one who submits." 

They even circumcise about 75 percent of the girls to make them obedient and docile and do not believe they should be treated equally on a par with men in a man's world shaped by seventh-century ethics and customs. Girls are not traditionally allowed to even get an education. Jesus changed all this and saw women as men's equals and partners in life and having the same aptitudes and abilities as men. They may have a different role, but they are equal. The woman is the counterpart of the man and his helpmate in Christ--we are all one in Chris--no male nor female!

When you look at all the religions, they all say "do" and are based on works to get salvation. But you never know in a works religion how much is enough to get saved. Christ made it possible to know for sure that one is saved and to have this assurance of salvation, which sets Christianity apart from all other faiths. Christianity is a love affair with Jesus, not a system of ethics, or philosophy, or creed. It's not a religion, they say, but a relationship with the living God Himself. 

Muslims don't acknowledge a personal God that we can know and have a relationship with, and they certainly don't believe God is love, because they see Him as totally arbitrary, capricious, whimsical, and unpredictable, even changing His standards. They sincerely believe that one angel records their good deeds, and another their bad deeds, and at Judgment Day they will see which balances out the most.

One of the biggest mistakes well-meaning and sincere people (but sincerity alone doesn't save--you can be sincerely wrong) is the idea that the essence of Christianity is the Sermon on the Mount or the Golden Rule itself and they only have to sincerely live by a code--Christ didn't come to make bad people good, but dead people alive! To know God is eternal life!  

Religion (knowing a creed, while Christianity is knowing a Person) says "in order to" get salvation (works), while Christianity says "therefore (we are already saved and desire to do good deeds to prove it)." We don't have to do good works but want to, in other words. Religion is basically a do-it-yourself proposition and a way to "lift yourself up by your own bootstraps." Religion believes you are basically good, capable of reforming yourself, and denies the problem is sin per se. Only in Christ do we solve the sin problem by the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ from the dead. Religion is the best man can do and is basically man reaching up to God; Christianity, however, is God reaching down to man in grace (love that stoops is called grace). Christ introduced a new concept called grace that means we can never earn, don't deserve, and cannot repay our salvation. 

It is totally a gift of God to be received by faith and there is nothing we can do but believe in Him! Religion says "do" (respecting good deeds to earn salvation); however, Christ says, "done," because He said on the cross tetelestai or "It is finished [paid in full--finis]." It is a done deal in Christ--there's nothing to do but accept it. There's nothing we can do to add to Christ's work on the cross and it would be an insult to God if we tried! "The work of God is this: to believe in the one whom he has sent" (John 6:29).

All the major faiths deal with miracles, but you can take the miracles out of them and you still have the religions intact. Islam doesn't need miracles (recorded only in the Hadith or the traditions dated much later after Muhammad died) and the faith survives without them. But Christianity is different: Without the miracles of Christ, He would have only remained a footnote in history and the movement would never have gotten off the ground. If you remove the miracles from Christianity you disembowel it and there is nothing left but a philosophy such as living by the Golden Rule (some actually do have this as their religious dogma or credo). 

The miracles of Christ are different from other faiths: They were never staged, done on-demand, for personal gain or profit, for a show, or done without skeptics present, unlike the other faiths. Jesus had a reason to do each miracle (really a sign as John called them because they taught a lesson about Him). They are not helter-skelter or done without rhyme or reason, but methodical and orderly as if prearranged and planned from eternity from the Father.

The whole point of Christ's teachings was that He claimed deity and did so convincingly so that the Pharisees made no mistake in what He was claiming and plotted His crucifixion accordingly. No other religion's founder claimed deity: Muhammad just claimed to be the last prophet of mankind, as heard from the angel Gabriel. Buddha never claimed deity. Hinduism was founded about the time of Abraham, but it is polytheistic (many gods) and also pantheistic (everything is God), which is almost like saying there is no God in effect. In all the Scriptures of these faiths, only the Bible claims to be the Word of God propositionally. Many(over 3,000) times it says, "Thus says the LORD"' and so forth--not so in these other "holy" writings. 

However, there is a distinction in that Christ never prefaced himself in such a way, but audaciously and boldly proclaimed His own edicts and spoke as no man ever spoke with such authority and made claims no man ever made, backed them up with such character never seen and proved them by such signs and miracles never been done, that to doubt Jesus, one can never say there is a lack of evidence to believe, but one must not want to believe out of moral reasons and not because of intellectual reservations. The anti-establishment and nonconformist figure that Jesus was, truly upset the applecart and invaded the turf of the Pharisees and threatened their job security! Will Durant calls Him the greatest revolutionist in history.  

Both Hindus and Buddhists also believe in Maya or that reality is an illusion and you cannot bet on it (science never would've developed under such an outlook!). Jesus claimed to be "The Truth," which means we can know reality and count on it and have a personal relationship with the epitome of reality itself--Jesus Christ. This means there is absolute truth or Truth with a capital "T." Christ is totally objective (we cannot be), and is true regardless of our belief or doubt and what He said is true regardless of what someone says expert or not. With man, there is no such thing as total objectivity and we must rely upon revelation from God to know the truth.

It is primarily a way of life and traditions such as bathing in the Ganges River of India and the caste system are kept religiously by ignorant people. Both Buddhists and Hindus believe in karma or that you are your own island and suffer what you deserve: If you are suffering, that is your karma and one shouldn't interfere--how different is Christianity that teaches love for our brother, neighbor, and even enemy! 

But Mother Teresa of Calcutta is an example of how Christian love as shown in Hindu India where she ministered to the outcasts and pariahs that no one cared about. Even Bertrand Russell, the renowned British atheist, and mathematician, said that what the world needs "is more Christian love." Most religions really believe in "looking out for number one" while Christianity shows the world what charity or real godly love is all about (the example of the Good Samaritan, for instance).

The whole purpose of Scripture is not to increase our knowledge or enlighten us (we are not saved by knowledge, secret or otherwise), but the purpose is to change our lives. We aren't saved by being enlightened or by knowledge per se, but in knowing Jesus. Jesus makes a person new from the inside out and is in the resurrection business of changing the lives of those who realize their need. ("I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners unto repentance," "... [Those] who are sick need a physician.") Religion is only about reforming yourself and turning over a new leaf, as it were, but they don't give you the supernatural power to do it--you must muster all your own strength. In Christ, we not only have changed lives (even some religion can do that much) but exchanged lives, which is the miracle.

Jesus didn't come to be a wise teacher of morals, or a religious martyr for a movement, but a Savior from the sin virus that affects us all. In Christianity, we have Jesus living in us to will and to act according to His good purpose (cf. Phil. 2:13). It is not about imitation, but about inhabitation. "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27). You can say with Paul in Galatians 2:20 that it is no longer you that lives, but Christ that lives in or through you.

With Jesus in the equation, you have a whole new outlook on life and see life with the lens of His truth so you can see the Big Picture of how to interpret world events--life makes sense! Jesus does make a difference! You can too if you know Him! Viva la difference! In contrast to other faiths, you can take Buddha out of Buddhism, or Muhammad out of Islam, and you still have the basics of the religion; however, you cannot do this with Christianity--taking Christ out of it leaves nothing left: It would be an empty philosophy without any power to implement it and have promised without any fulfillment. When you factor in Jesus, you find that life is worth living and there is meaning a purpose in living for Him. Soli Deo Gloria!

The Good Samaritan As Our Role Model

In the parable of the Good Samaritan, it was the unlikely Samaritan who offered his services to the hapless victim on the road to Jericho.  This story shows what a good neighbor really is--one who comes to the aid to anyone he can help and in need.  This is the summation of loving our neighbor because the teachers asked Jesus who their neighbor was and He used this story to explain. We are to love our neighbor as ourselves! The real test of love is to the ones not so lovable--those outside our tribe or, in today's terms, political affiliation.  Sacrificial love and unconditional love, not with strings attached or quid pro quo. Men always seem to be out for a motive to see what's in it for them.

The remarkable point of this story is the prejudice of the Pharisees who couldn't even answer Jesus' question as to who was the good neighbor.  They didn't even want to mention the word Samaritan because these people were hybrid Jews or illegitimate. The Jews only thought that salvation was for them as a privileged people, nation, or race, but Jesus made it clear that He came to save all men and cared even about the despised Gentiles.  Each of us may have the opportunity to help out someone less fortunate than us or some person in need in our lives and we must take it seriously; for Jesus said that whatever we do to the least of His brethren, we have done for Him.

We must all come to the aid of our countryman in his time of need! We all have a calling to be servants and to lay down our lives as it were as a token of our love and devotion.   The least we can do is to meet the basic needs of someone that we have the opportunity to help and also the means to do it.  God blesses us so we can be a blessing! (cf. Zech. 8:13)    Our cup must overflow!  The ethic of Jesus is the highest bar achievable and only Jesus did, but be not discouraged: direction is the test, but perfection is the standard (cf. Matt. 5:48). We will not become glorified till we reach heaven where we will be rewarded according to our works, not our faith--what we did with it. Even offering a cold cup of water in Jesus name will not go unrewarded and what we've done to the least of His brethren, we've done to Him (cf. Matt. 25:40).

There is a story of a man in danger during a flood and, when climbing to the roof of his house, he prays for salvation from Jesus  A boat goes by and offers help, but he rejects it. A chopper goes by and he rejects it.  Finally, a paratrooper lands and offers help only to be rejected.   When the man drowns and goes to heaven he asks Jesus why He wasn't saved.  The Lord said that He was in the boat, chopper, and paratrooper to offer more personal assistance and He was rejected.  Jesus has no hands but our hands and uses us to accomplish His will.

We may someday have the opportunity to stop miraculously into someone's life to offer life-saving help in a person's time of need as Jesus incognito.  Just think how the parable of the Good Samaritan would be told if the Samaritan had been rejected because of his nationality to offer help.  Today we have Samaritans by another name: those of an opposing or competing political persuasion.   NB:  The Christian ethic is the highest bar to achieve and none of us fulfills it; the Christian life is not hard, it's impossible!      Soli Deo Gloria!

The Final Revelation Of God

God's people Israel had killed all the prophets, so God saw it was necessary and sufficient to send His Only Begotten Son--if peradventure they'd listen to Him.  But Jesus is the complete and final revelation and message from God that we reject at our peril--there's no other way.  There is no other name given under heaven among men whereby we must be saved ( cf. Acts 4:12).   God spoke in divers manners in ancient times (dreams, visions, audible voices, prophet, etc.) but today in these last days, He speaks through Jesus as revealed in His Word (cf. Heb. 1:1). Even Plato longed for the day of God's revelation via a message to make everything plain and explain it all--to be the Answer.  All men seek the answer, but not the Answerer! They seek the benefits but not the Benefactor!   But we need more than answers--we need the vacuum in our souls filled with the living God. It doesn't satisfy to know God exists but only to know Him personally.

The philosophers of antiquity reasoned out that God was indeed immutable as their first premise:  they pondered the permanence or being versus the flux or motion of matter and realized all cannot change or it all would be chaos.  There had to be a stabilizing factor.  One philosopher said, "Whatever is, is."  This sounded ludicrous but if you think it does make sense--if something exists in a state of permanence, in reality, it cannot change.  God is not an "Is-ness," but an "Is-ing," meaning He's a living Being not a state of Being. One could add that God is not "past tense, "static present tense," nor "future tense," but ongoing present tense--a living Being--is always and forever active and alive, living beyond and outside the time-space continuum (time is no element or relevance to Him).

Note that they are saying, "You cannot step into the same river twice," to illustrate the concept of change or flux in things and all creation.  We also change constantly and learn but God remains the same or He couldn't be God--"I, the LORD, change not," (cf. Mal. 3:6).    Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever (cf. Heb. 13:8). That's why God's name is best expressed:  I AM THAT [WHO] I AM ... ad infinitum. God exists in a way we cannot perceive, but we can still know Him with our perceptions.  On the contrary, God represents permanency and constancy, in whom is no variation nor shadow of turning (cf. James 1:17).  

They also saw purpose and meaning and even design in creation and reasoned a Logos or stabilizing power behind it all that held all things together. Logos has many meanings: one is self-expression or authentication [of God].  Jesus is how God revealed Himself to us.  This immutable and changeless Being is God just as Jesus changes not.  The Logos was the opposite of chaos and there must be logic and reason for there to be learning and science at all--you have to start somewhere with some certainty, a starting point of reality.

In philosophy, without logic, you have mere confusion and can know nothing.   All knowledge is contingent on logic. Plato also said that in order to know how to live in reality, we must know what God is really like!  It's a good thing we see Jesus as God's full and final Word or message.  Jesus fulfilled all time and space requirements to be its conclusion and last word and testament.

But the point is that there is a divine footprint on God's creation that shows His presence and power.  Look at DNA as His language in every living creature.  Look at the Anthropic Principle that shows how the earth is perfectly suitable for life and even the slightest change would rule out life altogether.  Think about how God makes kinetic or useful energy out of the random energy of the sun through the process of photosynthesis.  Think about the laws of physics; namely, entropy or the Second Law of Thermodynamics and even gravity, the relationship between time and matter in space, and the expanding universe all pointing to a beginning in time actually when time began, because things run out of usable energy with time elapsing ("In the beginning [implying an end?]").

Even the so-called Big Bang refers to a beginning point of all time, space, and matter--time being the corollary of space and matter and relative to them.  All this only proves there was a beginning which merely implies a Beginner.  We know that nothing (no effect or event) just happens by itself but must have a cause according to the law of causality; therefore, the universe had to have a cause or reason for being--nothing can create or cause itself but needs an explanation.  The wonderful balance of nature and laws of nature, even the harmony of the human body and its beauty imply a Designer and a Supreme Mind because of ID or intelligent design is so apparent.  This ordered cosmos shows an Orderer and that thought is present, but the divine order: Thinker, thought, thing.  

The wonderful news is that we have the full revelation of God in Scripture--the complete canon of the Word of God and this is better than if Jesus were still around doing itinerant teaching of the multitudes.  Jesus also gave us the Spirit to enlighten us and show us the Way, the Truth, and Life. We have no excuse for not knowing God!  We cannot plead ignorance in our day and age!  Ignorance isn't bliss! Even with modern technology, all of us are culpable if we don't heed to the written Word of God.

But just as God created space and time, He gives all of us space and time to repent and the average person does reject Christ 7.6 times before receiving Him as Lord and Savior.  No one is a lost cause!  We reject God before He rejects us, but He changes our hearts, not us.  But God doesn't give up on us; we are all bad, but not too bad to be saved!   Yes, we have an advantage over the ancients who relied on prophets, priests, and rabbis or teachers to explain everything--when He comes He shall guide us all into the truth (cf. John 16:13).  We have pastors and teachers prepare the flock and be a guiding light, the full canon of Scripture, and the resident Holy Spirit's anointing, but this is no excuse for falling prey to heresy; we are not captive nor slaves to church dogma and have the right to dissent, disagree, and protest if convicted--it's called being a Protestant.  

In sum, God's final Word and Testament to man is through His Son and God has nothing more to say to us if we ignore Him; God has created, acted, and finally, spoken His message--our last chance!.   Soli Deo Gloria!

God's Firstborn

When Colossians (a book devoted to the preeminence of Christ) chapter and verse 1:15 speaks of Jesus as the "firstborn over all creation," or "the firstborn of every creature, it doesn't mean having a baby or God giving birth. The terminology of "firstborn" in the Bible is a title of preeminence or supremacy of position, such as Israel being God's firstborn and also David being God's firstborn--it has nothing to do with being born or created when used figuratively. It simply means priority over. The wonderful news is that this represents Christ's position and also that we are "in Christ."

Everything in time and space had a beginning; how do we know this? Simply because time had a beginning both according to the Bible (cf. Titus 1:2; 2 Tim. 1:9) and modern physicists such as Stephen Hawking, who in his book The Brief History of Time, admitted this. We are all captive and slaves to the element and dimension of time. But God is eternal, meaning He is beyond time and the Bible says He created it because it's only a corollary of space and matter, which came into being at the creation (cf. Gen. 1:1), which scientists refer to as the Big Bang. You could counter: So what if there was a beginning or a Big Bang. But the consequences of a beginning is that you must conclude a Beginner! Who set the Big Bang off in scientific terminology (being programmed with some fifty universal constants), because there can be no effects without antecedent causes, something or someone must have caused this phenomenon.

All of us had a beginning because we are in this dimension--the time-space continuum. God is not because He existed before His own creation: "Before Abraham was, I AM," was Jesus' declaration to the Pharisees of His eternal deity. This all adds up to Jesus as the unique preexistent one, contrary to what the sects of Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses teach (that Christ was created, evolved, or born). What do the LDS people believe? They adhere to the fact that the Book of Mormon supersedes the Bible and their credo is "As man is, God once was; as God is, man may become." All of creation was a work of the eternal triune God working in tandem: from the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. But Scripture (cf. Isaiah 43:10-11) says that before God ("Me") no God was formed.

What then is the significance of Jesus' eternity? He alone is self-existent and self-sufficient, needing no one or nothing! He never had a beginning and will have no end which means He is able to save us to the uttermost and can give us eternal life; Christ is always relevant and never obsolete because He always was and will be; Christ's love is eternal and we can count on Him as Mr. Dependable in all our afflictions; Christ never saw us as an afterthought and He never had to change His plans because of Adam's fall--there never has been a Plan B, but God's perfect plan of redemption has always been His will; Christ knows the end, not because of some time machine or telescope into the future but because He decreed it so, and knows how it will all end up with His glory in control and us sharing in it; because He created all things, He reigns over them and is not subject to their authority as we are; and finally, Christ had to preexist in order to be the creator (it's impossible for anything to create itself).

In sum, our faith cannot rest on a more Solid Rock than Christ, the eternal one, who alone is without beginning or end, the Alpha and the Omega of Scripture. Soli Deo Gloria!

In Love With The Idea Of Jesus

Some so-called believers fool themselves because they are in love with the idea of Jesus as if they are His fans or admirers and not with Jesus Himself. They like to think of him as their buddy or cohort for their favorite cause or on their side or in their party. Sort of like falling in love with a book and storyline but not the author! Some sincere believers can be accused of it all being in their heads if they don't practice their faith. Instead of serving or practicing piety, they may simply like to read about Him or talk about Him, even though this can be genuine it can also be counterfeit faith and an exercise in futility or a show that talk can be cheap. We must live our profession and not belie our testimony so as to jeopardize it by bad conduct--we're in the spotlight as believers and must and lead show by example. That's why Gandhi said that he'd become a Christian if he ever met one and he loved and admired Jesus but was ambivalent towards Christians--touche! Believe me, it would take a Jesus to invent a Jesus!

We must know the real Jesus, who He is in fact, not our opinion or popular opinion or consensus, nor even an imaginary Jesus or "another Jesus," (cf. 2 Cor. 11:4)" Our faith must be built on Jesus as the Rock and all else is circumference or a peripheral issue. The most important question we will ever have to answer is, "Who do you make Jesus out to be?" This doesn't mean respect for His morals or that He was a great leader or teacher or revolutionary or reformer, but as our Savior. For with Jesus, what you see is what you get--He demands sincerity but that is not enough we must know the true Jesus as He claimed to be: the greater I AM, God with skin on or in the flesh. He is all things to all believers in other words...

It's plain that He was not Jesus the Great (an unworthy moniker) for that doesn't do Him justice but He led the most influential life ever lived, as Napoleon called Him the "Emperor of love." The contrast is so great that no one can remain neutral around Him nor remain unmoved or untouched and unchanged. "But the one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world," (cf. John 1:9, NLT).

Jesus isn't looking for an admiration society but wholehearted followers who have counted the cost. Likewise, there are those who love the idea of a church and get converted to the program and not to Christ; for instance, they love the idea of do-goodery and helping out in times of need but fail to have a personal relationship in knowing Christ as Savior. Churchianity is common in churches whereby believers put their faith in the church and think it saves, converted to the program, not to Christ! We are not saved via the church but via faith in Christ alone, not Christ plus the church! Therefore, we must not only have a profession of faith but a reality of faith translating your creeds into deeds and applying our faith to everyday life and in our sphere of influence and circle of friends--putting our faith into practical everyday practice, just as Jesus practiced what He preached and preached what He practiced without duplicity!
What is Churchianity? I insert this previous blog post:

Some Christians "play" church and go through the motions of worship and never go for the right reason--to worship God--they say, "I didn't get much out of worship today!" (maybe they should concentrate on what they put into it). God condemns us for having worship without our hearts in it or hypocritical worship, this is just going through the motions or "memorizing the dance of the pious." A real hypocrite (hypocrite means wearing a mask, or acting in a play) is not one who falls short of his ideals, but one who uses religion as a cover-up and knows he is insincere. The hypocrite trusts in his attendance, church membership, faithfulness, or even the organization of the church itself to save him, but one must realize that it's not Jesus plus the church but Jesus alone (or anything).

The theme of Psalms is Ps. 29:2, "Ascribe the Lord the glory due to His name, worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness." Deut. 17 (cf. Isaiah 29:13) condemns insincere and dishonest worship or sacrifice. Amaziah (cf. 2 Chron. 25:2) was known for doing the will of the Lord, but not with a true heart.

Someone has said that there are four persons that we show: The one God sees; the one you see; the one the world sees; and the one your intimate friends see. Let's be careful not to just have a "public persona" and parade our spirituality or piety. Worship should be a delight and our feelings should be in it (or we are blaspheming God--just like doing it as a "duty" not because we want to) as the command "Delight yourself in the Lord..." says. In summary: Psa. 84:1 says, "My soul longs, even faints, for the courts of the Lord" and Psa. 122:1 says, "I was glad when they said unto me, 'Let us go into the house of the Lord.'"

We can worship or be edified in a "crowd," but we need to function in a local body of believers with our spiritual gift. Rick Warren says that there is no "one-size-fits-all" for worship and there are many ways to worship. He says we believe, we belong, we become. We are to be committed to our church as a token of our commitment to Christ--they go hand in hand--and then we will grow and be accountable.

I can't stand the legalistic crowd that goes to church thinking that will make them a Christian, like going into a garage will make you a car, or eating a donut will make you a cop. They are called the "nod-to-God" crowd, which thinks it is fulfilling its obligation by a short visit to the local church, just out of guilt. The true Christian wants to worship God and wants to fellowship with other believers with whom he is a "fellow in the same ship."

I think some megachurches miss the boat in worship, you just don't hear people say, "Amen" to the preacher (where is the worship in the Spirit and in the truth?). But different people are at different stages and God has a purpose for their existence--megachurches aren't where I'm at, because I want to know my pastor personally, not just from afar.

Some think their religious performance is enough to save them. To some, it's only a formality and not a relationship. John MacArthur says, "We can't enter through our religious emotion or our sanctified feelings...Lip service is no good--there must be obedience...You don't get into the kingdom by sincerity, by religiosity, by reformation, by kindness, by service to the church, not even by simply naming the name of Christ; you get there only by personal trust and faith in [the person and work of] Christ." We can have a form of godliness and be empty. The church at Sardis had a reputation that it was alive, yet it was dead (see Rev. 3:1). We can even have "sanctimonious emotions" and not know Christ. There is a difference between knowing the Word and knowing the Author of the Word.

We can have many experiences in church and everyone has a different one, but I believe we should test our experiences by the Word of God and not the Word of God by our experiences. That's an important concept--we are not to become either rationalists nor empiricists (going by reason or experience only), but belief in the Bible (revelation) and sound teaching.

The more we learn the more we realize where the wiggle room is and what is not worth fighting about. We are to "maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Sectarianism is a sin according to 1 Cor. 1, and we shouldn't divide into factions if we can help it. As Augustine said, "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity." Many contemporary believers will die for a church they won't attend and even hate anything resembling organization but claim to love Jesus and His church that He purchased with His blood. Soli Deo Gloria!


















God isn't impressed with our works and our righteousness is God's gift to us, not our gift to God (cf. Isa. 45:24); it's merely filthy rags in His estimation and judgment (cf. Isa. 64:6). Jesus is the model of mankind and no one can compare or compete with Him--neither predecessor nor follower alike. We can only contrast Him and realize His uniqueness and holiness which is evidence of His deity. Even infidels are often impressed with the moral perfection, guidance, and standards of Jesus' ethic, the Golden Rule, which has not been improved upon and is the most difficult to keep, for Christ made us realize there is a higher law than some rule or law to obey and that is the rule of love for our neighbor--love thy neighbor as thyself. Even John Stuart Mill, an atheist, said that Christ is the "guide of humanity."




We may satisfy the demands of a law or rule but not the demands of love! We cannot match the love of God and meet the standards He set; "perfection" is the standard but "direction" is the test ("Be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect"). The point is that the "Christian life isn't hard, it's impossible," (author unknown).




It doesn't matter what we think of the president or some secular hero or villain (a typical controversial person) eternally, but it does matter what we think of Christ! Our destiny is in His hands and He demands first loyalty to Him bar none. Likewise, we are Christians first and then members of a particular church or denomination. Far too many believers feel they don't need the church or any need for preaching and their lives are doing just fine without participation in the local body of believers that we are not called to forsake. The point is that no believer decides point-blank to leave Christ but slips away one step at a time hardly noticed at first till he finds himself backslidden or even apostate. Someday he may wake up and be shocked at what has become of his faith or walk in Christ.




It must be pointed out that true love for Jesus involves obedience and following Christ no matter the cost wherever He may lead--we carry that cross with Him in charge of our lives. Jesus said that if we love Him we will obey His commands! Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated it bluntly: "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes." They are tied and linked in Scripture (cf. Heb. 3:18-19; John 3:36) and we can tell them by their fruits as Jesus said. Thus, it costs to love Jesus: salvation is free but not cheap! "It costs to be saved, but more not to be!"




We must practice our piety but neither flaunt it nor privatize it; never to be ashamed of our Lord and always ready to give an answer to him who would question our faith and its rationale. In the final analysis, we must learn to turn our thoughts to Him and to meditate on His Word and get to know Him, for no one can do HIm justice in explaining or describing Him--no portrait or caricature behooves Him--we cannot know Him exhaustively, but can truly! Soli Deo Gloria!