Things That Matter

If you could have the most important thing done for you in your life or have something you would want more than anything else, think about what you would want or ask for.  Would it be a healing, would it be a good job, would it be all kinds of money or maybe you would ask to be famous.  There are many things that people would ask for, or want, if they had the opportunity to get or have what they wanted most.  

I wonder if anyone would ask that all the communities, or what we call different churches, would really love one another and preach the Word without watering it down so as not to offend anyone.  I am not talking about people that just say that they love one another but those that really show it by their actions.  God’s Word says that you will know them by their love, talking about true believers.  What you need to ask yourselves is; who is a true believer and who isn’t because there are many that claim to be true believers, or born-again, but they are not and that is a real problem.  

How do I know that, read Matthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”  Jesus never knew them personally because they were never born-again.  The Word of God says you will know them by their fruits.

Jesus talked about the two greatest commandments when He said this in Matthew 22:34-39, “But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets”

If you were to ask different people what the word love meant to them, I am sure you would get many different answers and there are some people that wouldn’t have a clue what the word even meant, even though they use it quite often.  I mean think of how many times you have used the word love or heard someone else use the word love for ice cream or chocolate or some kind of cake or clothing or vehicles or hair-dos and I could go on and on.  You may really, really like these things but in all reality, you do not love them.  

In God’s Word what does it say about how you would know that a person was a disciple, read John 13: 35, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Love is an action word and it may cost you something.  You may have to get your hands dirty or go places you do not want to go.  You may have to prayerfully speak to someone about something they may not want to hear.  Telling someone the truth is also showing love, even when you may be spurned or rejected for what you say.  Have you ever been rejected for telling, someone the truth?  I have, and it is not always easy, but it is important.  

Have you ever heard of the verse that says: “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you lose on earth will be loosed in heaven?”   From my understanding this is talking about church discipline, please read Matthew 18:15-18, “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  Far too often scripture is taken out of context.

There is an example of church discipline that Paul wrote about that is not in quite the same context as Matthew chapter 18, but it is church discipline and it should always be done from the right attitude, stemming from love.  

Please read 1 Corinthians 5:1-5, that says this, “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”

Remember telling someone they need to leave the community, or church, because they live in sin is also love because it is looking out for the rest of the community.  A little leaven, which represents sin, ruins the whole batch of dough.  Paul talked about their pride and being puffed up, but instead of dealing with the situation they were agreeing with it and they needed to repent of their sins.  Paul loved the church and wanted them to grow spiritually. Think of this, God’s Word says that God chastises those He loves and, I for one am happy that He does.  

I am also happy that the Spirit of God convicts us of sins so that we can repent and ask the good Lord to forgive us, which is contrary to the hyper grace movement which teaches us that all our sins have been forgiven; past, present and future when we are born-again, so we never have to repent again. This teaching is not found in the scriptures, period.

If this is true why are the following scriptures in the Word of God:

1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Revelations 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”

James 5: 13-17, “Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises. Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.”

These verses are talking to the church.  The hyper grace teachers or preachers don’t say this, but this teaching sounds like we are given a license to sin.  Their theory is that if a person is truly saved they will not want to sin either.  I for one wish I could live a sinless life, because I don’t want to sin because it hurts my Lord who shed His blood for me, but I have to admit I don’t fall into the category of sinless perfection although I would truly love to.  Just show me a person that never sins after being born-again.  We should never practice sin because have been set free of the hold it had on us, but if we do sin we can repent and ask the good Lord to forgive us and to be merciful to us and to restore us back to fellowship with Him.  There is only one man that has never sinned, and his name is Jesus.  Thank God that He corrects us, and the Holy Spirit convicts us because He loves us and doesn’t want us to be separated from Him because of our sins.  That is why 1 John 1:9 is in the Word of God.

Jesus said to His disciples, “in this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world!!”  He warned us ahead of time because of His love for us, because He wanted us to be prepared for the trials and persecution and troubles we would face in our walk with Him.  Remember when Jesus prayed for His disciples in the book of John in chapter 17 verse 15, He didn’t pray that His Father would take them out of the world but that He would keep them from the evil one.  He didn’t want them to be taken out of the tribulations and troubles they would face.  If we are His children by being born-again, for those are the only ones that are His children, contrary to what you might have heard or been taught, let me stop here for a moment; it is true that we were all created in God’s image and likeness, but unless we are born-again, we are not His children.

Read John 8:42-44, “Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.’”

If we are born-again, we will not be snatched out of the world either before the tribulation, but we, meaning whoever is here, the true believers will be kept from God’s wrath, praise the Lord, because God loves us just like He loved the Israelites and kept the Israelites from the plagues in Egypt.  Tribulation and God’s wrath are not the same.  Too many preachers and teachers, and people in general, want to paint with a wide brush that if you are a believer everything is just going to be like a bowl of cherries, but sometimes it feels more like a bowl of pits!!  If everything was going to go so smooth, why did Jesus say we must take up our cross and follow Him?  What did the cross represent?  It represented pain and suffering and anguish and even death; that doesn’t sound like a bowl of cherries to me.  

It would be nice to bring back the fire and brimstone preachers that didn’t water down the scriptures and the sinners and the saints knew where they stood before God!!  How many young people today know about repentance, I mean how many know what it really means, they may have heard the word, and how many know what godly sorrow means?  Many in the communities of believers hear an emotional sermon and then say the sinner’s prayer with no remorse whatsoever.  

We are so eager to pray that people will have good health and happiness, when the state that they are in may be the best place for them at the time.  Just like when Paul said give the man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh so that his soul may be saved, it was good advice at the time but if someone said that today we would be flabbergasted.  We don’t know what God is doing, maybe he didn’t bring the hardship, but He can use it for His glory.

Think of Job’s situation, God didn’t cause the things that happened, but He allowed them to take place.  In the end God sure worked everything out for the good for Job and his three friends.  Job’s action to this in the end was good because he repented, and I think his three friends also repented and God received the glory for all of it and in the end God blessed Job with far more than he had before his testing began and He also forgave his three friends.  

Joseph was another good example, read his story in Genesis 13.  Joseph didn’t know what was going on but in the end, he understood it all and so did his whole family.  Joseph knew God’s love even in the face of tribulation and trials and even tragedy and he was always able to praise God no matter what situation He found himself in because when it was all said and done he knew that God was worthy, and He truly is.  Praise the Lord!!!

So, no matter what you, and I, need to face the Lord is worthy and His grace, love and mercy and forgiveness never end, as long as we are willing to repent.  Praise be to our God for He is worthy!!!  May the good Lord bless you and yours and may you have a super day, but regardless of what happens I hope you will be able to praise the Lord through it!!  I hope this has been a blessing and a help to you!!