The living God says, “I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). He offers us true life and, with it, blessing. But He warns us against sin and the curse that always comes with it. Just as He did in the Garden, God offers us the quality of life that comes from obeying Him. God says, “Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live” (Proverbs 4:4).
There are many reasons to obey what God commands us in Scripture. Here are five of them:
1) God, your Creator, said it.
2) God knows better than we do.
3) God is in charge, and we are not.
4) Whenever I have obeyed God, I and my family have ultimately benefited.
5) Whenever I have done it my way instead of God’s, with all my rationalizations and excuses, it hasn’t been for His glory, for my good, or the good of others. To obey God is always in our ultimate self-interest. In a universe where God sets up the rules, what is right is also smart.
Finally, we should remember that God gives us the power and strength to obey Him. Jesus made it possible for our Heavenly Father to send the third person of the Trinity to be our helper, our counsellor, our teacher, and our comforter. The Holy Spirit makes it possible for our spirit to function as the lamp of the Lord as God always intended.
“The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts.” Proverbs 20:27
Scripture says we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live in holiness.
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age”Titus 2:12
We are fast approaching the time of Jesus second coming to Earth to fulfill the promises God made to the nation He established for His purposes, Israel.
“Thus says the Lord God: On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be rebuilt. And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. And they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’ Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I am the Lord; I have rebuilt the ruined places and replanted that which was desolate. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it.” Ezekiel 36:33-36
There seem to be many paradoxes in Scripture. Not in the sense that the Bible contradicts itself, but that the Bible proclaims truth that makes no sense to those who are not in Christ. Even for believers, we’re struck by the unfathomable workings of a God who makes all things work together for good to those who love Him.
For instance, Scripture proclaims that, for the Christian, to lose is to gain. We read that to be humble is to be exalted. Perhaps most amazingly, the Bible proclaims that Christ’s victory over the grave means that to die is to live and to live abundantly. But what I’m sure confuses many, in or out of the church, is this concept Paul writes about in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, where he makes the case for how our weakness is our strength. It’s interesting, especially given the fact that weakness is often considered a grave flaw, and something meant to be hidden.
“ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”2 Corinthians 12:9-10
How are we expected to boast about our weaknesses? We are far weaker than we ever care to admit. It is in ignoring our weaknesses that our lives become harder. In fact, Christianity only makes sense when you’ve reached the end of yourself.” Think about it — it is the proud who most believe they have no need for God. The plague of thinking, “I can do it,” has hurt countless relationships. But Christianity declares this profound truth that what often makes Christianity most understandable is rooted in the fact that we need help. We need saving. Why? Because we are weak and helpless.
James 1:9 tells us, “Let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,” we shrink back in shame as we reflect on the fact that, more often than not, we’re actually slow to hear, quick to speak, and quick to resort to anger.
And if you take a step even further back, it becomes clear just how quickly we fail in many other areas of life — especially when compared to how Scripture calls us to live. We often covet, lie, steal, and cheat. We may not be as heinous as a murderer, yet murder occurs frequently in our hearts.
Thankfully the Bible provides stories such as David and Bathsheba: Scripture tells us that David is a man after God’s own heart, and yet David not only sleeps with Bathsheba and gets her pregnant but he tries to cover it up and when that is unsuccessful he conspires to kill Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband.
“In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. 15 In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.”2 Samuel 11:14-15
Though David made a horrible decision, he took responsibility and had remorse for his actions. He earnestly sought God’s forgiveness. David penned Psalm 51, “A Contrite Sinners Prayer for Pardon,” after his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah. In this Psalm, David brokenheartedly confesses his sin and asks for God’s forgiveness and restoration. David never stopped worshipping God.
Jealousy is such a blinding emotion that consumes us easily, and our hearts are hardened toward those we feel have wronged us. Scripture says to “bear with one another in love,” forgive “seventy times seven,” and “value others above” ourselves, but how often do those commands actually take priority in our lives?
Suddenly, when the world is crashing down around us, and we can’t seem to get anything right, we realize: “Wow, I truly am weak.” And it’s not just the rude awakening of becoming aware of said weaknesses that hurt, but the harsh reality of the fact that the world is quick to use them against us. Far too commonly, weakness is abused in the machinations of manipulation and mockery. And if the world was all we had to turn to, we’d likely find ourselves wondering: what’s the point of it all?
But thanks be to God because He does not define us by these weaknesses. Indeed, Psalm 103 declares, “The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. … The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. … He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.” Don’t you see? We may struggle, fail, or feel dismayed, but our God does not treat us as weak, failing sinners. He treats us as forgiven and free children of His promise!
Perhaps among several seemingly paradoxical yet joyous truths in Scripture is this understanding of our weakness being our strength, for it is in embracing our weaknesses that we can see Christ’s strength. And this strength resides within us, for Galatians 2:20a states, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are new creations, and yet we still fail Him daily grieving the Holy Spirit. And yet, He never fails us. We neglect time with Him and time in His word, yet He never leaves us nor forsakes us. We made it necessary for God to send His Son to die on the cross, yet He has loved us with an everlasting love that leads us into eternity with Him. We take blessings for granted, yet He never stops blessing us. How astounding and unfathomable, this God we serve. May we never tire of singing His due praises, just as He never tires of holding us in His embrace of sovereign grace.
Adapted from an article in The Washington Stand 19/07/2024: Embracing Weakness Allows Us to Understand Our Strength Is Found in Christ by Sarah Halliday
Life has meaning and purpose because there are solid, logical reasons why Super-Intelligence (God) is essential for building cell parts and us, and why evolution cannot do it. It is time to teach the true science of life. Atomic Biology is an emerging science that looks at the molecular world today. Ministries with Ph.D. scientists that address this foundational issue are Creation Ministries International (CMI) and Answers in Genesis. Check out their websites.
The Atomic Biology Institute presents the following video as a descriptive introduction to the book, “How We Are Amazingly Made” – by Dr. Jerry Bergman, Thomas W. Rogers, and Dr. Graham McClennan. Also as an introduction to the observable science of Atomic Biology featured in the book.
Evolution, by definition, having no intelligence, should now be officially out of the running as the taught cause of life. In fact, those who are forced to continue teaching that evolution explains the origin and cause of life, are being forced to teach a lie. This will become a growing problem for honest teachers, professors, and education leaders who do not want “Fallacy” to be their “Legacy.“
Another major factor is that because atoms have perpetual, controlled energy supplied, but not ‘Life,’ this has to be added in order for cells to live and function. Without the “breath of life,” cells could not live. Our forefathers understood by common sense, logic, and intuition that supernatural work is performed in creating humans and the food we eat. This is why they gave credit to our Creator for His provision of food and His enormous careful works for each of us every day.
If man is not made in the image of God, nothing then stands in the way of inhumanity. If we are just products of chance and matter, then there is no purpose in history and nothing after death. This robs life of meaning and purpose beyond survival. British evolutionary biologist, and author of The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins (b. 1941) writes: Natural selection, the blind, unconscious, automatic process which Darwin discovered, and which we now know is the explanation for the existence and apparently purposeful form of life, has no purpose in mind … It has no vision, no foresight, no sight at all. If it can be said to play the role of a watchmaker in nature, it is the blind watchmaker.
No wonder we are seeing lawlessness on the increase. Jesus told us that prior to His second coming to earth to restore righteousness that lawlessness will abound and Christians would be persecuted.
“And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:12-14
Paul also tells us that we need to watch for the coming Man of Lawlessness, the Antichrist.
“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4
In Eyes Wide Open, Steve DeWitt reveals some wonderful truths, “Christians who properly place God as the source and goal of the things they enjoy will find themselves enjoying those things even more. In truth, the way we as believers relish created beauties ought to outstrip that of unbelievers, since we neither find our identity in them nor hold on to them as ultimate.”
Secondary happiness, which is found in something or someone God has created, ultimately leads back to Him. The secondary only fulfills its purpose when people follow it to the primary.
Robert Crofts wrote, “Let these earthly pleasures and felicities excite and encourage us to thankfulness, to all duties of virtue and piety, to look higher to their fountain, to God himself, to heaven, to love and enjoy in Him, to contemplate His infinite goodness, love, beauty, sweetness, glory, and excellency.”
Paul said, “What is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy” 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20
Paul understood that God is our primary joy. It’s fine for us to say that our children, our grandchildren, and our friends are joys if we remember that God made them and works through them to bring us happiness. They’re not lesser joys, but greater ones—precisely because we know whom these gifts come from! Then we will be able to say as Paul did:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus…I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:4-7, 11-13
The Bible teaches absolute truth. Success and a productive life come from embracing the following Biblical principles:
1. Truth exists and is knowable.
2. Truth upheld brings blessings.
3. Truth disregarded brings consequences, usually bad.
Embracing a biblically informed worldview of “truth” brings “joy unspeakable” (1 Peter 1:8) and “abundant life” (John 10:10) as Jesus promised to obedient followers.
Like Elijah, we need to take the words/tasks God gives us by the Holy Spirit seriously. Note: If Elijah did not give the people of Israel the warnings that God gave him to give them, then “that wicked person will die for his iniquity,but his blood I will require at your hand.”
Note: He will die for his iniquity not be tortured in hell for eternity. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23.“For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16. “For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.” Romans 8:13“The truly righteous man attains life, but He who pursues evil goes tohis death.”Proverbs 11:19
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them a warning from me. If I say to the wicked, You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.” Ezekiel 3:17-18
God held the O.T prophets accountable for doing what He asked of them. Likewise, He holds us accountable as well to do the “good works” He has called us to do.
As I pointed out in my recent post Powerless Prayeras we yield to God’s mercy and walk closely with him, our ideas are changed. We jettison old ways of thinking, as healthier, more life-giving inspiration arises in His company, and as our minds are renewed, we become more attuned to Him and to His will. Only then, in our closeness with God, where His good, pleasing and perfect will is known, can we pray effectively and minister effectively.
‘Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.’Romans 12:1-2
Who are the people God is asking you to serve and bring to them the Gospel message? He has chosen to partner with us in this; we are His hands and feet in the world, and He works through us, as He did through the O.T prophets such as Elijah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah.
“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
Does God have anything different to say to rich Christians?
“As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.They are to do good, to berich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future (in the Millennial Kingdom), so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.” 1 Timothy 6:18-19
available on Amazon as a trade paperback or ebook
Preface for the book
The Bible is full of fulfilled prophesy which is a testimony of its divine inspiration and inerrancy. It is estimated that as much as 75% of the 2,500 prophesies in the Bible have already been fulfilled, and most of those yet to happen are “last days/end time” events.
How many churches today are preparing their congregations for Jesus’ second coming? Do you realise that there are more prophecies about Jesus’ second coming than His first? The Pharisees and Sadducees did not get it with His first coming, and the church is not getting it, with His second coming, maybe in your lifetime.
“For this reason, you also must beready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.” Matt. 24:44
Equipped with the knowledge of the Bible’s “last days” prophecies, we will see many of these events unfold in our time. We will look at these unfolding “end times” events in the last chapter, Discerning the Times. It is an exciting time for a Christian who is prepared to live eternal now. For both, the unbeliever and believer alike “great tribulation” is ahead, but the discerning believer understands the times and is prepared.
I would like this book to help equip Christians to fulfill God’s assignment for them in these last days. You will only be able to do that, if you are aware of the times we are in, submit to the indwelling Holy Spirit, have total confidence in God’s Word, and are able to defend it to an unbelieving church, atheists, and agnostics.
We get one life. The apostle Paul could not have said it more clearly: everything we give ourselves to will be judged in the fire of Jesus’ coming. Everything. If it is not yoked to eternity, it will burn up. We will not take it with us. But if it is yoked to eternity—if we labour in such a way that we build, establish, encourage a love for and allegiance to Jesus in people’s hearts—it is gold that will not only survive the fire, it will shine forever.
Evolution has been one of Satan’s most successful strategies to undermine God’s church. He has attacked the foundational book of the Bible, GENESIS. It is the book of beginnings. It teaches real history about God’s initial perfect creation. It is foundational to most of church doctrine.
It teaches important truths: God exists outside of His Creation; His Creation includes a supernatural realm as well as a natural realm. God created angels that inhabit the supernatural realm and can enter the natural realm. Rebellion against God occurred first in the supernatural realm with Lucifer. The prophet Isaiah gives a snapshot of our supernatural enemy. “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the Morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ Isaiah 14:12-14
God reveals that Lucifer, now known as Satan, was successful in deceiving one-third of the angels God had created to serve Him. They, now known as demons, serve Satan in his diabolical plan to deceive all mankind so they will suffer the same fate as Satan and his rebellious angels to be cast into the “Lake of Fire”
Genesis is truly foundational, teaching origins and thetrue history of this world: 1. Creation event, 2. Male and Female Roles, 3. Marriage, 4. The Fall, 5. Sin, 6. Death, 7. Suffering, 8. God judged the world with Noah’s Flood, 9. Confusion of Languages at Babel that established the nations of today, 10. God establishes the nation Israel for His purposes. Its prophesied reestablishment as a nation in 1948 is central to God’s end-times plan.
Genesis is foundational to the most important event in all of history – JESUS OUR SAVIOUR enters our world, achieves victory over Satan, and provides the way for man to be born again, of the HOLY SPIRIT into a renewed relationship with our Heavenly Father.
“For He (our Heavenly Father) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21
JESUS established the church and gave us His Word (BIBLE) to preach the GOSPEL to all the world. His Word also tells us how history ends: it is wonderful for those who repent and accept HIS gift of eternal life but tragic for those that reject it. Their fate is punishment in the Lake of Fire and the second death.
To help better equip you for the years ahead, I have four primary goals.
1. Provide evidence that God exists, and that life is absurd without God.
2. Demonstrate the BIBLE is God’s inspired WORD. Therefore, an accurate historical document from Genesis to Revelation.
3. Show Christians what can be achieved, if they listen to, and obey the Holy Spirit. He indwells all believers. Our body is the “temple of the Holy Spirit”.
Jesus said, if we listen and obey His instructions, we can truly do what He did on the earth and even more. The Holy Spirit’s role is to convey Jesus’s instructions. John 14:12. As the prophesied “last days” events unfold, this will be essential, if we are to be used by God to bring in the “end times” harvest.
4. Promote unity within the body of Christ as we are one body, one family in Christ. Jesus is head of the church. This unity will be essential in the last days. Jesus told us there will be a great falling away (apostasy) as persecution of Christians escalates. The church in the last days will look more like the early church described in the Book of Acts and the church in China during the reign of Mao. For that matter, also like the persecuted church today, in Syria, Iraq, Iran, Egypt and other Middle Eastern and African countries ruled by Islam.
“And I (Jesus) do not pray for these alone, but for those also who shall believe on Me through their word, thatthey may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. John 17:20, 21
We need diversity within the body of Christ, but Jesus said unity is essential. Why? “So, the world may believe that You have sent Me.”
When the Church moves in unity, it is not addition; it is the power of multiplication that is evident.
Sadly, the Roman Catholic church and many of the denominational churches no longer believe or teach the word of God accurately. As a result, it is powerless. The great falling away is already upon us.
As the Biblical worldview is totally opposed to the satanically inspired worldview of billions of years, the website shows the latest scientific evidence that supports the Bible’s Creation account and the latest archaeological and historical evidence that supports the historicity (6,000 years) and authority of the Bible. Much of this information is extracted from the website creation.com which I think is a must-view for all Christians who want to be equipped to defend the Biblical worldview.
Testimonies are powerful witness tools. You will read testimonies of changed lives, particularly PhD scientists who have realised evolution is a failed theory and at least embraced Intelligent Design and therefore a Creator. Decide which testimonies you can use and memorise them.
I include the philosophical arguments for God: Ontological, Cosmological, Teleological, Moral arguments (the existence of Objective Moral Values), and the argument from probability that life could not form by natural processes, e.g. Fred Hoyle, famous British mathematician and astronomer said “the probability of the formation of just one of the many proteins on which life depends is comparable to that of a solar system packed full of blind people randomly shuffling Rubik’s cubes all arriving at the solution at the same time” which of course is absurd.
The book’s content is sourced from many origins but only from recognized authorities. When scientific articles are quoted, they are from scientists that have the highest qualifications from prestigious universities.
The book is based on the website, http://www.livingeternal.net, which I set up in December 2012 and as of May 2020, I have just uploaded post one thousand two hundred and twenty-five.
This site will keep you up to date on end-time events as they relate to Biblical prophecy.
Let us look at a few Scriptures relating to life on God’s earth. This first Scripture makes it clear that God knows each one of us before we were born and He knows how we will live out our days.
“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.” Psalms 139:16
“So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”Psalms 90:12
David asked God to teach Him. We need to have prayer filled lives and teachable hearts. Note: David wanted a heart of wisdom.
“For if, because of one man’s (Adam) trespass, death reigned through that one man , much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:17
There is only one way we can reign in this life. It is when we receive through Jesus Christ the abundance of grace (Holy Spirit) and the free gift of righteousness.
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” Philippians 1:21-23
It really does come down to how much do we treasure our Lord Jesus Christ. Do we treasure Him above all life’s earthly pleasures? Note the two life options for Christians: fruitful labour for Jesus on this earth which Paul obviously enjoyed or to depart and be with Jesus Christ which he acknowledged was the better option.
“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:27
We all face death but how different is the fate of those that reject God’s offer of eternal life through His Son. Judgement, the Lake of Fire, punishment and eternal death. Unbelievers should be fearful of the fate that awaits them after death. If they knew perhaps some would repent. Let us do our best to reach as many as God brings across our path with the Gospel of Christ.
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” ~ Matthew 7:13
This is a sobering verse and it is obvious that there is only one gate that leads to eternal life. The answer Jesus gave to Thomas makes it crystal clear there is only one way our Heavenly Father provided to break the curse of death that Adam brought on mankind.
“For our sake He (God the Father) made Him (God the Son) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21
The narrow gate is the gate of His righteousness!
Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.
It is very significant that David was given a vision of the gate even before Jesus paid the price of his and our salvation – “you have become my salvation”.
“Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the LORD. This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it. I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation.” Psalm 118:19-21
“I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD. The LORD has disciplined me severely, but he has not given me over to death.” Psalm 118:17-18
Do not grieve the Holy Spirit that now indwells your Spirit but strive to do as Jesus did and pray daily to the Father “not my will but Yours be done.” God the Father will answer that prayer ensuring that the Holy Spirit directs your steps and you are an instrument of righteousness to God.
Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.”Romans 6:11-13
“By this we may know that we are in Him: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.” 1 John 2:5-6
“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again” 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; NIV
Christ died for us, we must no longer live for ourselves, but for Christ Jesus, and let his love flow through us to others. Will we respond as vessels for God’s love in the present Coronavirus context? Let’s step up, not down, as God’s new normal for us is what it has always been for Jesus’ church in the Spirit—engage with all those Jesus connects us, our family, our church family, our workplace and our community.
The following reflection highlights the way one pastor and church, Mark Nicklas and his community Beaverton Foursquare, are stepping up and participating in the triune God’s normative mission in the face of the Coronavirus.
They are partnering with other churches, the school across the street, and civic authorities. They understand that we are all in it together. They clearly comprehend that this is no place or time to be lone rangers. We need to work together in solidarity. This pandemic truly affects us all.
We are called to be ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), Mark highlights that the love of Christ is to compel us, like it did Paul and his ministry team. Mark says, “Love is lapped up wherever it is spilled.” God’s love is lavish, so it never runs out. Since Christ died for us, we must no longer live for ourselves, but for Christ Jesus, and let the Holy Spirit guide and direct our every step in love.
Are you living your life with eternity in view? The following scripture is tough but it is true.
“Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 19:21-23
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22
How good is this Scripture for teaching us how to live the Christian life, to be a Kingdom warrior, to do the will of God, to live life with an eternal focus now.
1. REJOICE ALWAYS
2. PRAY WITHOUT CEASING
3. GIVE THANKS IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES
4. DO NOT QUENCH (OR GRIEVE) THE HOLY SPIRIT – The Holy Spirit indwells the Spirit of every believer. Jesus sacrifice on our behalf made it possible for our Heavenly Father to send the Holy Spirit to be our counsellor, teacher and comforter. He produces the fruit of the Spirit (9) in our lives and He provides the gifts of the Spirit (9) for ministry.
5. DO NOT DESPISE PROPHECY BUT TEST EVERYTHING (WITH SCRIPTURE)
‘I bound you to me,’ declares the LORD, ‘and made you my people’ – Why? – ‘for My renown and praise and honour.’ (Jeremiah 13.11)
‘Help us, O God our Saviour’ – Why? – ‘for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins’ – Why? – ‘for your name’s sake.’ (Psalm 79.9)
‘I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven’ – Why? – ‘on account of his name.’ (1 John 2.12)
Revival is waking up to the reality about God. The reality is, to put it simply, that we are not at the centre of the universe, God is. Ultimately, God is not here for our benefit, we are here for his. God created us for his benefit and glory. It is for his glory’s sake that he loves you enough to save you. That is why you may have such great assurance that God who began a good work in you will complete it – not because he is a merciful God and wouldn’t hurt a fly; not because he is love and love is never harsh, but because saving you will glorify him. Our salvation is not so much for our own benefit, but for his glory. His forgiveness of our sins is not so much for our relief, but for his honour. He loves us not so much for our pleasure, but for his praise.
If we love his glory above all else, He will love to glorify himself in flowing forth, – healing, saving, forgiving, refreshing, and multiplying those who flock to worship him in our churches, to see his glory in the sanctuary.
![Living Eternal Now: Ready for Jesus Return by [Ronald Edwards]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51BsdeQh8oL.jpg)
LIVING ETERNAL NOW 