The Reformed Baptists

A Fundamentalism File Research Report by Mark Sidwell

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The Room

I was pointed to this article indirectly today, and found it so powerful I knew that I should share it.
Here's an excerpt to introduce it. Please follow the link and at least watch the video.

The premise is this: What if there were a room of files that cataloged your every thought and action? Could you bear to review them? "The Room" touches on the universal themes of guilt and redemption. How does a man find forgiveness for the wrongs he's committed or for the good he's left undone? Is our past something we can leave behind or forget? How can any of us know true forgiveness from a God who is holy and just?

Mark
Here's the link to the article and video.

"The Room"

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The Word from the letter to the Romans

The Holy Spirt through Paul, tells the Christians at Rome, and us, what it means to believe in Christ, and what that life will be like. I know this is long, but it reads a lot better if you read it as if it were a letter to you. Oh wait, it is!

Romans 1

Greeting

1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. 5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;

7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Desire to Visit Rome

8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, 10 making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established— 12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
13 Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles. 14 I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. 15 So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.

The Just Live by Faith

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,[a] for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”[b]

God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality,[c] wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving,[d] unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

Romans 2

God’s Righteous Judgment

1 Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. 2 But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. 3 And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? 5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”:[e] 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, 9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; 10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no partiality with God.
12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) 16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

The Jews Guilty as the Gentiles

17 Indeed[f] you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God, 18 and know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, 19 and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. 21 You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? 22 You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? 24 For “the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you,”[g] as it is written.

Circumcision of No Avail

25 For circumcision is indeed profitable if you keep the law; but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. 26 Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? 27 And will not the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, judge you who, even with your written code and circumcision, are a transgressor of the law? 28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.

Romans 3

God’s Judgment Defended

1 What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? 2 Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God. 3 For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? 4 Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written:

“ That You may be justified in Your words,
And may overcome when You are judged.”[h]

5 But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.) 6 Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world?
7 For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.

All Have Sinned

9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
10 As it is written:

“ There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”[i]
13 “ Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;[j]

“ The poison of asps is under their lips”;[k]
14 “ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”[l]
15 “ Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”[m]
18 “ There is no fear of God before their eyes.”[n]

19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

God’s Righteousness Through Faith

21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all[o] who believe. For there is no difference; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Boasting Excluded

27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. 29 Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also, 30 since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. 31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.

Romans 4

Abraham Justified by Faith

1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?[p] 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”[q] 4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.

David Celebrates the Same Truth

5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, 6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:
7 “ Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
And whose sins are covered;
8 Blessed is the man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin.”[r]

Abraham Justified Before Circumcision

9 Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. 10 How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also, 12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised.

The Promise Granted Through Faith

13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, 15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.
16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”[s]) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; 18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”[t] 19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. 22 And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.”[u]
23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, 24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

Romans 5

Faith Triumphs in Trouble

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have[v] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Christ in Our Place

6 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Death in Adam, Life in Christ

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned— 13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)
18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.
20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6

Dead to Sin, Alive to God

1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 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. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

From Slaves of Sin to Slaves of God

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.
20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 7

Freed from the Law

1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Sin’s Advantage in the Law

7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”[w] 8 But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. 9 I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12 Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

Law Cannot Save from Sin

13 Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

Romans 8

Free from Indwelling Sin

1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,[x] who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

Sonship Through the Spirit

12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

From Suffering to Glory

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us[y] with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

God’s Everlasting Love

31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written:


“ For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”[z]

37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 9

Israel’s Rejection of Christ

1 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen[aa] according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.

Israel’s Rejection and God’s Purpose

6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, 7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, “In Isaac your seed shall be called.”[ab] 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. 9 For this is the word of promise: “At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son.”[ac]
10 And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac 11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), 12 it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.”[ad] 13 As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”[ae]

Israel’s Rejection and God’s Justice

14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”[af] 16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”[ag] 18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?
22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
25 As He says also in Hosea:

“ I will call them My people, who were not My people,
And her beloved, who was not beloved.”[ah]
26 “ And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them,

‘ You are not My people,’
There they shall be called sons of the living God.”[ai]

27 Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel:[aj]

“ Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea,
The remnant will be saved.
28 For He will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness,
Because the LORD will make a short work upon the earth.”[ak]

29 And as Isaiah said before:

“ Unless the LORD of Sabaoth[al]had left us a seed,
We would have become like Sodom,
And we would have been made like Gomorrah.”[am]

Present Condition of Israel

30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; 31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.[an] 32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law.[ao] For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:

“ Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,
And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”[ap]

Romans 10

Israel Needs the Gospel

1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel[aq] is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, “The man who does those things shall live by them.”[ar] 6 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’”[as] (that is, to bring Christ down from above) 7 or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?’”[at] (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”[au](that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”[av] 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”[aw]

Israel Rejects the Gospel

14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written:

“ How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace,[ax]
Who bring glad tidings of good things!”[ay]
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “LORD, who has believed our report?”[az] 17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
18 But I say, have they not heard? Yes indeed:

“ Their sound has gone out to all the earth,
And their words to the ends of the world.”[ba]

19 But I say, did Israel not know? First Moses says:

“ I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation,
I will move you to anger by a foolish nation.”[bb]
20 But Isaiah is very bold and says:

“ I was found by those who did not seek Me;
I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me.”[bc]
21 But to Israel he says:

“ All day long I have stretched out My hands
To a disobedient and contrary people.”[bd]

Romans 11

Israel’s Rejection Not Total

1 I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, 3 “LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life”?[be] 4 But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”[bf] 5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace.[bg] But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.
7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. 8 Just as it is written:

“ God has given them a spirit of stupor,
Eyes that they should not see
And ears that they should not hear,
To this very day.”[bh]

9 And David says:

“ Let their table become a snare and a trap,
A stumbling block and a recompense to them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see,
And bow down their back always.”[bi]
Israel’s Rejection Not Final

11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. 12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
13 For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. 15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, 18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.” 20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. 22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness,[bj] if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved,[bk] as it is written:

“ The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.”[bl]

28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

34 “ For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?”[bm]
35 “ Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”[bn]

36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

Romans 12

Living Sacrifices to God

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Serve God with Spiritual Gifts

3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

Behave Like a Christian

9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.
17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,”[bo] says the Lord. 20 Therefore

“ If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”[bp]

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 13

Submit to Government

1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. 4 For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. 5 Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. 7 Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.

Love Your Neighbor

8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,”[bq] “You shall not covet,”[br] and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”[bs] 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Put on Christ

11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

Romans 14

The Law of Liberty

1 Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. 2 For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. 3 Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. 4 Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
5 One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord;[bt] and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end Christ died and rose[bu] and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living. 10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.[bv] 11 For it is written:

“ As I live, says the LORD,
Every knee shall bow to Me,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”[bw]

12 So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. 13 Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.

The Law of Love

14 I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. 15 Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil; 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 For he who serves Christ in these things[bx]is acceptable to God and approved by men.
19 Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are pure, but it is evil for the man who eats with offense. 21 It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak.[by] 22 Do you have faith?[bz] Have it to yourself before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. 23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.[ca]

Romans 15

Bearing Others’ Burdens

1 We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. 3 For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.”[cb] 4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. 5 Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, 6 that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Glorify God Together

7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us,[cc] to the glory of God. 8 Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, 9 and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written:

“ For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles,
And sing to Your name.”[cd]
10 And again he says:

“ Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people!”[ce]

11 And again:

“ Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles!
Laud Him, all you peoples!”[cf]
12 And again, Isaiah says:

“ There shall be a root of Jesse;
And He who shall rise to reign over the Gentiles,
In Him the Gentiles shall hope.”[cg]

13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

From Jerusalem to Illyricum

14 Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.[ch] 15 Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because of the grace given to me by God, 16 that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 Therefore I have reason to glory in Christ Jesus in the things which pertain to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient— 19 in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 20 And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation, 21 but as it is written:

“ To whom He was not announced, they shall see;
And those who have not heard shall understand.”[ci]

Plan to Visit Rome

22 For this reason I also have been much hindered from coming to you. 23 But now no longer having a place in these parts, and having a great desire these many years to come to you, 24 whenever I journey to Spain, I shall come to you.[cj] For I hope to see you on my journey, and to be helped on my way there by you, if first I may enjoy your company for a while. 25 But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. 26 For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem. 27 It pleased them indeed, and they are their debtors. For if the Gentiles have been partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister to them in material things. 28 Therefore, when I have performed this and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of you to Spain. 29 But I know that when I come to you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel[ck] of Christ.
30 Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers to God for me, 31 that I may be delivered from those in Judea who do not believe, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 that I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together with you. 33 Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Romans 16

Sister Phoebe Commended

1 I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church in Cenchrea, 2 that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also.

Greeting Roman Saints

3 Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. 5 Likewise greet the church that is in their house.
Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia[cl] to Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who labored much for us. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my countrymen and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.
8 Greet Amplias, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and Stachys, my beloved. 10 Greet Apelles, approved in Christ. Greet those who are of the household of Aristobulus. 11 Greet Herodion, my countryman.[cm] Greet those who are of the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.
12 Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, who have labored in the Lord. Greet the beloved Persis, who labored much in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.
16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. The[cn] churches of Christ greet you.

Avoid Divisive Persons

17 Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. 18 For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus[co] Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple. 19 For your obedience has become known to all. Therefore I am glad on your behalf; but I want you to be wise in what is good, and simple concerning evil. 20 And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Greetings from Paul’s Friends

21 Timothy, my fellow worker, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my countrymen, greet you.
22 I, Tertius, who wrote this epistle, greet you in the Lord.
23 Gaius, my host and the host of the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the treasurer of the city, greets you, and Quartus, a brother. 24 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.[cp]

Benediction

25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began 26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith— 27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen.[cq]

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Summary only...

Do we have eternal life?

A question was recently asked on a networking site. “[I am] still pondering the concept once saved always saved and can you lose your salvation................ any thoughts?”

[NOTE: the persons responding to the question originally, used the New International Version. It is not my personal choice to use that version, but out of deference to these believers, I have chosen to use the New International Version in this discussion.]

One person quoted Hebrews 10:26-27 (New International Version)

“If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”

And,

John 15:5-6 (New International Version)

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.”

And,

Revelation 2:4-5 (New International Version)

“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

Another said, “read 2 Pet. 2:21, Heb. 6:4-6 and especially Ezek. 18:4-30 along w/the scriptures others have already mentioned.” [Along with some personal comments which I have left out].

Let’s take a look at some of these verses which may shed some light.

Hebrews 6:4-6 states,

“It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.”

These verses clearly state that if it were possible to fall away, then there remains no sacrifice for sin.

So, if not "once saved, always saved" then you have NO HOPE!

To arrive at the conclusion that you can lose your salvation, you must assume that keeping your salvation is somehow worked up within you; that you have to do good works in order to remain one of the sheep.

Remember, ALL our righteousness is filthy rags. There is NOTHING we can do to merit salvation - either before or after we are saved. We depend on Christ for salvation and we depend on Him to keep us saved.

John 10 says,

"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."

What is eternal life? (Hint: it lasts forever). You cannot have eternal life and then have it taken from you. No man, not even you, are able to take a person, even yourself, out of the Father's hand.

If our salvation were dependent on our good works then it is no longer a gift, but rather something we can earn.

Now, these verses quoted above cannot be talking about the sheep.

Let's look at each one. First, Hebrews 10:26-27 (New International Version)

"If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth..."

I John in chapter 2 says,

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him."

This does not speak of LOSING your salvation, but rather of never having it in the first place. Notice John is writing to “my dear children”, in other words, he is speaking to those who have come to know Christ due to the Spirit working through John. He says you know that you know Him (Christ) if you obey His commands. In other words the Spirit does good works through those that know Him. (Remember, all OUR righteousness is filthy rags, and only the Spirit’s work through this vessel of clay is of any value).

The scripture here goes on to say, “The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. This implies that there are those who CLAIM to know him but have never really become part of the family. They know OF Him, they have the knowledge, but they never accepted the gift from Him.

Hebrews chapter 10 quoted above is telling us that if we have received the knowledge of truth and do not repent, eventually God will ignore us and we will forfeit the opportunity to receive the gift of eternal life.

Now let’s take a look at the Vine. For John 15 to make sense you must understand the vine. Each example Christ gives relates to the people of the day. He is speaking to farmers who understand that "the branches" that bear fruit were grafted into a strong base plant that had good roots. If it "does not remain" means that it was never properly grafted in. In other words it never became part of the vine (root base) to begin with. So of course it would wither and die.

Revelation 2 is interesting. This verse is often interpreted as meaning that you will be removed from the presence of God, but again must be interpreted with other scripture.

Jesus is speaking in chapter 2 about the lampstand, (candlestick or oil lamp). Let's look at some other words of His concerning lights.

Matthew 5:15

“Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Mark 4:21

“He said to them, ‘Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don't you put it on its stand?’”

Luke 8:16

“No one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.”

These are parallel passages all talking about a lamp or lampstand. Note that the lamp or “light” as some other versions translate it, is not the person but rather the witness or testimony of that person. Take time to look up other passages that speak of lamps, such as ones that speak of the bridesmaids being ready when the bridegroom comes.

Now let’s go back to Revelation chapter 2. This section reveals Christ speaking to the churches of John’s day. Remember that John was on the Isle of Patmos, and all these churches listed were ones that existed then and were near that island. John would have been to most if not all these prior to being exiled. All through this section we read about the candlesticks, or “lampstands”. In chapter one verse 20 we are told what the lampstands are. “The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels[c] of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.” So we see that the lampstand is not an individual Christian, but the assembly. In the case quoted earlier from chapter 2, we see that is specifically the church or assembly at Ephesus that is being spoken of. So Christ is saying to the assembly at Ephesus, that if they don’t start doing the “first things” again He will remove the church at Ephesus from its place – in other word, the church at Ephesus will cease to be, or at least cease to be a witness.

So we can see by the context of this passage that the “lampstand” mentioned is the church as a corporate body or local assembly, not a person. This has nothing whatever to do with an individual and their standing with Christ.

Now, remember the sheep? We talked about the sheep earlier. Let’s get back to the shepherd and his sheep.

The Bible is literally FULL of references to sheep and shepherds. Why? It is because, along with grapes and olives, sheep were a big part of the economy of that era. Let’s look at some passages about sheep.

Here’s the passage from John 10.

”I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 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. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."

And then continuing on lets look at verses 25 through 30.

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."

Look at the context here. Who is Jesus speaking to? Well, to know that we have to go to the context again. Remember, when the Bible was written there were not chapter designations. Look at chapter nine and you will see that Jesus is having a conversation with the Pharisees; the unbelieving rulers of the Jews. So we must look at this passage in that context. He is contrasting His care for His sheep to their supposed care for the Jewish community of the day. He calls them thieves and robbers and false shepherds and calls Himself the true shepherd.

Notice in this passage the entire focus is on the Shepherd not the sheep.

If you know anything about raising sheep you know that they are very dumb, stubborn and lazy animals. They must be led to a place to eat, and led to a place to drink, and kept in a pen of some sort, that can be secured, or they will wander off.

Isn’t that just like us! It is no accident that we are called the sheep of God. But back to the Shepherd. It’s all about Him and what He does to care for, protect and KEEP His sheep. We cannot keep ourselves, we’re SHEEP. We will fail every day every time. It is only through the Shepherd that we have hope of being kept.

What gives us strength to obey? Is it something we “work up” within ourselves? Have you tried that? Does it work for you? Not for long!

We can’t DO anything in this flesh that is profitable. Romans 3:9 says,

“What shall we conclude then? Are we any better [than the Jews]? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one."

This is the condition of man while on this earth. We cannot of ourselves do any good. We can only do good works as the Spirit works through us. Let’s compare Romans chapter 8.

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. 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, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

I put the whole passage here because I think is important to see the contrast of our flesh versus the Spirit working through us. Note phrases such as, “But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.” So, the works of the flesh produce death, but the works of the Spirit through us bring righteousness. Oh, and note the verse prior to that.

“You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”

So, again it is the Spirit living through us that does the good works.

The conclusion is this.

If we have a view that we must work to maintain our standing with Christ then all hope is lost, because it is impossible for any man to do that. So then if that is true, we will all fall short and not measure up and be sentenced to death forever.

IF however, we have the view that it is all the Spirit working through us, and that the only righteousness ever produced through Christians is by the Spirit working through a surrendered mortal body and soul, then we can depend on the Shepherd to keep us. We cannot keep ourselves in the pen, we cannot feed ourselves, clothe ourselves, and drink for ourselves. We must submit and surrender to the Shepherd and allow the Spirit of the Shepherd to have place in our daily life.

Salvation is not just that we were lost and now are found; it is also that we are kept by the Good Shepherd who gives His life for the sheep. HE does the keeping, not us.

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Was the epistle to the Hebrews written to the Jews?

Would you agree that Hebrews is written to the Jews about a more perfect way and that the referenced scripture warns them of rejecting the Messiah that they were seeking?

The scripture referenced in the question is Hebrews 6:4-6

"For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

During the time that the New Testament books were written, almost all believers were Jews. Even the majority of believers in Asia minor and Rome were Jews - part of the diaspora. So the short answer is, 'yes'.

A good example of an exception might be the Corinthian church, which was probably made up mostly of Greeks.

That said, the book of Hebrews was not accidentally named. And the term Hebrew was not just a term for Jews at the time, but was typically used to designate one whose parents were both Hebrew, as Paul describes himself as a "Hebrew of the Hebrews." This would imply but not necessarily dictate that they were more devout or traditional in their beliefs that a Jew of mixed extraction.

The arguments that are laid out in this book are primarily aimed at showing that Christ, [the Messiah] is better than the old system of laws, priests and sacrifices.

It was written to warn new believers not to fall back under the law, but remain under grace.

This was also applicable to Greeks though, since the so-called "Judiazers" were constantly advising new Greek Christians that they needed to follow the law after accepting Christ.

So, it had a primary and a secondary purpose, which were closely related to following the law after accepting Christ.

And, it is also applicable to us today, as believers continue to try to obey a system of rules and regulations rather than concentrate on building a relationship with Christ through the Spirit's help to ultimately live the sanctified life.

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Why Are We Here?

We live to the Lord.
-- Romans 14:8

If God had willed it, each of us might have entered heaven at the moment of conversion. It was not absolutely necessary for our preparation for immortality that we should linger here. It is possible for a man to be taken to heaven and to be found fit to partake in the inheritance of the saints in light, even though he has only just believed in Jesus. It is true that our sanctification is a long and continued process, and we shall not be perfected until we lay aside our bodies and enter within the veil; but nevertheless, if the Lord had wanted to, He could have changed us from imperfection to perfection and have taken us to heaven at once.



Why then are we here? Would God keep His children out of paradise a single moment longer than was necessary? Why is the army of the living God still on the battlefield when one charge might give them the victory? Why are His children still wandering here and there through a maze when a single word from His lips would bring them into the center of their hopes in heaven?

The answer is--they are here that they may "live to the Lord" and may bring others to know His love. We remain on earth as sowers to scatter good seed, as plowmen to break up the fallow ground, as heralds publishing salvation. We are here as "the salt of the earth,"1 to be a blessing to the world. We are here to glorify Christ in our daily life. We are here as workers for Him, and as workers together with Him. Let us see that our life fulfills this purpose. Let us live zealous, useful, holy lives, to "the praise of his glorious grace."2

Meanwhile we long to be with Him and daily sing--

My heart is with Him on His throne,And ill can brook delay;
Each moment listening for the voice,
"Rise up, and come away."

C. H. Spurgeon

Matthew 5:13
Ephesians 1:6

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Five Commands

by John D. Morris, Ph.D.

This is from The Institute for Creation Research,

"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1:13)

In our text and the succeeding two verses, five commands are given to the believer striving to live a godly life. Let us look briefly at each one:

Five Commands
July 30, 2009

"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1:13)

In our text and the succeeding two verses, five commands are given to the believer striving to live a godly life. Let us look briefly at each one:

Gird up the loins of your mind: Using the long, flowing robes worn by most in Greek societies as a word picture, Peter commands us to gird up our minds, just as such a robe needed to be gathered up in preparation for strenuous activity. We need to discipline our minds for action.

Be sober: A drunken person has a disoriented mind, lacks self-control, and is not alert to his surroundings. We are commanded to maintain a calm and thoughtful state of mind, in full control of all our actions.

Hope to the end, or "patiently fix your hope": We must recognize that He is in control and patiently wait for Him. The focus of our expectation is His grace, which we presently experience, but which will be fully granted us at His return.

Not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance (v. 14): This phrase is translated "be not conformed" in Romans 12:2 and commands us not to adopt the world’s lifestyle and thought patterns, especially our "former lusts," which enslaved us before our conversion.

But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy (v. 15): God is first and foremost a holy God, and we are called to "fashion" ourselves after Him. Complete holiness is out of our reach this side of glory, but it should be our goal.

All five are commands indeed, but commands three and five are in an emphatic position in the Greek, and these two hold the key to success in the others. Only by patiently fixing our hope on Him and His grace can we successfully strive for His holiness. JDM

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Can We Keep It Together?

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The Power of the Cross!

Oh, to see the dawn,
Of the darkest day:
Christ on the road to Calvary.
Tried by sinful men,
Torn and beaten, then,
Nailed to a cross of wood.

Oh, to see the pain,
Written on Your face,
Bearing the awesome weight of sin.
Every bitter thought,
Every evil deed,
Crowning Your bloodstained brow.

This, the power of the cross:
Christ became sin for us.
Took the blame,
bore the wrath
-We stand forgiven at the cross.

Now the daylight flees,
Now the ground beneath,
Quakes as its Maker bows His head.
Curtain torn in two,
Dead are raised to life;
'Finished!' the victory cry.

Oh, to see my name,
Written in the wounds,
For through Your suffering I am free.
Death is crushed to death,
Life is mine to live,
Won through Your selfless love.

This, the power of the cross:
Son of God - slain for us.
What a love!
What a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Keith Getty & Stuart Townend Copyright © 2005

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Is Your Cowbell Ringin'?

I have five siblings. We grew up in a subdivision of similar houses to our own and crossed by streets and drainage ditches, not unlike many of you.
Mom stayed at home when we were younger, and because we might all be in different places throughout the neighborhood, she had a simple rule - when she called us home, we had to come right away.
She had a unique way of calling us. Sometime in years past she had bought a "tool" that would serve her well. It was an old cowbell. At dinner time, or at dusk, she or my father would just open the back door and ring the cowbell. If you heard it, you'd better run home as fast as you could. The key was you had to be close enough to hear it. If you didn't hear it, and you didn't realize what time it was, (none of us had watches when we were that young), then you were going to be disciplined when you got home.
All of our friends knew about the cowbell, too, and they knew what would happen if we didn't obey. They didn't want their playmates to be grounded, (or worse), and so if they heard the bell they would yell, "Hey, Tabor, your mom's ringin' the cowbell!". So even if we didn't hear it, we had friends to "encourage" us.

Our Heavenly Father, in the same way, calls us to "come and dine". In John 21 verse 12 the Bible says,

"Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine."

In Revelation chapter 3 verse 20 Jesus says,

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

He calls for you to come have dinner with Him, a feast on His Word - fellowship with the Creator of the universe.
However, you have to be close enough to hear. You must stay close to home - close to friends who can encourage you, admonish you to hurry back to be near your Father.
Are you close enough to hear the cowbell ringin'?
MT

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What Are Your Intentions?

A friend sent this to me in an email the other day. I was so impressed with Chris's comments that I asked if I could publish what he wrote. Below is the contents of that email.

You have the best of intentions when it comes to connecting with God, yet somehow, you never seem to do what you hope to do. Maybe you’ve gotten up extra early in the morning planning to have an extended prayer time, only to get distracted by the day’s to-do list. Perhaps you’ve scheduled regular times to read and study Scripture, only to find that you don’t open your Bible nearly as often as you’d thought you would.

When your spiritual expectations fall short of reality, it’s easy to feel guilty. You know that you need to refill your spiritual tank regularly to have the energy you need to live well. But despite your best intentions, you keep missing your connection with the One who wants to fuel your life – God.

No matter how you’ve struggled with devotions in the past, it is possible to fill your spiritual tank every day.

Here’s how:

Get rid of unreasonable expectations.

Stop trying to fit plans into your life that don't naturally fit. There's no magic formula for connecting with God; just because a certain devotional program worked for someone else doesn’t necessarily mean it will work for you. If a certain plan you’ve tried proved unsustainable in your life, accept that reality and move on.

Stop feeling guilty.

You’re not a bad Christian just because you don’t have a traditional time for devotions. Remember that Jesus came to set you free, and He wants you to approach God in freedom rather than through obligation and guilt. God is far less interested in religious demands than He is in the state of your heart and your desire to connect with Him.

Don’t compartmentalize your life.

Seek to live out your faith in every part of your life – not just in church, but also at work, at home, with friends, etc. Invite God to speak to you about each aspect of your life. Listen to what He tells you, and cooperate with His work transforming every part of your life. Don’t hold anything back from your relationship with God. Aim to live consistently as a Christian at all times and in all situations. When you fill your spiritual tank every day, the pressures of daily life won’t stall your spiritual engine.

Stop.

Create pauses in your day where you stop to refuel your soul. Realize that, even though it may sometimes seem like you don’t have enough time to stop for spiritual refueling, you actually do if you rearrange your priorities. Make your relationship with God your top priority, and fit everything else in your life around that. Go ahead and say “no” to activities that don’t fit in well with what you value most. Don’t wear busyness as a badge of honor.
Although our culture may give you the message that being busy equals being important, that’s a lie. From God’s perspective, you’re just as important when you’re not doing anything at all than when you’re extremely busy. So stop justifying busyness, saying yes to everything, occupying your life with trivial things, and filling your life with too many good things and living with no margin. Instead, decide to stop at various times each day during your normal schedule to check in with God. Practice stopping during different activities throughout each day – from taking a break at your office to waiting in the line of cars to pick your kids up from school.
After you practice enough, stopping throughout each day will become a habit for you.


Be quiet.

When you turn down the volume on all the noise in your life that distracts you from thinking well, you’re likely to hear God’s voice speaking to you. Find pockets of silence throughout each day that you can use to connect to God. Turn off your cell phone and Blackberry so you’re not always accessible. Refrain from checking your e-mail when doing so isn’t necessary. Turn off your TV at home, and shut off your radio in the car. Get rid of attitudes that create the noise of unhealthy distractions in your life: worry, constantly wanting more than you have, and procrastinating.
When you deliberately focus your thoughts away from the distractions of each day, move them toward God and listen to what He may say to you.

Make a connection.

Even if the connections you manage to make with God are brief and messy, that’s fine with Him. God simply wants you to connect with Him however you can. God cares more about your desire to connect with Him than any sort of competence in connecting. God’s grace will cover your weaknesses. Thank God that you can approach Him with the confidence that He cares and will listen to whatever you have to say at any time. Express your gratitude to God for His work in your life. You can always count on Him to meet you wherever you are – even if it’s in the middle of a huge mess – and help you.
Trust God in spite of your fears, doubts, questions, failures, inadequacies, pain, loneliness, anger, frustration, and loss. God has begun a good work in you to accomplish good purposes, and you can count on Him to finish what He’s started. Expect God to take your messiness and transform it into holiness if you cooperate with His work in your life. When you make connections with God during each day, those connections can take different forms: thinking about Him (such as pondering what you know about Him and what you’d like to discover about Him), reading about Him in the Bible (especially meditating on one particular verse or passage), and praying to Him (sharing any of your thoughts and feelings and listening for whatever He may want to say to you).
Connecting regularly with God will give you the spiritual fuel you need by accessing His love and promises.

Ask key questions to keep growing.

Ask yourself these questions from time to time as you connect with God more and more frequently:
“What do you need to put down in order to follow Jesus?”,
“What are you doing to learn more about Jesus and His ways?”,
“How are you experiencing excitement in your life because you follow Jesus?”,
“What difficulties in your life might God be using to change you?”,
“Where are you personally sacrificing convenience for obedience?”, and
“Where do you see God rewarding your obedience?”.

Let the answers to these questions motivate you to be more intentional about connecting with God so you can experience the joy of a spiritually full life.

from Chris Yates

Mark Tabor

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Are You Worried About the Future?

If any time was a time to worry, the time we are living in now is. The economy is faltering, the country is under assault, our allies are turning on us, our reputation as a country, nay, our integrity is being questioned. Then there is the all out spiritual war going on around us. "Satan has desired to have [us], that he may sift [us] as wheat." (Luke 22:31). It's as if he knows that the end is near and is making one last attempt to blind the masses and deceive Christians.

Philippians 4:6-8 says,

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

So, why are you worried? Is God suddenly unaware of what is going on here on earth? Has He turned away His eyes from us? Is He no longer in control? Does He now somehow not know the end from the beginning?

Of course He is aware! Of course He has not turned away from us! Of course He is in control! Of course He still knows the end from the beginning! He is God - the Alpha and Omega, the all-knowing, all-powerful, always present God of the ages!

If you are worried, then you don't believe His word. If you are worried, you are not praying. If you are worried, you are not believing. If you are worried, then you are not thinking about the right things.

DON'T WORRY!

Trust. Believe. Pray. Rest. Meditate on His goodness.

Mark

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Is it Best? Does it Build? Does it Bless?

When I was a teenager, I sometimes wrote articles for a newspaper produced and distributed to Christian teens across the country. One of the articles I wrote was titled, "Is it Best? Does it Build? Does it Bless?"

I wrote the article as a 16 year old, but the principles are as timeless as the Word on which they are based. Some of the following is taken from that article, along with more current illustrations and commentary.

In my junior year of high school Bible class, I was privileged to have a teacher who knew the value of scripture memory in the life of his students. Each week that year, we wrote a set of two to four verses on 3x5 cards and each Friday had a quiz over not just those verses, but a cumulative quiz covering all the verses for the semester. We carried those cards around and continually poured those verses into our minds. One set of those verses still rings in my mind when the right circumstances arise.

Ephesians chapter 4 verses 11 through 13:

"And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:"

"...for the edifying of the body of Christ...", what a powerful statement. These gifts of ministry were given to build up, and lift up the body of Christ; in other words, the believers who make up "the body". We see another verse, in Paul's second letter to the Corinthians, in which he explains that while some are boasting and lifting up themselves in pride, he and those with him were only interested in edifying the believers there in Corinth.

II Corinthians chapter 12 verse 19:

"Again, think ye that we excuse ourselves unto you? we speak before God in Christ: but we do all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying."

Whatever you spiritual gift(s) may be, what do you do with them? Do you use them throughout the day as you encounter believers? How do you act toward those to whom you should be knit in friendship and love?

What are you words? What are your actions?

As you go through the day, you have many decisions. You wake up, and you have a decision, whether you realize it or not. Will I choose to be cheerful today, no matter how I feel, or will I choose not to think of that and just act however my flesh "feels"?

You are on your way to work and someone cuts you off in traffic. They were wrong and both of you know it. How do you choose to react?

A co-worker takes credit for your work. What do you say to him/her? What do you say about him/her to others? And so it goes.

Here are the real questions you must ask yourself.

First, "Is it best?" Is my reaction to circumstances the best that it can be? In today's world people often say, "What would Jesus do?" Now, I won't debate the over-use and commercialization of that phrase right now, but the gist of it is, did you do the best thing in a given situation? Did you do the highest thing, the most edifying action you could take?

Secondly, "Does it build?" Some teenagers I know were once having a discussion in the car, and one criticized her brother and belittled him. Her older sister, wanting to be helpful, and caught up in the moment, blurted out, "Edify, Stupid!", to her sister! Not the most spiritual thing to say, and a bit of an oxymoron, but she had the right idea! She was attempting to admonish her sister to say things that would be edifying, or build up her brother, rather than tear him down. Do your actions "build" or "tear down" others around you?

Third, "Does it bless?" Is what you are doing or saying a blessing to God?

II Corinthians chapter 2 verses 14 through 16 says:

Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?"

A sweet savour comes from the picture in the early days of sacrifices and incense burning in the temple. The smell of each was sweet to Jehovah and satisfied His desire to have fellowship with His people. Are you a "sweet savour" to God by the actions and words that you demonstrate to others throughout the day? "Does it bless God?"

Remember, your actions are your choice. No one makes you react a certain way. Do circumstances influence you? Of course they can, if you allow them to. Does the flesh influence you? If you allow it to. Do the world and satan influence you? They can, but only if you let them.

Romans chapter 6 verse 2 says,

"God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?"

The greek words that are translated, "God forbid", are mei genoita, which can be translated, "let it never be!". If we are truly believers, we are to be dead to sin, and not live our lives be captivated by it. We have received power, because the Holy Spirit lives in us, to live a life that is "best", and "builds" and "blesses", but we must choose to allow the Spirit to live through us as we edify others.

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What Are You Afraid Of?

How many times have circumstances surrounded you? You are disappointed by a failed business deal, someone close to you betrays your trust, your best friend stops speaking to you, a loved one falls into sin, your spouse passes away.
In all these things, you may cry out, "Why!" Or you may say, "Help me Lord! I can't go on!", just as the disciples did in the midst of the stormy sea.

Matthew chapter 8 verse 26 says,

"And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm."

For most of us, most of the time, the problems we are called on to endure and the fears we have, are not nearly as serious as the ones I listed in my first paragraph. But, none the less, they are real fears, they grip our heart and mind, and we are paralyzed, unable to act rationally or effectively to fulfill God's plan for our lives that day.

Just a week ago, a man sat down next to me on a plane. He was obviously angry about something. He was gruff with those around him as he put his belongings away, and when he sat down he got out a paperback and began to read.

Just then, the Holy Spirit spoke to me, encouraging me to find a divinely appointed time to strike up a conversation with this man. Now, understand, I had just worked a long week, I was tired; ready to go to sleep on the plane. I had my funny little half circle neck pillow out, I was ready to lean my seat back as soon as the plane took off, and I had already determined I could get almost an hour's sleep on this flight, before we began descending.

So, I thought, "Lord, he's in a bad mood, he won't want to talk, I will annoy him, he'll speak angrily to me, and may even cause a scene." I was afraid to trust the Holy Spirit and let Him have control of the situation. So I did nothing.

I was afraid. Of what? Afraid someone might think less of me if I said something?

Let's think about that a bit.

First of all, I am a child of The King! (no, Denise, not Elvis). I am a child of the Almighty, the King of kings, Lord of lords, the One who knows the end from the beginning.

There's the key! He knows the end from the beginning. Why would I think that what He asked me to do could somehow turn out in some unexpected way? IT CAN'T! Nothing is unexpected for God! He knows all things. By Him do all things hold together, (Colossians 1:17).

Secondly, who am I to question His commands? I am supposed to be dead to self, to live any longer therein. (Romans 6:2) I am supposed to "reckon myself to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:11).

In addition, only presumption of our own importance, or PRIDE, can cause us to think this way. Do we think our embarrassment is too much to suffer for what Christ did on the cross? If so, then that is self-consciousness, or pride. Or, are we so "full of ourselves", engrossed in our own lives, that we think that we should take care of ourselves rather than sacrifice a little of our "precious" time to speak with someone about eternal life. That attitude is PRIDE also - self-centeredness.

So, I did nothing. I squelched the Holy Spirit's leading and did nothing. I fell asleep as I intended, and didn't wake until we landed. As we prepared to get off the plane, the man spoke to me. He was rational, kind and unassuming. He was not the "bully" I had imagined him to be. But the time was gone. He grabbed his case and stepped off the plane. I never saw him again. The opportunity had been lost. This man may be lost - for eternity - because of my selfishness.

I Peter chapter 3 verse 15 says,

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:"

Are YOU ready?

Mark Tabor

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