“The time has come for judgment to begin at the house of
God…” —1 Peter 4:17
“ The Christian servant must never forget that salvation is
God’s idea, not man’s; therefore, it has an unfathomable depth. Salvation is the great thought of God, not
an experience. Experience is simply the door through which salvation comes
into the conscious level of our life so that we are aware of what has taken
place on a much deeper level. Never
preach the experience— preach the great thought of God behind the
experience. When we preach, we are not simply proclaiming how people can be
saved from hell and be made moral and pure; we are conveying good news about God. In the teachings of Jesus Christ the
element of judgment is always
brought out— it is the sign of the love
of God. Never sympathize with someone who finds it difficult to get to God;
God is not to blame. It is not for us to figure out the reason for the
difficulty, but only to present the truth of God so that the Spirit of God will
reveal what is wrong. The greatest test of the quality of our preaching [or our
Christian walk] is whether or not it brings everyone to judgment. When the
truth is preached [and lived], the Spirit of God brings each person face to
face with God Himself.” CHAMBERS
I am sure you have listened to someone give their
personal testimony. About how they were
far from God and through Jesus they were drawn near. Sometimes, the story of the circumstances the
person was brought from can be very emotional .. captivating. But it is not that the person came from a
difficult place that is the important thing .. what is important is that God
showed them grace and mercy. Before
someone becomes a Christian, they become aware of God’s judgement and their
sin. “All have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). It does not matter how deep the pit is that
you come out of. What matters is that “Love”
lifted you. The same love that lifts the
drug addict and murderer, lifts the self-righteous “good” person. Everyone needs a savior. Salvation that comes through Jesus is no less
marvelous for the person who leads a “good” life than that for the thief on the
cross. Probably the greatest heartache a
Christian has is the rejection of the Lord by family members. We can’t save anyone, as much as we want
to. Paul was so heartbroken over Israel’s
rejection of Jesus that he said he would gladly give up his salvation if Israel
would turn to Jesus. Our only recourse
is to live our lives in obedience to the Word of God and trust that the Spirit
of God will bring conviction. Do you
love your family enough to live in obedience to God’s Word? It is the best
thing you can do for them. ELGIN
Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)
No comments:
Post a Comment