....whoever believes in Him......

We are all familiar with the popular verse,  John 3:16:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned...."

Believing in Jesus is the key to being saved, saved forever, for eternity.  But believing is not a casual thing.  It was not in Jesus' day.  Those who believed in Jesus then did so at the risk of great persecution and many lost their lives.  And it is not a casual thing today.  Jesus taught that we must take up our cross and follow Him.  And we know that Jesus taught that the only way to God was through Him:

"I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me."

Belief in God and in Jesus, His Son, requires that we be passionate about it, that we truly seek Him.  Note Hebrews 11:6,

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." 

To believe in God is to "seek Him," and to do so diligently, passionately, and to keep His commandments.  When Jesus was leaving some final thoughts with His followers in Matthew28, He said:

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you..."

Jesus expected us to believe, but to believe in such a way that we keep His commandments.  He said in John 15:14,

"You are my friends if you do whatever I command you."

This is what we must do; that is, do His commandments.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great week!

Destruction Leading to Salvation

One of the themes of the whole Bible is that out of destruction comes Salvation.  In this blog we will look at some of the examples of this principle.

One of the most obvious examples is that of Noah and the ark.  God was upset with the evil that existed in the world.  In this case, He brought total destruction by the flood, but allowed 8 people to be saved, Noah, his 3 sons and all of their wives.  Just a small remnant was allowed to be saved, all being God fearing people.

David is an example of this principle.  He sinned by taking Bathsheba and having her husband killed in battle.  God was hard on this sin, causing the baby of David and Bathsheba to die.  But out of this painful story came David, a man described as one after God's own heart, one who loved and served God.

When we look at the history of the Jewish people, we see that Israel split into two parts, Judah in the South and Israel in the North.  As we read through Kings and Chronicles in the Old Testament, we see that in the North there was a total desertion of following God.  And God allowed them to be taken into captivity by Assyria.  Following that, Judah was mostly following idols, sinning against God.  But there was some turning back to God from time to time, so God remained patient for awhile.  But finally God allowed Judah to be captured by the nation of Babylon.  Out of all this destruction, God allowed some of the people of Judah to eventually return and rebuild.  Out of destruction came restoration, deliverance.

The best example of all is Jesus.  Jesus had to endure the worst kind of destruction; yet we know that out of His suffering and crucifixion came triumph and salvation.

And Paul, known then as Saul, was killing Christians.  And out of all of this evil came a powerful teacher and leader for the Lord's work. 

And then to us.  As we read in Romans 6, when we are baptized we die to sin and come forth a new creature.  Out of our own devastation comes salvation.

Thanks for reading.  Have a blessed week.

Clothe Yourself With Christ

Perhaps my favorite chapter in the New Testament is Galatians chapter 3.  Here there is a clear discussion of three basic principles that are taught throughout the Bible, that of Promise, Law and Faith.  It goes into a discussion of the Promise that was made to Abraham, one that was made way back in Genesis 12, where God told Abraham that from his seed, or relative, would come one who would bless the whole world, referring to Jesus.  This chapter 3 also talks about the Jewish Law that God gave His people at a later date, and it explains why this special Law was given.  And it compares the Law to Faith, talking about the faith that comes in following Christ.  This chapter ties the whole Bible together in one place.

Galatians 3:24:   "Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor."  (Thus, we as Christians are no longer under the law, the Jewish law.)

"For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.  For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ."  This is a neat way of saying that when we were converted, we were baptized, and we put on Christ like one would put on a coat.  Christ is now a part of us; we have clothed ourselves with Him.

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."  This is beautiful language to assure us that there is no distinction with God.  We are all His.

And finally, "And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."  This shows that all Christians are heirs to the promise made thousands of years ago to father Abraham, that all the world would be blessed by his seed. 

The Bible is amazing!

Thanks for reading.  Feel the love.

A Couple of Things.......

I think it is interesting to pick up little known facts from the New Testament.  So here are a couple of things that I would guess most people don't know.  That's no reflection on you because you may know these. 

The first is that Jesus walked on the earth for 40 days after His resurrection.  This is only recorded in one place, Acts chapter one.  Acts begins:

"The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit, had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God."

Jesus was killed, crucified, on Friday, rose from the dead on Sunday, stayed on the earth for 40 more days, then ascended to heaven as recorded at the end of Luke and the beginning of Acts.

I would suggest to you that most people are not familiar with this timetable and are not aware that Jesus spent 40 days showing Himself arisen to so many people.

A second fact that most people would not know is that Jesus, while growing up in Nazareth, moved His hometown to Capernaum when it was time to start preaching.  This is only recorded, at least in clear fashion, in Matthew chapter 4:

"Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee.  And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulon and Naphtali...."

Nazareth was not a good place for Him to teach, because they knew Him as a hometown boy, a carpenter, and just couldn't believe.  But Jesus continued to live in Capernaum when He wasn't traveling about and teaching.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great week!