Tag: Jesus is Love

New Year, New Word

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Matthew 13:16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.”

Each year I ask God for a word to meditate on. It always amazes me how he delivers that word to me. This year I was driving home from dropping off my son at school for basketball practice during Christmas break. The word just popped into my head, and I was like, “Wait, what? Is that even possible to get a word while I’m driving?”

I had always been IN the Word, like reading the Bible, studying a devotion, or praying when I received a word before. So, because of this I doubted the word I was given. I finished driving home and went back to work (since I was working from home that week) and didn’t think about it again until that night. 

I am reading the Bible in 365 days on the YouVersion Bible app.  I actually listen to it each night once I am all snuggled down in bed. That night I prayed, “Lord if that is the word you want me to focus on this year, please give me confirmation through these Bible verses tonight.”  The word I received while I was driving was “complete”. The first Bible verse I listened to that night included Acts 15:25-27.  It says:

“So, we decided, having come to complete agreement, to send you official representatives, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are sending Judas and Silas to confirm what we have decided concerning your question.”

So, within the first minute of diving into the Word, it said my word, complete, and the word confirm. WOW! I paused the recording and went back to read it myself to make sure I heard it correctly and I had! Is that confirmation or what? But then of course doubt crept in. I thought, “Well maybe the word “complete” is in the Bible a lot and maybe it would be impossible for me to read the Bible and not come upon the word “complete”.”

Wrong! I looked it up. I’m reading the NLT version of the Bible and the word “complete” is only used 55 times in that translation of the Bible. The word “confirm” is only used 13 times. They are only used together 1 time in the same chapter of the whole Bible and that is the chapter I was reading that night.

Coincidence? Nope! That was a God thing. So, what am I going to do with my word? I’m going to study it and all 55 verses that use it in the Bible. I’m going to look for opportunities that Jesus leads me into every day to complete things. I’m going to listen to what God is trying to tell me. It’s going to be an adventure and I’m excited about it!

Have you asked God for your word?

Lord, thank you for speaking to us everyday through your word, your creation, and other people around us. Open our eyes to see and our ears to hear what you are trying to tell us and give us wisdom to use those words to your glory. Amen

Unbelief

Acts 16:31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.”

I heard something this week while I was listening to old sermons on my way to and from work and I have a burden on my heart to share it with you.  I had never heard it put quite this way before and for some reason it really made sense to me. To summarize it said you will not go to hell because of your sins. You will go to hell because of your unbelief. What do I mean by unbelief? Well to put is simply, if you do not believe that Jesus is the son of God who died on the cross and rose again to cleanse you from your sins then you will go to hell. No matter how “good” of a person you are. You must believe.

Salvation is that easy. Just believe. You do not need to DO anything because we have been saved by GRACE alone. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”

You see sin separates us from God. In order to remove that separation, God sent his son Jesus to DO what was necessary to fix that. He died on the cross and rose again to make you righteous before God. So now all you have to do is believe and you will be saved. To believe, you have to have faith and Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.”

Your faith is increased by hearing God’s word. So, if you are a Christian, a believer, a follower of Jesus, you need to be IN THE WORD. Take time every day to read the Bible or listen to the Bible or watch video sermons about the Bible. Talk to God. Tell him about your thoughts, ideas, worries and accomplishments. Make him a part of your everyday life. Then tell others. Their faith will increase by hearing the Word of God too.

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your son to save me from my sins. Give me faith to believe, courage to share, and grace to be saved. Amen.

Why Do You Need Jesus?

John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

I am not the kind of person that you can just say, “Go do this” and I will do it. I need to understand the WHY behind what I am doing so that it makes sense to me. Lately I’ve been struggling with the “why” behind “Why do I need Jesus?” I believe in God; I know I am filled with the Holy Spirit. But what part did Jesus play in all this? I’ve been reading the Bible, listening to sermons online and watching documentaries about the Holy Gospel and yesterday I finally heard something that made it all fit together for me. So, I want to share it with you.

When man first sinned, we were separated from God because of our sin. So, we were given laws to follow in order to bridge that divide. But because we are sinful, we could never follow those laws perfectly. Everyone has lied, everyone has put something before God, everyone has dishonored their parents, and everyone has had lust in their heart for another person or thing. No matter how hard we try to be good, we sin. This creates despair.

But God. God does not want us to be separated from him. So, he gave the people of Israel the ability to atone for their sins through sacrifices. The blood of a lamb could be shed to wipe away their sins. But then they sinned again. So, they would make another sacrifice. But then they sinned again. So, another sacrifice was made. It would never end. So, God sent Jesus. The Lamb of God. The ultimate sacrifice. The final sacrifice. Jesus lived the perfect life we could never live and then he died on the cross to shed his blood for our sins.

You see, every sin ever committed by every person who has ever lived will be punished. That is required. It will either be punished everlastingly by the sinner (you) or that punishment will be borne by the blood of Jesus Christ.  His death was sufficient to pay for all your sins. Trust in Jesus. Abandon all the hope you put into your good works and what a great person you are and trust in the person and works of Jesus Christ alone. This creates peace.

Give your heart to Jesus. Today! Then tell your friends and family about Jesus. Today! Without Jesus there is no eternal life with God. There is only eternal punishment. I choose life!

Dear Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross to save me from eternal punishment. I give my heart to you today. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit and give me the courage to tell others about you. Amen.

Are You Ready?

John 3:17 “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

These are a few of my favorite things: Saturday afternoons with friends at the pool. Dinner with my family. Meaningful conversations with my boys. The worship songs we sing together at church. Thought provoking group Bible studies.

What do all these things have in common?  People.  My friends, family, and fellow believers. These are the people I love and surround myself with. Who do you surround yourself with?  Do they know your story? Your testimony? Do they know why you are so happy?  Do they understand your peace? Can they see your faith? Do not take for granted that they know.

The Bible says the kingdom of God is near. We do not know when Jesus will come again. If you love being with these people here on earth, you will want them with you in heaven. They cannot ride on your shirt tails to heaven. They must believe for themselves. They must leave behind their past and become a new person in Christ.

Mark 16:16 says, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”  To be baptized is to drown your old life and to start living a new life in Christ.  But please understand that it is not God that is condemning you. You are condemning yourself if you do not believe. For in John 3:17 it says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

So, are you ready to leave your old ways behind? Are you ready to walk on the path that will lead you to eternal life? Do you want your family, friends and loved ones with you? I do. Do not wait any longer. Start the conversation. You do not need to convince them, that is the job of the Holy Spirit.  You simply need to lead them to the water.

Heavenly Father, please give me the courage to speak up and share my testimony to the people you have placed around me. Amen.