You and God – the Reconciliation (while there’s still time)

Dear Friend,

God created the world, with all its beauty, for people like you to enjoy. He also created men and women so they could share in a loving relationship with Him.

Ever since God formed you in your mother’s womb, He has known you and everything about you. God has even counted the number of hairs on your head. He also knows when you rise and when you sit down.

Sadly, men and women turn away from Him and most deliberately choose not to know God – their loving Creator. The Bible says that the evidence of God’s eternal power and divine nature may be plainly seen in the wonders of creation. God has also given each person a conscience that speaks to them of right and wrong. Throughout your life you have suffered the results of wrong actions, both from the hands of others and by your own choices.

Although many bad things have happened to you, you are nevertheless responsible for your own actions and the choices you make as you go through life. When you have lied, stolen, cheated, or deceived others, the person you offended the most by these actions was GOD Himself. The Bible calls such actions “SIN” and all your unforgiven sin will one day be judged by God. The Bible says:”For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”. No-one is blameless.

God hates sin because he is Holy (perfect). Sadly, your sin separates you from God and the loving relationship He seeks with you. All sin will, one day, be punished so this puts you in great danger. But the GOOD NEWS is that God is – even now – ready, willing and able to forgive your sins and remove that separation. This forgiveness by God restores the opportunity for you to have a loving relationship with God your creator. Are you prepared to turn from your present way of life, change direction and turn to God your creator for a fresh start? In doing this, God calls you to stop trusting in and relying upon everything you have, and surrender your life to Him. So your old life has to go when you take this step. However, God promises to give you His power to enable you to live a new life.

Have you heard of Jesus Christ of Nazareth? Hundreds of years before He was born into this world, many prophets wrote about His coming. These prophecies telling of Jesus’ coming are all in the Bible, a book about Him. Jesus’ coming to Earth from Heaven was according to God’s saving plan for all mankind.

Jesus Christ of Nazareth was sent by God the Father, out of love, into the world on a mission to rescue men and women. In obedience to God’s plan Jesus lived a sinless life, yet He willingly gave up His life and died on a cross to rescue you and me. By his death and resurrection three days later, Jesus broke the power of sin and death. After He rose from the dead, Jesus was seen alive again by hundreds of people.

By His death on a cross, Jesus paid the price for your sin and mine. The Bible says: “But God shows his love for us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Jesus gave himself up as a sacrifice on our behalf by taking upon himself God’s punishment that our sins deserve. Jesus is now alive for evermore and sits at the right hand of God the Father in Heaven, in a place of glory and honour.

DO YOU WANT TO BE RESCUED?

Do you want Jesus to rescue you from your sins and your present way of life? The Bible says: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

If you cry out to Jesus to save you, He will set you free, give you eternal life and a place in God’s family. Because Jesus was sinless, yet paid the price due for your sin – in your place – you can trust in Him as your substitute and go free. So you do not have to suffer the consequences of your own sins. God is then able to help you live a new life, by His power. The Bible says: “For it is by grace you are saved, through faith, and this not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, so that none can boast”. God offers you His forgiveness as a free gift.

Jesus gives new life by His Spirit, which sets people free and brings them into God’s kingdom.

At the end of your life, Jesus will hold you alone responsible for all your unforgiven sins and you will be judged accordingly. If you choose to hold on to your sin, refusing Jesus’ free offer of forgiveness, you will bear the consequences on your own head – the wrath (anger) of God for eternity.

On the other hand, if you cry out to Jesus to forgive your sins NOW, He will do so and set you free from sin’s controlling power, He will wipe the slate clean and give you a fresh start. You can know total forgiveness of all the sins you have ever committed.

There is NO sin you have committed that Jesus cannot forgive, as He is “all-powerful” and “all-forgiving”. Jesus said: “I and the Father are one.” The sins He forgives in this life are forgiven, and forgotten, for eternity. at a crossroads in your life. Do you wish, whether you realise it or not, to remain a slave of sin? Or will you surrender your life to Jesus? Realise who this Jesus is. He is God, the one who died for you and offers you total forgiveness, peace and joy – now! The Bible says: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”

One day all men and women will stand before Jesus, the Judge of all mankind. The Bible says: “…man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgement…”. Jesus alone has been given all power and authority in judgement by God the Father. Jesus therefore will decide where you will spend eternity. Although our human bodies eventually give out and die, our spirits live on beyond death.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DIE?

We all live on after death and the Bible makes clear that we end up in one of two places, either:

(a) a place of weeping, suffering, eternal torment and eternal separation from God for those who reject Him (Hell aka the Lake of Fire), or

(b) a place of eternal peace, love and joy (Heaven)in the presence of God, your creator.

Jesus himself said that most people walk through this life on the BROAD ROAD that leads to DESTRUCTION, rather than on the NARROW ROAD that leads to LIFE.

After this life is over your destiny is sealed based on your response to Jesus Christ in this life. So you need to respond to Jesus’ call on your life while you still have breath in your body! The Bible says: “Today is the day of salvation.”

No-one else can forgive your sin and make you right with God. Jesus truly is God’s unique gift to mankind!

Letter To a Friend Who Attends Church And Believes He Is Going To Heaven

Hi,

I just wanted to clarify about our chat on Wednesday.

I wasn’t attempting to judge you by what I was saying.  As we are both well past the proverbial three score and ten (70 years of age), I was only expressing concern as to whether you were going to exit in the right direction (Heaven) when your time does come. Let’s face it, for either of us that could be any day!

Think of it in terms of a little friendly loving concern, which is what it was intended to be. If I put it across badly, please accept my apologies. I’m a work in progress!

Photo by Tobias Bju00f8rkli on Pexels.com

Imagine I was out walking on a foggy night, and you saw me near where you knew there was a 500 foot drop over a cliff edge.  I am sure you would want to make every effort possible to warn me of the potential danger I was in, wouldn’t you?  Similarly, if there is ANY possibility that you could be heading in a dangerous direction spiritually, you likewise would surely want me to make every effort I can to let you know dangers to avoid, based on my own experience and what I’ve learned through that.  If you had terminal cancer and I had discovered a cure for cancer, would you thank me if I kept silent and you were denied the benefit?  Eternity is even more important, since our personal outcome lasts for ever.

From my own personal experience I know that a person can attend church every week, hold an office as Church Elder and be a Sunday School teacher and yet not be a Christian pursuing a personal relationship with God, as was my situation some years back. Had I died at that time I would most certainly have gone down and not up.  My Christian life was merely an outward sham, with no interest in the spiritual life of a Christian, nor did I pray or open a Bible at home from one week to the next – perhaps a clue to my non-Christian state that I somehow missed!  I had no experiential knowledge of God (as opposed to head knowledge) nor was I interested in submitting to a personal relationship with God either. I was boss of my life and that suited me fine.

The Chief Priests and Pharisees in Jesus time were experts in the scriptures. They tithed faithfully their 10 per cent, fasted twice a week and observed scrupulously every commandment as they saw it. Nevertheless they were blind to recognising Jesus as God in their midst. If church commitment, intellect and obedience to God’s commands were the standard, then they were heading for heaven, effectively home and dry. Except, as we know, they weren’t. They were proud and refused to repent, both at the teaching of John the Baptist and then Jesus.  In fact Jesus pointed out to them that Satan was effectively their Lord, not His Father in heaven.  They weren’t best pleased! So scrupulous, regular and sincere religious observance clearly doesn’t get you over the line into heaven.

On the other hand, the disciples Jesus chose were quite the opposite of the Priests and Pharisees who referred to them as “ignorant and unlearned men!”  I guess Jesus chose them because he saw  they were open and honest men, with teachable hearts. As Jesus said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”  Little children have simple trust in Daddy, that Daddy knows best and that what Daddy promises he will fulfil.

In the gospels, we read that that Jesus “breathed on the disciples” and said “receive the Holy Spirit.  Subsequently, on the Day of Pentecost, the disciples were again filled with the Holy Spirit. Paul’s letters in the New Testament exhort us to “go on being filled with the Spirit” (the tense in the original Greek is present continuous, so not just a once only event)).  Without the Holy Spirit within, we are “running on empty” since the unregenerate human heart and spirit cannot please God.

  You recall I said “think of how we are all born, live and die using this example of two buses”.  We are all born on Bus Number 1. That bus is going to Hell and Satan is the driver. If we spend our life on Bus 1 and never change, we die in our sins and end up in Hell. We therefore need to change buses. The way to do this is to repent of our sins to Jesus Christ. That allows us to change to Bus Number 2, headed to Heaven and driven by Jesus. Both the Pharisees and myself were on Bus No 1 (being driven to hell), and were totally unaware that Bus No 2 even existed. Likewise I didn’t know I had to disembark and climb aboard Bus Number 2, driven by Jesus. As you know, it’s rather difficult to get off one bus and on to another without knowing it. It’s a conscious choice.

The key to changing buses is recognising the need within ourselves for personal repentance. Repentance is a fundamental change of thinking and direction as regards our propensity for sin. Without the indwelling Holy Spirit – who comes in when we truly repent – we cannot change our sin nature. Asking for forgiveness does not change us on the inside the way true repentance does.  Jesus didn’t preach “Ask for forgiveness”. His cry from the outset was “Repent of your sins!”, Repentance equates to “open heart surgery” compared to the “bandage/sticking plaster” of forgiveness.

Forgiveness doesn’t change the human heart towards God, it merely applies a temporary covering that constantly needs replacing. Forgiveness has its place, but not as a substitute for the heart surgery we all need, to change our love of our own way to love of God’s way as our number one priority in life.  This begs the question: “do we want God as the number one priority in our life, before self and even family?” God reminds us in the Book of Revelation: “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline, so be earnest and repent”.  God has spoken to me a few times over the years about me getting back on track with my life. That’s part of His love relationship with us.

In summary, I’ve learned that being a Christian is not about regular church attendance and church service, and what goes with it, since if it’s only that it doesn’t change your heart towards God. The Bible says we are by nature rebels towards God, and only repentance can change that. In my case I literally got down on my knees and repented for having been Lord of my own life instead of handing that over to Jesus. As God says through Jeremiah in the Bible: “Cursed is the man who trusts in his own strength… ..  God goes on to say a couple of verses later: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord.……..”  You could liken the curse and the blessing  to a hell or heaven consequence.

Repentance brings about a love relationship in your heart with the heart of God. That’s why the First Commandment commands us to: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength.”  That’s impossible for unregenerate human flesh to even attempt, since our flesh nature is at war with God. In my case there was no relationship, not even of the cerebral kind.  I had no idea I had to humble myself before God, despite the Bible saying “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble”.  According to the First Commandment, if God is not the number one priority in our lives, then there is something wrong with our heart attitude towards Him.

Because I’m a slow learner, after realising that I was lost spiritually, it took me about a year of searching spiritual things. I then repented of going my own way and gave over my life to trust in Jesus for the future.  Effectively, I gave him control of the steering wheel of my life, and have never regretted it.

But God is a perfect gentleman and never compels us to do anything, which is why He gave us free will. So choosing him as Lord is all about our free will choice.  Someone once said: “Hell is populated by people singing the Frank Sinatra song: “I Did It MY Way”, which just about sums up our natural desire to live without Jesus interfering in how we live.

I hope the foregoing has helped to put my side of the conversation into the context it was meant to be in – a concerned and loving enquiry with your eternal future in mind. Who am I to judge anyway?

I remember someone pointing out that in John Bunyan’s book “Pilgrim’s Progress” there was a pathway leading off to hell right next to the entrance door to Heaven. So none of us are safe till we’re over the threshold! All the more reason to encourage one another on the journey.

I know there’s a lot to digest here, but feel free to come back to me on anything you like on this topic in due course.

What If Christianity is Wrong and Atheism Is Right?

Christians believe that Christianity is the only spiritual path that leads to God. More accurately, a relationship with Jesus Christ is the only way to know God. Of course, we try to provide reasons and honest reflection on why we believe this; yet ultimately, it’s what we believe. But……

What if we’ve got it all wrong? What if we’re horribly deluded and deceived, and in fact, Christianity has as much chance of leading to God as crawling over broken glass for 70 years? What if Christianity is just plain wrong? It’s certainly worth thinking about…

Is it Feasible that Christianity Could be Wrong?

Definitely! Christians have the same evidence in the world around them as do other people. They see the same sun rise and set; they see the same common human traits – good and bad. And they have access to the same human mind to think and reason. The difference is in how Christians interpret the evidence around them. In other words, there is no 100% “scientific” guaranteed method of “proving” that Christianity is right.

We trust that God has revealed truth in the Bible, and we trust that he has given us enough information to take him at his word. We trust him, when he promises things like “If you really search for me, you will find me”. But the bottom line is that it’s still trust. Christians don’t have some secret piece of evidence that conclusively “proves” that Christianity is right.

How Would it Affect the Here and Now?

So, if Christianity was in fact wrong, how would that affect the lives of people right now? From the perspective of Christians themselves, it would mean that their attempts to live a life of trust in God would be utterly pointless. After all, if there was no God, trusting in this non-existent god would be useless and silly. Yet, this would be a fairly harmless delusion. For the most part, we would attempt to live morally upright lives, and to contribute positively to society and culture. In reality, we would be kidding ourselves, since there would be no reason to do this, but it wouldn’t really hurt anyone else.

From the perspective of those who were not Christians, it might be a welcome relief. Sure, Christians would still keep talking about weighty matters, like heaven and hell, sin and judgment, life and death; but these would be delusional beliefs. Those who followed the spiritual path of atheism might well view Christians as a nuisance; or as an annoying but harmless itch. (No doubt, this is how many people do view Christians!) Ultimately, they could rest secure in the knowledge that these beliefs were indeed mistaken beliefs, and had no bearing on anything whatsoever.

How Would it Affect Life After Death?

But what about when we die? What difference would it make if Christianity was wrong? Well, largely, the joke would be on Christians. Instead of finding the heaven we had believed in, we would find…nothing. We would die, and that would be the end. We would simply cease to exist, just like everyone else. No God, no afterlife, no heaven – nothing. Those who were not Christians would be in exactly the same position.

What if Christianity was Right?

However, it’s equally worth considering what it would mean if Christianity was right. If the things spoken of in the Bible, and by Christians, were in fact completely true, where would this leave those who were not Christians?

In terms of life after death, it would leave them separated from God forever. Rather than simply ceasing to exist, they would continue to exist, but would know fully that there were no more opportunities to find God. Theirs would be an eternity filled with regret and remorse.

Furthermore, anything done during their lives would be completely pointless. No matter how great the achievement, it would be meaningless in a neverending existence separated from God and all that is good. The Bible refers to this neverending separation from God as “hell”.

While on earth, Jesus often spoke about hell. To describe it, he used the terms “fiery”, and “unquenchable fire”. He spoke of “weeping and gnashing of teeth”, and said that those who wanted to cross over from hell to heaven would not be able to. The Bible also warns of avoiding hell, since those who go there “pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of God”. It is clear that hell was, and is, a place to be avoided at all costs.

Is it Worth the Risk?

So, the question is: Is it worth the risk of not considering the possibility that Christianity is right? In other words, if Christianity is wrong, then Christians have lived around 70 years of a life, which ultimately, is pointless, but harmless.

However, if Christianity is right, then those who are not Christians will face a neverending existence of pain, penalty, regret, remorse, and overwhelming sorrow, away from God, and away from anything good.

Is this prospect worth the risk of not looking carefully at Jesus, and the good news He provides?

Author: Rupert Lineage

The Need For Repentance Preaching Alongside Signs and Wonders

DISTURBING PROPHETIC DREAM posted by a young Aussie,  Jeremiah Johnson:

“Several months ago while I was extensively studying Matthew 7:22-24 and asking God for increased revelation, I had one of the most disturbing prophetic dreams of my life. The Scripture I was studying in Matthew says,

“Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name did we not cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will say to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.”

In the prophetic dream at night, I was taken to hell where I saw all these leaders and individuals who had performed miracles, cast out demons, and prophesied. What I was shown next, I will never forget. The Holy Spirit showed me long lines of people behind all of these leaders. He immediately revealed to me that these were all the people that had received the miracles, prophecies, and had been at one time delivered. As I gazed at the people in these lines, He said to me, “Did they not RECEIVE miracles, prophecy, and deliverance, yet I never knew them?”

I woke up from the dream alarmed and startled. I said to the Holy Spirit, “So there are not only people that will perform signs, wonders, and miracles that will be sent to hell, but also people who receive all these things that will be in hell. Why?”

Immediately the Holy Spirit spoke again to me and said, “Because those that worked miracles, prophesied, and cast out demons never preached the full gospel of Jesus Christ which is the message of repentance. They were so in love with the gifts that I had given them that people became trophies and souvenirs to them.

When My power would manifest in their ministries, they would tell people that I loved them, but never that they needed to repent for their sins. I tell you that a great deception will sweep over the signs and wonders movement in the earth. Beware of the ministries where miracles and prophecies will flow, but the message of repentance is not preached. You have been warned.””

Is There Anything Wrong With Tarot Card Reading?

    I got an e-mail today from a professional Tarot Card reader who took exception to a personal article from a friend I published on this web page  http://www.newchristian.org.uk/tinastory.html

He said:” I am a  professional Tarot Reader and Life guide , and I do not  recognise any of the problems that you seem to indicate that go with the trade and the art ? – please could you refrain from non-informed talk about other people’s beliefs. That is why there is so much trouble in the world. There is room for all beliefs. Peace”.

As requests go, it was indeed very courteous. I shall reply accordingly. There is indeed room for all beliefs. Having beliefs in your heart harms no-one, except possibly yourself, but that is of your own free will choice. But if, in practicing my beliefs, I influence others it may for good or ill. If the latter, I will have to account for practising deception upon others when I face God at the Judgment.

So, is there anything wrong with Tarot Card reading? According to Wikipedia, “divinatory meanings” have been associated with Tarot cards since 1783″. So what is divination? It is defined on Google as: “the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown by supernatural means”. Supernatural means may arise from kindly or evil forces. How can we know the origin of these forces?

From the Christian perspective, the Bible holds the key to what God approves or disapproves of: “When you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations.  There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead” (Bible, Book of Deuteronomy Chapter 18 verses 9 to 11).

Using divination puts one in the realm of deceptive spirits.  The Apostle Paul predicted: “But the (Holy) Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons ” (The Bible, Book of I Timothy 4: 1).

So if God does not approve of divination we must conclude it is harmful to man, since God seeks to encourage purity and righteousness in our lives.

The Bible, Psalm 24 verse 3 says:

“Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.”

If the God of the Bible forbids divination by those he has made then we risk the wrath of God if we indulge in such a practice. The ultimate outworking of God’s wrath is exclusion from his presence and a resultant banishment to hell, where Satan and his followers end up in eternal torment and suffering. If you disobey God’s warnings you cannot expect him to welcome you into Heaven, where he lives.

“Why Should I Become a Christian?”

After the man had received some practical help from us, I said with a smile:”don’t forget to thank God in your prayers tonight!”

He responded in a positive way so we chatted further about God and Jesus. He actually raised the question of repentance and we discussed what repentance and faith in God meant.

I gave him a booklet called “What Is  a Real Christian?” and he read a couple of pages. He then said:”the question should be “WHY should I become a Christian?”

I gave him God’s view of sin: all sin – even theft of something from a friend – is primarily a sin against God. So God is the one you need to repent towards. Without repentance (a turning away from all known sin in your life) you will have to give an account of your sin on Judgment Day – and Jesus is the Judge. Becoming a Christian wipes the slate clean because your trust in Jesus and his ability to forgive your sin makes you a new person, hence “born again”. He had heard of “born again Christian” so I explained why we need to become born again, using the illustration of the TWO BUSES.

   In this illustration all of life happens on the two buses. Bus #1 is the one we are all born on. Its destination is Hell and Satan or the Devil is the driver. The Bible tells us Hell was made for the Devil and his angels (actually demons). However, if we remain on Bus#1 we are headed for Satan’s destination, whether we realise it or not. We therefore need to get off Bus #1 and on to Bus #2. Bus#2 is driven by Jesus and His destination is Heaven. All mankind is under the power of sin and only Jesus can change our sin nature. This process is known as being “born again”. When we are born again (recognise our need of the Saviour Jesus as the only one who can forgive our sin and set us free from it) we are transferred onto Bus #2 whose destination is Heaven.

He took the booklet away and said he’d read it.

 

 

 

Not Thy Will, But My Will Be Done!

   I had a long chat with a guy who came in for food. He had been to church in Wales as a youngster, but had drifted away as he grew up. He had lost some family members in the last few years and had felt their nearness on their passing away. We discussed God and belief, and he thought there was “something there”, but he was not really interested in pursuing the question in his life. I gave him the gospel basics, and tried to encourage him to reach out to God, but didn’t get very far. Later that day I was thinking over of the phrase: “Not THY will, but MY will be done”. It’s really on that basis that we end up either in Heaven or in Hell – our eternal destination is what we ourselves choose in this life.

I also thought how many are happy to say “I believe in God”, but go no further than a mental assent. It reminds me of the evangelist’s use of the parachute as an illustration of what faith involves. I can say I believe in parachutes, but that belief means nothing until the day I’m in an out of control aircraft, reach for a parachute and put it on. It’s only when I put it on, jump and full the ripcord that I really do believe in parachutes!!  It’s the application of faith that determines whether your faith in “x”means anything at all.

A younger woman came in and I recognised her as “J”, a street drinker I used to see regularly when I did mission work on the streets. At that time she was a vulnerable girl, very self-willed, who wouldn’t listen to our requests to go back home to her Mum, whom she lived with. When she walked in I could see she was intoxicated, so nothing had really changed. As we at down to chat, she told me that she’d had “a 5 month old dead baby” and started to cry. I really felt for her, poor woman. Clearly someone had taken advantage of her, and even that had had a tragic outcome. Eventually the supervisor called a local unit where she was staying for transport, as she needed to get across to the other side of town and clearly couldn’t get there under her own steam.

A young guy turned up later. He told me he had mental health issues and suffered from a type of psychosis. I asked if he’d done drugs in the past. He admitted a long use of cannabis, then latterly a serious heroin habit. He was now on a prescription for Subbutex, a heroin substitute designed to wean you off the drug. He’d been given accommodation by a local charity and was hoping to get back on his feet.