God Alone

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And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. Mark 10:18

Often when people read this story about the “Rich Young Ruler” they believe its just a valuable lesson about God and money. However there is much more that is going on in this story, I think this story is one of the true revelations of Jesus deity.

The Rich man asks Jesus what do I need to do to inherit eternal life? Now notice this man recognizes who Jesus is, the Messiah (Christ). Hes specifically coming to Christ to ask him about gaining eternal life. But notice Jesus response “Why do you call me good?  No one is good except God alone “

So if God is the only one good , how can Jesus be the atonement for your sins unless he is God?

If Jesus is not God, then he wouldn’t be good, therefor he wouldn’t be able to be your atonement for your sins

See those who deny the Trinity (Godhead) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have real salvation issues. Because if you remove the deity from Christ, hes no longer able to be a sinless sacrifice. But when you recognize Jesus is God , he is able to take away your sins because he is sinless

The original Greek word for “Good” is “Agathos” which deeper meaning is “originates from God” “empowered by God”

This word is used to describe the “Good” Tree that bears “good” fruit opposed to the bad trees thrown in the fire (Matthew 7)

This word is used to describe the “Good” Soil that produces “good” fruit opposed to bad soil that is overtaken by Satan (birds) or withers and dies (Luke 8)

Remember Jesus said Nobody is Good except God alone, nobody can be saved except by Christ Alone! Amen!

Cling To God

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“But you are to cling to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day. Joshua 23:8

While Joshua was nearing the end of his life, he had some valuable words to give to the Israelites, “Cling to God”! What was Joshua talking about here? The Israelites were in the process of claiming their “Promised Land” During this process they were to drive out the pagan nations living there.

What Joshua was telling them is, if you don’t keep your eyes focused on Yahweh, you will fall away to worshipping other gods and practices. This is exactly what happened to most Israelites, after Joshua passed away, most Israelites became complacent in their faith.

Instead of driving out the pagan nations, most Israelites just started merging with them. This became disastrous to Israel. As most forgot about their true God and started worshipping false gods and idols

“So take diligent heed to yourselves to love the LORD your God. Joshua 23:11

Another translations of this is to “Watch yourself carefully”. It means keep your eyes focused on Christ! How many of us nonchalantly just fall away from our faith when we are not “clinging” or “heeding” ourselves to Christ? It’s a commitment, we must stay committed to our God or we will eventually fade away

And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ Matthew 22:37

Jesus said to Love God with all your Heart, Soul, and Mind! This is also known as the Shema in Hebrew. Cling to The Lord! Abide in Christ in everything you do! When we lose our focus on Christ we become lost! Cling to Jesus! Amen!

Like A Child

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But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Mark 10:14

We all know and sang the song “Jesus loves the little children” and he does! But notice how this is in complete opposition of religion or the world. In this scene, the children saw Jesus and wanted to come to him, however the adults were rebuking them and telling them to go away.

Even in modern day “Churches” or society we still act the same way. “Children are to be seen and not heard!” Why are we so offended by the outburst of a child? Why be angered by the cries of a baby? Because we as humans are puffed up with pride! We need to sound and act important, if Jesus is truly your master, he was ok with kids interrupting the service, why aren’t you?

“Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” Mark 10:15

Jesus takes it one step further and says unless we become like these children we cant enter Heaven…ouch! Our big puffed up egos are bruised! What are the traits of children? Innocence, trust, wonder, curious, honest, these are qualities we all need as Christians.

Jesus said unless we become “Born Again” we cant enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Becoming Born Again is a transformation of your mind and heart. Until we renew our minds like children, until we bring back that innocence and honesty, we cant enter Heaven. Until we Repent and accept Jesus as our Lord we cant become like Children of God! Amen!

Resurrection Power

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Now it came about after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 1 Kings 17:17

When we think of Resurrections, we probably think of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, or maybe we think about when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. However there was resurrections in the Old Testament. Here we take a look at the story of the prophet Elijah performing a resurrection on a young boy

Now we shouldn’t confuse the Resurrection of Christ with these other resurrections. The Resurrection of Christ was an eternal event, meaning Jesus will never die again. Where as these other “resurrections” such as Lazarus were brought back to life, but eventually they died just like the rest of us

Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and called to the LORD and said, “O LORD my God, I pray You, let this child’s life return to him. The LORD heard the voice of Elijah, and the life of the child returned to him and he revived.” 1 Kings 17:21-22

How did Elijah perform this resurrection? Well basically he cried out to God, to save the child. You see when prophets and apostles resurrect or heal people, it has nothing to do with them. God is displaying his power and glory through them.

God heard the prayers from Elijah and had mercy on him. Now another reason why God probably performed this resurrection was to confirm Elijah was a true prophet, why? Because Elijah is going to play a huge role in the restoration of Israel. He’s going to take on the evil worshipers of Baal including Jezebel. The Israelites were more likely to listen to Elijah since he proved he is a prophet from God

Think about when Jesus went into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, why were the people so sure he was the Messiah? Because previously he just resurrected Lazarus from the dead, it was a sign or confirmation, that he was doing the works of God

But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Romans 8:11

Now heres a thought, the Apostle Paul writes the same power that rose Jesus from the dead lives inside of You! As a Born Again believer , the Holy Spirit lives inside of you, you shouldn’t consider yourself weak or afraid. Meditate on that, pray about that, read your scriptures , Amen!

Happy Birthday Heidi

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Like a lily among the thorns, So is my darling among the maidens. Song of Solomon 2:2

Like a beautiful rose in a world of thorns , this is how Heidi is to me. In a world that can be dark and lonely, Heidi is my light, my best friend, and my soul mate. I can’t imagine where I would be right now if I never met her. She has changed my life in so many ways, and has help make me who I am today!

Her heart and compassion for others is amazing and contagious. She will stay by your side through thick and thin, always thinking about others more than herself. She is truly an angel , my angel that I’m lucky to call my wife!

An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. Proverbs 31:10

Heidi is priceless! I could never find anyone better for me! Her beauty, talent, intelligence, and compassion are priceless. There is no better blessing than to find a great wife, a great marriage, and a great family! I have been blessed with all of these and I thank God every day

So I want to celebrate and wish my wife Heidi a Happy Birthday, I’m thankful for another year and hope for many more Amen!

Cut It Out!

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If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire, where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.Mark 9:43-44

Cut off your hand? Cut off your foot? What is Jesus talking about here? The real question is what is worth going to hell for? Your answer most likely would be nothing! Then what are you doing with that sin in your life? Cut it Out! That’s what Jesus is talking about here, if there is sin in your life, its better to cut out that sin then go to hell!

Notice here Jesus calls Hell the “Unquenchable Fire” , other times Jesus describes Hell as “Weeping and Gnashing of Teeth”, is this where you want to spend eternity? We can argue all day long about the specifics of hell, but the bottom line is its real and you don’t want to go there!

“If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell, where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED. Mark 9:45-46

In case we didn’t get the message the first time, Jesus repeats himself again! Cut out your sin or be cast into hell. I know many wont like this message, many might get offended! However Jesus is not looking to be politically correct, hes looking to save your soul!

Again what sin is worth going to hell for? None are, so repent of your sins, become Born Again, and follow the Lord Jesus Christ! Amen!