Tag Archives: Jesus’ sacrifice

Faith

A Father’s Heart


Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:3-7 NIV

Let me ask you this: Suppose you did all you could to make sure your child knew how to swim. Swimming lessons, life safety classes, even a few snorkeling classes. After all, you were once a lifeguard, and you know the ropes, so you took extra care to make sure she can swim. Then comes a day when you can take her to the lake to play with her friends. You are sure she knows what to do in the water, but you keep an eye out just in case. After all, even the best swimmers can get into the breakers, occasionally.

You start the bar-b-cue pit up, throw some doggies on the burner, some burgers, corn, a few other yummy treats. About the time you have that under control, you look up to see your worst nightmare.

She is drowning.

What do you do?

Now imagine this scenario: You tell anyone who is listening to call 911 while you strip down and get ready to rescue her. But all your friends and other people on the beach try their best to stop you. They tell you that she got herself into this, she needs to get herself out. They say all you will do is make things worse. They tell you if you go in after her, you might drown, too, or get hurt, or she may not want you to rescue her. What if even the lifeguard on duty tells you the same thing?

Will you stand on the shore and let her fend for herself? Will you stop and weigh the possible outcomes? Will you wait and consider the advice of everyone on the beach?

No! You will do all it takes, up to losing your own life to rescue her. She is your life, your heart, and your love. What kind of monster would ignore his own drowning child?

And what kinds of monsters give the advice that everyone gave you?

Now let me ask you this:

Suppose you did all you know how to do to make sure your beloved child knows Jesus Christ? You took her to church. You read the Bible to her. You prayed with her. You made sure she went to Christian schools. And when you look up, you see that she is drowning in a sea of bad choices? What if she isn’t even aware of the extreme danger she has put her soul in?

And just like the people on the beach, you get the exact same advice, even from people who serve the Lord.

Now, try to see this scenario:

When God created us, did He make sure we knew the ropes, and pitfalls to make sure we would always have eternal life with Him in Eden? Did He provide all we needed? Did He pour His love on us?

Imagine how it must have hurt when we rebelled and sinned. Imagine the heart-rending pain when He had to judge us, the earth, and the universe for all our sin?

Did He leave us to our own devices? Did He say, “They got themselves into this mess, they will have to figure it out?”  Did the angels warn Him that, if he interfered, it would only get worse?

Did he write us off?

What did God do?

He came here in the form of a Man and took on the penalty for our sin. He bore the judgment of death on His self so we would not have to. He gave up His kingdom so we can inherit it. He loved us so much that while we are at war with him, He sent Jesus Christ to die in our place, to bear the wrath and judgment of God. Jesus, the God-Man, became all our sin so we can become all his righteousness.

That is what God did.

So, now I ask you; If you see your daughter dying of the very sin Jesus already paid for, what would you do?

It is in the Father’s heart to give his own life for the life of His beloved children.

It is in my heart to give all I have and am to help rescue my child.

It is in this father’s heart to be like the Savior who died for me. I will give all I have to see that my child lives with me in eternity in the presence of the Living God.

Examine your souls, Christian. If you are not willing to lose everything so that others may live, stop saying you are His child. Selfishness is the fruit of Satan.

This father will give all he has unto death if it means his child will live in eternity with Christ. How can I cross the street to witness to a stranger if I am not ready to give up everything for my own child? What hypocrite worries about pain in the face of need? What kind of abject spiritual poverty demands you leave your child to drown in sin?

Godliness begins at home, people. And if you cannot manage that, you have no business taking your brand of Christianity anywhere. I may have failed my daughter in the past, but while I have life, I have hope, and I will spend every ounce of both doing all I can to bring the Love of God to my drowning daughter. I cannot save her, but I know who can. I cannot redeem her, but I know who will. I cannot give up my salvation so she can have it, but I know the one who has already done this.
The greatest gift I have ever received is the love and grace of God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It is the only thing I have left worth having in this life, and I will give that to her.

It is what is in this father’s heart.

Go and do the same.

For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! – Romans 5:10 NIV

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Faith

When We Walk With The Lord


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Jesus answered, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. The one who doesn’t love Me will not keep My words. The word that you hear is not Mine but is from the Father who sent Me.  John 14:23-24

God Was Uninvited

I was brushing my teeth, getting ready for school.  It was the early ’60’s.  I could hear a young John Kennedy talking about the idea that some people believe God is dead.  Kennedy went on to say that he does not hold that belief, and if he gets to be president, he will make sure that our religious liberties remain intact.

President Kennedy did make it to the Oval office.  He was killed before he could make too many significant changes in America.

Shortly after that, God was kicked out of schools, offices and public discourse.  The Bible is forbidden in public.  The Ten Commandments are no longer tolerated and are being removed from every public display.

Children in public schools have every occult and ungodly viewpoint forced down their throats, but telling anyone of the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ is a hate crime.

When God was uninvited in our nation, in our schools, in our homes, we removed an aspect of God from our nation that kept evil at bay.  We removed His protection and guidance.

We removed His guiding wisdom.  We removed an objective viewpoint that made it possible for us to dileneate between good and evil. We removed clear vision and hope.  We removed the baseline for understanding honesty and the ability to recognize truth.

We now live in what liberals celebrate as the “Post-Truth” society.  Truth and facts are no longer as relevant as are our feelings about things.  We forget that feelings are not facts, and raise feelings to be above facts, and use that as the determiner of our behavior and the law.

When we evict God and His word from our lives, we get the America we see today.

When God is Absent, Evil is King.

So what do we get when we tell God to leave us alone.  Because He is not a dictator, because He has granted us complete freedom to do as we will, He gives us exactly what we have asked for.  In spite of the fact that every nation on earth who has abandoned God has fallen, we choose to ignore history and the will and word of God.  In our stupidity, we call ourselves “enlightened”, and do not see how wretched and blind we have made ourselves.

When God is absent, the Spirit of God, who protects His children, is removed.  Evil fills the vacuum and reigns over all.  We forget what happened to Israel back in the day when she did the very same thing:

Isaiah 5:20King James Version (KJV)

20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

When we removed God from our hearts and souls, we opened ourselves for every delusion that can possibly exist.  We embrace the pleasure of evil, and forsake the discipline of truth.

There Is A Path To The Truth

When Jesus went to the cross, he became every sin that exists. He became everything God judges to be unholy, and it pleased God to pour His wrath on Jesus and judge him and put Him to death.  It pleased God to do this because He would rather do this to His own beloved Son than have YOU experience His wrath.  So, Jesus became all evil for all time.

Then He went to Hell and suffered.  When the cup of suffering was drained, God spoke the promise of eternal life and the reign of Heavn over Jesus and our Christ ascended from Hell, bringing with him all the dead who perished before the cross.  Death and hell no longer had authority, but Christ, the Son of the living God became all authority.

When you accept this free gift of the death and resurrection of Christ on your behalf, YOU become free of sin.  You become the Son of God, the Daughter of God, the sweet Child of God.  You will be free.  You will be free to know God in His infinite wisdom and love.  You will be able to see what the Word of God says and means.  You will no longer be mind blind and bereft of a living Soul.  You will be alive.  Really and truly and forever, alive.

His word will be food for you.  Your love for Him will be powerful and fulfilling.  You will not be obligated to any religion or law, but will be compelled out fo Love for God to be all you can to become just like Christ. Hisd Spirit will fill you and empower you to do all these things and more.

We need this to happen across America.  We need revival in our land.  We have kicked God out of our lives and our nation in the name of “Tolerance and Enlightenment”.

We are now stupid and blind.

Lets find time to invite God back.  He will never force Himself on anyone.  But he will respond to a broken and contrite heart.  He will pitch His tent with you and dwell with you.  His spirit will encompass you and protect you.

You will be His beloved Child.  No nation ever became Christian, only the people who inhabit it.  It starts one soul at a time.

Will you invite God back into your home?

 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”  John 8:31-32

Let’s Be About It!

David G. Perkins

sammy.snardfarkle@gmail.com

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Faith

What is My Cup Full Of? – Part 1


This entry may have a harsher tone than I like.
I did that on purpose. 
Bear with me through the end of this series.  Thanks!

It’s Impossible!

 

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“Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible.” – Lord Kelvin, president of the Royal Society, 1895

Credit where credit is due: quote comes from NOVA Online.

 

It’s all about the Boxes

We are comfortable in our boxes. We want the world to look and behave a certain way because we do not like surprises. We look to Respected Authorities to tell us how the world works. We want them to be right so we can sleep at night.

Respected Authorities have published papers and books and lectured the world on how the world works. They have taught their disciples and students, knowing that their world view lives on after they are gone. Suddenly, someone who knows better comes along and says, “Look at THIS!” In order to agree with the new guy on the block, they must first admit that they are wrong.

Respected Authorities want to continue to be respected, so, when something that differs with their opinion comes along, they work to squelch it. The “Upstart” had the nerve to upset the masses. What this upstart did was reveal a higher truth that contradicts their world view. Even if said Authority knows the upstart is right, he cannot afford to be in a position to lose his status as a “Respected Authority”. They decide to prevent any upstart by making rules, orders and laws that restrict “wrong thinking”. At this point, “The People” become “The Sheep”. The Respected Authorities become the wolves. We sheep want our boxes of ignorance and willful stupidity in place, so life looks normal; “normal” is defined by the Respected Authorities.  We rely on them to tell us what is real, and what is not; what is possible and what is not.

They define reality to the point the boxes don’t just “keep us safe”, the boxes become our prison. Respected Authorities know the only way to keep the sheep in the box is to make us fear what is outside the box. Inside the box is safer. They invent enemies of the box. Life is deadly outside the box. Our fears make us susceptible to whatever fable Respected Authorities tell us. We can all be happy as the box gets smaller and smaller, and our fears grow larger.

Ideas become the enemy. We believe everything in the box represents freedom. We embrace laws that say we are no longer allowed to peek over the top of the box to see what is outside.

Respected Authorities define “freedom” so well we do not recognize we are now slaves of their world view. Evil can rule when the sheep fear freedom more than they fear slavery.

We are proud to live in a world where we are free to wear chains.  After all, we need to be willing to give up our real freedom if it means we are safe.

Welcome to the fallen world

A very long time ago, Humans took the advice of a “Respected Authority” and ended up disconnecting themselves from the One who created this earth. Mankind’s understanding of things has devolved since then.

Centuries later, the One who created this earth came here in the form of Jesus Christ, who made it clear that He is the ONLY Authority. The Authorities of His day were upset that this upstart was breaking down the walls of the box. They talked the Romans, another set of Respected Authorities, into having Jesus Killed.

Their reasoning was so that “The People” will go back to enjoying the chains that their religion built out of the revealed God. They had hidden God to the point that they themselves didn’t recognize Him when He was walking the streets of Jerusalem. They had become prisoners of the very same box they tried to keep “The People” locked up in.

The Boxes are the chains that bind us.

Today we live in a world full of religions.

Some say there is no God.

Some say you are God.

Some say there are many Gods.

Some Say that a particular fallen angel is God; they are known as “The Religion of Peace”.  Currently, “The Religion of Peace” is spreading their version of love all over the Middle East, killing anyone that sees life differently than they do.

Some say we are not allowed to know or pronounce the name of the Living God. That not knowing it or pronouncing it shows respect to Him (Although He told Moses what we should call Him).

Some religions are Secular Humanist in their model, but go by several names.

Another Religion that recognizes that Jesus is our savior does not actually have a relationship with Him, but they feel free to judge everyone else that does not think like they do.

Governments the world over are working hard to BE the accepted religion. The world system wants you to believe they are the only source of life or happiness.

The list of religious beliefs about how to manage humanity is long.

Jesus did not come here to start a religion, but to repair a broken relationship with God.

Respected Authorities and all Humanity put to death the one who said the following very revolutionary truth:

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.” (John 14:6-7 NASB)

Ask Yourself This

Ask yourself why Respected Authorities the world over are so fearful you will see the truth. Ask yourself why you are comfortable simply knowing facts about Jesus, but do not really know Jesus.

What would your confession of Christ be if someone put a gun to your head and demanded you renounce your faith?

Ask yourself this; why do Respected Authorities and religions fear you will get to know the Living God through Jesus Christ?

Why do religions, at best, fill your head full of facts about Jesus, true and false, but fear that you will discover you can know Him personally?

Why is it becoming unpopular to believe in Him? Why do the “Tolerant Ones” have no toleration of Jesus, the Living Christ?

All religions have their boxes.

Jesus didn’t.

He rose again to prove that He is the Son of the Living God. He rose to prove that all he said was true. He put finished to all sin so we can have a real relationship with the Living God, and call Him, “Daddy” (Abba).

Jesus had the nerve to say this:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. (John 14:12-14 NASB)

Maybe the freedom to be just like Jesus is what Respected Authorities and religions fear. If we are truly free through Christ, we don’t need them.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Respected Authorities fear Jesus. Not the religion of Jesus, but Jesus Christ Himself. Religions are OK, they fit nicely into the plans of the worldly system.

A prison cannot be disguised as freedom if we know what real freedom is. We will destroy our boxes if we can see that we are free, and no longer slaves. We are free when we begin to understand who Jesus is, and what he accomplished on the Cross.

Jesus made it clear; you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven apart from Him. You cannot have a relationship with the Living God apart from Him.

What all worldly systems fear is that we discover that Jesus is right, that we are free, and the lies they told us no longer can enslave us. We can no longer be controlled if we see and understand what Jesus accomplished. Respected Authorities lose all power when we become exactly what Jesus says we are, free from the world.

When you DO know Him, He will reveal the kingdom of Heaven is IN you. He will reveal that you are a Son or Daughter of God. He will reveal that you have all power and authority on Earth because He has sent the Holy Spirit to live inside you. He will give you His mind and spirit in exchange for your old self. He made this possible when He rose from the dead. If you believe He rose, and confess with your mouth that he rose, then he will show you that you rose with him, a new creation, and a Child of the Living God.

He will show you the only boundaries that exist are the ones you think exist. The idea that you will be free to do and be as Jesus is, is what Respected Authorities fear.

With God, all things are possible

It is possible to be free. It is possible to call God our Father. It is possible to have the kingdom of Heaven in us. It is possible to enter the kingdom of Heaven when we die. All things are possible when we have a genuine relationship with Jesus.

Don’t do it because Respected Authorities say not to, that would be the wrong reason. Do it because when you do, you will be free to live as Christ did. Free for all eternity.

Let’s be about it.

I love you in the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

David G. Perkins

Sammy.snardfarkle@gmail.com

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