Daily Sermon ILLustration-Can’t Get Rid of the Holes

Can’t Get Rid of the Holes Someone tells the story of a boy who was rebelling against his dad constantly. This boy was destroying his own life by his rebellion, but he refuse to heed his father’s words. One day, the dad said to the boy, "I want to show you what you’re doing to your life. I’m going to put a wooden post in our front yard. Every time you rebel, I will put a nail in this post. Every time you obey, I will pull out one nail." The first thought from the boy was, "I’m going to do everything I can to fill that post with nails." And he did. In two months’ time, he filled that post with nails. But he also began to feel the damage he was doing to his own life and to his parents’ lives. With true remorse, the boy began to obey his father. One by one, the nails came out. When the last nail came out of the post, the boy both broke down in tears. The dad asked, "Son, why are you crying?" And the boy replied, "I got rid of the nails, but I can’t get rid of the holes." God the Father saw the nails and the posts of our lives, and He saw our helplessness against sin. So He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to gather the nails and the posts from those who would let Him. And because of His love for us, Christ allowed Himself to be nailed on the posts, where He willingly paid the consequence of our sin. Romans 6:23 tells us, "For the [consequences] of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." And this gift comes with God’s Spirit to train us to live holy lives. =(Church Iglesia) Added a new video to Church4u2TV "The Father's Song" http://WorldTV.com/Church4u2TV/?vid=3

Showing posts with label Bible and Comment. Show all posts

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Deuteronomy 12:29-31

(29) “When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, (30) take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” (31) You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

Is it any wonder when the clergy—supposedly the guardians of religious purity—think so liberally, that the laity acts the way it does? The clergy shrug off the paganism in Christmas, claiming that it is harmless. Is it? Does it really make any difference whether we celebrate Christmas?

It certainly matters to God, the Lawgiver! It was because of these heathen practices that God drove out the inhabitants of the land. He did not—and does not—want His people to get caught in the process of judgment and punishment that results from broken law!

Notice that God says “that you are not ensnared.” In the Bible, a snare is a figurative expression of destruction through deception. The snare itself does not destroy, but it leads to destruction. The Israelites heard these words in the last months before going into the Promised Land. God had set the land aside for them, but the people who inhabited it were still there. It was a ready-made nation for their use. The towns, fortifications, houses, farms, businesses—everything was ready for them to take over.

We too were born into an ready-made society. The world was already here when we came into it, and because we had no alternative, we accepted it without resistance. We absorbed the culture because our parents taught it to us. However, with our calling God now has us moving in the other direction, away from this world. We must reject the false practices of those who have inhabited the land before us.

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
Christmas, Syncretism, and Presumption

Related Topics:

from The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment http://ift.tt/2aDygvY

Filed under: Bible Verse and Comment Tagged: Bible, Bible and Comment, Bible Verse, Bible Verse and Comment, Comment, Deuteronomy 12:29-31, King James Version, KJV, New King James Version, NKJV, Verse, Verse and Comment

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Deuteronomy 12:29-31

(29) “When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, (30) take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” (31) You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
Christmas, Syncretism, and Presumption

Related Topics:

from The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment http://ift.tt/2aDygvY

http://ift.tt/2a7acAB

Deuteronomy 12:29-31

(29) “When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, (30) take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” (31) You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
Christmas, Syncretism, and Presumption

Related Topics:

from The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment http://ift.tt/2aDygvY

http://ift.tt/2a4G6Ns

Deuteronomy 12:29-31

(29) “When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, (30) take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” (31) You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
Christmas, Syncretism, and Presumption

Related Topics:

from The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment http://ift.tt/2aDygvY

http://ift.tt/29SZHFb

Saturday, July 23, 2016

1 John 1:7

	(7) But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

We know what walk means. It implies how we conduct our lives. I John is a letter written to a church congregation, and he is instructing church members that fellowship hinges on walking in the light. This is how we are to have fellowship with one another.

The context of this instruction is quite interesting. Protestantism focuses heavily on the initial forgiveness of sin that takes place upon belief at the beginning of salvation. Thus, their evangelists have altar calls. People come down before the altar and confess their sins and accept Christ as their Savior. Once they do this, these people are considered “saved” and “born again.” Their doctrine—that of eternal salvation—continues in this vein, that is, once that occurs, salvation is basically assured. So a great deal of emphasis is put on the initial repentance and forgiveness of sin.

However, notice this verse in its context. John writes, “If we walk in the light. . . .” An individual cannot walk in the light until he is called and converted. This walking occurs after conversion. He continues, “If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship. . . .” The fellowship depends on what we do after the initial repentance. Amos writes, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (Amos 3:3). It cannot be done. We do not have fellowship with people that we do not agree with. Agreement is shown by the way that we conduct our lives—by the way that we behave under our belief system.

“. . . and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all unrighteousness.” This phrase, in context, is the game-breaker. The apostle is teaching that further cleansing, further forgiveness, hinges on our obedience to God after we are converted, for “walking in the light” is synonymous to being obedient or living righteously. Forgiveness after conversion works exactly the same way as the forgiveness we were given before we were converted. It hinged on whether we had repented and had begun obeying God.

Clearly, salvation is a process!

What we must understand here is that forgiveness, cleansing, and even fellowship is not a once-for-all act; but it is a process—even as growing in the grace and knowledge is a process, even as the writing of God’s law on our heart is a process. Cleansing is a process. The quality of the fellowship depends upon all of these things. So, if we walk in the light, we have fellowship and His blood cleanses us.

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part 12)