Tag Archive | Jesus Christ

Thank God for second chances!

Question: I’m afraid I’ve messed up so many times God won’t forgive me again. Am I right?

Answer: No. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” ( 1 John 1:9 NKJV) God looks at our hearts. He knows when we are being sincere in our requests for His forgiveness or just saying words we don’t really mean. He also knows that we will keep “messing up” at times because we are all sinners. So, as we seek forgiveness, we must also pray for God to help us repent, or turn away from, our sins and live our lives to please Him.

And, just as we want God to forgive us when we sin and give us another chance to start over, God expects us to forgive others. He does not want us to be like the servant described in Matthew 18:23-35. In this story, we see how the king granted one person forgiveness of the enormous debt he owed the king. But, this same person refused to extend that same type of forgiveness to someone else who owed him a much smaller debt. This person ended up suffering punishment for his failure to forgive. In Luke 17:3, Jesus says, “Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.”

However, just because we are expected to forgive, it doesn’t mean we stop being wise. God also gives us wisdom. The Apostle Paul warns us in Ephesians 5:17, “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” If someone is abusing you or committing some other sin, the Bible tells us that is wrong. That would not be God’s best for your life. You can and should forgive and pray for others without tolerating their sin.

Remember that because God extends His grace to us, He will give us another chance when we mess up. He will forgive us of our sins if we ask Him with a sincere heart. God wants us to repent of our sins and live our lives to please Him. We start to please Him when we accept His only Son, Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior. Jesus is the only One God gave us who took the punishment of death we deserved for our sins. Since sin separates us from a holy God, we can only go to Heaven by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior, asking forgiveness, and repenting of our sins.

Thank God for second chances!

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You may think you’re hiding, but Jesus knows!

Apr11

Question: Being low-income, I usually ask for the senior discount at stores even though I’m a few years younger than the required age. Is this wrong?

Answer: Yes. You are being dishonest with these merchants, and you know it. Even if you try to justify yourself by saying these store owners are rich, and you live on a low-income, you’re still lying. (See Exodus 20:16) And, before you say that’s just Old Testament law, remember what the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 3:31. He said, “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.” ( NKJV )

Unfortunately, even Believers sometimes think their behavior can be hidden from God if they can hide them from man. How else can you explain people who proclaim Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior yet purposely commit sinful acts? Most of us can name more than one such person who has tried to hide their sins. These sins have ranged from acts of sexual immorality and cheating on their income taxes to stealing and being mean to people. Even recent news stories include cases of politicians who proclaim their belief in traditional marriage, then hurt their Christian witness after being caught cheating on their spouse. We also have heard the heart-breaking stories of children being sexually abused by their pastors and church leaders. All these people thought they were hiding their sinful behaviors.

While you can sometimes hide your actions from man, you can’t hide them from God! The Lord says in Jeremiah 23:24, “Can anyone hide himself in secret places, so I shall not see him?… Do I not fill heaven and earth?….” And, Hebrews 4:13 says, “…all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” So, even though you may think you are getting away with your sins because you can “pull one over” on your fellow-man, Jesus still knows all about the things you do. And, God will not be tricked by you! He will hold you accountable for your actions. In fact, Galatians 6:7 says, ” Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”

However, because of God’s great love for us, He has provided the only way for us to be saved from the fatal punishment for our sins. (See John 3:16) And that way is by our accepting God’s one and only Son, Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior! Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Therefore, we all need a Savior since we can’t ever be good enough to save ourselves. Jesus, the only one to be sinless and perfect, took the punishment we deserve for our sins by dying on the Cross. Praise God, He rose to life again on the third day!

So, thankfully, we can receive God’s free gift of salvation! Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Ask Him to forgive you of your sins. Turn away from your sinful behavior (repent) and start living your life to please God! The time has come to stop hiding!

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Be careful who you listen to for the truth!

Mar12

Question: One of my college religion professors told us that we should not interpret the Bible as being literally given by God. Is he right?

Answer: No. Your professor is wrong! That’s another reason why we should read God’s Holy Word for ourselves, so we can learn the truth. According to 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (NKJV)

Therefore, your professor can be added to a list of people you must be careful of, when you listen to them, if you are a Believer. The Apostle John warns Christians not to believe everything they are told about matters pertaining to their faith. For there will be many claiming they are speaking moral truths, but in reality, they are lying! (Read 1 John 4:1-6) If they are telling you things that agree with what the Bible says, they are speaking the truth. But if they say other things that go against what the Bible says, they are not speaking God’s truth.

Sadly, instead of using this standard as their moral guide, too many people tend to blindly believe people simply based on the person’s likeability or popularity. That’s why you can find even Believers turning their back on God’s teachings to support the sinful teachings of their favorite celebrities and politicians. These famous people may be intelligent, beautiful, talented, and rich. So people admire and want to support them. And, in the case of the politicians, people may like the promises they make to them and just ignore it when those same politicians are clearly supporting sin. Jesus warns us about these “false teachers.” (See Matthew 7:15-19) Don’t be fooled into listening to their sinful teachings.

The Bible also tells us that people may prefer to listen to those who simply tell them what they want to hear. For example, 2 Timothy 4: 3-4 says, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” In other words, they don’t want to listen to God.

So, Believers, be careful who you listen to for the truth. Know whether or not you are hearing the truth according to God’s Holy Word. Study the Bible for yourself and pray that God’s Holy Spirit will help you discern the difference between when you are hearing the truth and when you are hearing a lie. Only follow God’s truth!

Follow me on Twitter: @valclarksplace