Who are you following?

Daily Thoughts – August 30^th

“Therefore, beloved, since you already know these things, be on your guard so that you will not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure standing.” – 2 Peter 3:17 (in context)

The world is set on creating a comfortable perspective of the Holy, Sovereign, Lord of Lords, and King of Kings, that I commonly call God, the Father.  Just listen to the opinions of individuals from a recent survey:
 
“God is the universal energy that we come from”
“God loves me regardless of my choices, I know I’m forgiven”
“I live the way I want to live, and I know God will forgive my actions”
“All gods are the same, and as long as we are good, he loves us”
“There’s a higher power, but I wouldn’t call it God”
“I’m a good person, sure I have sex outside of marriage, swear, and lie; but by being good, he’ll forgive me”
 
Let’s face it, there are people you come in contact with every day that believe similarly to any of the above.  We acknowledge that God exists, and that we believe in God in order to get to heaven, but can we really say we are following Him?  What does it mean to follow God?
 
The scriptures tell us:
“Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.”  - Eph 5:1-2

“No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will perish, too.” – Luke 13:5

“Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. His subjects ground their teeth in anguish, and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God.” – Rev 16:10-11
 
Repent in Greek is (μετενόησα) metenoēsan; turn around, retreat from, back away, and changing one’s action.  Accepting Jesus Christ brings salvation to the lost, but repenting from our sinful actions is a necessity.  God doesn’t conform His rules to our desires, to our beliefs, or actions.  No, we must conform to His.  After all, He is sovereign, He is Lord, He is God Almighty.  He alone determines right from wrong, and righteousness from unrighteousness.  Claiming to be saved but remaining in sinful actions, knowing that they are sinful, is like slapping God in the face, and spitting upon Christ’s salvation.

Not one of us can live without sin.  I’m not claiming that you have too.  But, to continue to walk in repetition of our sins is creating separation between you and the Father.  Fall to your knees, earnestly ask forgiveness of these sinful actions, accept that God has forgiven you, and then turn from these actions as you move forward.  You will be tempted, because Satan doesn’t give up that easily.  He knows your weakness’ and how to convince you that it isn’t so bad.  This is when we call on God for strength and protection.  It’s not easy.  I struggle with it every day, as does your Pastor, your spiritual leaders, and your biblical mentors.  David struggled, Peter struggled, Paul struggled, and even Jesus was tempted by Satan, so don’t for one second believe that you won’t be. 

The world looks at God as a comfortable daddy, who won’t care if I sin.  His love and forgiveness is very real, but that doesn’t mean it’s unrestricted.  You are sinning against God, not just against mankind.  In 2 Samuel 12:13 David states, “I have sinned against the Lord.”  He doesn’t state I have sinned against Bathsheba, or Uriah, or the people of Israel.  No – through adultery with Bathsheba and murdering Uriah, he sinned against God.  God is omnipotent and knows your heart and your thoughts before you have ever committed a sin.  He knows you are weak and wants you to come to Him before sinning, for His wisdom and strength to overcome.  There will be a judgement day, you will kneel before the Lord and be judged. 

In His sovereignty and through His grace, He has provided you the salvation.  Your job is to live with Him and to trust in Him for your remaining days, so that on judgement day you will come before Him washed by the blood of the Lamb.  Study His word daily, speak with Him daily, seek His wisdom, repent daily of your sins (yes, daily), and share His love with others every day.  You are His child, He will guide your steps.
 
 
 
© Sondove Enterprises, 2019
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Who Is God?

Read It, Learn It, Live It, Share It

"“'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.' Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look.” ; " 
                                                                                   - Acts 7:32
  
Are you afraid of God?  Is God approachable?
When you think of God – what does He look like?  

Most people in our 21st century society have taken the image of God and conformed Him into a mold of our own design.  Minimizing His omnipotence to meet our specific needs and rationalizing it based on His love for us.  There are some that would clearly state that God loves us so there is no way He would do ___________________________ (you fill in the blank).  I was speaking with my 7 year old son the other night about the Passover and Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt.  He was captivated by the plagues that God brought upon Egypt, including the killing of all the first born (Exodus 12:12) on the night of the Passover.  This is a very different image of God than the loving portrait of Jesus Christ with a child sitting on His lap.  You can imagine how confusing this must have been for a 7 year old, yet alone for you and I. 
 
I have found that most of us put aside the authority and all powerful God and focus on the forgiving, loving and peaceful image that conforms to who we want Him to be.  A recent survey of students at San Diego State University, performed by Kaleo Church, received these answers when asked, “Who is God?”

    

He is that Creator, that belief that guides you in every day life

He’s like this higher spiritual being that created this earth and all the things on it

He’s the Father figure that takes care of us.  He’s up in heaven and all around us and takes care of us – I don’t believe in the whole Jesus thing, but I do believe there is a higher being that takes care of us

Someone to look to for help, for peace of mind who’s always there to help me out

A higher power above that takes care of us and knows everything about us

My best friend, my father, someone I look up to, he’s pretty important to me, pretty much the center of my life

An entity in physical terms we can’t really understand.  History has given us many depictions of God all of them are different

For me it’s very personal, it’s inherent, I believe that most people believe in the same God but interpret Him differently

I’m a Christian – so I believe God is Jesus Christ – easy enough

God is an idea, often a good one, sometimes a bad one

It’s personal, it’s like believing in something like a higher power, something’s out there watching over you, keeping an eye out for you

I don’t really believe in God, I believe in a higher power, but not one thing

Whoever the individual feels it is.  Each individual has their own higher power

I really don’t have a belief about God and the whole religious story and all that

It varies on where you are geographically and your upbringing and your affiliation with institutionalized religion.   Something created the universe, but I don’t believe that thing is directly involved in our lives the way Institutional religion makes Him out to be

Not a Who, but a What - a deity created by human beings to better understand their relationship to the world, the ultimate form of good, necessary for growth and human survival; an interweaving, a fabric of the universe, much more than a person or a form

    
Quite a diverse set of reactions to a very profound question that has been asked for centuries and millennia.  These do not represent all of the answers, but a strong snapshot of the misconceptions and lack of reverence for who God is.  There does not seem to be a fear of God, to the youth of this day and age.  There is this belief in something greater than what is physically accessible, but there does not appear to be a fear of the repercussions of not believing in God.  Few acknowledged that Jesus Christ is the only way to God and most believed it is okay to believe in any God, whatever works for you.  Many of our youth are confused about the salvation, mercy and eternal grace available through the Savior Jesus Christ.  These young individuals are highly educated, filled with philosophies of worldly religions that conform to their model of what a God should be, regardless of accuracy or comprehension.  Confusion is the tool of the enemy and by the status of this survey, I would say that he is making an impact.

  So, who’s going to do anything about it?  Who can we rely on to propagate the Good News of Jesus Christ to these individuals?  They have come to the place they are at based on the sphere of influence in their life, so taking everything into consideration do we believe that this same sphere of influence is going to help them find “the light”?  Do we expect the media to help them find Christ?  What about the televangelists, or the education system, or their parents, or their Facebook groups?  No.  Church, we need to take a stand here and now.  If you and I and everyone you forward this to take the initiative to reach out to the community on behalf of Jesus Christ, there is no limitation to the impact we can make in the world.  You need to do some deep prayer and thought on how you can make a difference in the life of one lost youth.  I pray that you will take this serious, and not discard it as someone else’s problem to solve, it’s mine, it’s yours, it’s ours collectively.


PRAYER:
Lord,
  We are troubled in our hearts.  We long for the lost, the broken, the confused and the struggling to find You.  Do a miraculous work through this group of individuals reading this to take a dramatic step in spreading Your good word.  Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, that we might be on fire for You once again, and alive in Your will to carry the message to the masses.  There is a generation of lost souls and as a member of the church body of Jesus Christ, I am seeking Your touch in my life to spread Your word.  Teach us, love us and comfort us to become soldiers for Your word.  For it is through Your Son Jesus Christ we pray – Amen.

             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
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