7 Rules for Pilgrims & Strangers

FRESH BREAD!

I love it when a box of Bibles arrives: I call it a "fresh batch of bread." Can't wait to get these out to hungry souls. 

I look at these and wonder, what impact will the explosive Word of God have in the lives of the people who accept them...their children, and their grandchildren? 

 Jeremiah 23:29  

"Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?"

 In Heaven, will we see how God used His word to alter the course of history in peoples lives, for their good and His glory?

Something else to share with you today: 7 Rules for Pilgrims & Strangers, based on 1 Peter 2:11...

"Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul" 

Here we go:
1. Travel "light"(Colossians 3:2)
-If we don't get to do everything we want in this life, it's not the end
2. Keep moving (1 Peter 1:4)
-we have a guaranteed inheritance in Christ awaiting us
3. Live for the destination (Hebrews 11:10)
-Live in this world like you would if you were sent abroad on "temporary assignment"
4. Live by the values of the Homeland (1 Peter 1:24,25; Romans 12:1,2)
-don't grovel for what the world has to offer
5. Don't expect to be treated like Permanent Residents (John 15:19)
-The Lord Jesus appeared, and was hated by the world. If He is your Master, do you expect better treatment?
6. Live like an Ambassador (2 Corinthians 5:20)
-We are representatives of the King of Kings and must conduct ourselves to properly reflect our King
7. Don't try to be what you are not (1 Corinthians 6:10,11; Ephesians 5:8

Remember where you came from, who bought you, where you are headed, and why you are here. LIVE LIKE THAT!

Black Lives Matter

The Grand Juries have spoken, and the protests go on. You've seen the pictures, and you've heard the slogans:

"BLACK LIVES MATTER"

No, I disagree with how this statement is framed.
LIVES matter, but adjectives do not.

Here is what I mean:

Lives matter, because God says they matter.

All men and women everywhere, from every nation and ethnic group are created in the image of God, created to have a loving, personal, eternal relationship with their Creator God. There is only one race: the HUMAN race. You knew this, right?

"And (God) hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:" 

Acts 17:26-27

Consider this: 

"Every human being in the world is classified as Homo sapiens. Scientists today agree that there is really only one biological race of humans. Geneticists have found that if we were to take any two people from anywhere in the world, the basic genetic differences between these two people would typically be around 0.2 percent,1 even if they came from the same people group.2 “Racial” characteristics account for only about 6 percent of this 0.2 percent variation. That means that the “racial” genetic variation between human beings of different “race” is a mere 0.012 percent.3

This is an excerpt from the book, "One Race One Blood" by Ken Ham. You can read the footnotes, and more of this book by clicking this LINK.

You need to avoid people who teach and speak about division or distinction based on so-called "race." God tells us to do good to all men, to love all men.

And God does not just "say" that lives matter: He demonstrated it in action, by sending the Savior into the world so that all men might be saved by trusting in this one Savior of all men. The proof of this truth is the historical fact of the death, burial and resurrection of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

By the way, if you deny the God of the Bible, how can you say that any life matters? On what basis would you say that? "Survival of the fittest" stands opposed to such slogans. No, the atheist, the anti-theist, they must borrow a Biblical world view to say anything about right or wrong, truth, justice, etc. And since many people are practical atheists  in this country (meaning they act like atheists despite any claims about faith in God), is it a surprise that we have allowed the murder of over 

55 Million 

pre-born babies through abortion? Don't those lives matter? Where are the Al Sharptons and the Jesse Jacksons standing up for these lives? Where is the outrage? Where are they blocking the interstates and bridges? Sadly, the ones who do stand up for these lives are vilified and marginalized, and their act of love is met with anger and hostility by people in our country.

People, we need to seek the Lord. He is the only one who can deliver us from our sinful, wicked hearts. He is the only one who can take away the hatred we have for one another, and give us a desire to love one another. He can set us free from sin, death & hell, if we will turn to him. Trust in the Lord Jesus today as your Savior.

Blossoms Don't Last Here

Every year, when the ornamental trees blossom in front of my office building, I bring in a few sprigs and put them in a glass in my office. I love the fragrance and the beauty of these wonderful creations of God. When I get the chance, I'll stand under a tree like this and breath deeply of the sweet perfume of springtime. And they are only in blossom for a such a short time. Before long, and the blossoms fade & dry, as you can see below.

 

Their glory is so fleeting, just like our own lives. Ever look back at pictures of yourself as a young man or woman? Oh, we spend a lot of money trying to keep our youthful looks, but time takes it's toll.

 

Another sad but true reminder that we live in a fallen creation, and that all things that may be seen are only brief and temporary. But for us, death is not the end. The unseen things of God are eternal, and death for us is just the beginning on the other side. God has promises of eternal joy or eternal sorrow, and has provided a way for all of us to escape the sorrow part: all who trust the Savior, Jesus Christ,  will experience the reality of Heaven which will never, ever, ever pass away!

 

The choice is up to you....

\\1 Peter 1:23-25

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 

For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:  But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.