2010-06-28 - Independence

On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress declared the 13 American colonies free and independent from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence is the only major national document of the United States that actually mentions the name of God. He is called “Nature’s God,” “The Creator,” and “The Supreme Judge of the World.” The fathers of our American freedom recognized that God’s hand was at work in the affairs of the new nation. But far more important than the political liberty that we enjoy is the spiritual liberty we have in Christ. Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).

When we obey His Word, we grow in spiritual knowledge; and as we grow in spiritual knowledge, we grow in freedom from sin. Life leads to learning, and learning leads to liberty.

The worst bondage is the kind that the prisoner himself does not recognize. He thinks he is free, yet he is really a slave. The Pharisees and other religious leaders thought that they were free, but they were actually enslaved in terrible spiritual bondage to sin and Satan. They would not face the truth, and yet it was the truth alone that could set them free. (Referenced from “BE ALIVE—JOHN 1-12” by Warren W. Wiersbe)

On this Fourth of July, when we celebrate our independence from Britain as a nation, my hope is that we all also celebrate in the freedom we share in that is given through God’s grace – Christ Jesus, Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Because of His sacrifice nearly 2000 years ago, we are free from the bondage of sin! Amen!

Josh

2010-06-20 -- Sharing the Faith

It seems that many of us are hesitant to share the Good News with others, for various reasons. We, all who proclaim Christ as our Savior, recognize the need to, and know that we should, share our faith with others, but because of fear of being pushy or disliked, or whatever the reason may be, we are slow to share our faith.

What if somebody would have never shared the faith with you? What if you did not know God? Do you believe that your life would be as rewarding? Do you think you’d know the fate of your soul after you perish from this life? As a Christian, what do you believe is the fate for those who do not know Christ? What do you believe your fate is?

According to Craig Groeschel, founding pastor of Life Church, “Research shows that while almost three out of four people believe in heaven, less than half believe in hell.” Nearly everybody wants to believe that they’ll be in a “better place” after they die; yet many of those same people do not understand, or have not heard, the message of Jesus Christ. Without Christ, we are doomed for hell. Without the grace of God, we are destined to eternity without love, without relationship, without peace and joy.

But through Christ, we have a spot reserved with the Creator of the heavens and earth. With Christ, we are given love, relationship, healing, peace, joy, forgiveness, and many other positives. Knowing this, shouldn’t we feel a little more urgency to share the gospel? We can make a difference, but it requires action. Inaction will neither benefit us nor others, while a true desire, followed with action, to reach the multitudes proclaiming the Word will make a difference.

Time, while it is a worldly standard, is of upmost importance. Nobody’s tomorrow is promised. Don’t hesitate; there is an eternal life at stake.

Josh

2010-06-06 Worry

Why do we worry? Why is it that sometimes we cannot help to worry, sometimes to the point of even making us sick? What is worry anyway? Dictionary.com defines it as, “to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts; fret.”

Worry is fear-thought, not fore-thought. It is cured by prayer-thought.

We have all, at one time or another, spent time worrying, fretting over the “what-if’s” of life. But all worry really is, is a lack of faith. The opposite of faith is worry. If you have worry, give it to God. If you still worry, you didn’t succeed at giving it to the Almighty.

All too often we hold worry to ourselves; which ultimately says that our problems are too big for God to handle, so we keep them ourselves. I’m here to tell that no matter how big the problem is, give it to God. He will take it. Give God a chance to handle things and He will.

However, this is not a free ticket to do nothing. You must first put full efforts to doing everything you can to prevent worry. Act upon all fore-thought thoroughly and after that, give it God. After we have done all we can do, give the rest to God. He can handle it, I promise.

Josh