Happy 2015, I hope everyone has plans to celebrate safely tonight. We always plan on getting together with good friends and make a lot of sober noise. As we transition into the new year, I must tell you all that Im very excited about this next year. By December 31st, 2015, we will either be at the end of the Bible or close to it. We will have gone through the entire Bible; we will have, to make it really ironic, heard every word. So, I am very excited to have this outlet and to have at least a few supporters at the current time. Thank you all for taking the time to read at least a little bit of this. If you would be so kind, share this page with your friends. We all need to be reading our Bibles more and reading them properly. The Bible is not just a book that we turn to in hard times but its a book that we live in so we can understand hard times when they come. The Bible is the book on which our faith has its foundation so why not read it often to firm up that foundation. --------- 2 Peter 1:5-8 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ --------- Now its going to sound like Im pushing a New Years resolution for all of you to engage in but consider this. Do you read your Bible regularly? Now, Im not asking if you go to church every week or if your Bible study shares favorite Bible verses every week. Do you read your Bible at a rate equal to how you eat meals? Let me invite you to think about a quote by C.S. Lewis. You are not a body with a soul, you are a soul with a body. Think of that? If you think for a minute your routine of how you take care of your physical body. Wake up early, go for a quick jog, take a shower, brush your teeth, eat breakfast, shave, fix your hair, dress nice, and go to work to be productive up right citizens. Not to mention you live inside so your head doesnt get wet when it rains, you bought a nice mattress so you can get the best beauty sleep, you jog to keep your heart healthy, eat good food to stay fit, and dress in cloths so you arent naked or freeze. (Living in Michigan here) All this we do to take care of our physical body, how are you taking care of your soul? Think of that job that you work. You work there to earn money to buy and invest. Think further on. You want to have good investment so you can retire. You Want to pass down some of that to your children. Eventually, youll be investing in your own grave. Where is your soul going? How are you investing in your soul? Its not really a thing that a monitary investment can help; its not a thing that having an important productive job can save. There is only one source that informs us of who can save our soul. It is the Bible. The Bible is clear on the subject of salvation. Whoever beleives in Him (Jesus) will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:15 The Bible is also clear that the goal of our faith is salvation. ------ 1 Peter 1:8-9 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. ------ As you consider the question of how you are investing in your soul, consider these action steps of salvation that are laid out in the Bible. Admiting that you are a sinner. Romans 3:23, 1 John 1:8, Galatians 5:19-21. Repent of your sins before a Holy God and turn away from them. Mark 1:15, 2 Corinthians 7:10, Acts 20:21. Receive Jesus as Lord of your life. John 1:12 Realize that eternal life is a gift from God. Romans 6:23 Receive Gods gift by faith by taking God at his word. Romans 10:8-11 Read and believe what the Bible says: ------ Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast ------- Express this to God in prayer. Although there is no one prayer that should be prayed, you may want to say something like: Dear God, thank you for sending your son, The Lord Jesus Christ, to pay for my sins on the cross. Thank you that he died for me. I acknowledge that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. I repent of my sins and I receive your gift of salvation by faith. Thank you for loving me enough to save me. In Jesus name, Amen If you already know this, thats great, youve just been reminded of a good way to share it with others. Consider this incredible passion that Peter expresses. ------- Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind. (2 Peter 1:12-15 NASB) -------- Peter says, Read your Bible! Just before this he was encouraging them in many other things. ----------- To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. (2 Peter 1:5-11 NASB) --------- So, as we leave 2014 and step into 2015. Have you been floundering in your faith? Have you not felt confident to share with others because you dont have answers? Have you been meaning to settle down with you Bible in some form and make a habit of not just reading it daily but living in it so you are not short-sighted? As Peter says We have been granted His precious and magnificent promises 2 Peter 1:4 Lets make a habit of reading the Bible this year. If we know the Gospel is so powerful we should evermore desire to be reminded of it especially if we find ourselves evermore forgetting it. Consider this quote from Matt Chandler. -------- From the moment you became a Christian to your last breath on earth, you will need to over and over and over again be regospeled. You will need to be reminded of what God has done for you in Christ. Youre going to look around for the rest your life and going to see those who seem to be farther along than you, those who are more passionate than you about the Lord, those who are more disciplined than you. You have your own struggles in the realm of morality, you have your own struggles in the realm of the life of your mind. You will have your own struggles in regards to your pursuit of God. At times its super high or not high at all. In the middle of that wrestle, what you will need most is to be reminded of the Gospel. We just tend to forget it. ---------- Alright, I think Ive beat it into you enough that we should be reading more , so as a gift, Ill end this with this excellent message I found in my notes from Matt Chandler. Its where I got the quote above. youtu.be/kShmd5BGZpc Have a safe and happy new year. Blessings
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 21:15:37 +0000
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