"Once and for ALL"

“Once and for ALL”

 

For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; He entered Heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence.     Hebrews 9:24

Nor did He enter Heaven to offer Himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own.     (V25)

Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world.  But He has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself.       (V26)

 

JESUS CHRIST, the High Priest of the New Covenant, the ONCE for ALL sacrifice, returned to Heaven and into the REAL TRUE TABERNACLE, not a copy that was made by man, but the TRUE ONE.  He entered not only as our HIGH PRIEST, but also as our LAWYER, and more importantly, He entered as our ONE and ONLY SACRIFICE.  He was our ADVOCATE, FOREVER INTERCEDING for His TRUE Children, before the Almighty God,

 

In the Old Testament era, the High Priest, had to enter the man-made tabernacle, and that only ONCE a year, and NEVER without a BLOOD sacrifice, which he offered for himself and for the people.  The problem with this sacrifice, was that it was TEMPORARY, it could NOT TAKE AWAY the sins, but ONLY COVER the sins.  However the BLOOD of Jesus takes away ALL our sins, as far as the EAST is from the WEST, NEVER to be brought up again.  They are GONE FOREVER!  PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE, ALL of our SINS. 

 

Jesus Christ, would NOT have to offer Himself, AGAIN, and AGAIN, ONCE a YEAR, with blood that was NOT His own, like the High Priests of the Old Testament times.  If He did have to do what the other High Priests did, He would have had to SUFFER many times.  But because of the ULTIMATE SACRIFICE of shedding His OWN BLOOD, It is a ONCE and for ALL, sacrifice.

 

And those who are drawn to Him, and will ACCEPT HIM as their SAVIOR, REDEEMER and LORD, will have ALL, PAST, PRESENT, and FUTURE sins FORGIVEN.  The Bible tells us that those WHO CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED!!  In order to become a TRUE CHILD of the LIVING GOD, and to have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with Him, and to AVOID an ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, you MUST TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle, and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST CONFESS your sins to Him, and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in HEAVEN, making intercession for you, before God.  Then you MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and ALLOW HIM to take away ALL your sins, ONCE and for ALL.  Do it NOW while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

"Which Road Will You Take?"

“Which Road Will You Take?”

 

“Set up road signs; put up guideposts.  Take note of the highway, the road that you take.”         Jeremiah 31:21

“Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.           Matthew 7:13-14

 

Whenever we take a trip to a place we’re not familiar with, my husband, ALWAYS asks me to help him with the ROAD SIGNS and MILE MARKERS.  This helps us to KNOW what ROAD we should take and how many miles we’ll have to travel on that road.   This is similar to what God asked the Captives to do, as they traveled to Babylon.  He wanted them to be SURE they were on the RIGHT ROAD, when they were released from captivity.

 

In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus tells us that, we SHOULD; “Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.   But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”   If you are a TRUE BELIEVER, you SHOULD BE on the NARROW ROAD.  And headed to an ETERNAL LIFE in Heaven, because you have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God, and the RIGHTEOUSNESS you possess is a TRUE HEARTFELT RIGHTEOUSNESS, NOT JUST an OUTWARD APPEARANCE, like the Pharisees.  There are some who THINK they can BLUFF God, by this FAKE RIGHTEOUSNESS, and they BELIEVE that they can take the WRONG ROAD, the WIDE ROAD, which leads to DESTRUCTION, and an ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, and instead of spending an ETERNITY in Hell, they will end up with an ETERNITY in HEAVEN.  This WAY of thinking is TOTALLY WRONG!!! 

 

One of the BENEFITS of being on the RIGHT ROAD, the NARROW ROAD is having a LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE.  Like the Apostle Paul, when he was on the Damascus Road.  In Acts 26:13, Paul says:  “About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the ROAD, I saw a light from Heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.”  The Jesus spoke to Paul …”Now get up and stand on your feet, I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of Me.”  This is when Paul’s CONVERSION took place.  He took the RIGHT ROAD, the NARROW ROAD, because NOW he had a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God.   Do you have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God? Are you SURE you’re on the RIGHT ROAD? 

 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God then you do NOT have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with Him and you are NOT on the RIGHT ROAD, but you are on the WRONG ROAD, the BROAD ROAD, which leads to ETERNAL DESTRUCTION.  In order to have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God, and to be on the RIGHT ROAD, you MUST TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle and TURN TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART. You MUST CONFESS your sins to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God.  Then you MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and have a LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE, because of a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God.  Then ENTER the SMALL gate and take the NARROW ROAD to an ETERNITY in Heaven.  Do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

"God's Waiting Room"

“God’s Waiting Room”

 

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in His Word I put my hope.       Psalm 130:5

Lord, I wait for you; You will answer, Lord my God.       Psalm 38:15

 

Have you ever been in God’s Waiting Room?  If you’re a TRUE BELIEVER, I’m sure you have been there, maybe even multiple times.  We are going to talk about the different reasons we find ourselves in God’s Waiting Room.  You may be able to come up with a few more reasons, which are different from those we will cover here.  First, I want us to look at the Psalmist, and his attitude as he is in God’s Waiting Room.  Notice, he states that his WHOLE BEING waits.  It’s not just in his mind, but his WHOLE BEING, indicating his PATIENCE, in verse six, he says that he WAITS MORE than watchmen wait for the morning, they MUST be vigilant ALL through the night, and when morning comes they WAIT PATIENTLY for the one who will take their place.  So we see that we SHOULD WAIT PATIENTLY on God.  And while we WAIT, we can and SHOULD put our HOPE in His Word. 

 

In Psalm 38:15, the Psalmist declares his STEADFAST FAITH, while WAITING, he says; “You will answer, Lord my God.  Now, it may NOT be the answer, we are looking for, but He HEARS and will ANSWER in His OWN time.  So, NOW, let’s look at some reasons to be in God’s Waiting Room.

 

Sometimes, we might find ourselves WAITING for an answer to some very urgent prayer requests, and we become a little uneasy when we don’t receive an answer, at EXACTLY the time we think and feel we should.  In Psalm 5:3, David says; “In the morning, Lord, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and WAIT EXPECTANTLY.”  WAITING EXPECTANTLY means that he is WAITING PATIENTLY, EXPECTING an ANSWER, because, he has HOPE in God’s Word, and BELIEVES with a STEADFAST FAITH that God WILL answer at the RIGHT time.

 

And sometimes, we might find ourselves WAITING for God to DELIVER us from TROUBLED TIMES.  Times when we are THREATENED or PERSECUETED for no good reason.  In Psalm 33:20-21, the Psalmist tells us that; “We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.   In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His Holy Name.”  This is EXACTLY how we SHOULD spend ANY TIME in God’s Waiting Room.  We should WAIT IN HOPE, because He IS our HELP and OUR SHIELD.  And we can REJOICE in our HEARTS, because WE TRUST in His Holy Name. 

Even the CREATION WAITS in EAGER EXPECTATION for the Children of God to be revealed.  This will take place at the return of Jesus Christ.  And this is something that EVERY TRUE BELIEVER is EAGERLY WAITING for.  And if we HOPE for what we do not yet have, we WAIT for it PATIENTLY.         (Romans 8:19, 25)

 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, then you are definitely NOT WAITING with EAGER EXPECTATION for the RETURN of JESUS CHRIST for His PEOPLE, because that means JUDGMENT is on the way.  And you will be sentenced to an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY OF ESCAPE.  For you to be able to ESCAPE ALL of ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, you MUST TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle, and TURN TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  Then you MUST CONFESS your sins to Him, and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God.  You MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and like ALL of CREATION, WAIT with EAGET EXPECTATION for the RETURN of the LORD JESUS CHRIST.  Do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

 

"Making God Angry"

“Making God Angry”

 

There your ancestors tested Me and tried Me even though they saw what I did.  I was angry with those people for forty years.  I said, “They are not loyal to Me and have not understood My ways.” I was angry and made a promise, “They will never enter My rest.”         Psalm 95:9-11

 

This passage of Scripture is also quoted in Hebrews 3:7-11, it is a WARNING to Christians who may be struggling with UNBELIEF, through a lack of TRUST, and being DISOBEDIENT to Almighty God.   The DANGER was in NOT RECEIVING their PROMISED REST. 

 

There are three different types of REST:  First, is the REST of SALVATION, Hebrews 4:3, says: We who have BELIEVED are ABLE TO ENTER AND HAVE God’s REST.   The second type of REST is, the REST of VICTORY, overcoming trials that we may encounter in this life.  The third type of REST is the ETERNAL REST, or the HEAVENLY REST, which ALL TRUE BELIEVERS will experience when their life on earth is over.  

 

When we BELIEVE and become a Child of God, we have the REST of SALVATION. Then as we TRUST and OBEY the Lord, we can and will experience the REST of VICTORY in OVERCOMING the trials we encounter while we are living on earth.   The TRUE BELIEVER can experience ALL three, if they will TRUST and OBEY.  However, if they fail in TRUSTING and OBEYING they will NOT receive the PROMISED REST of VICTORY over their TRIALS and TRIBULATIONS that they encounter on this earth.  We, who are TRUE BELIEVERS know the TRIALS, we face daily, and when we put our TRUST in the Lord and are OBEDIENT to Him, He will provide the PROMISED REST of VICTORY.  We, as TRUE BELIEVERS, already have the REST of SALVATION, which ASSURES us of the PROMISED REST of ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN. 

 

For those who have NOT BELIEVED, TRUSTED and OBEYED the Almighty God, they will NOT receive ANY of the PROMISED RESTS.  They will face an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO REST at ALL.  However, they can change their destiny by: TURNING AWAY FROM their sinful lifestyle, and TURNING TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  They MUST CONFESS their sins to Him, and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  They MUST BELIEVE, with ALL their HEART, that Jesus died for THEM, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for them, before God.  Then they MUST ACCEPT God’s gift of SALVATION, and enter His PROMISED REST of SALVATION, VICTORY, and an ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN.  You don’t want to MAKE GOD ANGRY!  If you fit into this category, you NEED to do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

"The Steadfast, Secure Heart"

“The Steadfast, Secure Heart”

 

Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever.   They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.  Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.         Psalm 112:6-8

 

Who is it, who will NEVER be SHAKEN?  Who will have NO FEAR of BAD NEWS?  Who’s HEART is STEADFAST, TRUSTING in the Lord?   Who’s HEART is SECURE and they will have NO FEAR at all, and in the END they will LOOK in TRIUMPH on their foes?  Our Scripture says it is the RIGHTEOUS. 

 

Notice it doesn’t say that they will have NO FEAR that their circumstances would bring BAD NEWS, but they don’t FEAR when they are encountered with BAD NEWS.  And the reason is, their HEART is STEADFAST, TRUSTING in the LORD.  It’s EASY to SAY we TRUST GOD for whatever we may face, NOW or in the FUTURE, but it’s HARD to actually TRUST Him, when we come upon HARD, almost UNBEARABLE times.  We seem to TURN to another individual, for guidance, but we still have FEAR that whatever we are FACING will OVERTAKE us. 

 

The TRULY RIGHTEOUS PERSON, will NOT BE SHAKEN!  How is that POSSIBLE, you may ask.  If they have the RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with God, they KNOW that He is NOT ONLY ABLE, but will bring you PEACE in the MIDST of the STORM.  You can be ASSURED that He will NEVER FAIL you, nor FORSAKE you.  He doesn’t promise us that we won’t have to walk through the FIRE, but He promises that He WILL BE WITH US, ALL the WAY.  The reward for a STEADFAST and SECURE HEART is to, in the end, be able to LOOK in TRIUMPH on our foes, because we have the VICTORY in JESUS CHRIST. 

 

Do you have a STEADFAST and SECURE HEART?  If you DO, it means that your FAITH is also STEADFAST and SECURE, and you can TRUST GOD to HELP you through EVERY SITUATION.  If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, then you are NOT a RIGHTEOUS PERSON, and are facing the WORST scenario EVER, spending ALL ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY of ESCAPE.  But if you will CRY OUT to GOD, and TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle, and TURN TO Him, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  He WILL HEAR YOU, when you CONFESS your sins to Him.  And ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  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.  Then you MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and let your HEART be STEADFAST and SECURE, with NO FEAR!  Do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

"Acknowledgement + Confession = FORGIVENESS"

“Acknowledgement + Confession = FORGIVENESS”

 

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.  I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.”  And you forgave the guilt of my sin.         Psalm 32:5

 

There is a process that we MUST FOLLOW, in order to gain FORGIVENESS, from the Almighty God.  The first step in this procedure is to ACKNOWLEDGE the fact that you are a SINNER and to ACKNOWLEDGE your sins.  Notice that David says that he did NOT COVER UP his iniquity or sin, instead he did what we ALL MUST Do, and that leads us to our second step.

 

The second step of the procedure to gain God’s FORGIVENESS is to CONFESS our sins to Him.  Don’t think you can HIDE anything from God, He is ALL KNOWING, and is EVERYWHERE at the same time.  So you might as well get it off your chest and CONFESS ALL your sins to Him.  NO COVER-UPS, just a plain, simple HEART-FELT, sincere, CONFESSION. 

 

When you have ACKNOWLEDGED that you are a SINNER, and have SINNED against God.  And when you CONFESS those sins to Him, SEEKING His FORGIVENESS.  He will FORGIVE you for the FACT that you committed and are GUILTY of those sins.  1 John 1:9 says, “If we CONFESS our sins He is FAITHFUL and JUST and WILL FORGIVE us our sins and PURIFY us from ALL unrighteousness.”    Psalm 103:12, tells us:  “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions.”   Hebrews 8:12, also tells us this PROMISE:  “For I will FORGIVE their wickedness and will REMEMBER their sins NO MORE.”    TOTALLY FORGIVEN!

 

If you have NOT followed these three steps to gaining FORGIVENESS, then you are headed to an ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY of ESCAPING.  However, you are being given one more opportunity, and this might be your LAST, to FOLLOW these steps.  You can do it by:  TURNING AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle and TURNING TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, this is ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.   Then you MUST CONFESS your sins to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God.  You MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and become a TRUE Child of God, with an ETERNITY in Heaven, and ALL its BLESSINGS.  (This is GOD’S FORGIVENESS)  So, DO THIS NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

"In What Do YOU TRUST?"

“In What Do YOU TRUST?”

 

Remind me each morning of your constant love, for I put my trust in you.  My prayers go up to you; show me the way I should go.      Psalm 143:8

Don’t put your trust in human leaders; no human being can save you.       Psalm 146:3

Trust in the LORD with all your heart.  Never rely on what you think you know.      Proverbs 3:5

I do not trust in my bow or in my sword to save me.      Psalms 44:6

Some trust in their war chariots and others in their horses, but we trust in the power of the LORD our God.        Psalm 20:7

Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which can never be shaken, never moved.        Psalm 125:1

 

As human beings, we seem to put our TRUST more in PEOPLE or THINGS, than we do the ALMIGHTY GOD.  Even those who are TRUE BELIEVERS, will sometimes put their TRUST in other PEOPLE, THINGS, or in our OWN KNOWLEDGE!   The Psalmist has a lot to say about where we place our TRUST. 

 

In Psalm 143:8, He asks God to REMIND him of God’s CONSTANT LOVE, EVERY MORNING.  This will give us what we NEED to LIVE our lives TRUSTING in Him, to SHOW us the way we should go. 

 

We should NOT put our TRUST in HUMAN LEADERS, because they are mere MORTALS, who have been CREATED by God, and they are just like we are.  They are prone to make mistakes and would LEAD us down the WRONG PATH.  They do NOT have the POWER to SAVE you.  We should not TRUST in our OWN KNOWLEDGE, but we SHOULD TRUST in the LORD GOD, with ALL our HEART. 

 

We should NOT put our TRUST in THINGS.  The Psalmist tells us that; “Some trust in their war chariots and others in their horses.”  Some may be inclined to put their TRUST in a bow or sword to save them.   But we SHOULD PLACE our TRUST in the ALMIGHTY, ALL POWERFUL GOD, the ONE, who has the POWER to SAVE. 

 

Why should we place our TRUST IN God, and NOT in PEOPLE or THINGS?  I think Psalm 125:1 gives us a VERY GOOD reason: Those who TRUST in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which can NEVER be shaken, NEVER moved.  Are you TRUSTING the ALMIGHTY GOD or are you TRUSTING in other people, things or yourself to SAVE you?  There is ONLY ONE, who can SAVE you that is the ALMIGHTY God.  If you have NOT put your HEART and LIFE in His Hands and are NOT TRUSTING HIM for your SALVATION, you are headed for an ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, and there is NO WAY of ESCAPE.  In order to ESCAPE Hell and to GAIN HEAVEN, you MUST TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle and TURN TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST CONFESS your sins to Him, and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  Then you MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God. You MUST ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION and TRUST Him, not ONLY with this LIFE, but with your ETERNAL LIFE too.  Do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!