Tag Archives: God

Saved Today, Condemned Tomorrow?

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Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Hebrews 13:8

Do you remember the day you were saved? Do you remember when the Father drew you to the Son? Do you remember when the Holy Spirit regenerated you and made you a new creation in Christ? If you are a Child of God, you probably remember this day like it was yesterday

If you have never been Born Again (John 3:3) then please, get on your knees and give your life to Jesus Christ today! The Lord is faithful and all His works on the cross are sufficient for our salvation! Unless you are Born Again, you wont see the Kingdom of God

However as the walk with Christ presses on, you find that its not easy being a Child of God. You find out that you will need to deny yourself , carry your cross , and follow our Master just as He said (Matthew 16:24) And some days you wondered if you were ever saved at all! 

The good news friend is our Lord is the everlasting God, He was in the beginning at Creation (John 1:1-3) and He will be with us till we come into glory! Our Lord does not change! Jesus is the same today, yesterday, and forever! If you were sealed by the promise of the Holy Spirit today, you are still sealed by God tomorrow (Ephesians 1:13)

Some just can’t accept this Grace and Mercy of our Father in Heaven. They toil night and day trying to earn their salvation, they agonize that today they might have lost grace. Please don’t fall into the pit of false religion, its where Satan loves to dwell, to torture the lost sheep

Instead put your true faith in the Good Shepherd, Christ has never lost one of his sheep! (John 10:28) Never! There hasn’t been one sheep that was lost by the Great Shepherd, or God must be a liar. Friends, if we are able to lose our seal of the Holy Spirit, they we are all doomed, because nobody is worthy of Gods grace and salvation

Put your trust in the finished works of our Master, when He said “Teltelestai” meaning “It Is Finished (John 19:30) Your sin is forgiven, the atonement has been paid, you are a regenerated Child of God, no longer a slave to sin but part of the body of Christ, (1 Corinthians 12:27) Amen!

Only Begotten Son- John 3:16

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For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16

Probably the most famous scripture in the Bible, maybe the most well known words in the world, however does the world understand this proclamation? Does the world understand the significance of the Only Begotten Son of God coming into the world to die for our sins?

Why would the immortal Creator become one of the creation, to suffer and die the most horrible death in our history? Because God so loved the world, because the Creator does love His creation. Even though the world curses his name on a daily basis, even though the world rebels in lawlessness on a daily basis, God wants all to come to repentance and be saved (2 Peter 3:9)

You might say God doesn’t love me! Look at the pain and suffering of the world, how can a loving God allow this to happen? First, God demonstrated His love towards, while we were still sinners, Chist died for You! (Romans 5:8) He gave His only begotten Son,how can you say God doesn’t love you, when he bled and died for you?

Your sin, your rebellion put Christ on that cross! Your sin brought the curse upon the whole world, that includes pain and suffering, your sin is the disease and Christ is the only cure! Why do you harden your hearts at the name of Jesus? Because your heart is hardened , you are deceived by the Father of lies , Satan (John 8:44) 

But whoever believes in Him, in who? In the Only Begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, whoever puts their faith in Christ for salvation, whoever puts their trust in the finished works of Christ on the cross, will have everlasting life! 

The head of the serpent was crushed (Genesis 3:15) sin, death, Hell, and Satan were all defeated at the cross! Thanks be to God for our victory we have in the Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, do you believe?

Zechariah 8- The Millennial Kingdom

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But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘For the seed shall be prosperous, The vine shall give its fruit, The ground shall give her increase, And the heavens shall give their dew— I will cause the remnant of this people To possess all these. And it shall come to pass That just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, So I will save you, and you shall be a blessing. Do not fear, Let your hands be strong.’ Zechariah 8:11-13

Now we are seeing a shift in Gods dealing with Israel, “I (God) will not treat the remnant (The True Israel) of these people in the former days. This appears to be a promise of the Millennial Reign of Christ (Revelation 20:1-6) When Jesus returns , defends and restores the remnant, the elected nation of Israel (Romans 11)

So I (God) will save You, Israel can’t save itself, just as nobody can save themselves. Only Christ can save Israel, just as only Christ can save us. The promise of God , he will save and restore Israel once again is echoed throughout the entire Bible

And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the LORD has promised, among the remnant called by the LORD. Joel 2:32

“For thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Just as I determined to punish you When your fathers provoked Me to wrath,’ Says the LORD of hosts, ‘And I would not relent, So again in these days I am determined to do good To Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear. Zechariah 8:14-15

What a prophetic message, even today! God loves those he disciplines (Hebrews 12:6) Just as God punished Israel for its wickedness and rebellion, God will also save and restore them, because Israel is the “Apple of His eyes” (Zechariah 2:8) 

God has determined to do good to Jerusalem and the house of Judah (Israel) Do not fear! While the world lives in hopelessness and despair, God is in complete control, and everything that is happening right now is part of His divine plan to restore Israel

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

These are the things you shall do: Speak each man the truth to his neighbor; Give judgment in your gates for truth, justice, and peace; Let none of you think evil in your heart against your neighbor; And do not love a false oath. For all these are things that I hate,’ Says the LORD.” Zechariah 8:16-17

Jesus said “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) If Israel truly loves The Lord God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5) Then they must obey and love The Son, Jesus Christ (John 14:6)

When Israel is truly restored in Christ, you will see the fruits of Israel that love God and love their Neighbor!

Serve the LORD with fear, And rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him. Psalm 2:11-12

James 2- Faith Without Works? Sermon notes

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This teaching of James, , is probably his most famous, yet most controversial teachings , and it might be one the most debated teachings in the Bible. James is teaching us “Faith without Works is Dead” Meaning someone who claims to have faith in Christ, yet doesn’t live their life in faith , is a fake, just like that guy dressed in a gorilla suite, he was a fraud, well someone who claims to be a Christian, yet never acts like a Christian is a fraud. Remember ealier James taught “Be a Doer of the Word and Not Just a Hearer of the Word”

Remember what Jesus said “Somebody who is a doer of the Word, is like a wise man who builds his house on the Rock” but “Someone who doesn’t actually apply the Word of God to their lives is a foolish man who builds his hous on the sand”  

Now the great theologian Martin Luther, who you may remember as the leader of the Reformation Movement, the founder of the Luthern Church, he hated this teaching by James so much, that He proposed the book of James be removed from the Bible. He called the book of James “an epistle of straw” So why are guys like Luther and others so opposed to James teaching here? Because some misinterpret this teaching to mean that works saves you. Not only is this not true, this is a total misinterpretation of James is saying here

Some even claim James and Paul are in contradiction with one another, but I will demonstrate they are not….

Well you might say, if we are not saved by works, then why is our faith dead without works? Lets dive into this teaching….

Faith Without Works?

14What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

James begins by questioning if someone claims to have faith, yet shows not signs of their faith, are they really saved? James gives a good example here, suppose you see one of your brothers or sisters in need, now notice this a brother or sister, this is a member of the Church, imagine if there is a member of the Church, and they have no food, they are in desperate need, and you do nothing to help them, what kind of faith is this?

You tell them a good word about Jesus , but you don’t do anything to help them, did you really help them? Is this what Jesus really wants from us? To just be words and no action?

But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 1 John 3:17

Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality. Romans 12:13

Jesus said:

35for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 

37“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ (Matthew 25)

Just Believe

18But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [f]your works, and I will show you my faith by [g]my works. 19You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [h]dead?

There are many Christians who will just save , we just Believe in Jesus and do nothing, but the real question is , is this true faith? If you truly believe who Jesus is, but don’t do anything Jesus tells you what to do, do you really have faith in him? Consider what Jesus said “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) It’s easy for us to just say we just believe in Jesus, 

James uses the example here “Even the demons believe, and tremble” The demons believe and know Jesus is the Son of God, you see this throughout the gospels, however does that mean they are saved? Of course not, they have never repented , they have never submitted to Jesus as Lord.  

“What do You want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?” (Matthew 8:29)

“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24)

23And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was [j]accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. 24You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. (James 23-24)

James then uses Abraham as an example of being saved by His faith, the Apostle Paul also uses Abraham alot as an example of saving faith. Abraham believed God and it was credited to him. However what did Abrham do then? He responded to Gods calling, He left his homeland and pursue the promise land , which we call Israel today, Abraham was obedient to God in whatever he asked him to do, this is real faith.

Consider what Jesus says 

Known by Your Fruits:

16You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Matthew 7:16-20

Jesus said We will be known by our fruits, 

Going back to the Apostle Paul here

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

The Apostle Paul says we saved By Grace Through Faith in Christ, not by anything we do. Its a gift of God, not by our works, by the works of Christ on the cross, so none of us can boast or brag. 

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

However as we are Born Again in Christ, as we are filled with the Holy Spirit, God is working through us. If the Holy Spirit is living inside of you, then you should see evidence of the Holy Spirit living inside of you….consider the fruits of the Holy Spirit

Conclusion:

  1. Faith Without Works is Dead- Don’t be a hypocritical Christian
  2. If we truly believe , then our lives should reflect this- even the demons believe
  3. Abraham is a model of our faith
  4. You will be known by Your Fruits- Your actions (works)
  5. Fruits of The Holy Spirit

Faith and works are bound up in the same bundle. He that obeys God trusts God; and he that trusts God obeys God. He that is without faith is without works; and he that is without works is without faith. Charles Spurgeon

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

As a Christian, when you truly put your faith in Christ, you will recieve the Holy Spirit, which the Spirit will give you gifts, which these Gifts will enable you to produce works, but all this comes back to grace by faith in Christ

The true works are of Christ, who died for your sins on the cross, and rose again on the 3rd day to give you eternal life, put your faith in Christ alone and Christ will work through you, Amen!

Philemon 1- No Longer A Slave

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For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave—a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. Philemon 1:15-16

The question we love to ask God is why? Why did this happen to me? Why did I have to go through this? As we grow in Christ, we learn that God allows these things to happen, because it makes us stronger in the long run. As the Apostle Paul said “And we know that God works for the good for those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28) This can be difficult for us to grasp or comprehend, however Gods ways are higher than our ways, His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8)

The Apostle Paul makes a very divine observation here “For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose” Even though at one time Onesimus may have seemed unforgivable or rebellious, God needed him to go through this hard time to lead him to Christ. You can imagine when Onesimus stole from Philemon, who was his boss, his master, he was disgraced, he had to go on the run to hide for his life. 

And it’s interesting to think about, this situation not only changed Onesimus, but it also changed Philemon, and eventually the whole Church community of Colossae. You could imagine, Philemon was probably extremely angry with Onesimus, he probably even wished harm on him, but Paul was reminding him, you are a brother in Christ now. As Paul taught them “Forgive because Christ has forgiven us” (Ephesians 4:32)

Paul reminds them about Onesimus “No longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother” Powerful reminder of the gospel message, Onesimus was no longer a literal and spiritual slave, He was set free by Christ, He is a brother in Christ to the Church community, including Philemon. This is the same for us! We are no longer slaves to sin and the devil, we are now children of God through Jesus Christ ! (Galatians 3:26)

“Especially to me” Paul reveals how him and Onesimus became great friends while in prison united by Christ. And if the Apostle Paul spoke highly of Onesimus then they should receive him in regards to Pauls witness. “And how much more to you” Paul is telling the Church, Onesimus will be of great service to their community, he went from being a despised slave to a beloved brother in Christ! 

How can this happen? As the Apostle Paul states “In The Lord” its all because of Jesus we can be saved, we can be redeemed, we can be Born Again, from a slave to a brother! Amen!

Romans 8- God Be For Us!

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What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Romans 8:31-33

As a Christian, you are in a spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6) There is an ongoing battle for your soul, Satan wants to destroy you (1 Peter 5:8) while Jesus Christ wants to save you (1 Timothy 1:15) The question is what side of the battle are you on? Are you in The Lord’s army? (Joshua 5:13-15) Or are you another casualty of Satan and his dark Kingdom? Make no mistake, you are in the battle whether you realize it or not, there is only One who can save your soul, thats Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:28)

There is good news, this is what the word gospel means, Christ has already defeated Satan, sin, death, and Hell, we have victory in Jesus! (1 Corinthians 15) As the Apostle Paul states to us, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “if God be for us, who can be against us?” (v31) All the demonic forces in the world can’t touch your soul, because you have the Spirit of the Living God inside of You, you are washed and protected by the blood of Christ, you are sanctified by the Holy Spirit , there is no demon that can stand against you! We have Victory in Christ!

That’s what really happened at the cross, while Satan thought he killed the Son of God, the Son of God actually crushed the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15) Satan was defeated at the cross, death was defeated at the cross, sin was paid for at the cross , if God is for us, there is nobody who can stand against us in Jesus name! That is the power of the cross, that is what Jesus accomplished when He said “It Is Finished” (John 19:30)

Then of course on the 3rd day, Sunday morning Christ rose from the dead, this is why the resurrection of Christ is the foundation of our faith! Because Christ Is Risen, we can rise again with him! If you want a sign that death is defeated, Christ Is Risen! If you want assurance of Gods promises, Christ Is Risen! If you want to know why nobody can stand against you, its because Christ Is Risen!

God did not spare His own son, Jesus Christ, God so loved the world, God so loved you, He gave His Only Begotton Son, to die for our sins, to defeat sin, death, and Hell, repent and believe the gospel, repent and give your life to Jesus Christ, because Christ has already given his life for you! 

We are justified by the Father, we are atoned for by the Son, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, All glory to God, Holy, Holy, Holy , Amen!