A key to strong faith in God

"I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?"

Jeremiah 32:27

 

 

 

One of my daughters kept coming to my wife with  math problems she considered "too hard" to answer quickly, like this one:

 

"If a girl checked out 66 books, then 6 more books, then 10 more books, how many books would she have in all?" 

 

When my wife quickly and effortlessly answered, "82," my daughter responded in utter amazement, "How can you do that!?"

 

To my daughter, math problems like these seemed too hard.  And in her eyes, no math problem seemed too hard for her mother.

 

I told my wife that I'm sure it's like this for God when we bring Him problems in prayer that seem too hard for us. 

 

I believe a key to strong faith is to realize that there are no degrees of difficulty for God in answering our prayers.  It is as easy for God to provide $10,000.00 for a major surgery as it is for him to provide $100.00 for expensive prescriptions, if either of these were our need.  Better yet, it is as easy for him to heal cancer as it is for him to relieve migraine head aches. 

 

Some may think certain prayer requests require stronger faith on behalf of the one praying.  They think that God is limited in his power by the amount of faith we bring to the throne.  There is some truth in this thought.  Though God's power is unlimited, our faith limits how much of His power we experience.  Jesus was unable to perform many miracles in certain places because of a lack of faith.  Often times He said that a person's faith healed him/her or brought about a certain miracle, so there is a connection between the amount of faith expressed in God and the amount of God's power we experience.

Yet Jesus also said that faith as small as the smallest seed could move mountains.  He said this when his followers asked for Him to increase their faith.  So in the Lord's eyes, they didn't need an increase in faith, but to use the faith they had, even if it was very small.  Whatever amount of faith they had would be enough to move mountains!

Furthermore, Paul, the ambassador of Christ to the nations beyond Israel, said that faith comes from hearing the word of God.  In other words, we "increase" our faith by increasing our intake of God's words.  God is the kind of the person that to hear Him is to believe Him.  His character, expressed in words, is so compelling that He inspires faith in those who listen to Him.

We've all experienced this.  We've experienced listening to someone and deeply believing him or her because of the truth, conviction, and integrity of the speaker.  No one is more true, convicting, or honorable than God.

And nothing is too hard for Him!

 



Two LIES of the DEVIL

According to the Lord Jesus, the devil is the father of lies.  Thus, by definition, he hates and opposes the truth.  God's word is truth, as the Lord said.  So the devil tells two lies against God's word.  You may hear these two lies when there is a disagreement among Christians.  He puts these two lies in the mouths of the immature, the selfish, the rebellious.  If one of the Christians attempts to use scripture to establish a truth or refute a falsehood, the immature or unrepentant Christian usually says one of these two lies:

1. "The devil can quote scripture too."
2. "The Bible can be twisted to mean whatever we want it to mean."  (Or "The Bible can be used to establish whatever our personal opinions are.")

Let those who love and submit to truth expose and resist these two lies.  

The first step is to unveil the false assumptions behind these two deceptions.  It began in the garden of Eden with these words from Satan to the first woman, "Did God indeed say..."  Satan's assumption is that God's words are uncertain.  We can't know what He really means (or even what He really has said.)  After all, isn't it a matter of discussion and interpretation?  That is the assumption behind Satan's conversation with Eve.  She should have NEVER entertained the discussion.  God's command was not open to discussion and was very clear in interpretation.  We must resist any attempt of Satan or a person to make God's word's unclear and thus untrustworthy.

The first lie comes from a misapplication of Jesus' temptation.  Jesus was tempted by the devil three times on His 40th day of fasting in the wilderness.  Jesus resisted each of the three temptations with scripture.  This alone shows that we should use scripture to resist the tempter and deceiver, Jesus being our example.  Notice one of the temptations of Satan:

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

'He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’

Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  Matthew 4:5-7

Satan misquoted scriptures, taking them out of the overall context of the God's word as a whole.  Jesus resisted this misuse of scripture by a correct use of scripture.

In other words, the first lie assumes that because the devil can use scripture, we cannot rely upon scripture, or that scripture is unreliable in resisting evil.  This is not what Jesus thought or taught.  The Apostle Paul calls the word of God the "sword of the Spirit."  It is a part of the whole armor of God by which we resist the deceptive schemes of the devil.  Yes, the devil and other liars can use and twist the scriptures for their selfish ends.  But this does not make scripture unreliable.  It makes those who misuse it unreliable.  

The second lie is not very different from the first.  In both lies there is an attack on the character of the ones who use the scriptures.  They are made out as no more sincere than the devil himself in his use of scripture in Jesus' temptation.  Yet in the second one, though there is still the assumption of insincerity, the main issue is scriptural reliability.  Can the scriptures be used and interpreted accurately to establish truth and refute deception?

The devil would have us believe it cannot;  that there is no absolute standard of truth, even in using the Bible.  But instead of listening to the devil, we should listen to the Lord Jesus.  Hear his words:

 Then, midway through the festival, Jesus went up to the Temple and began to teach. The people were surprised when they heard him. “How does he know so much when he hasn’t been trained?” they asked. So Jesus told them, “My message is not my own; it comes from God who sent me. Anyone who wants to do the will of God will know whether my teaching is from God or is merely my own. 

John 7:14-17 NLT

Notice the two things Jesus said about His message:

1.  It was not His own.  (Not merely his opinion, view, or perspective.)

2.  It's origin, and the origin of his mission, was God Himself.  (not his own initiative)

And how did Jesus say anyone will know whether His teaching was from God or merely His own?  This is a crucial question.  This exposes the crucial assumptions and accusations against those who use scripture to establish truth.  Isn't this what we want to know:  Is this person's teaching/interpretation of scripture merely His own, or is it from God?  How can we know?

Jesus gives a clear answer:

Anyone who wants to do the will of God will know whether a teaching is from God or merely comes from human opinion.

ANYONE.  Not just those educated in Greek or Hebrew or seminary.  This idea of being untrained is the very thing that started the discourse with Jesus in the scriptures above.  They were amazed that Jesus knew so much WITHOUT TRAINING. So training alone is not the issue.  The issue is our desire to DO God's will.  GOD'S WILL.  NOT OUR OWN.  

So, if we want to do God's will, we will know whether a teaching if from God or merely human opinion.  Jesus held Himself to this standard!  He said that if anyone wanted to know whether HIS OWN TEACHING was from God or merely His opinion, all they need to do is sincerely seek to do God's will.  

Isn't this what those who are in dispute should be seeking?  Is it possible to remain in dispute if both ONLY want to do God's will?  They don't want to be "right" or "win the argument."  They want the will of God alone!  And if both want God's will, and thus to agree with God, will God refuse to reveal His will?  Not according to the promise of the Lord.  He promises that anyone who wants to do God's will will know whether a teaching is from God or merely from man.

Do you want to do God's will alone?

If so, then you can expose and resist the two lies, as it is written, 

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 NIV

This present world system is against God's will.  It does not seek nor approve of God's will.  It considers God's will bad, displeasing, and imperfect.  As believers in Christ, we reject this present world and all that is in it, the temporal and transitory.  Paul again says that one who seeks God's will will have the ability to test and approve what God's will is.  

We can know if the devil is misusing or abusing scripture without dishonoring the reliability of scripture.  And we can know whether someone's use of God's words is merely to promote his or her own opinion, without ever discrediting the words of God.  

May we never deceive or be deceived.  May we always honor God's word as perfectly trustworthy, giving God glory.

In the name of the Lord Jesus and by His Spirit,

Amen.

 

Why we don't do what we believe

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.  James 1:22-25 NIV

We don't do what we believe because we are deceived. 
Self-deceived.

We experience truth, but don't act according to it, yet we tell ourselves that we want the truth.
Perhaps we don't even do that!

Bruce Lee said, "Knowing is not enough, we must apply.  Willing is not enough, we must do."

I never learned this.  Not truly.

I learned to study, study, study.

Read, read, read.
Think, debate, argue.  But not to do.

Who can argue with what we do?

Jesus IS the word of God literally personified.
He IS the truth.

We should personify the truth of God's words, hearing them and immediately doing them upon hearing them.
No delay!

Some of us like hearing the truth.
Some of us find it entertaining.

But who loves to DO what is true!?

What do your actions prove about what you REALLY believe?
What do you KNOW is true?  Is this seen in what you do?

The TRUTH is NOT ALWAYS in the MIDDLE (part 3)

Paul also wrote the Corinthians concernings spiritual gifts, and showed the equality of the members of "the body," comparing each believer to a member of the human body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.  If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 
I Corinthians 12:21-26  NIV, emphasis mine.

So with truth there is justice and thus equity and fairness.  The truth does sometimes bring about balance and moderation. 

But not always.


Our commitment is to the truth, whether it is extreme or moderate, whether it causes unions or separations, for sometimes truth unites, and at other times truth divides. 

Christ was and is the Prince of Peace who blessed peacemakers.  The death and resurrection of Christ brings peace between God and people, and between people and each other WHEN HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTED ARE ACCEPTED!

But if Christ is rejected, then He does not bring peace.  He brings a sword that divides families and friends.  The Scriptures declare these absolute truths:

Friends of this world are enemies of God.
Those who are not for Christ are against Christ.
No one can serve two masters.  One master will be loved and the other hated.
God is light.  In God there is NO darkness AT ALL.

These truths are not "in the middle."  Truth, by definition, excludes falsehood or that which contradicts it.  This does not mean we should strive to be as obnoxious, abrasive, and blunt as possible, "in the name of the Lord!"  It does not mean we should see how many people trust in Christ, NO THANKS TO HOW RUDE AND STUPID WE ACT!!!

No.  We should speak the truth in love always, being as gentle as possible.  Yet at times, no matter how gentle we try to be, and no matter how loving we say it, the truth will indeed offend some who hear it!  Who is more gentle and meek than Christ?  Who has EVER been more loving and wise than the Lord Jesus?  Yet He was hated and called demon possessed!  He was accused of blasphemy and crucified as a result.  Therefore, as Christ warned His followeres, if we are as committed to truth as Jesus was, then we will experience the same responses He did.  The Lord Jesus said:

"For this cause I was born and for this cause I have come into the world:  to bear witness to the truth.  All who are of the truth hear my voice." 

Our cause is His cause.  Those who hear Him will hear us.  Those who reject and hate Him will reject and hate us.

Followers of Christ are His witnesses, as well as witnesses of the truth.  They cannot, do not, and will not tolerate contradiction or compromise.  If a truth is "moderate," they will proclaim it.  If a truth is "extreme," they will proclaim it.  They live for and are willing to die for the truth.

Are you?

The TRUTH is NOT ALWAYS in the MIDDLE (part 2)

Put it another way. I have a phone number that you must dial PERFECTLY. If you get ONE number wrong, you will NOT call my phone. My phone number is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE EXPERIENCE OF CALLING ME BY TELEPHONE. No one can call me except by dialing my telephone number.

One address
One phone number

The truth about my address and my phone number is not "in the middle."

Now let's define truth and what it means for it to "be in the middle."

By "truth" I mean absolute fact or reality, that which exists whether we know it or not, like it or not, believe it or not.

Now when I say "the truth is always in the middle," I mean a belief that some have about reality or statements concerning reality. Those who say "the truth is always in the middle" or even "the truth is somewhere in the middle" or "the truth is usually in the middle" speak of balance or moderation, verses imbalance or extremism.

Take what I said about my address and phone number and apply it to what Christ said about Himself and His Father, or where His Father is.

Did Christ give a middle ground for reaching the Father, a way that we can consider "balanced;" a way that is not "extreme?"

What about "the mind of Christ" spoken of by Paul, the mindset that Paul told the Philippians to take as their own mindset?

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross! Philippians 2:5-8

Does the kind of obedience Christ gave to God sound "in the middle" or extreme?

And what about the call to discipleship given by Christ, the call to "deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me?" Christ made it clear that anyone who refused to do those three things COULD NOT be one of His followers?

Sometimes the truth is extreme. Sometimes the truth is "in the middle," meaning "moderate" or "balanced." For example, the scriptural principle given by Paul concerning equality in the body in 2 Corinthians 8:15:

"Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”

The TRUTH is NOT ALWAYS in the MIDDLE (part 1)

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

To be mistaken about the truth is to be deceived by definition, and is the foundation of spreading deception. I write to resist the deceiver, deception, and deceiving.

Jesus spoke the words quoted at the top of the page on the night in which Judas Iscariot planned to betray Him, the night in which He would be sentenced to crucifixion. The subject of discussion was where Jesus was going. The purpose of this discussion was the encouragement of the 11 remaining apostles. He told them they knew the way to the place where he was going.

Notice He said, "the way to the place," not "a way to a place." From the beginning He speaks of an exclusive place reached an exclusive way. Key word: exclusive.

If I gave you directions to my apartment in Key West, Florida, depending on where you were coming from, you would approach following those directions differently than someone coming from a different location than you were. For example, if you were at Denny's on Roosevelt Boulevard, and someone else was at Denny's on Duval Street, you both would come to me from opposite directions. You both would be at the same restaurant located at different addresses. You both would be coming to my apartment.

Here is the key. No matter what direction or address you and the other person came from, once you both reach Roosevelt Gardens, you must BOTH come THE EXACT SAME WAY to my apartment.

My address is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE EXPERIENCE of my apartment. No one can come to my apartment except by that address.

How to change YOUR ENTIRE LIFE!!

Who doesn't want this?  Whose life is so perfect that they seek nothing else?

Rich or poor.
Young or old.
Satisfied or unsatisfied.
Happy or unhappy.

ALL of us want SOMETHING that we don't have NOW.
ALL of us want to change our lives, somehow, some way. 
Some of us may want this, or NEED this, more than others.  
But until we reach heaven, I dare say that we all want TO CHANGE OUR LIVES.

What determines the course of each of our lives?
What should we guard above all else?

Both questions have the same answer--OUR HEARTS!!!

It was written by King Solomon:

"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life."  
Proverbs 4:23 NLT


Solomon, the son of David, the third king of Israel, received his wisdom, the wisdom behind these words, directly from God.  This is how it happened:


At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

“Now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. I Kings 3:5-12 NIV, emphasis mine

What a dream!  God told Solomon to ask for whatever he wanted, and Solomon, in humility, asked for wisdom.  God not only gave him wisdom, but gave him more wisdom than anyone before him or after him!  His wisdom was second only to the wisdom of the Lord Jesus Himself, who said that He was greater than Solomon in wisdom.  (See Luke 11:31)

Now, having said this, we get back to our two questions, and in answering them we find the answer to changing our entire life:

What determines the course of our lives?
What should we guard above all else?

The answer, according to Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, having received his wisdom directly from God, is OUR HEART!

OUR HEARTS DETERMINE THE COURSE OF OUR LIVES!
THEREFORE, WE SHOULD GUARD OUR HEARTS ABOVE ALL ELSE!

Because of the incredible significance of Solomon's words, we should look at each word, one by one, phrase by phrase, using elementary grammatical principles:

GUARD---This is an active verb.  It is not something done to you or for you, but something that YOU DO!  The idea is of a prison guard that DETERMINES who or what enters or exits a jail.

YOUR---This is a possessive pronoun.  YOU are responsible for that which you possess.  Not me.  Not GOD.  Not anyone else.

HEART---In the scriptures, the heart encompasses your thoughts and intentions, meaning your focus and motivation behind every word and every action.

FOR IT---The word "for" communicates cause or reason.  The word "it," a pronoun, refers back to YOUR HEART!

DETERMINES---The idea communicates a source, or the source.  Where you are going from this point on, from this sentence on, is determined by your heart.

THE---Not a, but THE, specific and exclusive...

COURSE---DIRECTION AND DESTINATION, WHERE YOU ARE GOING AND WHERE YOU WILL ARRIVE

OF YOUR LIFE!

Now, since your heart bears such importance and significance, how can you indeed accurately guard it?  How can you really KNOW your heart? 

The prophet Jeremiah said:
 "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9

God Himself, and the Lord Jesus Christ, gave us the answer and the remedy for our deceitful hearts:

"Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel?"  Ezekiel 18:31 NIV, emphasis mine

“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. Matthew 12:33-35

As I said earlier, so I show now in these verses.  God told Israel to get a new heart, and Christ, again speaking to Israel (to the disciples and false teachers of Israel), compares the heart to a tree and words to fruit from a tree.  They could MAKE THE TREE GOOD OR BAD!  So it is with you and me.  We determine whether our hearts are deceitful or true by turning our hearts to God and away from ourselves.  When we do this, we have these promises:

"I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh."

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."
Ezekiel 11:19 and 32:26

So, the means to a new heart, or a new mindset and motivation, is two fold:
1.  We turn our hearts to God and away from ourselves.  This very act is literally a "change of heart."
2. When we turn to God and away from ourselves, giving our hearts to God, then God receives our heart as His very own, making it, indeed, a new heart;  a heart that is no longer deceitful or wicked.

Have a change your heart!  

Change your mind, mindset, and focus!

Change your motivation and your purpose!! 

CHANGE

YOUR ENTIRE

LIFE!

GUARD THIS CHANGE ABOVE ALL ELSE!!!

 ALLOW NOTHING TO ENTER YOUR MIND OR LEAVE YOUR MOUTH THAT IS FROM YOUR OLD WAY OF THINKING AND LIVING!

Do you realize what this means?!?  

The rest of your life, from this moment forward, from this sentence forward, IS UP TO YOU! 

You cannot blame God, the Devil, your parents, or anyone else, for what happens to you from this moment forward!  True, there are a myriad of things beyond your control, BUT YOUR HEART IS NOT ONE OF THEM!  And God did not say that a myriad of things determine the course of your life.  ONE THING DETERMINES THE COURSE OF YOUR LIFE!  ONE THING SHOULD BE GUARDED ABOVE ALL ELSE!!!

GUARD

YOUR 

HEART!!

Think of your life, as it is, right now!  The word of God says that your heart determined the course of your life!  That means that YOU determined where you are, right now, as of this moment!

"WAIT A MINUTE!  I had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, to do with what happened to me!  I DID NOT determine my birth, birthplace, parents, and the circumstances of my childhood!  Are you BLAMING ME for all that has happened to me?!"  

No!  Neither does God!  Again, the verse does not say, "Guard YOUR PAST above all else."  Listen very carefully to what I'm about to say.

According to Proverbs 4:23, written by the wisest man who ever lived, the one who received his wisdom DIRECTLY from GOD, YOUR PAST DOES NOT DETERMINE THE COURSE OF YOUR LIFE!!!  HALLELUJAH!!

Christ came to save you, not just from the sins you committed, but the sins committed against you!  The first and foremost "change of heart" is accepting Christ as the one who saved your life, and as the one WHO SAVES YOUR LIFE!!  

This is the first and fundamental change of heart.  

What you are not responsible for, ask Jesus to save you from.

BUT WHAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR, NAMELY, YOUR HEART, IS WHAT DETERMINES THE COURSE OF YOUR LIFE FROM NOW ON!!!

So, where do you begin?  AT THE BEGINNING.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."  John 1:1-3

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him."  Colossians 1:15-16

Take note of the words "all things."  This includes YOU!  YOU were created by God, through Christ, AND FOR CHRIST!!

This is the fundamental change of heart.  You stop existing as though you were created by yourself AND FOR YOURSELF!!  This applies to those who already believe in the Lord Jesus, as well as those who have never trusted Him.  EVERYONE should live for Him, having been created by Him.  

What do you live for RIGHT NOW, at this very moment?  Regardless of your past, what do YOU personally live for?  What have YOU chosen as your reason for creation?  If it is anything other than God's pleasure and honor, CHANGE YOUR HEART!  Change your focus and purpose!  Now!  YOUR HEART determines the course of your life! 

How do you know what's in your heart?  There are two ways to know your heart:

1.  God's word exposes your truest heart, your true motivation and intentions, as it is written:   For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  Hebrews 4:12 ESV  By the written and spoken word of God, which is piercing truth, you may know and judge your truest state.  So if you want to know your heart, hear and read the word of God.

2. Not only does God's word expose your heart, BUT YOUR VERY OWN WORDS EXPOSE YOUR HEART!  "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matthew 12:34b)  Your words, what you say in your UNGUARDED moments, reveal what is in you, as we all know.  When you are just talking up a storm, letting it all flow, YOU AND I BOTH KNOW!!!

So, listen to God AND TO YOURSELF!  If what you habitually say does not match what God says, THEN CHANGE YOUR HEART, AND GUARD YOUR HEART!!  Allow nothing in your mind or out of your mouth that does not match what God says about you--that you were created by God, through His Son, and FOR HIS SON!!!   

From now on, determine the course of your life by guarding your thoughts and intentions.

Give your heart to God.

Focus on God alone.

Live for God alone.

The rest of your life is up to you!!

JESUS

"I believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that He died for my sins."

As I said before, I say again, after saying the words above, I felt peace cover me like a blanket, and I no longer wanted to die.  Before I said these words I felt intense turmoil and suicidal.  Jesus saved my life.  Jesus gave me life.

"Jesus is God, and He died for my sins."

I gave this answer when asked point blank, "Who is Jesus?"  The one who asked this question questioned "religion," and knew my devotion to the only one who gives salvation for sin.

Jesus is the truth, the meaure of all reality, the means to the end of knowing God by His Spirit.  All of the word of God is measured by these words of God:

"Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures.

He was buried.

He rose the third day, according to the scriptures."

Jesus is the truth.

His gospel is the measure of all words of truth.

By these declarations one knows the Spirit of God:

Jesus is Lord.

Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.

To see Jesus is to see the Father.

To love Jesus is to love the Father.

May all who read be certain of the identity of God's Son:  JESUS!