Heard a great sermon this morning regarding our ultimate substitute. In Paul's letter to the Galatians he is reaffirming the Gospel he preached because false teaching had creeped into their camp. He drives home the fact that we are saved by faith alone, not by works and that Christ died for us as our ultimate substitute. I bet your are wondering what the Hunger Games has to do with this. I've not read the books nor seen the movie, but know the overall theme. From what I gather the main point is that the main character, Katniss takes the place of her younger sister Primrose in these "Hunger Games". Now lets qualify this, she didn't just volunteer to do her choirs. This game is kill or be killed, last man standing. She saves her sisters life by possibly losing hers.
But our Lord and Savior lost his life to save us. He knew this, He knew us, and still chose to go to the cross as our substitute. Galatians 3:13- Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us--for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree" Let's rejoice and celebrate during this Easter season the fact that Jesus died for us and rose on that glorious third day, overcoming death so that we may have life.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
Conviction & Confession
So many times I've been convicted on my lack of prayer and it smacked me in the face again on Sunday. I praise the Lord that He convicts us of our disobedience and pray that He continues to do so as He sanctifies me in this life. I remember a coach telling us one time that we shouldn't worry about him being on our case so much, but we should worry when he's not. Basically what he was saying is that he was on us because he knew we could do better but if he wasn't then he had given up hope. Just a side note, my mind is going 1000 different directions at this point because this could lead to a very deep conversation, but for this blog I want to stick to my conviction.
I confess that my prayer life is far from where it should be, but better than it was. I am far from satisfied with my walk with Christ, but am extremely encouraged to see where He has brought me over the past 10 years. Do you see growth fellow Christian? Do you view the sin in your life more disgusting today than you did a year ago? I know I do and praise God for that. The closer we grow to Christ likeness, the more repulsive sin should be. Romans 6:19- for just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
But those who are without Christ, don't be fooled by the evil one. He would love nothing more than to deceive you into thinking you are too far gone to be saved. Romans 5:6-8 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We all have sinned, we were born sinners. J.I. Packer says it best in his book, Knowing God: "There is tremendous relief in knowing that His love to me is utterly realistic, based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst about me, so that no discovery now can disillusion Him about me, in the way I am so often disillusioned about myself, and quench His determination to bless me."
All that can be said about that is, WOW. I pray that my fellow brothers and sisters won't be discouraged, but will push forward through our trials and frustrations. And for those who do not know our Lord and Savior, don't be fooled by the devil. Christ died for you as well.
I confess that my prayer life is far from where it should be, but better than it was. I am far from satisfied with my walk with Christ, but am extremely encouraged to see where He has brought me over the past 10 years. Do you see growth fellow Christian? Do you view the sin in your life more disgusting today than you did a year ago? I know I do and praise God for that. The closer we grow to Christ likeness, the more repulsive sin should be. Romans 6:19- for just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
But those who are without Christ, don't be fooled by the evil one. He would love nothing more than to deceive you into thinking you are too far gone to be saved. Romans 5:6-8 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We all have sinned, we were born sinners. J.I. Packer says it best in his book, Knowing God: "There is tremendous relief in knowing that His love to me is utterly realistic, based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst about me, so that no discovery now can disillusion Him about me, in the way I am so often disillusioned about myself, and quench His determination to bless me."
All that can be said about that is, WOW. I pray that my fellow brothers and sisters won't be discouraged, but will push forward through our trials and frustrations. And for those who do not know our Lord and Savior, don't be fooled by the devil. Christ died for you as well.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Encouragement from others
What encourages you? What place makes you feel better just for being there? Who makes you stronger in your faith?
Two things happened over the past couple days that were encouraging to me. On Sunday my father-in-law and I went to the evening service at church to hear the youth minister candidate speak and answer questions. After we left, we engaged in conversation about the message and our impression on the candidate. Being surrounded by fellow believers in worship then engaging in conversation about the Lord's work was uplifting. Then today, out of the blue, I received an email from an old friend, one of my best friends growing up. He kindly invited me to a men's conference at his church back home. Although I cannot attend, that initial email sparked a chain of emails that were focused on our Lord and His work in our lives. This too, was extremely uplifting.
So, what do the scriptures say about this? About being surrounded by fellow believers. Proverbs 13:20- Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. 1 Corinthians 15:33- Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Very simply, we are to surround ourselves with fellow believers, those who build us up in our faith. Find those people who love the Lord, who build you up, and who are encouraging to be around.
Two things happened over the past couple days that were encouraging to me. On Sunday my father-in-law and I went to the evening service at church to hear the youth minister candidate speak and answer questions. After we left, we engaged in conversation about the message and our impression on the candidate. Being surrounded by fellow believers in worship then engaging in conversation about the Lord's work was uplifting. Then today, out of the blue, I received an email from an old friend, one of my best friends growing up. He kindly invited me to a men's conference at his church back home. Although I cannot attend, that initial email sparked a chain of emails that were focused on our Lord and His work in our lives. This too, was extremely uplifting.
So, what do the scriptures say about this? About being surrounded by fellow believers. Proverbs 13:20- Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. 1 Corinthians 15:33- Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Very simply, we are to surround ourselves with fellow believers, those who build us up in our faith. Find those people who love the Lord, who build you up, and who are encouraging to be around.
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