Milk is Sweet but Meat is Better- Are You a Sinner?

Well, now Easter is over and we must move on, the crucifixion and the resurrection, sin and eternal life are the milk of the gospel, that is easy to understand if not accept. Sin, death, eternal life, salvation are all what is the milk of the gospel , we must drink the milk if we are to grow, we will not grow if we do not drink the milk, but our strenght comes from the meat of the gospel. Putting these things to work in how we live our lives. No, I am not talking about a salvation by works, but a salvation that leads to doing good works, not out of a compulsory command but out of heart felt desire to reflect the love of Christ through our actions and our words. We cannot do enough good works to outweigh the evil that lies within us all- the world says that mankind is bascially good but God says that the heart of man is continually evil. The sins of the heroes of the faith stick out like sore thumbs throughout the Bible. Paul was a persecutor and murderer, Abraham was a liar, Jacob was a con man and a thief, King David was an adulterer and murderer and possibly even a rapist(yet he was a man after God’s own heart), Noah was a drunk, Peter was a liar( denied he even knew Jesus, not once but three times as Jesus predicted he would), There are countless other examples, I mean no disrespect by pointing this out, these examples are stated to make the point- we are not good by any means, these men were all very close to God yet they fell into sin, like the rest of us, they tried to be good people yet they fell short or missed the mark. This is what is the common thread of humanity is sin.

Romans 3:23

New International Version (NIV)

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

 

1John 1: 8, 10

 

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us

 

10f we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

 

Sin is what nailed Jesus to cross. This is the meat of the gospel, it was not the Romans that crucified Jesus, it was not the chief preists or elders, it was not Judas that betrayed Him, yet in a sense it was. It was and is the sins that we all have committed. Perhaps the hardest teaching of Christianity is that the first thing one has to do is to admit to being a sinner, an evil vile sinner, admit to being a bad person, that one has to confess to the crimes that they have committed to a wrathful vengeful but just God. When you stand in God’s court are you going to demand justice or plead for mercy?

Pre Easter Thoughts and refelctions

We are fast approaching the season of Lent and the Holy Days of Ash Wednesday,Good Friday, and Easter also called Resurrection Day. A time when we celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, His betrayal by Judas, His trial, His death on the cross and finally the culmination of the celebration on Sunday, the first day of the week, Jesus defeated death and rose from the dead.   Jesus rode into town on a donkey, whenever a King comes riding in on a donkey, that means he is coming in peace, yet it was the devil that declared war on Jesus that week through the Jewish leaders, the Roman government, and the people that called out “crucify him”.  Yet, we must realize that had Jesus not been betrayed and convicted on the charge of blasphemy, sentenced to death on the cross, we would still be in our sins. Men meant these things for evil, but God meant them for good. We too share in His death, and we also share in His victory over both death and sin, the proof of the victory is in the resurrection, the Christian faith stands or falls on this, the greatest event in all of history.  Over 500 brethren saw the resurrected Christ at once. His closest friends and followers went into hiding after arrest and crucifixion. But after they encountered the risen Lord they became very bold in their testimony and all but one died proclaiming the the truth of the resurrection. They were not liars that wanted to fool the world. Men simply will not die for a lie. No one will endure torture for a lie.  When it was reported to the Jewish leaders that the body had disappeared  from a guarded and sealed tomb, the Jewish leaders bribed the guards to say that they had fallen asleep – now the penalty for a Roman soldier that fell asleep on guard duty was the death penalty.  The Jewish leaders  assured the guards that they would fix it with their superiors so they would not get in trouble with them. The Jewish leaders knew who Jesus was and knew that if they did not cover up the resurrection there would likely be a revolt. Jesus is alive! And He sits now on the right hand of God.  Angels played a part in he birth of the Lord and they played a part in the resurrection also. Jesus Mother Mary, was the only human that was with Jesus from the birth to death to resurrection. She was with Him from the cradle to the grave and beyond. Angels were present with Jesus the night He spent praying in the Garden. Jesus spent a great deal of time in prayer. We need to follow His example and do likewise. During the season of Lent there will be many fasting and praying.  The Lord’s Prayer also known as the Our Father is a model prayer, it follows a pattern of praise them petition , praise the petition and so on.  Lets not forget to praise and give thanks while sending petitions before the throne of God.  Prayer is a conversation with God , the most important part of any conversation is listening. Take time to listen to God, it is in the listening that the answers to our prayers are revealed. Pray for those suffering persecution, pray for the church to be revived and once again be an influence in the community and the nation. Pray for all church leaders, pray for all world leaders, pray for your family and friends and coworkers.  Give Praise to God for all things in your life , for the simple things like the beauty of sunrise or sunset, the majesty of the mountains, for those that have influenced you in your walk with Christ, for your family, and most important of all, for your salvation.  Jesus suffered and died that we could stand before God as righteous, so stand before God and praise Him and lay your concerns at His feet.