You must believe

 You must Believe

The apostle Paul writes,

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8,9.

The apostle Paul writing to the Romans states,

"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. Romans 10:9,10.

As Christians we believe that Jesus is the way to heaven. We believe that is by the grace of God we get to heaven. Through belief in His one and Only Son Christ Jesus.

Getting to heaven is not guaranteed. It takes an act of faith on the part of the individual. A person must believe in God in order to be saved. The writer of Hebrews stating,

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Hebrews 11:6.

Please think about it. 

The Christian Mission

  The Christian Mission

The apostle Paul also wrote,

“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.  

We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.  2 Corinthians5:18-20

The apostle Paul could not have made things more clear. If you consider yourself a true Christian your job is to help reconcile people to God.

Our job is to reach people for Christ. To show the love of Christ Jesus to those around us. To tell them

"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.  

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16,17. 

If you say you are a Christian and are doing less than this it is time to reconsider what you truly believe.

Please think about it.

The test

  The test

The apostle John writes,

"Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.  

He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work.  

No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.  

This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1 John 3:7-10.

Here is if you will the litmus test for someone who claims to be Christian.

1/ He does right.

2/ He does not sin.

John making it clear,

“This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1 John 3:10.

The way I see it this is how we should judge anyone who claims to be a Christian.

Please think about it.

Christs reason for coming

 Christs reason for coming

Jesus said,

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. 

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. John 10:10,12.

Here put simply Jesus gives his reason for coming to this world. To lay his life down for his sheep.

The apostle Paul writes,

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.  Romans 3:23,24.

Sin is falling short of God’s ideal for us. Sin separates us from God.

God knew that we could not live a life good enough to be with Him that is why he sent Jesus,

Paul stating

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8.

The apostle John stating,

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."1John 1:9.

Do you believe this?

Please think about it.

He is

 He is

In John’s gospel we read,

"Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

"Yes Lord" she told Him, "I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world," John 11:25,26,27.

In my previous two blogs I have written about who Jesus claimed to be and who his disciples believe him to be.

In this blog post I tell about what Martha a friend of Jesus believed Him to be and she makes it clear. She believes Him to be,

"I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,".

So again as in my previous postings I ask you to consider who you believe Jesus to be?

I would however ask that before you make your decision. You read the New Testament and see for yourself what the writes of the New Testament believed Him to be.

Please think about it.

God's son

God's Son

In Matthews Gospel we read,

“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.  Matthew 16:13-17.

In my previous blog. I said Jesus claimed to be God incarnate. Today’s scripture reading is a conversation between Jesus and His disciples. Here Jesus asks them who do they believe Him to be. To which Peter answers,

“You are the Christ the Son of the living God”.

Keep in mind these men had sat under the teachings of Jesus for a number of years. They knew him personally and as such were in a position to judge who He was.

So either they were deceived or Jesus is the Son of the living God. God incarnate.

This is a choice people hearing about Jesus today must make. Either he is the son of God, God in the flesh, or he is not?

Please think about it.

Is He or is He not?

  Is He or is He not?

John's gospel records this incident in the life of Jesus. John writes,

"Then came the lire of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple area walking in Solomon's Colonnade.  

"The Jews gathered around him, saying, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." 

Jesus answered, "I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.  

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  

I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.  

My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.  

I and the Father are one." 

Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?" 

"We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God." John 10 22-33.

Jesus was no dummy. He knew the Jewish law of the day. He knew what the penalty for blasphemy was, yet He still maintained to be God incarnate.

Which to me means anyone reading this portion of scripture has a black and white decision to be made. 

Either Jesus was and is who he says he is. OR He is a monumental lier in all of history. One nearly three billion people around the world today, and millions more throughout history have believed.

Thus the question for you dear reader is do you believe Jesus is who He said He is or not?

Please think about it.