Tag: Sin

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If There Is No God

DECEMBER 17

MATTHEW 7:26_shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand.

Why do we make foolish decisions? Because we make them. For goodness sake, where do we come up with the idea we know what is best for ourselves? We’re sinful people born with a sinful nature. When left to ourselves we make foolish decisions.

Psalm 14:1(KJV) “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.” Someone made a foolish decision to make that statement!

If there is no God we are all doomed.

Destined to build life on sandy soil.

No hope.

No secure life built on the Rock.

No becoming salt and light in our dark world.

No hearts filled with genuine, unconditional, compassionate love.

No true wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. 

Most of all, no hope of eternal life.

The One True God gives us:

Psalm 16:9 (KJV), “Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.”

Psalm 31:24 (KJV), “Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.”

Psalm 38:15 (KJV), “For in thee, O Lord, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.”

There is nothing sandy about soil filled with hope!

PRAYER

God of Hope, All my hope is in You! In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.          

Christ is true and eternal—He gives me hope!

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Point of No Return

DECEMBER 3

MATTHEW 7:23_will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me…

I can think of nothing sadder than to have the ultimate source of love and compassion, Jesus, say He does not know me. The One who has loved me from my birth. And now I stand before Him at my death and my name is not recorded in His Book of Life!

I may face a lot of hardships, pain, and struggles in life, but glory to God, I will never hear those words spoken to me! And neither will any of you who completed the August 29th Salvation Post in this blog. Don’t for a minute let the devil deceive you into believing otherwise. This verse is not for you.

There comes a time when rescue is no longer an option—a point of no return. That day comes when Jesus opens the Book of Life and does not find your name. The names in the Book of Life are the names of the saved—whose hearts were opened to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

I wish Jesus had not used the word many in this teaching—but He did. There are going to be some surprises on Judgment Day because Jesus sees through sheep’s clothing.

You don’t have to be one who is surprised.

Get your name in the Book!   

PRAYER

Messiah, Praise You that Your blood wrote my name in the Book! In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.          

Christ writes my name in the Book—With His blood!

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Not Everyone

NOVEMBER 23

MATTHEW 7:21_Not everyone…

Since Jesus begins this teaching by saying not everyone, there must be some exclusiveness. Can mercy be exclusive? If so, who decides who is excluded? Would it be Jesus? How does He decide it?

Mercy is a God-like attribute.

Mercy is a Jesus quality.

Mercy covers sins.

Mercy covers shortcomings.

Mercy covers failures.

Mercy rescues the undeserving. 

Mercy brings the lost to shelter and safety.

Mercy does this by its very nature of being merciful.

However, one of those hard realities of life we prefer to avoid is, mercy is not limitless.

That is hard truth! 

Mercy has no limit for askers, seekers, and knockers. But arrogant pretenders, aka hypocrites, will experience hard truth.

Personally, I don’t think mercy had limits in the Garden of Eden. But free will caused it to pull in the reins, put on the brakes, and turn off the power.

That’s when a phrase like, not everyone, came into play. Mercy is for everyone, just as life without death was for Adam and Eve, but everyone has the freedom to reject it. 

PRAYER

King of Kings, Please help me never to reject Your mercy. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                                                       

Christ offers mercy to those who will receive it—I will receive!                                              

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Don’t You Believe It!

NOVEMBER 17

MATTHEW 7:19_that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down…

You’ve learned a lot of truth from Jesus this year. Now you’re in the home stretch. The devil does not want you to experience the freedom gained from His creation principles. He wants you to see them as judgmental and legalistic—don’t you believe it!

The devil can give you an easy and fun life—forget all this about hard times and struggles. But remember—his fun times are temporary. The fun turns into far greater pain than life’s struggles.

Hebrews 11:24-26 (KJV), “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; 25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.”

Moses knew there was pleasure in sin. He had lived as an Egyptian prince in a palace of false gods and idols. This is how he learned the pleasures of sin are only for a season. When the fun is gone all that’s left is bondage—trying to get the pleasure back. 

If the tree doesn’t produce good fruit it will be cut down.

Corrupt trees do not produce good fruit. 

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, Your rewards are far greater than the pleasures of sin. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                    

Christ knows sinful pleasures are bondage—He frees me!

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Baggage

OCTOBER 29

MATTHEW 7:14_strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life…

If we had to be baggage-free to enter the strait gate, there would be no need to enter. After all, we’re already living free so what’s there to gain?

We all have baggage. Bags filled with broken pieces of our hearts, hopes, and dreams. Some baggage we choose of our own free will. Other baggage is inflicted upon us by the circumstances of life. They come with the life package—a life we live in a dark and sinful world every moment of every day.   

The difference in the sizes of our baggage depends upon how we deal with them. The wide gate allows for a lot of baggage. This is why it is wide. The path is broad so we don’t have to drop off any bags. It is the designed path for those who have been subdued by the world—to accept its darkness as if there were no other choice. It is for those who don’t want to check their bags at the gate because the bags contain their pain relievers. Some may be for physical pain, but the majority are for pains of the soul. The spirits of darkness work to keep us depressed and discouraged. Life doesn’t have to be that way—there is hope!  

Colossians 1:27 (KJV), “To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

PRAYER

Lord Who Reigns, Only You can truly relieve the pains of my life. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ is the pain reliever—I will make Him mine!