Category Archives: Salvation: A New You

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November 25, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, God's Plan, Holy Spirit, Salvation: A New You

HE WANTS CHANGE

If anyone belongs to Christ, there is a new creation. The old things have gone; everything is made new! [2 Corinthians 5:17 (NCV)]

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change is a musical comedy about love and romance. As the title suggests, it’s about how love (or lust) blinds us to someone’s faults. Once a relationship is established, however, people’s eyes open and they see their loved one’s defects and weaknesses. An attempt is then made to re-make him or her into someone who is neater, more stylish, richer, smarter, more successful or better looking and, therefore, easier to love! Those of us married for any length of time know that doesn’t work. We can’t remake our spouse; what we saw is what we got!

If we were going to write a musical about God’s relationship with us, however, it could be called I Love You, You’re Imperfect, Now Change. God loves us, imperfect creatures that we are; His eyes are wide open to our every fault yet He loves us anyway! Because He loves us so much, however, He wants us to become better people and reach our full potential. When we allow the Holy Spirit to run our lives, that change is possible. We’ll no longer be who were; we’ll become who God wants us to be. God won’t love the improved model any more than he already does, but the upgraded version will be able to love more and will be more like Christ.

But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God—made to be truly good and holy. [Ephesians 4:23-24 (NCV)]

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November 7, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Obedience, Patience & Perseverance, Salvation: A New You, Trusting God

CROSSING THE RIVER

Look straight ahead with honest confidence; don’t hang your head in shame. Plan carefully what you do, and whatever you do will turn out right. Avoid evil and walk straight ahead. Don’t go one step off the right way. [Proverbs 4:25-27 (GNT)]

Obey everything that I have commanded you today. Then you will be able to cross the river and occupy the land that you are about to enter. [Deuteronomy 11:8 (GNT)]

We’d been on horseback for a week and tent camping every night. The last day had been especially challenging with the toughest terrain we’d encountered. A novice rider, I was sore, tired and unsure of myself. The only thing that got me through it was the promise of a luxurious dude ranch at the end of the trail complete with indoor plumbing, a hot shower, clean clothes and a soft bed.

We finally crested the mountain and there, in the valley below, lay the promised ranch. Between us and the ranch, however, was a fast running river. I was frightened when we were told how high the water was, yet I knew there was no turning back. As we descended into the valley, the wrangler gave us explicit instructions. He would lead the way into the shallowest part of the river. We were to follow him exactly and hold steady if the horse began to swim. Above all, we were to keep our eyes looking straight ahead. If we looked down at the rushing water, we’d likely lose our balance and fall off the horse. As the water crept up over my boots, I grew nervous but I trusted our guide’s instructions; he hadn’t steered me wrong yet. I kept reminding myself that a prize awaited me on the other side of the river.

That wrangler’s advice holds true even when we’re not on horseback. Trust your guide and obey him. Plan your steps carefully, look straight ahead, maintain your balance and keep your eye on the goal. Instead of a ranch, however, we can look forward to fellowship with Christ in the Kingdom of God!

…the one thing I do, however, is to forget what is behind me and do my best to reach what is ahead. So I run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize, which is God’s call through Christ Jesus to the life above. [Philippians 3:13b-14 (GNT)]

Sovereign Lord, I know that you have shown me only the beginning of the great and wonderful things you are going to do. There is no god in heaven or on earth who can do the mighty things that you have done! Let me cross the Jordan River, Lord, and see the fertile land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon Mountains. [Deuteronomy 3:24-25 (GNT)]

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October 25, 2014

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God's Promises, Joy, Knowing Him, Salvation: A New You

HEAVENLY BLISS

10-25-14 heaven-cropreducedWEBNo one has ever seen this, and no one has ever heard about it. No one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him. [1 Corinthians 2:9 (NCV)]

I sat on a comfy sofa in a beautifully appointed store, eating delectable salted caramel gelato, looking at an exquisite display of Dutch chocolates, listening to soothing music and knowing I could finish up with a tasty truffle and a delicious coffee drink from the espresso bar. To my left was a desk for the spa located upstairs; a sign offered chair massages in the store. “This could be heaven,” I said as I relaxed into the cushions, “especially if they added some fruit, cheese and wine!”

I know, however, that heaven will be far better than comfortable seats, pleasant music, elegant surroundings, yummy gelato, scrumptious chocolates, mocha lattes, vintage wine, aged cheese, luscious fruit, and pampering with massages, pedicures, and facials. As delightful as it sounds to me, I think that would get incredibly boring in a short time. Heaven will be way beyond my wildest dreams because going there means having an eternal home with Almighty God. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, will be sitting at His right hand. Heaven will be a place of love, peace and joy and there will be nothing boring about that!

We may speak about a place where there are no tears, no death, no fear, no night; but those are just the benefits of heaven. The beauty of heaven is seeing God. [Max Lucado]

Since you were raised from the dead with Christ, aim at what is in heaven, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. [Colossians 3:1 (NCV)]

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October 14, 2014

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God's Promises, Holy Spirit, Joy, Salvation: A New You

BELIEVE AND RECEIVE

God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son so that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him. [John 3:16-17 (NCV)]

What a beautiful promise Jesus makes to us: everlasting life! There is, however, a stipulation: to get this wonderful gift, we have to believe! This belief is not just an intellectual exercise of acknowledging that someone named Jesus lived in Israel over 2,000 years ago. It’s more than knowing a few Bible verses and stories. This belief requires us to trust Jesus’ words and to rely on his Holy Spirit to make a change in our lives. We need to have confidence in Him as our Lord and Savior. We need to be confident enough that we will give Him our lives. That’s a lot of belief!

If we believe, God promises us a gift: everlasting life. This will not be a continuation of the life we have now on earth. There will be no death, sin, sickness, pain, enemies or anger. The wonderful thing is that we don’t have to wait until we die before we start enjoying this new life in Christ. All we have to do is believe and accept the gift of His Holy Spirit right now. Christ’s love will live in us and we will start experiencing a new life immediately.

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and if you believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you will be saved. [Romans 10:9 (NCV)]

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October 8, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Salvation: A New You, Today: Make it Count

THROW OFF THE OLD

I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. [Philippians 3:7-9a (NLT)]

I’ve been cleaning closets and cupboards and am amazed at the amount of useless stuff I’ve accumulated through the years. To some extent, we all have difficulty with emptying out possessions that clutter our homes. Old things are often tied to memories. We may be afraid that when we let go of these assorted mementoes and souvenirs that we will lose the memories as well. We cling to reminders of where we’ve been, what we looked like, or what we once were able to do.

Just as many people cannot clear the clutter from their homes, many of us cannot clear the clutter from our spiritual lives. We often find it difficult to rid ourselves of old attitudes, beliefs, habits, and even associations that are keeping us from a relationship with God. Having grown comfortable in the debris of our lives, we may hold on to resentment, prejudice, curse words or bad attitudes. We may even want to retain unhealthy, even toxic, relationships. It isn’t easy to get rid of things we’ve had for so many years; they’ve become a part of us. If we refuse to give up yesterday, however, we deny ourselves the wisdom and gifts of today. Moreover, when we cling to the clutter of our past, we are unable to face the future and receive its blessings. If our spirit is going to be renewed, we need to discard our former way of life.

Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. [Ephesians 4:22-24 (NLT)]

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September 30, 2014

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Obedience, Salvation: A New You, Sharing Our Faith

JESUS SAVES

9-9-14 Jesus SavesWEBFor “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” [Romans 10:13-15 (NLT)] 

For some thirty-five years, we’ve driven by the “Jesus Saves” rock. To my knowledge, in all of these years, the rock has never been defaced. Granted, it is in rural Illinois, but I still find it difficult to believe that no kids, especially on a Saturday night after consuming too much beer, have been tempted to add the words “at the 1st National Bank” to the sign. Perhaps that speaks to the virtue of small town values or maybe the farmer keeps a few bulls in the pasture below. The paint always looks as fresh as when I first saw it.

9-9-14 Jesus Saves(2)WEBRecently, while driving on a city street, I saw two women holding a sign with the words, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand – Jesus Loves you.” That sign got me thinking about the “Jesus Saves” sign. Although separated by more than a thousand miles, those women and the farmer have much in common. They both believe in Jesus and are not afraid to say so. In fact, they are reaching out to others to share His word.

We probably don’t have a boulder or billboard near at hand and most of us wouldn’t feel comfortable standing on a street corner holding a sign asking people to repent. But, I’m not so sure those two ladies were enjoying themselves in the heat and I imagine keeping that sign freshly painted has gotten a bit tiresome for the farmer. Yet, they are answering God’s call to share His Word. What can we do to join them in their efforts?

God’s plan for enlarging His kingdom is so simple – one person telling another about the Savior. Yet we’re busy and full of excuses. Just remember, someone’s eternal destiny is at stake. The joy you’ll have when you meet that person in heaven will far exceed any discomfort you felt in sharing the gospel. [Charles Stanley]