(Judges 3:9, 4:1, 21:25, Book of Judges)
People have not really changed since God created Adam and Eve. While billions and billions of people have lived and died since the first man and woman, people have not changed. A great study in human behavior is found in the Book of Judges. I want to encourage you today to take some time in the next few days and sit down and read the entire Book of Judges. It will take you less than an hour, and be worth every minute. Sadly, the spiritual lives of most Christians are exactly like the spiritual lives of the children of Israel in the Book of Judges. Here is how the pattern goes.
While everything is going great in your life, God slowly stops being your top priority. Actually, He often gets put far down the list of priorities. You quit praying every day, having that meaningful time alone, just you and the Lord. You quit reading your Bible every day. Going to church is not a MUST any longer. Allowing God to use you to bless others with your life isn't a burning desire. If it happens, that is fine, but it is not that important.
As God plays less of a role in your daily life, you slowly start making choices that you would not make when you are in that close, daily relationship with Him. At the time, they seem like harmless choices. But as the days go by, you are making more and more choices that are NOT pleasing to God. Deep down you know this, but you justify it by telling yourself that you deserve to have some fun, to do what YOU want to do. Slowly over time, it is no longer what God wants from your life, but only what YOU want.
One morning you wake up and your life is a mess. You see my friend, SIN ALWAYS HAS CONSEQUENCES. THERE IS ALWAYS A PRICE FOR SIN--A BIG PRICE. The Bible tells us, "Satan comes to "kill, steal, and destroy". When you forget God, when you quit making Him the head of your life, when you put God on the shelf because you think that you don't need Him, you have opened the door for satan to come in and destroy you!
Trust me, at first it won't be anything that bad. Satan is the great deceiver. He will deceive you into thinking that you don't need God. He will deceive you into thinking that it is YOUR LIFE, and you should do whatever YOU want to do. The longer that we live without God, the more choices that we make without praying, the deeper in sin we get. Sin is like quicksand, we sink slowly, and when God tries to get our attention, we ignore Him and sink deeper.
It is only when we are facing insurmountable odds, only when we have hit bottom, only when life is crashing down all around us that we finally decide to cry out to God. Look at the Prodigal Son. He had to lose everything, and be living in the worst conditions imaginable until he went home to his father. In our desperation we go to God, we repent, we ask His forgiveness, and we rededicate our lives to Him. Does that mean all of our problems magically go away overnight? NO! We didn't create our problems overnight,and they rarely go away overnight.
But we do now have God back in our lives and He is fighting for us, giving us the strength to get through each day, giving us the hope we need to move forward. Having God back in our lives doesn't eliminate us from having to deal with the consequences of our ungodly choices, but over time, He will help us to be victorious. Our life will be great again!!! We will look forward to waking up each morning. We will, once again, know the peace, the joy, the abundance that this life can offer. Many, however, like the children of Israel in the Book of Judges, will sadly start to forget God again, and the cycle will be repeated all over.
I love you and care about you so much. I pray today that this message opens the hearts of many as this trap satan uses so effectively is exposed. Here is the truth that I never want you to forget. WE NEED GOD ON THE MOUNTAINTOP JUST AS MUCH AS WE NEED GOD IN THE VALLEY!!! Let me repeat that. WE NEED GOD ON THE MOUNTAINTOP JUST AS MUCH AS WE NEED GOD IN THE VALLEY!!!
We all know to call on the Lord in our time of trouble. My word for you today is to call on Him ALWAYS!!! In this life, we will always have trials. No matter how close we are to the Lord, we all have to fight the day to day issues of living in this sin-filled world. Nobody can escape that. However, when we stay close to God each day, we can minimize the problems in our life that WE CAUSE through our rebellion!
Do you only call on God in your time of need? My admonition for you today is to call on Him EVERY DAY. Keep Him first at ALL TIMES. God has revealed to YOU today a common trap men and women from the beginning have fallen into. Receive this word from the Lord today and walk with God every day of your journey here on earth. Call on Him in your time of need AND in your time of plenty!!!
In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller
If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at: bkeller@liveprayer.com
***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND ETERNITY? The fact is you will die one day. At that moment, you will either spend eternity with the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness forever separated from God your creator.
To know for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to:
http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.cfm
Friday, July 23, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
Answers to Common Questions
(1 Peter 3:15)
For Christians, especially those living in the United States, the verbal attacks by nonbelievers on those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ is more open, more bold, and more intense today than ever before. I want to look at some of those attacks to help equip you to handle them better the next time a family member, friend, co-worker, someone at school, or a total stranger confronts you regarding your faith in Christ.
Let's start with my favorite one, Jesus. I am always amazed at how those who reject Jesus Christ for who He is, love to cite Jesus and claim to know what He stands for despite having never really read and studied His life and ALL He taught! Jesus had one mission in life and that was to die for the sins of mankind. He came to bring man salvation, everlasting life for those who would put their faith in Him. Those who reject Christ and live in rebellion to Him talk about Jesus being for peace and the poor, and if you are a true follower of Christ you have to be against all wars and working with the poor.
Does Jesus like war? Of course not, no reasonable person does. But Jesus also knew that war would be part of this lost world until God decides to bring it to an end and the Prince of Peace Himself returned. We, as a nation, have every right and responsibility to defend ourselves from those who would destroy us. Much like the children of Israel had a right and responsibility to defend themselves from those nations that would try to destroy them, there are evil forces in this world who would love to see the United States cease to exist. Thankfully, our forefathers understood this and defended our country to their death so that we could enjoy the great freedom and liberty we enjoy today. It is now our turn to defend this nation from its enemies to insure that our children have the same freedoms should the Lord tarry in His return.
As for the poor, Jesus said that we would always have the poor among us. He said very little other than to point out our responsibility to the poor. Talking about the poor is simply a smokescreen non-believers use to deflect attention from all of the REST of what Jesus said on issues like sin and how we are supposed to live our lives in accordance with the Word of God. They are quick to cite what Jesus said about peace and the poor, but never discuss what He said about following God and living a righteous life.
As long as we are talking about Jesus, whenever the issue of homosexuality comes up one of the classic statements of a non-believer is that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality. While there is no record of the question being presented to Him, there is no doubt that He would have responded by reaffirming God's creation intent of heterosexual monogamous marriage. Only this expression of human sexuality is blessed by God. Jesus, when questioned about marriage, responded by referring to God's plan for marriage. - (Matt. 19:1-12; Mark 10:1-12)
Of course, the two great lies of the homosexual community is that 10% of the people are homosexual and that people are born "gay." The fact is, less than 1% of the people will EVER engage in sex with someone of the same gender. Also, despite spending hundreds of millions of dollars in the last decade to prove people are born gay, they are no closer today than when they started. Who you have sex with is a CHOICE! You are not born to commit adultery, that is a choice. You re not born to have sex with children, that is a choice. You are not born to have sex with animals, that is a choice. You are not born to have sex with someone of the same sex, that is a choice. Like all sin, if you choose to do it long enough it may seem natural, but it is still a choice.
That brings us to the issue of same-sex marriage. God's definition of marriage found in Genesis is one man, one woman, for one lifetime. God didn't create Adam and Bruce, He didn't create Eve and Lucy, He created Adam and Eve. One man, one woman. Nonbelievers always ask what is it going to hurt you if people of the same sex get married. First, not only is it a perversion of God's Holy Institution of Marriage, but it destroys God's plan for the family which is the foundation of our society. I wish you could read some of the 40,000 prayer requests Liveprayer receives every single day. The
deterioration and destruction of God's plan for the family is the number one problem in our culture today. Having people of the same sex marry is not only a perversion of God's plan for marriage, but you now have these same sex couples raising children, further destroying God's plan for the family.
Probably the one issue that I have the most difficulty understanding is how ANYONE could support the slaughter of an innocent baby. Of course, the nonbeliever quickly states that it is NOT a baby. It is just a mass of tissue. I heard one tortured explanation recently where I was told that until 22 weeks and there is a functioning brain it is not a baby, just a mass of tissue and having an abortion is no different than removing a kidney! How sad. At the moment of conception there is a life, a life that can ONLY come from God. At that moment it is a living being and it is MURDER to end that life.
The other big issue raised by non-believers is the audacity of Christians to think that they are right and everyone else is wrong. How could God (a God many of them don't even believe exists) send billions of people to hell, when many good people follow Buddha and the host of false religions that exist in the world. The fact is, Christians ARE right, because God is right. It is God, not man, that revealed Himself to His creation and called on man to follow Him. It is God who gave us His Word to live by. It is God who gave us the plan of salvation through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. It is also God who gave man the free will to accept Him and His truth, or reject Him and His truth.
I love you and care about you so much. As a follower of Christ, we are challenged daily by family, friends, those we work with, go to school with, and even total strangers who have rejected our Lord and the truth of His Word about our faith in Christ. Never forget, the foundation of our faith is based on the inspired, inerrant Word of God, representing absolute truth and our final authority in all matters. Of course, the nonbeliever will always dismiss the Bible as a book written by men. They have to try and minimize what it really is to justify their rejection of it. The fact is, they are right. It is a book written by men UNDER THE INSPIRATION OF GOD, THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE!!!
You will often hear a nonbeliever state that only the weak need Jesus, that it is a crutch to get through life. Actually, it is those who are REALLY weak who reject Him and live in rebellion to the Lord since it takes true STRENGTH to follow Christ and to live according to His Word. Anyone can follow the desires of their flesh like an animal, it takes commitment and resolve to be a follower of Jesus.
Never forget my friend, you will never change the heart of a non-believer by having all the answers. The reality is, nobody has all the answers and the non-believer will ALWAYS have more questions than there are answers since some things only God knows for sure. But you can open their heart to Christ in how you live your daily life, by being a vessel of His love and grace, and by being available when they hit those potholes in life we all hit along our journey. That is when you will have a real opportunity to share with them that Jesus is the only real hope and answer there is.
I will be praying for you. Praying that you will not allow those who reject Christ and the truth of God's Word to intimidate you into silence, or make you fearful of standing up for the Lord. God has called His children to be the salt of this earth and the light of the world. May you proudly and boldly proclaim to this lost and unbelieving world that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and that everlasting life is only found through faith in our Lord!
In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller
If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at:
bkeller@liveprayer.com
***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND ETERNITY? The fact is you will die one day. At that moment, you will either spend eternity with the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness forever separated from God your creator. To know for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to: http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.cfm
For Christians, especially those living in the United States, the verbal attacks by nonbelievers on those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ is more open, more bold, and more intense today than ever before. I want to look at some of those attacks to help equip you to handle them better the next time a family member, friend, co-worker, someone at school, or a total stranger confronts you regarding your faith in Christ.
Let's start with my favorite one, Jesus. I am always amazed at how those who reject Jesus Christ for who He is, love to cite Jesus and claim to know what He stands for despite having never really read and studied His life and ALL He taught! Jesus had one mission in life and that was to die for the sins of mankind. He came to bring man salvation, everlasting life for those who would put their faith in Him. Those who reject Christ and live in rebellion to Him talk about Jesus being for peace and the poor, and if you are a true follower of Christ you have to be against all wars and working with the poor.
Does Jesus like war? Of course not, no reasonable person does. But Jesus also knew that war would be part of this lost world until God decides to bring it to an end and the Prince of Peace Himself returned. We, as a nation, have every right and responsibility to defend ourselves from those who would destroy us. Much like the children of Israel had a right and responsibility to defend themselves from those nations that would try to destroy them, there are evil forces in this world who would love to see the United States cease to exist. Thankfully, our forefathers understood this and defended our country to their death so that we could enjoy the great freedom and liberty we enjoy today. It is now our turn to defend this nation from its enemies to insure that our children have the same freedoms should the Lord tarry in His return.
As for the poor, Jesus said that we would always have the poor among us. He said very little other than to point out our responsibility to the poor. Talking about the poor is simply a smokescreen non-believers use to deflect attention from all of the REST of what Jesus said on issues like sin and how we are supposed to live our lives in accordance with the Word of God. They are quick to cite what Jesus said about peace and the poor, but never discuss what He said about following God and living a righteous life.
As long as we are talking about Jesus, whenever the issue of homosexuality comes up one of the classic statements of a non-believer is that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality. While there is no record of the question being presented to Him, there is no doubt that He would have responded by reaffirming God's creation intent of heterosexual monogamous marriage. Only this expression of human sexuality is blessed by God. Jesus, when questioned about marriage, responded by referring to God's plan for marriage. - (Matt. 19:1-12; Mark 10:1-12)
Of course, the two great lies of the homosexual community is that 10% of the people are homosexual and that people are born "gay." The fact is, less than 1% of the people will EVER engage in sex with someone of the same gender. Also, despite spending hundreds of millions of dollars in the last decade to prove people are born gay, they are no closer today than when they started. Who you have sex with is a CHOICE! You are not born to commit adultery, that is a choice. You re not born to have sex with children, that is a choice. You are not born to have sex with animals, that is a choice. You are not born to have sex with someone of the same sex, that is a choice. Like all sin, if you choose to do it long enough it may seem natural, but it is still a choice.
That brings us to the issue of same-sex marriage. God's definition of marriage found in Genesis is one man, one woman, for one lifetime. God didn't create Adam and Bruce, He didn't create Eve and Lucy, He created Adam and Eve. One man, one woman. Nonbelievers always ask what is it going to hurt you if people of the same sex get married. First, not only is it a perversion of God's Holy Institution of Marriage, but it destroys God's plan for the family which is the foundation of our society. I wish you could read some of the 40,000 prayer requests Liveprayer receives every single day. The
deterioration and destruction of God's plan for the family is the number one problem in our culture today. Having people of the same sex marry is not only a perversion of God's plan for marriage, but you now have these same sex couples raising children, further destroying God's plan for the family.
Probably the one issue that I have the most difficulty understanding is how ANYONE could support the slaughter of an innocent baby. Of course, the nonbeliever quickly states that it is NOT a baby. It is just a mass of tissue. I heard one tortured explanation recently where I was told that until 22 weeks and there is a functioning brain it is not a baby, just a mass of tissue and having an abortion is no different than removing a kidney! How sad. At the moment of conception there is a life, a life that can ONLY come from God. At that moment it is a living being and it is MURDER to end that life.
The other big issue raised by non-believers is the audacity of Christians to think that they are right and everyone else is wrong. How could God (a God many of them don't even believe exists) send billions of people to hell, when many good people follow Buddha and the host of false religions that exist in the world. The fact is, Christians ARE right, because God is right. It is God, not man, that revealed Himself to His creation and called on man to follow Him. It is God who gave us His Word to live by. It is God who gave us the plan of salvation through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. It is also God who gave man the free will to accept Him and His truth, or reject Him and His truth.
I love you and care about you so much. As a follower of Christ, we are challenged daily by family, friends, those we work with, go to school with, and even total strangers who have rejected our Lord and the truth of His Word about our faith in Christ. Never forget, the foundation of our faith is based on the inspired, inerrant Word of God, representing absolute truth and our final authority in all matters. Of course, the nonbeliever will always dismiss the Bible as a book written by men. They have to try and minimize what it really is to justify their rejection of it. The fact is, they are right. It is a book written by men UNDER THE INSPIRATION OF GOD, THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE!!!
You will often hear a nonbeliever state that only the weak need Jesus, that it is a crutch to get through life. Actually, it is those who are REALLY weak who reject Him and live in rebellion to the Lord since it takes true STRENGTH to follow Christ and to live according to His Word. Anyone can follow the desires of their flesh like an animal, it takes commitment and resolve to be a follower of Jesus.
Never forget my friend, you will never change the heart of a non-believer by having all the answers. The reality is, nobody has all the answers and the non-believer will ALWAYS have more questions than there are answers since some things only God knows for sure. But you can open their heart to Christ in how you live your daily life, by being a vessel of His love and grace, and by being available when they hit those potholes in life we all hit along our journey. That is when you will have a real opportunity to share with them that Jesus is the only real hope and answer there is.
I will be praying for you. Praying that you will not allow those who reject Christ and the truth of God's Word to intimidate you into silence, or make you fearful of standing up for the Lord. God has called His children to be the salt of this earth and the light of the world. May you proudly and boldly proclaim to this lost and unbelieving world that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and that everlasting life is only found through faith in our Lord!
In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller
If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at:
bkeller@liveprayer.com
***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND ETERNITY? The fact is you will die one day. At that moment, you will either spend eternity with the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness forever separated from God your creator. To know for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to: http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.cfm
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