Tag Archive | #Truth

God said it! Do you really believe it?

Jan11

Question: Should I believe everything in the Bible?

Answer: Yes! “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.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NKJV)

And over and over again, Jesus Himself quoted from the Scriptures and cited them as the true words of God: “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ” (Matthew 4:4)

That’s why it’s so important that we all read the Bible and study His Holy Word regularly. It tells us how God wants us to live our lives. Plus, we can have confidence in knowing “…it is impossible for God to lie…” (Hebrews 6:18)

Here are some of the many truths we find in the Bible.

From the very beginning of God’s Word, we learn that it was God who created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). We also learn that God created all life: plants, animals, and humans, who were created male and female in His image (Genesis 1:26-28). God’s first humans, Adam and Eve, did not obey God’s instructions to them. They sinned against God and passed that original sin on to all mankind.

Our sins separate us from a Holy God. We can’t go to Heaven in our sin. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (Romans 6:23). So indeed, God still made a way to heaven for us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment we deserved for our sins. On the third day, God raised Him from the dead. Jesus now lives at the right hand of the Father in Heaven. Jesus intercedes with God on our behalf when we pray.

So what are some other important truths God wants us to know?

In John 14:6, Jesus is quoted as saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” God wants us to know that we must accept Jesus Christ as our one and only Lord and Savior. He wants us to ask forgiveness and repent of our sins. He wants us to live our lives to please Him.

God also wants us to know that we have an enemy who is Satan (also known as the devil and the thief). In John 10:10, Jesus says: “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Unlike God, we learn that Satan does lie! In fact, Jesus called him “the father of lies” (John 8:44). God warns us against falling for Satan’s many lies. One of his biggest lies is that there are many ways to Heaven instead of the truth, being that Jesus is the only way. Remember Jesus’ own words: “No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Another of the devil’s lies is that people can decide for themselves what is right and wrong. The truth is, only God says what is right and wrong. Therefore, if God says something is sin, then it is sin no matter what the world says about it.

Yet another lie is making people think that what they desire or believe is more important than what God expects us to desire and believe. We should only want to do and support what is pleasing to God! Jesus said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word…” (John 15:23)

God wants us to read His Word and pray for His Holy Spirit to guide us (John 14:24-29). He wants us to know that one day Jesus will be coming back to take Believers with Him to Heaven and to condemn those who refused to accept Jesus as their Savior, which means eternal damnation in Hell:

“He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed.” (2nd Thessalonians 1:8-10 NIV. See also: John 14:1-4; Revelation 22:12-21)

God gave us all truth in His Holy Word – the Bible. Believe It!

Gearing Up for Spiritual Warfare

Oct9

Question:  How should Christians fight back in today’s spiritual battles?

Answer:  Start by recognizing when you’re in one.  For example, you’re in a spiritual battle when your rebellious teen refuses to stop hanging out with the crowd that’s always in trouble despite your warnings.  Or, when your spouse is constantly arguing with you about every little thing and threatening to divorce you, you’re facing a spiritual battle.  When your boss is telling you to lie to your clients to get them to buy your product or be fired, you’re in a spiritual battle.  When you just can’t seem to stop your addiction to porn, you’re facing a spiritual battle. The way to fight back against spiritual attacks remains the same as always.  As Ephesians 6:10-20 tells us, we must make sure that each day, we are putting on the “whole armor of God.” (v.11 NKJV) In other words, we must remember that our God is all-knowing and all-powerful. He can protect us and help us through any situation. Believers must be “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” (v.10)  Christians must take all these battles to the Lord in prayer! (v.18)

But Believers know that the spiritual battles we face are not just confined to those we interact with every day.  We are facing spiritual battles as Christians in our communities and nation as well.  Our country is moving fast towards taking away our constitutionally granted religious freedoms.  For example, public schools don’t want students to mention Jesus in their class assignments. (See the story here)  High schools preview the speeches of their class valedictorian to make sure they don’t mention Jesus in giving credit for their success.

Spiritual battles are also being waged using our government.  For example, some Christian employers, whose faith teaches that abortion is wrong, are being forced by law to pay for health insurance to cover  their employees’ birth control – including those forms that lead to the baby being aborted. (Story here) Private, Christian owned  businesses which service weddings are being sued if they won’t provide their services for same-sex weddings. (Story here)   These Christians are being forced to support lifestyles God’s Word calls sin. The Bible teaches that God created marriage to be only between one man and one woman, as Jesus reminds us in Matthew 19:4-6. Being forced to support any other definition of marriage would be to force Christians to support sin.

Be discerning as you listen to media figures, politicians, celebrities, those in academia, and others who tell you that standing strong for your biblical values makes you a hater of others or shows your lack of intelligence.  They will say that you need to “get with the times.”  They may even threaten your job
like they did recently to a Marine who was convicted for failing to remove a Bible verse she found encouraging from her computer.    (Story here)  Don’t let them intimidate you into going along to get along!  As Paul warns us in Ephesians 5:6: “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”  So, don’t let them deceive you into supporting them in their sins and betraying God.

Stand strong in God’s Word and believe in the power of prayer.  And be victorious over the spiritual warfare in your life!

(Re-posted from my May 29. 2015 blog post.)

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