God Over Men

There are those in America who really don’t like the spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And there are other places around the world where people are violently opposed to it even to the point of killing those who choose to obey the scriptures. But regardless of the pressures we face, we are encouraged to obey what God wants us to do over what men want us to do. In Acts 5:28-29 we learn that the apostles had to deal with these same pressures when confronted by the Pharisees, but they decided to stand strong, even in the face of death. It says:

“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than men!”

You see, God’s commands through the scriptures are the highest form of authority. For believers, it is higher than any man-made law. It supersedes any command - even from parents, teachers, police or even the president of the United States. And as we see in Acts, obeying God is more important than our own lives. The apostles knew that and were willing to follow God regardless of what it cost them. And as hard as it may be to stand for Christ when the consequences are great, we should too.

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When challenged by the Pharisees to stop spreading the good news about Jesus, the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men!” I hope that believers in America haven’t grown fearful to the point of compromising our beliefs when pressure or persecution threatens us. We must always obey God over men, no matter what is at stake. I thank God that it rarely comes to extremes in America, but we should always be ready, just in case. Because there are stories of people even in America losing their jobs, being physically assaulted or even being killed because they’ve chosen to follow Christ.

Salvation

The truth about Christianity is that it is both inclusive and exclusive. The good news is that anyone can be saved by believing in Jesus and giving their life to him. So, in that respect, I thank God that it is very inclusive. However, at the same time it is also exclusive. If you believe in the bible, then inherently you must believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven. After all, he is the way the truth and the life. The bible tells us that no one can get to heaven except through him. In that respect, it is decidedly exclusive. According to Christianity, no other religion on earth; past, present or future can get you to heaven. Only through Jesus can any person find eternal life in heaven. Acts 4:12 reminds us:

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

Unfortunately, this is a stumbling block for many people. For those who dare to believe that God exists and has the power to determine where their soul will reside for eternity, the exclusivity of only one way can sound narrow-minded. But the bible is quite clear. It says that “there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved”. Not Buddha, Mohammad, or any other name will do. Just Jesus and Jesus alone. After all, he is the only one who gave his life so that you might be saved.

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“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved”. Everyone will at some point come face-to-face with that reality. Either we will believe what the bible says about Jesus or reject it. Believing is a conscious decision, while rejecting can be quite passive. By doing nothing at all, by default a person is rejecting Christ. It is my hope for you and all mankind that this decision is made early and made for Jesus. Because the bible tells us not to fear man who can only destroy the body, but we are to fear the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell. A reverent fear for God will help us remember how serious our choice for him really is.

God's Not Dead

I hope you were able to see the movie, “God’s Not Dead” when it was in theaters. I usually don’t plug a movie on this show, but every so often one comes along that I believe is so powerful that I feel compelled to give it a shout out. It was inspired by the song from Newsboys of the same name – “God’s Not Dead”. The title of the song and the movie reminds me of the verse of scripture from Mark chapter 16, verse 11 which says:

"When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it."

This verse is in reference to Jesus appearing to Mary Magdalene. When she told some of his followers that Jesus had risen from the dead, they didn’t believe her initially. We have the benefit of knowing what the bible says, but there are still many out there, maybe even you, who struggle with the idea that Jesus is God and that he died and rose from the dead. Later, Jesus tells some of the disciples that they now believe because they see him face to face. He says blessed are those who have not seen and still believe. I encourage you to not wait until you pass into the afterlife and see God face to face to believe, because by then it will be too late. Believe today.

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When you hear that Jesus is alive today, don’t be like his followers in Mark 16 by not believing. Faith is the cornerstone of practicing Christianity. We are saved by grace through faith. And the bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. If you’ve ever wondered why that is true, now you know.

Body And Soul

Humans can be very short-sighted creatures. We often see only what is in our scope of vision, believe only what is in our scope of understanding, and fear only what is temporary. Believers in Christ should be different. We shouldn’t limit what we understand as “seeing” to this physical world because we know that there is also a spiritual realm. We shouldn’t believe only what we can understand with our human minds because we know that God can move in ways we can’t understand. And we shouldn’t fear what is temporary because we understand that there is an eternity with eternal finality. Jesus reminds us in Matthew 10:28:

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell."

Most people believe that the worst thing that can happen to them is a horrible premature death. But Jesus tells us otherwise. The worst thing for any human being is a horrible afterlife –spending eternity in hell. In this life, the worst thing I can comprehend one person doing to another is extended torture culminating in death. But that is the worst they can do. God holds the keys to our eternity. He is the one who has the power to destroy both soul and body in hell. That, to me, is the absolute worst scenario for anyone. But there is good news. Jesus died for us so that we can avoid that fate. To take advantage of this gift takes a leap of faith. It requires a belief in something we can’t see with our human eyes or fully comprehend with our human brains. But it is more real, and more permanent than life itself.

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Jesus warns us not to fear men who can only destroy the body, but to fear God, the only one can destroy both body and soul in hell. If we could wrap our minds around the concept of eternity, we would realize how dire this portion of scripture really is. In life, we consider “dire” a “life and death situation”. Jesus reminds us that there is something worse than death. And the only way to escape the flames of hell is to accept the gift of Jesus’ death on the cross for us, and to obey his commandments outlined in the bible. If you haven’t made that commitment yet, I pray that you do today. It will be the most important decision you can make in this life.

Near To God

I’m convinced that the nearer we draw to God, to more we begin to be transformed into his likeness. But it is always hard to draw near to God when we have a guilty conscious. And since God is the only one who can forgive us and cleanse us of our sin, it seems like a catch 22. We want to draw near, but it’s hard when we’re dirty. But yet we can’t get clean unless we draw near to him. Hebrews 10:22-23 encourages us with these words:

"Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful."

You see, when we are dirty and tainted with sin, God is the only one who can cleanse us of that sin. So, we can’t feel so ashamed that we resist drawing near to him. I like how Hebrews says “having our bodies washed with pure water”. Have faith that God can cleanse you, because he can, and he wants to. Don’t let your guilt keep you from repentance and humbly coming to the Father so that he can sprinkle our hearts, cleansing us from our guilty consciences. I know it can be difficult to understand the ways of a holy God. But know this, he wants you to be in his presence. But the only way to be in his presence is with a clean heart. 

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Hebrews tells us to “draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith”. We have to have faith that God will forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from our unrighteousness. Because Hebrews goes on to say, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”