“The Blessing of Forgiveness”

“The Blessing of Forgiveness”

 

“Our LORD, you BLESS everyone whose sins You forgive and wipe away.  You BLESS them by saying, “You told Me your sins, without trying to hide them, and now I FORGIVE you.”  Psalm 32:1-2

If anyone knew anything about FORGIVENESS, it was King David.  Even though David was a man after the HEART of GOD, he still sinned against God, but the thing is this:  David SUFFERED greatly whenever he would SIN against God, and would NOT CONFESS his sins, he said to God:  “Before I confessed my sins, my bones felt limp, and I groaned ALL day long.  Night and day Your Hand weighed HEAVILY on me, and my STRENGTH was gone as in the summer heat”. (VV 3, 4)

David SUFFERED, and he felt the POWER of GOD weighing HEAVILY upon him.  So, he KNEW what the problem was, and he ACKNOWLEDGED and NAMED all his SINS before the ONLY ONE who could bring him the BLESSING of FORGIVENESS. This is what David did, he came before God and said: “I CONFESSED my SINS and told them All to You, I said, “I’ll tell the LORD each one of my sins,” then YOU FORGAVE me and TOOK AWAY my GUILT.” (V 5).

Have YOU been MISERABLE, because you have NOT CONFESSED your SINS to God, and have failed to SEEK His FORGIVENESS.  Is the FEELING of GUILT TORMENTING you? If so, you are MISSING OUT on His BLESSING of FORGIVENESS, and the JOY and PEACE of KNOWING that you have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with the ALMIGHTY GOD.  And that HEAVEN, with ALL its BLESSINGS will be your ETERNAL HOME. 

In order to RECEIVE that WONDROUS BLESSING, you MUST ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER, in NEED of the SAVIOR, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, God’s ONLY SON, and the ONLY WAY to get FORGIVENESS. He GAVE His LIFE to SAVE your SOUL from an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY TO ESCAPE, once you are there.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that JESUS DIED for YOU, and that He is ALIVE in HEAVEN making intercession for YOU, before GOD.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  Then you MUST BE WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM, your SINFUL LIFESTYLE, and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and ENJOY the BLESSING of FORGIVENESS!!!  Do this NOW while you STILL CAN!!  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

“How Can This Be?”

“How Can This Be?”

 

“Then Abraham bowed down to the ground, but he laughed to himself in disbelief.  “How could I become a father at the age of 100?” He thought. “And how can Sarah have a baby when she is ninety years old?”  Genesis 17:17.   Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen”. I’m an old man now and my wife is also well along in years.”  Luke: 1:17

Have you ever asked the question “HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN?”   We, who are TRUE BELIEVERS, should KNOW and BELIEVE that with the ALMIGHTY GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE”.  We can KNOW this, because, in Matthew 19, Jesus was talking to His Disciples, and, in verse 26 He tells them, “With God EVERYTHING is POSSIBLE”. 

Abraham found it DIFFICULT to BELIEVE that he, being 100 years old, could father a child.  Would you want to celebrate your 100th birthday with the announcement that you were going to have a BABY?  The Bible tells us Abraham LAUGHED in DISBELIEF. And to complicate this situation, How Can This Be?  Sarah was NINETY years old, which was WELL BEYOND her CHILD-BEARING YEARS. 

If it’s in GOD’S PLANS, “EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE”.  Our God is in the MIRACLE MAKING business.  And it was in God’s Plans, as was the, Birth of JESUS.

Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was married to Elizabeth, who was kin to MARY, the Mother of our LORD JESUS. Zechariah was also a PRIEST.  And while he was in the Sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, Zechariah was SHAKEN and OVERWHELMED with FEAR when he saw the Angel.  The Angel told Zechariah that he and Elizabeth will give BIRTH to a son and that his name will be JOHN. And John would be the FORERUNNER of the SAVIOR OF THE WORLD, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. 

Zechariah, said to the Angel, “How Can This Be?” “I am an OLD man, and my wife is ALSO along in years.  And the Angel told Zechariah, that since he did NOT BELIEVE what the Angel had told him, Zechariah would be SILENT, not able to SPEAK until the child is born.  And so, it happened JUST as the ANGEL had told Zechariah.  From that moment until JOHN was born, Zechariah could NOT SPEAK a WORD. 

There’s a song, that says: “GOD WILL MAKE A WAY, where there seems to be NO WAY.  So, when you think your situation is to BIG, COMPLICATED, PRAY, PRAY, PRAY, and BELIEVE that GOD is ABLE, because NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE with GOD.  Because EVERYTHING is POSSIBLE with GOD! Don’t LET your UNBELIEF stand in the WAY of a MIRACLE. 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God through His Son, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, you are LIVING in UNBELIEF.  And God doesn’t want you there.  He’s giving you the OPPORTUNITY NOW to:  Admit that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS, the ONE who GAVE His LIFE to SAVE YOUR SOUL from an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY to ESCAPE once YOU are there.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART that JESUS DIED for You and that He is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for YOU, before GOD.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BE WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFESTYLE and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT GOD’S GIFT of SALVATION and BELIEVE with ALL your HEART!  HOW CAN THAT HAPPEN?  GOD!!!  Do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

“From the Word to the Light, to the Incarnate Christ”

 “From the Word to the Light, to the Incarnate Christ”

 

In the BEGINNING the Word already existed.  The Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He existed in the BEGINNING WITH GOD.   John1:1-2.   The Word gave LIFE to everything that was CREATED, and His LIFE brought LIGHT to EVERYONE. (v 4) (The Word)

The One who is the TRUE LIGHT, who gives LIGHT to EVERYONE, was coming into the world. (V 9).  (The Light)

So, the Word became HUMAN and made His Home among us.  He was full of UNFAILING LOVE and FAITHFULNESS.  And we have seen His Glory, the glory of the Father’s One and Only Son.  (V14) (The Incarnate Christ)

 

In the BEGINNING, ETERNITY PAST, the WORD, the SON of GOD, who is the ETERNAL EXPRESSION of GOD, was with God in the BEGINNING of CREATION.  The Father made the WORLD through the DIVINE WORD, His Son.  “For through Him God made EVERYTHING in the Heavenly Realms on Earth.  He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—-such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was CREATED THROUGH Him (Jesus), The WORD gave LIFE to EVERYTHING that was CREATED, and His LIFE brought LIGHT to EVERYONE.  That LIGHT shines in the darkness and the darkness can NEVER EXTINGUISH it!!   (The Word)

God sent John the Baptist, to tell about the LIGHT, the TRUE LIGHT, Jesus Christ, God’s Son.  And the One who gives LIGHT to EVERYONE was COMING into the WORLD that He created. John was NOT the LIGHT, only a witness to tell about the LIGHT.  (The LIGHT)

So, the WORD became LIGHT, and the LIGHT became FLESH, the INCARNATE CHRIST, GOD’S ONLY SON, He was FULL of UNFAILING LOVE and FAITHFULNESS.  He came into the world He created, but the world DIDN’T RECOGNIZE Him.  He came to His OWN people, and even they REJECTED Him.  But to ALL who BELIEVED in Him and ACCEPTED HIM, He GAVE the RIGHT to become the CHILDREN of GOD.  (JESUS, the INCARNATE CHRIST)

Have you BELIEVED and ACCEPTED Him (Jesus) as GOD’S ONLY SON, and the ONLY WAY to be able to have ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN, and to ESCAPE an ETERNITY in HELL with ALL its HORRORS and NO way to ESCAPE, once you are there?  You have the OPPORTUNITY NOW to BELIEVE and ACCEPT Him as your SAVIOR and LORD:  This is what you MUST DO:

ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS, CHRIST, who gave His LIFE to SAVE YOUR SOUL from Hell. You MUST BELIEVE with ALL your HEART, that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is ALIVE in HEAVEN, making intercession for you, before God.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFESTYLE and TURN to GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and be ASSURED of an ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN with ALL its BLESSINGS.  Do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON.   Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND.

 

“ The LORD Is GOD”

“The LORD Is GOD”

So, remember this and keep it firmly in mind:  The LORD is God both in Heaven and on earth and there is NO other.  Deuteronomy 4:39

 

The Nation of Israel was about to enter the PROMISED LAND, and GOD had FORBIDDEN Moses to enter the Land that He had promised to Israel. This was the PUNISHMENT of Moses for his DISOBEDIENCE to the Almighty God. 

When the Nation first started their journey into the WILDERNESS, they faced many TRIALS. And one was the NEED for WATER.  They complained to Moses and Moses spoke to God about the problem.  God told Moses to gather the people and to SPEAK to a rock, close by. When Moses came CLOSE to the ROCK, he STRUCK the rock the staff in his hand.  And the water gushed from the rock.  So, the COMPLAINING people and their LIVESTOCK had plenty of water.

Now, you see, God provided the much-NEEDED WATER, but the BIG PROBLEM was Moses COMPLETELY IGNORED God’s Directions and did what HE wanted to do.  Moses DISOBEYED GOD, and because of that, God told Moses that he would NOT LEAD the people into the PROMISED LAND. 

 Moses KNEW about the CONSEQUENCES when you DISOBEY the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY.  When God LEADS us to do ONE THING and we do SOMETHING ELSE, we can EXPECT to be REPRIMANDED by GOD.  How PAINFUL it must have been when God said, “NO!” To him LEADING the Nation INTO the PROMISED LAND.

Moses told the people: “REMEMBER THIS and KEEP it FIRMLY in MIND:  THE LORD is GOD BOTH in HEAVEN and on EARTH, and THERE IS NO OTHER!!! Moses also gave them a WARNING AGAINST IDOLATRY!!  “If YOU will SEARCH for GOD with ALL your HEART and SOUL, you will FIND Him. 

When you become a CHILD OF GOD, you MUST KNOW this:  DO YOUR BEST to OBEY GOD’S DIRECTIONS OR face the CONSEQUENCES!!!  God tells us that in order to become His CHILD we MUST ADMIT that we are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, God’s ONE and ONLY SON, JESUS CHRIST, who came to EARTH as a BABE and GREW-UP in the NURTURE of GOD to SEEK and to SAVE those who are LOST and on their way to HELL for ALL ETERNITY. And He was the ONLY ACCEPTABLE SACRIFICE for the SALVATION of MANKIND.   If this is your DESTINY, then YOU MUST BELIEVE that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is ALIVE in HEAVEN, making intercession for YOU, before GOD!  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFESTYLE and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and an ETERNITY in HEAVEN with JESUS, who is WORTHY to SAVE and with the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, CREATOR of ALL!!!  Do this NOW, while you STILL can!!  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

 

“Mountains Would QUAKE, and Nations Would TREMBLE”

 “Mountains Would QUAKE, and Nations Would TREMBLE”

 

“Oh, that You would burst from the heavens and come down!  How the mountains would QUAKE in Your presence!  As fire causes wood to burn and water to boil, Your coming would make the nations TREMBLE.  Then Your enemies would LEARN the REASON for Your fame!  Isaiah 64:1-2

 

In these final verses, we see the Prophet Isaiah, PlEADING with GOD for DELIVERANCE, on behalf of the Nation of Israel.  The Israelites were EXILES, in EGYPT.  They were BADLY treated.  And were DESPERATE for HELP.  So, the Prophet Isaiah, called out to God for DELIVERANCE, on behalf of the Nation.  It was a very HARD and DIFFICULT time. 

They were so distraught, that the Prophet CRIED OUT for GOD to BURST from the heavens and COME DOWN to earth, where the people were.  Isaiah indicated that if God would do this that the MOUNTAINS would QUAKE, just from the PRESENCE of the ALMIGHTY GOD. 

The FIRE and BOILING WATER, indicated JUDGMENT, which would DEFINITELY make the NATIONS TREMBLE.  And God’s enemies would come to KNOW the REASON for His FAME!

In the past, when God performed His AWESOME DEED, oh, how those mountains QUAKED! For since the world began, NO EAR has HEARD and NO EYE has SEEN a GOD like YOU, who works for those who WAIT for Him and FOLLOWS in GODLY WAYS. 

And they ACKNOWLEDGED that God was ANGRY with them because they were NOT GODLY, but they were CONSTANT SINNERS, INFECTED and IMPURE with SIN.  And because of their SINFULNESS and REBELLION AGAINST GOD, their CREATOR, they were TURNED OVER to their SINS. 

Until there was TRUE REPENTANCE there would NOT be MERCY and GRACE.  They would NOT have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with GOD.  And they would KNOW that their JUDGMENT was at hand. Is this the situation YOU are IN? 

One day, and it might be SOON, the MOUNTAINS will QUAKE, and the NATIONS will TREMBLE at the SECOND COMING of our LORD and SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST.  The ONLY SON of the LIVING GOD, who is the ONLY ONE, who can provide mankind with SALVATION, and an ETERNAL LIFE with GOD, the FATHER, and His SON, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. 

For those who will NOT or have NOT GIVEN their HEART and LIFE to GOD, through JESUS CHRIST, will end up SPENDING their ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY to ESCAPE, UNLESS they will ADMIT that they are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR and BELIEVE with ALL their HEARTS, that HE is ALIVE in HEAVEN making intercession for them, before God.  They MUST CONFESS their SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  They MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM their SINFUL LIFE-STYLE, and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  They MUST Be WILLING To ACCEPT GOD’S Gift of SALVATION and an ETERNAL LIFE with Him and His Heavenly Father.  You NEED to DO this NOW, BEFORE it’s to LATE.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

“Mountains

“The Unique One”

 “The Unique One”

 

For the law was given through Moses, but God’s UNFAILING LOVE and FAITHFULNESS came through Jesus Christ.  NO ONE has EVER seen God.  But the UNIQUE ONE, who is Himself God, is near to the Father’s Heart.  He has REVEALED God to us.   John 1:17-18

We are going to find out some things that will reveal the uniqueness of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, the Son of the LIVING GOD. First of all, the UNIQUENESS of the BIRTH of our LORD, was very UNIQUE in that His Mother, Mary, was betrothed to a POOR, LOWLY carpenter, named JOSEPH.  They had NOT come together as husband and wife.  They were in, what we will call the ENGAGEMENT part of the BETROTHAL.  And so, MARY was a VIRGIN, she had never been with a man.  She was PURE, and CHASTE, a GODLY young lady who was devout in her worship of her LORD GOD. She was a PERFECT CHOICE for the one who would give birth to the SON of the LIVING GOD.  So, the CONCEPTION of JESUS was pretty UNIQUE.

And so, it was that the SPIRIT of the LIVING GOD came upon Mary and she became WITH CHILD, the CHILD of the LIVING GOD. And He is HIMSELF GOD.  The HOLY TRINITY tells us that, God the Father, God the SON, and God the HOLY SPIRIT.  In the GOSPEL of John, John tells us that Jesus was with God and HE IS GOD.  John tells us that:  In the BEGINNING, the WORD (who is JESUS) was with God.  And the WORD was GOD.  He EXISTED in the BEGINNING with GOD.  God created EVERYTHING through the WORD (Jesus), and NOTHING WAS CREATED EXCEPT THROUGH HIM.  In verse fourteen, it tells us that the WORD became FLESH (human) and made His Home among mankind.  Again, I would say that this is UNIQUE. 

John the Baptist called Jesus, “the LAMB of GOD, who takes AWAY the SINS of the WORLD.” He is the CHOSEN ONE of GOD.  In John 6:38-40, Jesus says: “For I have come down from Heaven to do the Will of God Who sent Me, not to do MY OWN will.  And this is the Will of God, that I should NOT lose even ONE of all those He has GIVEN Me, but that I should RAISE them up at the LAST DAY.  For it is My Father’s will that All who SEE His Son and BELIEVE in Him SHOULD HAVE ETERNAL LIFE.  I will RAISE them UP at the LAST DAY.” This IS what the BELIEVER calls the “RAPTURE” and I MUST SAY, we are SO LOOKING for that NEXT PROPHETIC EVENT to TAKE PLACE.  This too, is UNIQUE about the LORD JESUS.  Are YOU looking for that DAY when ALL TRUE BELIEVERS will be RAISED UP to an ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN??  It COULD BE ANY DAY!! 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God through His ONLY Son, JESUS CHRIST, you have the OPPORTUNITY to do this NOW!  YOU MUST ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS.  YOU MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that JESUS DIED for you, and that He is ALIVE in HEAVEN, making intercession for you, before God.  YOU MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  YOU MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFE-STYLE and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, YOU MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and ENJOY a UNIQUE ETERNAL LIFE with JESUS, the UNIQUE ONE!!! Do this NOW while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!