Category Archives: Salvation

Assurance - Promise, Christian Living, Guests, Salvation

We Got No Business

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It has been a productive Monday as I sit to write for our Tuesday time together. At this writing Larry continues to improve. The 10 days to two weeks on the liver transplant recovery floor as of today is looking like a 5 day stay instead.  The mercy and grace of God is incomprehensible but we are receiving His goodness and rejoicing.  Again thank you for your prayers and your continued ones.

My Journey gave me some good reading this morning.  May I share a portion with you?

“Some of us turn to relationships, hoping the love of another person will determine whether or not we’re lovable. Some of us turn toward careers or other types of achievement to determine who we are and whether or not we’re valuable. Some of us let our past determine our identity–what people have said about us and what the world says about us, whether we’re attractive, or successful, or valuable.  We pretty much let anything and anyone else but God define who we are.

Author Chris Tiegreen has this to say: “Our identity is not made up of the ideas we have formed over the years; it’s made up of whatever God says about us. If He says we are His children then we are, whether we feel like it or not. When He says we are precious to Him, then we are, even if we don’t consider ourselves very precious.

. . . If God says you’re His beloved child, seated with Him in heavenly places, treasured as a specimen of His redemption and glory, cleansed of all sin, and gifted for divine works, you have no business contradicting Him” (indeed, March/April 2006). “

No business contradicting Him.

May I tell you that I am LIKING that a LOT?! I want it to stick with me and make changes in me.  Perhaps you would like the same.  Just a little more from Journey and I’m finished sharing from it for today.

“Ask God to show you what’s true about yourself. Ask Him to let His opinion of you speak louder than the world, louder than your past successes and failures, and louder than what you feel. Read through the New Testament and look for how God’s Word describes the redeemed, and choose to believe what God says is true about you.”

Ephesians 2: (New American Standard Bible)
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
via Ephesians 2:4-7 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

I visited briefly tonight with LaJuanna at her Mother’s visitation. Please pray for the Kotis/Hinton family – the funeral is tomorrow (Tuesday.) Simply put, we have been asked to pray for Susan’s family. For more details click HERE. And there are many others. I am still praying for Megan, Kerri and her family, Kathy and Joe, Elaine, Karen, Dori, and others listed at PFT web page. Click HERE to go there. 

ABBA, thank You again for this ministry, all these dear people, I pray for them to be encouraged and to come to know more assuredly who they are in You; for You to be the ONE who defines us. And we come with each of these named here and on the web page, asking for grace and mercy and help of every kind needed in JESUS Name. Amen and amen.

Blessings!
Kathie

Salvation

Ohio

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I’ve been revisiting a thought since yesterday — well, actually it’s been floating around upstairs for a while. Yesterday I began to ponder sharing it with you all.

ABC

Admit
Believe
Confess

A good acronym. And I am NOT maligning its use. However, I have some concerns, long-standing concerns.

Do people understand what it means to be a sinner?

I’m not wondering do they know they sin. Of course, they know that. We all know that. I’ve not yet met a soul that would say to me they are sinless; that they never say a hurtful word or do a malicious deed. We all know we are not perfect. Don’t we? Seriously, who does not know that?

Romans 1: (New Century Version)
20 There are things about Him that people cannot see—His eternal power and all the things that make him God. But since the beginning of the world those things have been easy to understand by what God has made. So people have no excuse for the bad things they do.
via Romans 1:20 – Passage Lookup – New Century Version – BibleGateway.com.

But, when we bring a person to the ADMIT part of the ABCs of Salvation, do they really understand what it means?

Do they know they are not sinners because they sin, but that they sin because they are sinners?

We don’t need a Savior because of what we do, we need a Savior because of who we are! SINNERS.

And truthfully I think only one question will tell them and us if they know they are a sinner. And here it is:

Do you deserve to die and go to hell for all eternity?

I know from personal experience it’s really hard to admit that. Took me 23 years to get to that place. I spent many years knowing I sinned (said and did wrong things), and knowing that I was not good enough for heaven but surely I was not bad enough for hell.

See what I mean?

Yes, let’s continue to use the ABCs to salvation.  But perhaps we should explain the A part more clearly.

Forgive me if I’m wrong I just don’t think a soul is ready for salvation until he or she KNOWS and is willing to admit that who he (or she) IS (without God’s Gift of Salvation) means he (or she) deserves Hell. Forever.

Have we so adulterated the Gospel to make it ‘user-friendly’ that we are not only not rescuing them from hell but we are actually hindering them from getting to Heaven?

Matthew 23: (New American Standard Bible)
33 “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?
via Matthew 23:33 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

2 Peter 2: (New American Standard Bible)
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;
5 and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
6 and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;
7 and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men
8 (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),
9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,
via 2 Peter 2:4-9 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

Romans 5: (21st Century King James Version)
9 Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
11 And not only that, but we shall also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
via Romans 5:9-11 – Passage Lookup – 21st Century King James Version – BibleGateway.com.

Before I stir up a hornet’s nest, let me add when that candidate is a child, particularly a young child, who has come to us asking how to come to be a Christian, we should greatly rejoice but please tread lightly. Ask LOTS of questions BEFORE the Big Question about hell and listen very carefully to their answers. Perhaps our first response to a young one should be: “That is a great question and I am so glad you ask; so tell me why are you asking?” Dare we forget the little boy who asked where did I come from and the only answer he really needed or wanted was Ohio. 

For U in HIS name,
Kathie

Assurance - Promise, Christian Living, Forgiveness, Repentance, Salvation

What a Prayer!

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The Passage we are about to read comes after Peter and John had spent the night in jail and the next morning the Rules and Elders (Religious Folks) examined them and in the end charged them to shut up about JESUS. Upon their release they gathered with their companions of Faith and reported to them what the Chief Priests and the elders had said.

Acts 4: (New American Standard Bible)
24 And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord and said, “O Lord, it is You who MADE THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE SEA, AND ALL THAT IS IN THEM,
25 who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, said,
‘WHY DID THE GENTILES RAGE, AND THE PEOPLES DEVISE FUTILE THINGS?
26’THE KINGS OF THE EARTH TOOK THEIR STAND, AND THE RULERS WERE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST THE LORD AND AGAINST HIS CHRIST.’
27 “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.
29 “And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence,
30 while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.”
via Acts 4:24-30 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

And the result of that prayer?

Acts 4: (New American Standard Bible)
31 And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.
via Acts 4:31 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

Verses 32 – 34 goes on to say of them that they were —
Of one heart and soul
The apostles were with great power giving testimony to the resurrection of THE LORD JESUS
And there was not a needy person among them.

Sounds Radical. Sounds like what is missing today.

ABBA, help us repent in JESUS Name.

HIS,
Kathie

Assurance - Promise, Christian Living, Forgiveness, Salvation

With, On, and By

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It’s a pretty Monday as I sit to prepare something for our Tuesday time together. And on this pretty Monday I’ve begun to look forward to Sunday when I again, LORD willing, get to lead another Sunday School/Bible Study Class. Our prescribed Text is Colossians 1:21-2:7. It will be good!

Verse 22 in the NASB version has a word that I am looking at with you.

Colossians 1: (New American Standard Bible)
22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach–
via Colossians 1:22 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

Reconciled.

At first blush we would say reconciled means to bring into agreement. Like reconciling our check book with the Bank’s records – we want them to ‘agree’. And when there is agreement, there’s an understanding. I know how much I have to spend, the Bank knows how much and we are both held to that amount. 

Think about that enough, applying it to your relationship with ABBA and you’ll get way excited!

Moving on —  the definition of reconciled is even broader. Like this:

rec·on·cile (rkn-sl)
2. To become compatible . . . .  
via reconciled – definition of reconciled by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia..

JESUS came to earth to make man compatible again with the Creator. He is still doing this.

When we believe, when we trust, when we receive the Gift of Eternal Life given only by JESUS CHRIST, we become compatible with GOD.

What happens when two are compatible? As Southerns say: they get along together. They enjoy each others company.

Are you enjoying GOD’s Company today? Are you and He getting along today?

If not you need to find out why.

There can only be one reason for you and me to not enjoy DADDY GOD’s company — SIN!

And what’s right in the middle of sin?

I

When Believers who have received JESUS within are not enjoying His company, the problem is I. Their focus is I. Their will is all about I. What I want. What I will do. What I won’t do. What’s been done to ME (I). What’s not been done for ME (I). And it’s a miserable way to live.  Isn’t it?

So don’t do it.

Some other words in the verse are holy, blameless and beyond reproach.

Now that’s living!

So lets live today. In JESUS Name lets live!

Numbers 6: (New American Standard Bible)
24 The LORD bless you, and keep you;
25 The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you;
26 The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’
via Numbers 6:24-26 – Passage Lookup – New American Standard Bible – BibleGateway.com.

I hope you are continuing to pray for all those on our Praying for These list. Our Ministry begins with, hinges on, and continues only by prayer.  — In His Name, Kathie

ABBA, my prayer desire continues to be that You will heal Kerri; that You will stabilize and bring to normal her calcium levels; that You will give her a new lease on life here to love and care for her son and family. And my desires continue to be that You will bring Jenny to a full recovery; that You will heal Sandi Leon; that Cindy will see you faithful to her as she grieves – that each day she will more and more focus on what’s next with You. And our IDOK Troops, always remembering them, praying for safety and protection. And other matters too, You know. And, thank You for the gift of faith that keeps on trusting You. Thank You for hope that keeps on smiling up at You when life is hard. Thank You that we know You are good always. Amen and amen in JESUS NAME and only in His name we pray.