The Bible says There's Only One Way To Heaven

The gospel is that Jesus died for sinners on the cross, was buried, and rose from the dead (1 Cor. 15:1-4).  His death was a sacrifice that turns away the wrath of God (1 John 2:2).  This is the only way to be saved.

Jesus is the One you need.  Him alone.  Not your works (Rom. 3:10-12; Isaiah 64:6).  Not your sincerity.  Not your goodness.  You have nothing to offer God except your sinfulness.  It is only by the love and grace of God found in Jesus and His sacrifice that you can be delivered from the righteous wrath of God upon all who have broken His law.  Jesus saves you from God.

Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto my Father but by me." John 14:6
Nobody Else Can Save You. Trust Jesus Today!

1. Admit you are a sinner
2. Be willing to turn from sin (repent).
3. Believe that Jesus Christ died for you, was buried and rose from the dead.
4. Through prayer, invite Jesus into your life to become personal Saviour, Boss, King and Lord.

What to Pray;

Lord Jesus, I know that I have sinned against you.  I know that I am not perfect and that I cannot please you through my own efforts.  I know that I deserve to be judged according to my sins.  And, I know that I have nothing to offer you.

Lord Jesus, I ask you to forgive me of my sins.  Please cleanse me and make me right before you.  I trust in what you have done on the cross.  I do not rely on myself but only on you and I receive you as Lord of my life and as savior of my soul.  Lord Jesus, save me.  I look to you alone.

Did You accept Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour?

If your answer was Yes, then this just the beginning of a wonderful new life with Christ.
Now you need to:

1. Read your Bible every day to get to know Christ better.
2. Talk to God in prayer every day.
3. Be baptized, worship, fellowship, and serve with other Christians in a church where Christ is preached, and the Bible is the final authority.
4. Tell others about Jesus Christ.

If you are a backslider(a person who has walked away from the Lordship and obedience to Christ) please return, he is calling for you. He loves you and is a God of another chance. Don't put it off, today much less tomorrow is not promised.

"And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh."

Man cannot endure God's judgment, justice, or will forever, we are only flesh and will fall if we don't yield to God.

Repent, turn and yield to Him Now.

If you have prayed and asked Jesus to deliver you from your sins and save you from God's wrath, then please email me. johnchristiandoe@gmail.com

Thanks for checking in and God Bless!>> John

The Four Spiritual Laws

As Christians, we are to witness with truth, honesty, and integrity. The Lord give us opportunities to:

• witness to others
• defend our faith  
• or just give answers for anyone who wants to know about the Hope that is in us.
  
  Read - (1 Peter 3:15); (Isaiah 55:11); (John 12:32)
  

To accomplish these tasks we must Pray and ask the Holy Spirit for help, study Gods Word daily, be humble and point people to Jesus. Let them know that it is HE and HE alone who saves. You are delivering the Good News, Jesus is that Good news and Jesus is the one who saves.


There is only ONE way to Heaven and that way is through Jesus. All paths are NOT to the same place. The door is narrow and the path is single file.


“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. - 2 Timothy 3:16-18” - God gave us a tool to use and that tool is His Word!


*Here are the 4 spiritual Laws:

1. God loves you and offers a wonderful plan for your life: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life," (John 3:16). “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. “ (John 10:10)
   
   
2. Man is sinful and separated from God: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," (Rom. 3:23); "For the wages of sin is death," (Rom. 6:23); "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God," (Isaiah 59:2). Man was created to have fellowship with God; but, because of his stubborn self-will, he chose to go his own independent way, and fellowship with God was broken. This self-will, characterized by an attitude of active rebellion or passive indifference, is evidence of what the Bible calls sin.
   
   
3. Jesus Christ is God's only provision for man's sin. Through Him you can know and experience God's love and plan for your life : "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me" (John 14:6); "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us," (Rom. 5:8). “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,..” (I Corinthians 15:3-6)
   
   
4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives:  "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name," (John 1:12); "if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved," (Rom. 10:9); "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God," (Eph. 2:8).
   
   To receive Christ you must turn to God and away from self and repent. You must trust Christ to come into your life to forgive your sins and to make you what He wants you to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for your sins is not enough; even Satan knows know who Jesus is. It also is not enough to just have an emotional experience. You must receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of the will.

Gods Word will accomplish what God desires; that the Gospel has the power to save and  it is Jesus who draws men to himself. Jesus does the work, not us.

"Lord Jesus, I want to know You personally. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving me of my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be." Amen

Thanks for checking in and God Bless >>John


* William R. "Bill" Bright developed the evangelistic Christian tract of the “The Four Spiritual Laws” in 1952

Make today about real Love, Not Hallmark.

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! I could not let this day go by without writing something about Love. I published Episode 9 of the 1 Peter Bible study Podcast which has the same theme. Check it out here.

God expects Christians to love others. By our fruit we can tell the level of love we have for our fellow man. Do you actively seek out ways in which to serve and love others? Or, is your thing just to cut checks and allow others to do the work, feeling like you've made a difference? When is the last time you actively sought out to make someone else have a good day?

We all know what it is like when people really make us angry; from rude comments, to inconsiderate behavior, taking too long with our dinner while eating out and so on. We all know how bad this makes us feel. I know I have been there more times than I would like to admit. I have my selfish moments, thinking it is all about me. We all have a tendency to view the world from the standpoint of us being the center and everything else needing to conform to our wants and needs. This is such a unhealthy way to live.

John 13:25 tell us, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” It is a very damaging to have Christians treating each other badly. It not only goes against what God expects from us, it is a bad witness to non-believers. If you quarrel in front of a non believer you may drive them further from Jesus because of your failings. To me, there can be nothing more sad than that. Is it worth sinning to make yourself feel better by snapping at someone to make them feel small because they have somehow wronged you? Would you be comfortable having lots of people see you at moments like that? I know I would not! How we act is proof that we belong to God. How many people right now would accuse you of belonging to God?

Proverbs 10:12 tell us that, “Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all transgressions.” Pick your battles, and let things go. Nothing makes you feel better than saying I’m sorry and letting conflict go; doing right feels much, much better than being right most of the time. That last one is for me, this is a major flaw I have and I am sure many others have also.

Start with making someone’s day today. I know this is a day is a day to spend with your significant others. Think about how many people may be lonely today. Think of those who have had the love of their lives pass away; and about those who have their love ones fighting overseas so that others may live with simple freedoms that we all take for granted. Think of that little girl or boy missing their daddy or mommy right now when kids are giving their parents handmade cards and about the hugs and kisses they wish they could give them right now.

Love could be as simple as forgoing coffee and treating someone else to a free coffee, lunch or dinner…or just a smile and a hug for that person who looks like they need it. Call that person you know is alone; stop this time to acknowledge and help that person you ignore every day on the street. Lets us make this day not about Hallmark, expectations and “what did you get?” Lets us today, be what we should be everyday as Christians. Lets love in the Biblical since, let us fill others with love and compassion and overflow their cups; let that person or persons know they are a child of God and that they are loved.

“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.” - Hebrews 6:10


Peace be with all of you today. God Bless. >>John

What is humility?

Zephaniah tells us in 3:12, the “But I will leave among you A humble and lowly people, And they will take refuge in the name of the LORD.”

We are not to think too highly of ourselves. The Lord showed the Jews during those forty years wandering in the desert, that He was in control and He would take care of them by letting them go hungry and then feeding them manna. We become humble when we acknowledge God is in control and release our selfish pride. We become humble when we recognize God knows what we need and that He will be the one to meets those needs.

1 Peter 3:8 says “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.” As we turn from being selfish and self centered, we can start to develop compassion and sympathy toward our fellow man.

Jesus was the perfect example of being humble. Born of a virgin in a stable; he was the King of Kings riding in his royal procession on a donkey. He, who knew no sin, became sin so we could become His righteousness; though Jesus is God, He became nothing to die on a cross for us. We should model ourselves after Jesus, serving others and not just being served. Serving others will help us develop a humble heart.

1 Peter 5:6 tells us that the Lord will honor the Humble, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”

Psalms 69:32 also tells us that “The humble have seen it and are glad; You who seek God, let your heart revive.” So being humble will open our eyes to see what the Lord does in our lives. We may have a tendency to think that everything is of our own doing. Don’t let pride blind you to what God is doing around you.

Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

I rise and fall everyday with prayers thanking God for all that I have, from my family, to my health, to my family’s health, to my job, to pretty much everything He has lead me through in my life. It should be a great comfort to us, that humble and thankful praises from us are more pleasing to God than the most costly, pompous sacrifices.

Without God I am nothing; may all the Praise and Glory be to God. Amen


Thanks for checking in and God Bless >>John

You don’t have to do this alone.

 “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.” - Colossians 2:8 

There is a way of life or philosophy that greatly engages our mind and soul. It improves mankind and solidifies our faith in our Lord; it is the study of the Word and the Works of God. There is also a way of life or a counter philosophy that is conceited, vain, deceitful, void of Faith and completely self serving. This is the philosophy of the Worldly. What we believe, is our base or center of operations for our lives and how we conduct ourselves as humans. Everything depends on this center. 

The first way, is in total acceptance of the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ for our sins. These people are in Christ, saved from the punishment due under the shadow of their sin; they are living in a holy, sanctifying, dead to sin and in a mutual loving relationship with our Lord God.

The second way of life is a sad, disappointing existence and worthy of much pity. They live blinded by false idols, hardened hearts, and are content in relying on their own strength in everything. Their backs are turned against Christ, brushing His helping arms away. They are failing to truly see and accept their sin, failures, hurt and disappointments as a load only Christ can forgive, carry and guild them through.

If you are hurting, tired and broken, Christ is waiting for you. Tell Him you accept Him as your Lord and Savior. Ask for God’s forgiveness for your sins. Ask Him to come into your life and make you new again. Ask Him to guild your thoughts, mind and heart, all the days of your life. Many of us have been broken by trying to carry the hurt and pains of life on our own. This is a futile fight that you don’t have to endure alone. Jesus loves you so much; He laid down His life for you. And because of His perfect sacrifice He rose again, securing your salvation. May God Bless you.

Thanks for checking in and God Bless >>John

Christ’s death and resurrection; It’s about the “why”.

John 10:18 tells us "No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father."

These words spoken by Jesus have been written down for all to read for almost 2000 years. Yet, many people have worried about “who” killed Christ, missing the point of why it happened and in turn, taking God’s hand out of it. Genesis 50:20 tells us "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." So what men meant for evil by killing Christ, God meant for good. The “who” was not important; the “why” was everything.

The great preacher John Piper put it like this, “And since God meant it for good, we must look beyond human causes to a divine propose. The central issue of Jesus death is not the cause, but the purpose-the meaning. Human beings may have their reasons for wanting Jesus out of the way. But only God can design it for the good of the world."

What many fail to see is that Christ’s death and resurrection was so important, so miraculous that it changed everything; nothing would ever be the same again. Christ’s death and resurrection changed the Roman Empire, the very Empire that took his life. Christ’s death and resurrection changed his own unbelieving brother’s mind of who he was. A meeting with the risen Jesus changed the Apostle Paul’s heart to stop hunting and persecuting Christians; and turned him into one of Christianity greatest leaders and writer of much of the New Testament. Christ’s death and resurrection lead the apostles to continue to build Christ’s Church in the face of great opposition and persecution. Seeing Christ’s death and resurrection eventually lead most of the apostles to martyrdom because of their belief and love for Christ. Christ’s death and resurrection was meant to change us forever. Are you fighting that change?

Sometimes we may lose sight of what the gospel is about; we may get wrapped up in details that cause us to miss the meaning. Christ’s death and resurrection has changed our fate and given us new everlasting life. Jesus’ sacrifice paid our ransom. It provided our justification, sanctification and ultimately or salvation; it is our pardon and our purity. So, as you go about your days on earth, keep in mind the meaning of “why” Jesus went to the cross, was crucified, was buried, rose from the grave and ascended into Heaven and act accordingly in all you do. Hope in the grace of God!

Thanks for checking in and God Bless >>John

Why I hate religion - Pastor Mark Driscoll

While the word "Hate" is strong, I find that the liberalization of Churches and of the interpretation of the Bible is killing Christianity, thus I am not fond of it. I love people, all people. I want them to come to Christ and if they are in Christ I do not want them to be lead astray.

The video below is form an excerpt of a sermon by - Pastor Mark Driscoll of the Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington. I can't even begin to say how much I agree with this video. If only those who were damaged by Religiosity could have found a Church that teaches Jesus, who talk about Jesus and follow the Bible and not their made up version of what they want people to follow.

It is about Jesus and what HE did on the cross. Just like in the past when the Church kept the Bible from the common person, didn't want them reading it, so they could control the masses, today the truth is still being covered up. The Bible is there for us all to read, for us all to absorb, learn and meditate in. I ask you all to search, I mean seriously seek Gods word, pray and let that Truth poor over you and follow the narrow path it leads you on. The Bible will never steer you wrong, but be aware of those with something to lose, for they WILL steer you wrong.

I have to love who? Aww come on...

He answered: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' - Luke 10:27 - NIV2010

Ahhh, a tough one for most of us, to love our neighbor as ourselves. We all love lots of things, family, food, cars, homes, TV shows, TV Stars, Facebook, our phones…but do we truly love anything as much as ourselves? I know I love my family, without a doubt beyond anything on this earth. Do I love others more than myself? That guy who cut me off or the person in the 12 or less items line with way more than 12 items or the neighbor who throws weedy dirt clumps over my fence or the other neighbor whose father tried to cut down my 60 foot tall tree with a machete?

Do I love people that can be self centered, self serving and rude?  Yes.  Do I love the "act" or the “sin”. No. Do I think that all of us in some way fall under the category I just described? Yes. I would most definitely help most anyone with anything I could, but I know my heart needs work.

In Luke 10:25-37 the Samaritan proves himself a neighbor by his unprejudiced mercy and compassion.I need to be more like this, we all need to be like this.

But who is our neighbor? Our neighbor is determined without distinction of race, nationality, or religion; the people that affect us either good or bad are our neighbors. More specifically in light of the Good Samaritan parable, he who needs our aid, no matter who he is, is our neighbor. Now this leads me to the question, “are WE neighborly?" Are we gracious, kind, helpful, merciful, friendly and compassionate to our fellow man? Do we wish to help our fellow man more than we desire to please ourselves? Most of us I am sure fall short.

We have the model for how a good neighbor should act; he was perfect in his execution of how we should be or strive to be in every way. Jesus saw awful sinners whose sin robbed their potential, stripped their spiritual ideals and broke them. Jesus helped them rise by coming down to where they are….he was the supreme Samaritan. In his greatest feat he gave mankind a corresponding act of mercy by his sacrifice and secured our salvation through his resurrection. No matter how much we don’t deserve his grace mercy, no matter how un-neighborly we are. Jesus is always there, and he loves us. God gives us abundantly more than we ask. Let’s try to do that for others.

Thanks for checking in >>John

Mercy Me - Homesick (Live)

Such an awesome song. Please, say a prayer for our Troops and their families.

Hold fast, help is on the way.

God uses pain to shape our faith. Sometimes God allows our heart to feel the sorrow of loss so that it will know the depths of hope and patience that only the pain from loss can teach once it has healed. I believe we grow in the valleys of life, pain and sadness force us to examine where our strengths lie and who we put our faith in.

The burden of going through this life is too much for us to carry on our own, it takes a strong person to swallow their pride and ask for help. With Christ Jesus we can do anything.

Because of our pain and hardships we will enjoy the glory of God that much more the day we go to be with him. People who suffer and still have faith, have a way of touching and empowering others, this is a tool of God. I think we all have been in awe of someone who has survived unspeakable pain and still maintained their faith in God.

The Apostles realized this, all of them suffered very much for their faith and all but one were killed for it. That is faith. Look what Jesus went through for us so that we, we who love him and believe in him, can have a loving, pain free eternity.

Suffering is a hard concept for most Christians. If God did everything for us, protected us from everything how would our faith grow? That would breed complacency and we would not grow our faith. Just like our children, something’s they have to learn own their own. You let them try and fail so they learn and when they succeed it is that much sweeter for them and us! God looks at us like that, but we live in a broken world and bad things happen.

This life is just a moment in time when compared to eternity. The treasures and glory that await us in heaven are far more than anything we can conceive. I have never felt calm or comfort in my life the way I have when I completely committed to Christ. I step out of my comfort zone for God so I can grow. This blog and Podcast are just that.

We are justified through God grace through our faith alone. God loves you so much; he wants you to accept him no matter what. Nothing we do can get us into heaven….only our faith in Jesus and his word. That is ALL you need.

Thanks for checking in > John

This post was taken in part from my response to a question on faith and suffering in 2009.

The Birth of Jesus - Luke 2

Take time out of this wonderful day of family and friends to remember....

God bless and Merry Christmas everyone!!

The Birth of Jesus

1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.  - Luke 2:1-20

Thanks for checking in > John

"For me to live is Christ", who is Paul?

Paul began his career as a fanatical enemy of Christians; he then became arguably its greatest leader.Next to Jesus, Paul is most important person in the New Testament. Paul was not only a Christian activist and theologian, he was a very devoted follower of Christ whose life should serve as a model for all of us.

Paul started out wealthy and educated, a Roman citizen, he lived a rare life for a Jew at the time. Paul was fluent in Greek and very familiar with secular literature at the time. He saw himself as a devout Jew and studied theology in Jerusalem under the famous rabbi Gamaliel. Paul viewed Christianity as heresy and joined a campaign to search for, arrest and execute Christians.

In Acts (9:1-19) an encounter with Jesus changes his life, and in one of the greatest conversions in history, Paul became what he hated and persecuted, a Christian. He became so passionate it was shown is everything he wrote and in one of my all time favorite verses Philippians (1:21) it is evident; “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain”.

After Paul's conversion some years passed before he found his role. Paul then traveled almost constantly preaching the Good News to both Jews and Gentiles around the Mediterranean Sea. Paul lived out his life a missionary, overcoming many obstacles like a ship wreck, snake bite, beatings and many narrow escapes. He started many new churches and 13 of the letters in the New Testament were written by Paul to those churches. Paul never stopped thinking of himself as a Jew and he was probably one of the first in the Church to support racial reconciliation, he believed the Jew and the Gentile were equal citizens in the kingdom of God because faith in Jesus is all God required.

Paul’s life is an example of living a Christ-centered life. May we all strive to live with this kind passion for Jesus.

Thanks for checking in > John

Excuse me, may I poor this into your cup?

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’-Matthew (25:23)

Matthew (24:45-51) tells us that getting ready for Jesus’ return demands us to be faithful in doing the work he has called us to do. This was a warning to all disciples and even more so toward Christian leaders.  I am sure we all can guess why Christian leaders are held to a higher standard in Christ’s eyes. Just look at the backlash we Christians face when our leaders fall and the damage that can be done by leading people astray. Non-believers judge our entire faith based on those failings of a few which I find ironic to say the least.

We are given an opportunity here on earth to multiply what Jesus has entrusted to us. Matthew tells us in Matthew (25:15), that the master gave each according to his ability. Christ knows our abilities but he expects more of us than to just keep our heads down and be good.

24 “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ 26 “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. - Matthew (25:24-26)

Jesus promises eternal reward for those who prove worthy of his trust. I think it is reasonable for us to agree that if someone can’t be trusted with what is his own or just a small amount, how could they be trusted with what concerns others or a large amount? I use this story to explain trust with my 16 year old. She wants to be trusted with bigger things such as dating and driving but can’t be trusted with small things like turning her hair straighter off, cleaning her room and our little household rules. I try to explain that trust built with small things leads to trust with big things. None of us are above this rule… some just choose to opt out and settle for giving back what they were given and some just choose to use it up.

This same pattern is mirrored across most anywhere in life if you want to move up and lead. Christ has provided us with endless amounts of Love, Grace and mercy. Imagine a world where people didn’t just receive those gifts from God, but from each other.

May your cup overflow, but more importantly, may you help overflow the cups of others.

Thanks for checking in…

It's that time of year Again!!

Taking a break from working on my next Podcast on 1 Peter 1:8-9 and I came across this passage in Mathew....good stuff Merry Christmas!!!

“But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” - Matthew 1:20-21 

>John

The truth is hard to swallow

Below is a prayer Pastor Joe Wright gave when asked to open the new session of the Kansas House of Representatives on January 23, 1996. I find it a very insightful prayer, a kind of prayer that will bother those who do not want to admit to being a sinner. It will bother those who believe this countries moral compass is already pointing true north something I think even the most lukewarm Humanist would agree is not the case. It will bother those who deny Christianity, the validity of the Bible and Gods grace to justify their wrong doing.

The Secularist main stream and the Liberal media have cloaked a veil over our eyes to make people think anything is permissible as long as you feel it is okay. Day by day our children are being poisoned by moral neglect and an indifference to common decency. Some want to deny their accountability to God over their morality, belief and acceptance of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. I think this line of thinking is akin to a teenager denying their parents authority over them, the old “You are not the boss of me!” argument. My children at one point truly believed that if they covered their eyes I could not see them because they could not see me. No matter how much they believed that I could not see them, it never changed the reality. So too is it with God. The truth is hard to swallow



==========

THE PRAYER

The response was immediate - with a number of legislators walking out during the prayer. In six short weeks Central Christian Church logged more than 5,000 phone calls, with only 47 of those calls responding negatively.

Commentator Paul Harvey aired Pastor Joe Wright's prayer on the radio and received a larger response to this program than any other program Paul Harvey has ever aired.
In addition, Central Christian Church is now receiving international requests for copies of this prayer from India, Africa, and Korea.

The prayer is reprinted below:

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and seek your direction and guidance.
We know your Word says, "Woe to those who call evil good," but that's exactly what we've done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and inverted our values.
We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of your Word and called it moral pluralism. We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.
We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle.
We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.
We have neglected the needy and called it self-preservation.
We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.
We have killed our unborn and called it choice.
We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building esteem.
We have abused power and called it political savvy.
We have coveted our neighbors' possessions and called it ambition.
We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our fore-fathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us O God and know our hearts today; try us and see if there is some wicked way in us; cleanse us from every sin and set us free.
Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of Kansas, and who have been ordained by you, to govern this great state.
Grant them your wisdom to rule and may their decisions direct us to the center of your will.
I ask it in the name of your son, the living savior, Jesus Christ.Amen.

***text taken from http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/k/kansasprayer.htm
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Wright later explained, "I thought I might get a call from an angry congressman or two, but I was talking to God, not them. The whole point was to say that we all have sins that we need to repent – all of us . . . The problem, I guess, is that you're not supposed to get too specific when you're talking about sin."

It's 3am, do you know where your Bible is?

This past Sunday at my Church, Pastor Mark Miller was talking about the current statistics regarding adult’s lack of knowledge of the bible. He stated how the generations of 30 – 50 somethings know less about the bible than at any other time in history. He also mentioned that the children of these people knew even less than their parents. So this prompted me to do a little research myself and I found this article by Michael J. Vlach, Ph.D. This was shocking information and I won't add a bunch of facts from it here, but read it. It simply talks about data from surveys that shows that American main stream is completely ignorant of the Bible. When I relate this with my first posting about the secularization of society it makes total sense.

Now, I can only make sense of this by relating to my own experiences with my faith. Keep in mind that I am NOT an expert in theology, psychology, sociology or really any “-ologys”, wait, is webdevelopmentology a word…? I digress; I have studied most of them in college and do understand some basic truths about people having been a person for some time now. I have not always lived as a Christian, though I always considered myself one. I was raised Catholic (FYI, I am no longer Catholic, I now wave my Protestant flag), was an Alter Boy, I was in youth group, Sunday school and all of that. So I pretty much knew the basics of the Christian faith (or so I thought).

Fast forward to my late teens early twenties. I was in a fraternity in College and was trying my best to be as non productive as I could, and at THAT I was successful. I had a Bible and occasionally read it when I was feeling the need or guilt for redemption, but I tried not to read too much or go to church too often. I mean who wants to have their faults and sin pointed out to them right? It was like I was thinking “God, I know you are there and you are the best and you know I love you but, you know, ummm I’M JUST HAVING TOO MUCH FUN! I’ll act like this for a while, and I’ll get back to you. Come on, you know I’m a good person, right?”

I find it embarrassing and very hard to look back on this period in my life, but you grow in the valleys of life and can’t get up unless you have fallen. Now as a 31(almost 32, shhhh) year old married father of 3, looking back I am just so disappointed in that young man that I was. By the grace of God and a lot of patience from my wife, I have somewhat stayed on course and the Lord steered me through those troubled times. Although I might not be “brand new”, I believe I am at least returnable to the Lord now, Amen?

If it is not obvious, I am not a total bible thumper and I don’t condemn people who don’t go to church. It’s not my job to judge others as I still fall short of the grace and glory of God. Life is hard and I know people get caught up in things, and you do things that are not only unhealthy physically and mentally, but morally also. You then try and convince yourselves nothing is wrong with your actions, saying “It's not that bad”, or “it’s not really hurting anyone”. I have been there brothers and sisters, believe me, it is hurting you and those around you.

Well, enough of my carrying on, I just wanted to share a bit of my story and views as someone who has been broken and found his way back to Jesus and is taking advantage of the wealth of knowledge the Lord has given us in the Bible. I read and study it in some way every day now and it is better than any self help book.

Ephesians 1:7 (NIV)
“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace”

I’d like to get some dialog going about why we as a people(All people not just Christians, we are all Gods children) reading and studying the Bible less or not adhering to the basic principles of the bible. Is it because people find it somehow not applicable to today or is it kind of how I was in college, not really wanting to hear the truth because of how it makes you feel? Does anyone have any other ideas?

Quench that thirst America...

I was reading a recent article about the increasing secularization of American society and the falling Protestant majority. I would love to say I am surprised, but I am not. I see secularization of America happening everyday. In every facet of TV, video games, political correctness, down playing of the religious influence of holidays, politics, work places and endless examples showing the degradation of our religious values of our country.


We are falling into this Joel Osteen, Tony Robins self-important, feel good now lives, which I don't have a problem with completely, but we are forgetting the reason we are here on earth. We are not here to please every, need, want, and wish for our lives, but as my Pastor Mark Miller said in a recent blog, we "were bought with a price and do not belong to ourselves." God is able and he will provide what you need, and not always what you want.


Now on TV, Internet, Radio and books we hear of ways to fulfill the void in our lives. Those mediums tell us happiness is just a product, happy thought or purchase away. We have all fallen into these traps, I know for a long time I did. In John 6:35 the bible states:


"Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty."

and in Isaiah 56:11


"They are dogs with mighty appetites;they never have enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, each seeks his own gain."

We as a nation need to realize that the way to our true happiness is not through, product enhanced, self-centered ways that make us feel better temporarily, but through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus suffered and died for our sins and then rose from the dead so that we may have eternal life, so why would we not dedicate our lives to him and turn to him in our time of need?


Remember, the Lord is able and he has declared, "he who believes in me will never be thirsty." I have taken my drink, and I am happy to say, I will never thirst again. Thank you Lord.