Finish Strong

 “He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone.  And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” – Acts 4:11-12

Do you not know?
What was the point of it all?
When you started, did you know where the finish line was?’
How will you ever achieve all you strive for if you don’t know what it is?

There is a Supreme Being, God Almighty, who reigns over mankind.  He created man from dust, gave life to the world in which we live.  Do you not believe that these things happened?

Is the Bible nothing more than a fantasy for you, or is it a factual recording of our human history?  If we are not capable of realizing the truth that exudes from the pages, and claim them as an interesting compilation of stories, then how can we claim that the Almighty even exists at all?  Can you believe in the Creator and yet claim that He has mislead billions of people?  What a ludicrous thought this is.

If indeed you claim to believe in and follow the One called Jesus Christ, than is it not bestowed upon you to study, learn and fully embrace His teachings?  Are we content in claiming our Christianity, simply to avoid Hell, yet not be concerned with living out the truth that is so blatantly provided through His Word.  He died for you to live, not to exist, and to live with conviction, love and purpose.  It is upon you to spread His love, not to simply accept and be done.

The God, we claim to serve, has created the world and all that is in it.  He has provided for your every need, and continues to work on your behalf in the unseen and unknown days that lie ahead.  Our excuses are compiled in a manner to justify our lack of interest in actually recognizing His plan.  We are enamored and enticed by the world around us to pursue our personal interests and have consistently chosen to put God on hold.  Yet, we feel fully justified in claiming our right of passage into eternity.  Just stop and think about it for a moment.  Are you truly committed to God, or are you using Him?

Make a stand Christian.  Take up your armor and fight for the freedom that He died to provide for you.  For life in Christ is truly freedom, and is the only freedom you will ever have.  The freedom discussed in the media and tabloids is still subjective to the world’s perception and understanding.  Pursue God and re-discover the path that He has laid out for you.  The finish line is not far off in the distance, but we must finish strong.

Bible Study – James (day 8)

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“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” – James 1:22 (click here for context v.22-25)

What are you afraid of?  Is there anything that fills you with complete fear and thereby reverses your action?  Lisa and I were once on a bike ride.  As we peddled down the bike path along side of a small retention pond near a golf course, we came upon a large black coiled up water moccasin in the middle of the bike path. It’s body was as round as my forearm, it was hard to determine how long it was based on it’s position. It raised it’s head, hissed and that was that.  We turned our bikes away, went to the other side of the road, peddled down the road and then came back onto the bike path 20 or 30 yards away from the slithery fellow.  There are certain things which strike fear in all of us.

There was a point in time when people feared God.  The scriptures were personal to the children of God in the times leading up to and around Jesus birth and life.  The engagement between the divine presence of God Almighty and mankind was evidenced to those familiar with Moses, Abraham, David and the other heroes from the Bible.  There is a story in 2 Samuel 6 where Uzzah was struck dead by God Almighty for touching the Ark of the Covenant when it became unsteady as they were transporting it.  This seems radical by our standards, but not by God’s.  There were many laws regarding the Ark of the Covenant throughout the Old Testament.  You see the Ark of the Covenant represented God’s Holy presence with the Israelites and was to be kept in the temple, sacred and hidden from view behind the curtain in the Most Holy Place.  Approaching the Ark was to be in God’s presence, His holiness and perfection; intolerable of man’s sinful nature.  Only the High Priest could enter the Most Holy Place and look upon the Ark of the Covenant after considerable cleansing and purification.  God’s actions against Uzzah were clearly defined and known by the scriptures regarding the Ark, yet he chose to defy God’s directions and take action (reaching out to steady the Ark) anyway, rather than grabbing the pole it was being carried on.

The new covenant with God holds just as much authority over mankind.  This new covenant based on the blood of Jesus Christ, has clearly defined how we are to live our lives.  Yet, many of us take it lightly, interpret it to fit into our lifestyle and thereby defy the actual word of the Lord.  God has demonstrated that He has little tolerance for mankind to take His word and adjust it to fit our means.  It was written down, by those He appointed, with the specific purpose of becoming a living document for all of mankind.  We are held accountable to living by the guidelines established by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, just as Paul, John and the others were held accountable.  Time has not minimized the relevance or intentions of the word.  It is still God’s commands to you and I, and we ought not take it lightly. 

The bible tells us clearly there is but one path to righteousness and eternity with God Almighty and that is through His Son – Jesus Christ.  Others may choose to believe that there are many paths and that all God’s are equal, they will one day discover that were deceived.  God tells us in Matthew 7:21-22 that many will come calling “Lord, Lord” but will not enter the kingdom of heaven; and many will claim that they have prophesied or cast out demons in His name, but will hear the Son state “Away from me you evil doers”  Trust in His word and the truth that is contained therein.  He has given you the path to righteousness, act on it and live by it, so that one day in the presence of the Lord you will hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.  Enter into my presence.”

ACTION: Have you no fear of God’s wrath on mankind?  Do you not fear the judgment seat of God Almighty, or do you even think about or care about it?  It is critical that you take this aspect of your life with the utmost sincerity and seriousness.  Studying the word of God and learning of His love, grace and mercy is the most important part of your entire life.  Are you committed as much to Him and His ways as you are to your own plans in life?  

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
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I Am Blessed

 

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“Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” – John 20:29
 

Thomas, the first skeptic.  After following Jesus Christ for nearly 3 years and observing His actions, his love, peace and mercies upon those He came in contact with; Thomas still was a person that needed the first hand experience.  He was one of those that need to see the proof with their own eyes.  The Thomas affect is no less real in the 21^st century than it was in the 1^st century.  Christ appeared before many after His resurrection.  There are many scriptures which reference His appearance to the disciples, to Mary, to Peter and John, to Paul, and even to a group of over 500 in 1 Corinthians 15:6.  Each of the apostles carried this message forth after a face to face encounter with the risen Lord, many of them to the point of death for their belief.  Some beheaded, some boiled in a vat of oil, some hung from crosses and some stoned to death for what they believed.  Why would these men carry a lie so far that they were willing to die for it, rather than recant it and just walk away?

I have never seen Jesus face to face.  What an amazing day that will be though.  My belief in Jesus Christ, as Lord and Savior, is based on a faith that the Bible is the Word of God and that contained in the 66 books, written over the course of 1600 years by over 40 authors, is the truth from His lips to my ears.  My faith is rooted in the foundation that we are all born into sin, separated from God the Father because of our iniquities and unrighteousness.  I know my heart, I know my mind and I know that I am guilty as charged when it comes to being a person filled with sin. 

You see, I believe that Adam and Eve did exist, and that they did commit the first sin in the garden by seeking that which God told them not to do.  From that moment on we have been separated from God, because He is Holy and perfect in every way.  For centuries mankind would sacrifice goats and sheep as an atonement for their sins for that year.  This history is documented in depth throughout many documents and artifacts, authenticated by worldly scholars.  I’ve walked the streets of Bethsaida, Megiddo, En Gedi and Ceasarea.  I’ve seen the Western Wall of Solomon’s temple and the walls of his fortress near Mount Carmel.  These remnants exist just as the Roman Coliseum, the Parthenon, the Pyramids and the Sphynx.  We believe the history books of record and the events that took place in these places, but don’t believe the history of the Jewish people?  What makes the truth of God’s word so unbelievable?

Daily, I have to come to the realization that my propensity for sin is the basic nature of my existence, and that I must recommit myself to Christ.  I have to accept that I am a broken individual in this life, and that the love of God, the grace and mercy He has poured out on this world is available to me.  I have to choose to accept that love and hold onto it, despite how insecure I am with my own life and actions.  I must be willing to accept that I am not worthy of His love, and in doing so then acknowledge that His love is stronger than my unrighteousness.  His only desire is that I accept His love by grace, because there is nothing I can give Him in return that is worthy enough for what He has given me.  In doing this, daily I can come before Him, with heartfelt repentance for my actions and receive His mercy and forgiveness.  No longer must we sacrifice an animal, for Jesus Christ was that eternal sacrifice, provider by the Father Himself, to redeem all mankind.  Yes, I am blessed, because I believe without seeing.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
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But Why Do You Believe?

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"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled"  -  Matthew 5:6

Why are you a Christian?  To avoid Hell, you put a checkmark in the box and move on with life. 

Did you become a Christian because of an emotional response to a problem you were having in life?  Many of us come to that point in life when there seems to be no other way to make it through the struggles of the day.  So we give our life to Jesus.

Or are you a Christian because your parents were and their parents were?  It is often something that becomes a part of our character simply through association with others that have gone on before us.

Do you recall a point in time during your Christian walk that you were actually hungry for the Word of God?  When there just wasn’t enough time in the day to take it all in, when you just didn’t want to put it down and walk away.

Most of these questions, if not all, should be leading you to the root of your Christian faith.  We are called to be more than followers of Jesus Christ.  In this life we are called to be His ambassador, His servant and disciple.  We are to learn more and more each and every day as we walk this earth, and then share that with those we meet.  Take the challenge of standing up for Jesus Christ in situations at work, school, play groups or at the grocery store.  His righteousness is our goal and there is nothing that should come between us and the pursuit of that goal.

You see, we are all comfortable in life.  Many of us accepted Jesus because we knew that if there is a heaven and hell, we surely don’t want to go to hell.  Well, that was a good choice, because there is a hell and you’re right – you don’t want to go there.  But that is not what being a Christian is about.  Committing your life to Jesus Christ involves much, much more.  It means He becomes Lord of your life.  He is the One in charge, the leader and the director of your life.  This isn’t the first time you’ve heard this, all throughout scriptures the disciples who walked daily with Him referred to Him as Lord.  In Acts 2:36, Peter says to those in Jerusalem, ““Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” 

We hunger for His love and His guidance in helping us find our purpose in this life.  Today, I want to ask you to actually consider making Jesus Christ the Lord of your life and all that this implies, and then you will begin to see the path which He has for you.  A path of righteousness and hunger for His word to be made known to all mankind.  Seek Him today.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For additional Daily Thoughts, please visit: http://www.10minutereader.com