Category Archives: Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness

All Powerful / King of All, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Free Will, Grace / Forgiveness, Heaven and Hell, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Lying / Deceiving, Murder, Repenting from Sin, Righteous, Salvation, Sorcery, Through Prophets, Visions, Wickedness / Evil, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

The Final Message

The final message at the end of Revelation should be worth our pausing to consider how it applies. What was the key message at closing of the Bible that YHWH had written through men?

He wants us to know about the prophecy or vision in Revelation. That means that we should spend time on it and try to understand it rather than just ignoring it because “it is too hard”.

YHWH knows some will continue to practice wrong and He will let us have that choice. He will not make us be righteous at the cost of our free will.

Further, when He comes, every man will be rendered reward (or judgment) according to what he has done. Our deeds matter, not just our thoughts or good intentions.

We are reminded that YHWH is the first and the last, all powerful and worthy of reverence.

We are not inherently righteous, but can wash our robes (be forgiven) at no cost to us by accepting Yeshua as LORD and submitting to Him, which means repenting of our sinful ways. We can see a list of a few sinful ways which are specifically called out here, but not assumed to be all inclusive. Note that loving and practicing lying is called out and in our society today we tend to make a lot of excuses about why lying is acceptable.

We are warned not to add to or take away from what is written with dire consequence stated if we do.

We are reminded of the grace of Yeshua.

It is a lot to take in. Dwell on it. Take your time. Reflect prayerfully.

Revelation 22:10-21

The Final Message

      10And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11“Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy; and let the one who is righteous, still practice righteousness; and the one who is holy, still keep himself holy.”

      12“Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. 13“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

      14Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city. 15Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.

      16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

      17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.

      18I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; 19and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.

      20He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

      21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Arrogance, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Humility, Justice / Judgment, Tribulation, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil

Be Humble and Admit When You are Wrong

As we continue to read in Revelation 16, we see YHWH continue to pour out wrath on unrepentant people who are blaspheming Him. They refuse to acknowledge they are wrong and submit to Him, even when confronted with his might and power.

Let us take note not to be like this, even in smaller situations. Let us be humble enough to admit when we are wrong and not hold foolishly to our position in the face of increasing and overwhelming evidence!

Revelation 16:12-21

Armageddon

      13And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs; 14for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. 15(“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”) 16And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.

Seventh Bowl of Wrath

      17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” 18And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. 20And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague was extremely severe.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Fear / Reverence for God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Heaven and Hell, Justice / Judgment, Protector / Deliverer, Salvation, Submitted / Servant, Wickedness / Evil, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Yeshua Wins and Those Who Follow Him

Sometimes it seems the wicked are winning. Things are going their way. However, we can have confidence that in the end, Yeshua and those who follow Him will win. They will be glorified and those who opposed Him will face wrath and judgment. This is not only true for the end times, but also for the passing of every life along the way.

Revelation 14

The Lamb and the 144,000 on Mount Zion

      1Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. 2And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. 3And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth. 4These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 5And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless.

Vision of the Angel with the Gospel

      6And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; 7and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.”

      8And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality.”

Doom for Worshipers of the Beast

      9Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11“And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.” 12Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.

      13And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.”

The Reapers

      14Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was one like a son of man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. 15And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped.

      17And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. 18Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.” 19So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God. 20And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from the wine press, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred miles.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Anger (unrighteous anger), Bitterness / Resentment, Consequences of Sin, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Patience

Let Go of Anger, Jealousy and Bitterness; It Will Consume You

Saul was harassed by an evil spirit from the LORD because of his disobedience. It seems after that he was consumed with jealousy and fear. He was no longer rational. He just wanted to “get David”. It would seem this could serve as a warning for us also. We may not want to kill someone, but we can be vulnerable to jealousy and irrational desire to “get even” or “beat someone”. It can lead us in a bad direction, lead us away from the LORD. Rather, we should seek the LORD’s help to overcome any anger, jealousy or bitterness toward others. It only consumes us if we let it remain.

1 Samuel 22:6-23

      6Then Saul heard that David and the men who were with him had been discovered. Now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing around him. 7Saul said to his servants who stood around him, “Hear now, O Benjamites! Will the son of Jesse also give to all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? 8“For all of you have conspired against me so that there is no one who discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you who is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me to lie in ambush, as it is this day.” 9Then Doeg the Edomite, who was standing by the servants of Saul, said, “I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. 10“He inquired of the LORD for him, gave him provisions, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”

      11Then the king sent someone to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s household, the priests who were in Nob; and all of them came to the king. 12Saul said, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.” And he answered, “Here I am, my lord.” 13Saul then said to him, “Why have you and the son of Jesse conspired against me, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him, so that he would rise up against me by lying in ambush as it is this day?”

      14Then Ahimelech answered the king and said, “And who among all your servants is as faithful as David, even the king’s son-in-law, who is captain over your guard, and is honored in your house? 15“Did I just begin to inquire of God for him today? Far be it from me! Do not let the king impute anything to his servant or to any of the household of my father, for your servant knows nothing at all of this whole affair.” 16But the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s household!” 17And the king said to the guards who were attending him, “Turn around and put the priests of the LORD to death, because their hand also is with David and because they knew that he was fleeing and did not reveal it to me.” But the servants of the king were not willing to put forth their hands to attack the priests of the LORD. 18Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn around and attack the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned around and attacked the priests, and he killed that day eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. 19And he struck Nob the city of the priests with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and infants; also oxen, donkeys, and sheep he struck with the edge of the sword.

      20But one son of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. 21Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the LORD. 22Then David said to Abiathar, “I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have brought about the death of every person in your father’s household. 23“Stay with me; do not be afraid, for he who seeks my life seeks your life, for you are safe with me.”

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Learning To Pray Effectively, Loving / Kind, Merciful, Repenting from Sin, Salvation, Submitted / Servant

Steps To Peace With YHWH

Do you experience peace and joy in your life based on a foundation of your relationship with our Creator, YHWH? Do you want to share your faith more confidently and effectively with others?  Please consider the following resource from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

The Christian Life and Witness Course is a course that is designed to help provide people with a basic foundation of living for Christ and also how to witness and share their faith with others effectively. The material is good, even if ordered off the BGEA association website and conducted offline personally via DVD training instead of face-to-face training. I recommend it and there is much more to it than what I share here in this article. Please click on the link above in this article to check it out in more detail.

I will highlight in today’s article just one of the summary resources to help communicate key concepts and peak your interest. There is a very nice summary booklet to guide a discussion with non believers about your faith in Christ and also to check your own relationship with Christ along the way. It is a booklet titled Steps To Peace With God.

Step 1: God’s Purpose: Peace and Life

God loves you and wants you to experience peace and life – abundant and eternal.

“We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

“I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10

We must ask ourselves… “Why don’t most people have this peace and abundant life that God planned for us to have?” Even most of us who identify as Christians do not have this peace and abundant life!

Step 2: The Problem: Our Separation

God created us in His own image to have an abundant life. He did not make us as robots to automatically love and obey Him. God gave us a will and freedom of choice.

We choose to disobey God and go our own willful way. We still make this choice today. This results in separation from God.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

Our choice (sin) results in separation from God (holy).

Our Attempts To Reach God

People have tried in many ways to bridge this gap between themselves and God…

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” Proverbs 14:12

“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:2

No bridge made by man can reach God… not good works, not religion, not philosophy, not morality. Only one bridge can reach God.

Step 3: God’s Bridge – The Cross

Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose from the grave. He paid the penalty for our sin and bridged the gap between God and people.

“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy 2:5

“For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” 1 Peter 3:18

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

God has provided the only way… Each person must make a choice…

Step 4: Our Response – Receive Christ

We must trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20

“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” John 1:12

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

Where are you? Are you separated from God, in sin, rebellion, and separation? or have you received Jesus as a bridge to be reconciled with God and now experiencing peace, forgiveness, abundant life, and eternal life?

Will you receive Jesus Christ right now?

    1. Admit your need. (I am a sinner).
    2. Be willing to turn from your sins (repent).
    3. Believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross and rose from the grave.
    4. Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit. (Receive Him as Lord and Savior.)

An example of how to pray

Dear Lord Jesus,

I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior.

In Jesus name, Amen.

God’s Assurance: His Word

“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13

Did you sincerely ask Jesus Christ to come into your life? Where is He right now? What has He given you?

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Receiving Christ, we are born into God’s family through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit who indwells every believer. This is called regeneration, or the “new birth.”

“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:12-13

This is just the beginning of a wonderful new life in Christ. To deepen this relationship you should:

  1. Read your Bible every day to know Christ better.
  2. Talk to God in prayer every day.
  3. Tell others about Christ.
  4. Worship, fellowship, and serve with other Christians where Christ is preached according to the Bible.
  5. As Christ’s representative in a needy world, demonstrate your new life by your love and concern for others.

I encourage you again to consider reviewing the full training course material from BGEA using the link at the beginning of the article. May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

WIN_20160727_20_38_34_Pro

WIN_20160727_20_35_17_Pro

*Pictures and much of the content shared is from BGEA Steps to Peace With God booklet.

All Powerful / King of All, Eternal, Father / Yahweh, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Salvation

YHWH Is, Was, and Will Be. In Him We Find Grace and Peace

As we take our time digesting the introduction to Revelation, we are reminded of some fundamentals we should keep in our thoughts as we learn what the LORD has to say.

The grace of YHWH to give us what we do not deserve should be ever present in the minds of His followers. So, too, the peace that comes with knowing Christ as our Savior. These are things to be valued.

YHWH is eternal. He is. He was. He will be. He is the alpha and the omega, the first and the last… and everything in between. There is nothing that exists without Him. He is king of the universe.

Yeshua is the faithful witness and firstborn of the resurrection and ruler over the kings of earth. He released us from our sin through His blood on our behalf. He made us to be a kingdom and priests to the Father. We should give Him glory and expect His return, in dramatic fashion

Revelation 1:4-8

Message to the Seven Churches

      4John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— 6and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

      8“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Church / Body of Christ, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Loving / Kind, Merciful, Peace / Rest, Submitted / Servant, Wickedness / Evil

May Mercy, Peace, and Love Be Multiplied Among You

The greeting of Jude itself is very compelling to me. Jude identifies as a bond-servant of Christ. A servant is submitted to his master, not trying to be the master and live his own way. A bond-servant means one devoted for life, not just for awhile, and devoted by choice rather than being forced.  One became a bond-servant after being released as a servant after some years of service and making a choice to come back and serve the master for life.

Although we will not cover it today, the remainder of the chapter is focused on a warning about the ungodly. Jude, however, is not writing this letter to the lost and wicked people of the world. He is speaking to those who call themselves followers of Christ. Yes, we as followers of Christ, are the audience for much of the warnings to avoid living ungodly lives or rebelling against YHWH. We should each take care to heed the warning as if personally directed at us and prayerfully reflect on whether or not we need to change. Do not dismiss this as a warning meant for “those other people”.

Jude knows the value of peace and mercy and love. As sinners in need of forgiveness, we know we need mercy from our Father. Mercy is to not receive what we deserve. YHWH grants us mercy through Christ by allowing us a means to be reconciled to Him. He offered His son Yeshua because the sacrifice needed to be perfect. We can know in this that He loves us. When we receive His mercy, and recognize His love, we can find true peace through Yeshua.

Jude 1:1-3

The Warnings of History to the Ungodly

      1Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,
To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ: 2May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Father / Yahweh, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Idols / False Gods, Interceding for Others, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Prayer, Righteousness / Serving God, Salvation, Satan, Sin

Key Points From 1 John In His Own Words

John summarizes and emphasizes why he wrote the letter to his audience. It is a good summary from his own perspective.

1 John 5:13-21

This Is Written That You May Know

      13These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.

      16If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this. 17All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death.

      18We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. 19We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 20And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

      21Little children, guard yourselves from idols.

Quick recap… We who submit to and follow Yeshua have eternal life. We know he hears us when we ask anything according to his will and that we will have what we request. Let us take care not to overlook the phrase “according to his will”. It is not about God being at our beck and call to deliver everything according to our will.

When we read the section about sin leading to death and not leading to death, we should remember that the penalty for all sin is death, but through Christ our sins can be forgiven and thus not lead to death… but only through Christ. John seems to be encouraging us to pray for others who we see sinning and the prayers will be answered, if it is according to God’s will. But we should take care also to remember the “unpardonable” sin Yeshua describes… this is the sin leading to death.

Matthew 12:30-32

The Unpardonable Sin

      30“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

      31“Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 32“Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

It is another opportunity for prayer and study to try to understand this unpardonable sin. I think it is often understood to be the continuing rejection of the Holy Spirit. When we couple this with the use of the term “brother” it seems that this is a description of seeing a brother or sister in Christ sinning, but not rejecting the Spirit. We pray for them to be forgiven of this and they will be according to God’s will.

We are encouraged again as John approaches his closing to trust in God who will keep us and we are warned that this world lies in the power of the evil one. Let us not expect righteousness and godliness from the world.  We are reminded that Yeshua came so that we could better know the Father and there is one last warning about avoiding idols.

Please prayerfully reflect on this and ask YHWH to help you gain clarity and understanding of how to apply it in your life.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Church / Body of Christ, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Love, Obeying God, Satan, Spiritual Warfare

Christ Is Our Advocate, Let Us Walk As He Walked

I find it interesting that John refers to his audience as “my little children”. I assume this is in relation to his role being a bit like a father to them in teaching and guiding them. It may imply that they are not mature in Christ yet. Many Christians to some degree understand the concept that Christ is our advocate, but let us be sure not to skip over the details. Read carefully and I will highlight some key themes on the other side of the scripture.

1 John 2:1-14

Christ Is Our Advocate

      1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.

      3By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

      7Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard. 8On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining. 9The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

      12I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. 13I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. 14I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

We are to stop sinning. We do not use Christ’s sacrifice as an excuse to go on sinning. However, if we do sin, we can be forgiven through Christ. (Read more on The Message of the Cross.)

If we are to know him, we follow his commandments. We walk as he walked. We do not go our own way or the way of the culture around us, no matter how much they claim to follow Christ. We can compare the actions of the church to his commandments and how Christ walked and know if they are liars or followers of Christ. We are to use discernment, not simply accept everything that is told us by someone claiming to speak YHWH’s word. The Bible is our most reliable source. Read it. Study it. Test everything. Pray for enlightenment and discernment. Pray for boldness and courage to follow the word of YHWH even when other Christians around us do not understand. Just for clarity, Yeshua walked as a Jewish Rabbi, who obeyed the law of YHWH. He did not simply pick and choose which commands he would obey and which he would not. He did not only obey the ten commandments, but also the entirety of the law including such things as celebrating YHWH’s appointed times laid out in Leviticus 23 (and elsewhere) such as Passover, Unleavened  Bread, Tabernacles, etc. (Read more on Understanding the Law – What Does It Mean Today?)

If the Light is in us, we are to love our brother. I think it would be interesting to study further who is my brother, but at a quick review, I will suggest it is the words of Yeshua himself who can clarify best.

Matthew 12:46-50

    46While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother and brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him. 47Someone said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside seeking to speak to You.” 48But Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” 49And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! 50“For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.”

Note that this does not imply we consider everyone living as a brother. We consider those who do the will of the Father as brothers.

Through Christ we can be forgiven and overcome the evil one. In this statement, let us remember there remains an evil one who comes against us. Only through Christ will we find victory. Read more on Spiritual Warfare.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Faith / Trusting God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Obeying God, Repenting from Sin, Seeking God, Sin

Let There Be No Darkness In Us

John brings a strong message in his opening to 1 John. He does not sugar coat it. God is light. There is no darkness. If we walk in darkness, we are not with him… period… no clarifications or exceptions. If, on the other hand, we walk according to his ways, then we not only have fellowship with him, but with each other.

John drives home a second point as well. Let us not say or pretend we have no sin. We do. But let us thankfully acknowledge that he cleanses us from unrighteousness from that sin. However, this does not happen just because we claim Yeshua and keep on sinning, keep on doing things our own way instead of his. That is walking in darkness. It is important for us to admit our sin and ask forgiveness and turn from it and stop walking in darkness. There is also an indication here that makes the case that we don’t need to continue animal sacrifices for forgiveness of sin as Yeshua’s blood cleanses us of all sin. (However, let us not forget that sin offering was only one of several types of sacrifices laid out in the Torah for YHWH’s people. It is an interesting study to consider the others, but not for today.)

 1 John 1:5-10

God Is Light

      5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.