The Signs of the Times

Before reading further, I would like you to stop and pray for anyone suffering from loss and injury due to the recent brutality of shootings, wars and other tribulations caused by hate.

Now read and ponder what Jesus told his disciples when they asked about his return, what many now call the Second Coming.

Matt 24:4-14 NKJV

4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you.  5 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.  6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.  8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 

9 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.  13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. 

We have had wars and murders since man’s fall and removal from the Garden of Eden. We can’t blame it on the tool used to commit the crime. It can’t move unless a human uses it and then it will do exactly what the human decides. We can blame it on man’s selfishness and lawlessness. Our desire for the individual rights over all else and then segregating by color, race, creed, financial station, etc. has us in a broken state of affairs. Even in the church we have groups saying their way is the right way and everyone else is wrong. There is a cacophony of voices out there wanting our attention and many are just giving us feel good about yourself lip service.

We have entered the age of false prophets and loose morals. This leads to a very destructive disease, the loss of love for God and others. We must be first and then we bother with others. When things don’t go our way we want to blame someone and find some way to protest the outrage. We think we are entitled to having it and doing it our way. This is no way of showing love. You cannot show love to others if you are only thinking of yourself.

I have a great many friends and family who are not living as Jesus says. Many who are not sure they want to know Him because of all the false prophets out there. I don’t blame them because at one point I was in their shoes. However, once I understood who Jesus really was and accepted Him, I was finally free to be myself and learned to love despite the differences. I have people telling me I’m a Christian that they will listen to even if they don’t agree. Maybe it’s because when I wasn’t a Christian, the ones I did listen to showed me love and did not make me feel Bible thumped. They loved me anyway and still were able to tell me about Jesus. When I accepted Him, they were the ones I ran to for a church. They were the ones I stuck with when their actions and words kept lining up with the Bible and if they did not they had the guts to admit they made a mistake.

What voices are you listening to today? Have you set your goals so they are all about you or are they about helping others? Are you immediately retaliating due to some wrong done to you no matter how big or small? Or are you showing love that can convince people to be better? Are you helping spread the hate mongering and finger pointing that tears us apart or are you breaking the cycle? 

I pray that you chose Jesus and endure with Him to the end no matter what comes your way. God’s Word should be our weapon to change the world.

Functions of the Law

We are under a new covenant with Jesus Christ, but it’s the Law that made us realize we needed Him to save us. It is the Law that helps us understand how to obey Him. It will not save us, that is what Jesus did for us on the cross if we accept it. Once saved we follow the Law only to know how to grow and be like Him, our greatest example of how God intended us to live.

Psalm 19:7-11 NKJV

7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul;

The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;

8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;

The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;

9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;

The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.

10 More to be desired are they than gold,

Yea, than much fine gold;

Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned,

And in keeping them there is great reward.

A quote from Ray Comfort says, “The demands of a holy Law bring us to the foot of the cross and keep us there, trusting only in the grace of God.” The grace is our gift if we accept Christ. We will be forgiven and have a chance to continue on in life under new rules that really set us free from all the bondage our worldly living caused. Don’t despair if this takes time. Just like a child learning to do things, there are steps to be taken on the journey.

Ignorance of the Law is no excuse. Whether you know you broke a law or not, you are still guilty. This goes for any law made by man or by God. God wrote His Law on our hearts and our conscience will bear witness against us. There are moral standards God imprinted upon man when he made him in His image and breathed life into him. No matter what culture you talk to, there are the same ideas. Now some may not see them all the same way and some have tried to stamp out some of the Laws, but the choice is for each person to make. Have you hardened your heart to try and run from these Laws or are you letting them guide you?

Christianity really is a “guilt trip” because it takes you straight to the cross. If you go there and accept Jesus Christ as your savior, all that guilt is removed. You are made new and can start living life the way God intended. However, I would heed what J. I. Parker once said, “Simple assent to the gospel, divorced from a transforming commitment to the living Christ, is by biblical standards less then faith, and less then saving, and to elicit only assent of this kind would be to secure false conversions.”

It’s truly an all or nothing commitment, but it’s the best decision I ever made. Now I march to the tune of God’s Law because I am His child and understand it makes life better, not because it keeps me saved or gets me what I want. Which way are you marching today? I pray you accept Jesus to the fullest and learn to accept the abundant life He offers when we follow Him.

Meditation is Focused Thinking

Phil 4:8-9 NKJV - Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things.

Many people see meditation as an emptying of the mind. This is just emptiness. Nothing constructive or even destructive is going on. Quiet is nice at times, but it is better for the mind to be focused on the right stuff. The Bible tells us to meditate on good things, things that align with how God meant us to live.

Worrying is meditation of the negative kind. You are focused on all the bad stuff going on. Unless you are working on a solution to the problem, stop thinking about it. Especially stop wondering what to do about things you have no control over. If it is the past, you can’t change it.

What you can do is meditate on positive things. No matter how bleak things may look and feel to you, there is some positive there, too. It might even be as simple as someone just giving you a friendly smile, holding a door for you, or saying hi even if you are a stranger. It might be the way the sun hits the dew on the grass. Finding a flower where you did not expect one to grow. The hug of your child even if they were just being bad a few minutes before.

God’s Word is the best thing to meditate on due to all the great promises He has given us if we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. Way before God sent this wonderful gift of salvation to us, He was telling His people to meditate on his word. He told this to Joshua when he took over leading the Israelites after Moses died. Josh 1:8 NKJV - This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Sure this part is based on the old covenant and law, but Jesus came to fulfill that law. If it were not for the Law we would not know what was right or wrong and thus know we were sinners needing a savior.

Never stop meditating on God’s word every day. It is our spiritual food and we need it as much as we need meals to fuel our body each day. Do not just read the Word, but digest it to know how to be prosperous and have good success.