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Why
We Have A Need For Christ
Need, Need! Everywhere there is need! It is
rare to see a person who doesn't need anything in this world. Though a
person has wealth, houses, lands, wife and children, he needs good health.
Though he has all these things, he doesn't have
peace at all. He is worried because his desires have not been
fulfilled. The whole earth is perplexed. Kingdoms are troubled. Man has
learned to pomp and show. Everywhere there is corruption, adulterations,
and outrages. The whole world is in fear. Every man, every family, every
community, and every nation know what their need is. Even you may have a
lot of needs. The sick needs a physician (Matt
9:12).
The cause for all these things is sin. Suffering,
curse and disease evolved in this world because of sin. God created all
things and saw everything is good. There was joy, gladness, satisfaction
and security; there was communion. When man partook of the tree of life in
disobedience (sin) to God thus separation from God, sin brought curse and
want in the world. Man began to worry. He is still worrying. He could not
get remedy for all things. The little consolation he gets now and then is
illusory like a mirage. He tries to satisfy himself in many ways, but he
doesn't have the real peace. Not understanding the main and important need
is the cause for all these confusions; man is wandering in search of
outward things, but his soul doesn't have rest. A scriptural verse says
"All labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not
filled" (Ecclesiastes
6:7).
Our mind (soul) needs a permanent satisfaction. This
satisfaction is a God-given grace (gift). When our soul is satisfied
then we know that all our needs have been met, and we will get all that we
need. There is a person that can give you all that you need. He is the
TRUE GOD. He is the only person that can meet your needs. We would
like to introduce Him to you. He is very good as well as powerful. He
never tells lies. He has given His own life for you. Don't you need this
person?
Even though you have no need of everything else in
this world, you need Him. You need JESUS CHRIST.
He is the God who came into the world searching for you. He is the only
true Savior. No one else can satisfy you but only He can satisfy you. He
alone can give you peace in this world and in the world to come. Come unto
Him for He is calling you.
"Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy
laden and I (Jesus Christ) will give you rest" (Matt
11:28; John
14:27).
Don't you need this Jesus Christ? If you deny to have
food, water, and air, you will become weak, diseased and finally die.
Likewise if you refuse to have Jesus Christ, you will sin, be in want,
faint and die. This death will put you in the hell fire. The wages of sin
is death (hell). You need Jesus Christ, only Jesus Christ! Believe Him!
Come let us all be glad.
Remission
of Sins
"If we walk in the light, as He is in the light,
we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son
cleanseth us from all sin" (I
Jn 1:7).
"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper,
but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy" (Prov
28:13).
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I
Jn 1:9).
"It is essential for a person to be convicted of
himself as a sinner and believe the gospel and repent for the remission of
sins" (Mk
1:15).
We must admit our convicted sins before God and
confess them to an authorized minister of God in God's presence and obtain
the remission of sins and get the counsel of God through him, for God has
authorized His disciples to remit sins.
Jesus breathed on them, and said unto them,
"Receive ye the Holy Spirit; whosoever's sins ye remit, they are
remitted unto them; and whosoever's sins ye retain, they are
retained" (Jn
20:22-23).
But in these days many who claim that they walk
according to the Bible and their church is being led as per the Holy
Scriptures, hide this prime truth with their hypocritical words which come
out of their mind and teach men to confess their sins in privacy to God in
prayer. Thus they prevent people from obtaining perfect salvation by
introducing the teachings of iron curtain. This is not a true teaching.
The Bible says, "For with the heart man
believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation" (Rom
10:10).
The power of forgiving sins is connected with the
Holy Spirit (Jn
20:21-23). The teachers who have not received the Holy Spirit have no
power to forgive sins. The authority of forgiving sins is the key
which God has given to the church (Mt
16:19, 18:18).
The churches of the beginning confessed their sins in
this manner and were saved (Acts
19:18). This precept is also seen in the old testament (Num
5:6-8).
Remission of sins and baptism are linked with each
other. Only immersion baptism is mentioned in the Bible. Believers ought
to be baptized. They should confess and be baptized.
"Confession" means open solemn
declaration. But the false teachers having no authority to be apostles
change the truth of God and hide the way of obtaining the remission of
sins which is ordained by God, competing with one another, they prevent
people to get the perfect remission of sins and overcome the sins. They
and their followers are living in sins, hypocrisy, distress and
imperfection, having defiled conscience all the time.
God may command peace in an answer to the prayer of a
person who is in distress. But he must confess his sins to an authorized
minister of God. Otherwise, soon he will be troubled with the thoughts of
past sins and his peace will be destroyed. Moreover, he will be instigated
to commit the same sin. Each one can experience this in their own
spiritual life. Controlling ourselves by self-righteousness is not the
Holy life. Holy life is the nature of a born again Christian who is like a
new creature. Only animals are bridled to be controlled. New
character is seen naturally in the new man who is born again. That is
forsaking unrighteousness and walking in righteousness.
God grants new life, peace of mind and victory
over world, flesh and devil in the name of Jesus to those who confess
their sins, and obtain remission of sins. Come unto Jesus through the
straight path.
Are You Good Enough
To Go To Heaven?
Of all the questions you will ask
yourself in life, probably the most important is, Am I good enough to go
to Heaven? The way to find this out is to ask yourself if you have obeyed
the Ten Commandments. Most would answer the question, 'Well, I've broken
one or two, but nothing too serious, like murder, etc.' So let's go
through them and see how you do:
1. 'You shall have no
other gods before Me.'
Is God first in your life? Do you love God above all else? Many years ago,
I purchased a TV. for our children, but the first evening we had it, I
arrived home from work and found that they didn't even bother to greet me.
They were too busy watching television. I turned it off and explained to
them that if they ignored me because they preferred to watch TV. They were
setting their love on the gift rather than the giver, a wrong order of
affections. In the same way, if we love anything -- husband, wife,
children or even our own lives -- more than we love God, we are setting
our affection on the gift rather than the Giver, which is a transgression
of the First Commandment. In fact, the Bible says that we should so love
God that our love for Mom and Dad and brother and sister should seem like
hatred compared to the love we have for the God who gave those loved ones
to us. We are also commanded to love our neighbor as much as we love
ourselves. Jesus spoke of a Samaritan who found an injured stranger,
bathed his wounds, carried him to an inn, gave money for his care and told
the inn-keeper that he would pay for his expenses. We call him the good
Samaritan, but in reality he wasn't 'good' at all, he merely obeyed the
basic command to love his neighbor as himself. That is a picture of how
God expects us to love our fellow human beings. We should love them as
much as we love ourselves...whether they be friend or foe. Have you loved
God with all your heart? Have you loved humanity as much as you love
yourself? You be the judge. Will you be innocent or guilty on Judgment Day
of breaking that Commandment? I'm not judging you -- I'm asking you to
judge yourself before the Day of Judgment. The sentence for breaking this
Commandment is death.
2. 'You shall not
make for yourself any graven image.'
This means that we shouldn't make a god to suit ourselves, either with our
hands or our mind. I was guilty of this. I made a god to suit myself. My
god didn't mind a 'white' lie or a fib here and there -- in fact, he
didn't have any moral dictates. But in truth my god didn't exist. He was a
figment of my imagination, an 'image' which I shaped to suit myself. Is
your god the One revealed in Holy Scripture? If not, then you have made
your own god to suit yourself - you have committed the oldest sin in the
Book. Scripture warns that no idolater will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
3. 'You shall not
take the name of the Lord your God in vain.'
Have you ever taken God's name in vain -- instead of using a four-letter
word to express disgust, you've used His name? Hitler's name wasn't
despised enough to use as a curse word. If you have used His holy name in
that manner, you are a blasphemer and will not enter the Kingdom of God.
4. 'Remember the
Sabbath Day, to keep it holy.'
I ignored this command for 22 years. Even though God gave me the gift of
life, never once did I ask what he required of me. I was guilty of
breaking the Commandment.
5. 'Honor your father
and your mother.'
Have you always honored your parents in a way that's pleasing in the sight
of God? Ask Him to remind you of the sins of your youth. You may have
forgotten them, but God hasn't.
6. 'You shall not
murder.'
Jesus warned that if we get angry without cause we are in danger of
judgment. If we hate our brother, God calls us a murderer. We can violate
God's Law by attitude and intent.
7. 'You shall not
commit adultery.'
Who of us can say that we are pure of heart? Jesus warned, 'You have heard
that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I
say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has committed
adultery already with her in his heart.' Remember that God has seen every
thought you have had and every sin you have ever committed. The day will
come when you have to face His Law, and we are told that the impure,
fornicators (those who have sex before marriage) and adulterers will not
enter the Kingdom of God. Punishment for transgression of this Commandment
is the death penalty.
8. 'You shall not
steal.'
Have you ever taken something that belonged to someone else (irrespective
of its value)? Then you are a thief -- you cannot enter God's Kingdom.
9. 'You shall not
bear false witness.'
Have you ever told a lie? Then you are a liar. How many lies do you have
to tell to be a liar? Just one. The Bible warns that all liars will have
their part in the Lake of Fire. You may not think deceitfulness is a
serious sin. God does!
10. 'You shall not
covet.'
That means we shouldn't desire anything that belongs to another person.
The covetous will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Who of us can say we are not guilty
of breaking these Commandments? All of us have sinned, and just as with
civil law, you don't have to break ten laws to be a law-breaker, so the
Bible warns, 'For whoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet stumble in one
point, he is guilty of all.'
A little girl was once watching a
sheep eat grass and thought how white it looked against the green
background. But when it began to snow she thought, 'that sheep now looks
dirty against the white snow!' It was the same sheep, but with a different
background. When we compare ourselves to the background of man's standard
we look pretty clean, but when we compare ourselves to the pure snow-white
righteousness of God's standard -- His Law, we can see ourselves in truth,
that we are unclean in His sight. That Law is the holy standard by which
humanity will be judged on Judgment Day.
This may sound strange, but the worst
thing you could at this point of time is to try and clean up you lifestyle
-- you realize that you have sinned, so from now on you will keep the Ten
Commandments, do good deeds, say the right things and think only pure
thoughts. But should a judge let a murderer go because he says he will now
live a good life? No, he's in debt to justice and therefore must be
punished.
The Law of God is merely like a
mirror -- all a mirror does is show you the truth. If you see egg on your
face, you don't try and wash yourself with the mirror, its purpose should
be to send you to water for cleansing. Neither should you try and wash
yourself with the mirror of God's Law . . . that's not its purpose.
The sight in the mirror is not a
pretty one, but if you can't face it and acknowledge that you are unclean,
then all that 'dirt' will be presented on Judgment Day as evidence of your
guilt, and then it will be too late to be cleansed.
Perhaps you think that God is good
and will therefore overlook your sins. But if you were guilty of terrible
crimes in a civil court and said to the judge, 'Judge, I am guilty but I
believe that you are a good man and will therefore overlook my crimes,'
the judge would probably respond by saying, 'You are right about one
thing; I am a good man, and it's because of my goodness that I am going to
see that justice is done, that you are punished for your crimes.' The very
thing that many people are hoping will save them on Judgment Day, God's
'goodness,' will be the very thing that will condemn them. If God is good,
He should punish murderers, liars, thieves, etc., and Hell will be their
dreadful fate.
What a terrible place Hell must be.
If you read in the newspaper that a man received a $5 fine for a crime,
you could conclude that his crime was insignificant. But if a man received
multiple life sentences, you could conclude that his crime was heinous. In
the same way, we can catch a glimpse of how terrible sin must be in the
sight of God by looking to the punishment given for it -- eternal
punishment. Ungrateful humanity never bothers to thank God for His
wonderful blessings of color, light, food, joy, beauty, love and laughter,
so He will take those blessings away from them. Instead of proving their
gratitude by obedience to His will, they use His name to curse. Their
punishment will be just but severe to the uttermost. Take the time to read
what Jesus said Hell was like in Mark 9:43-48. I am afraid for you . .
.please, look honestly into the mirror of the Law, then seek the 'water'
that cleanses every sin. If you don't believe what I am saying about the
reality of Hell, it means you think God is corrupt (that He hasn't the
moral backbone to seek justice), that Jesus was a liar, that the Apostles
were false witnesses, that God's promises are nothing but prefabricated
lies, and there is no greater insult to God than to call Him a liar. By
doing so, you are adding to your transgressions. Imagine if you reject the
Savior, die in your sins and find that what I have told you is the Gospel
truth? Then it will be too late, you will be judged for your sins. If that
happens, and your eyes meet my eyes on the Day of Judgment, I'm free from
your blood. I have told you the truth, but if you choose to ignore it your
blood will be upon your own head . . . you will have no one to blame but
yourself.
Can you see your predicament? You are
guilty of sinning against God Himself, and because you have a conscience
you have sinned 'with knowledge.' Isn't it true that every time you lied,
stole, lusted, etc., you did it with knowledge that it was wrong?
Does the fact that you have sinned
against God scare you? It should. You have actually angered Him by your
sin. The Bible says His wrath abides on you, that you are an 'enemy of God
in your mind through wicked works.' But let fear work for your good in the
same way that a fear of jumping out of a plane at a great height would
make you put on a parachute. Let your will to live open your heart to the
Gospel of salvation.
I am not the only one who doesn't
want you to end up in Hell. The person who gave you this tract cared
enough to give it to you and risk your rejection, and God Himself is not
willing that you perish. To make clear what an incredible thing He has
done for you in the Gospel, let's look again to civil law: You are
standing in front of a judge, guilty of very serious crimes. All the
evidence has been presented and there is no doubt about your guilt. The
fine for your crime is $250,000 or imprisonment, but you haven't two
pennies to rub together. The judge is about to pass sentence . . .he lifts
his gavel, when someone you don't even know steps in and pays the fine for
you. The moment you accept that payment, you are free to go. Justice has
been served, the law has been satisfied, and what's more, the stranger who
paid your fine showed how much he cares for you. His payment was evidence
of his love.
That's what God did for you, in the
person of Jesus Christ. You are guilty. He paid the fine 2,000 years ago.
It is that simple. The Bible puts it this way: 'He was bruised for our
iniquities . . . Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law being
made a curse for us . . . God commended His love toward us, in that while
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.'
It was no small thing for Jesus to
die for us. The only thing that would satisfy the demands of Eternal Law
was the suffering death of the sinless son of God. What love God must have
for you! He suffered unspeakable agony, so that you wouldn't have to be
punished for your sins. His sacrificial death and resurrection mean that
you need no longer be in debt to the Law, and God can now grant you
everlasting life if you obey Him -- death no longer has a legal hold upon
those who belong to Jesus Christ.
Two men were offered a parachute
while seated in a plane. The first man was told it would improve his
flight, but the second man was informed that he had to make a 25,000 foot
jump. When the flight struck severe turbulence the first man took his
parachute off because, as far as he was concerned it didn't improve the
flight. But during the same violent turbulence, this second man clung
tighter to his parachute. Each man's motive for putting the parachute on
determined whether or not he would keep it on*. In the same way, the
reason you should 'put on the Lord Jesus Christ' shouldn't be to find
peace, joy, true happiness, to have your marriage healed or your problems
fixed, etc. (to have your flight improved), but it should be to escape the
jump to come -- because of the fact that you have to pass through the door
of death. Then, when the flight gets bumpy (when problems come) you won't
fall away from the faith.
What should you then do? Simply
repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord. Don't
put it off until tomorrow. Would you sell an eye for a million dollars?
How about both for $20 million? No one in his right mind would. Your eyes
are priceless to you, yet they are merely the windows of your soul. Your
life (your soul) is of such value, Jesus said that you should despise the
value of your eye compared to it. He said that if your eye causes you to
sin, pluck it out and cast it from you, for it is better to enter Heaven
blind, than to go to Hell seeing. In other words, of all the things that
you should prioritize in you life, it's not your health, your vocation,
etc., it's your eternal salvation.
Think of a man who has committed
adultery. His faithful wife is more than willing to take him back, so what
is the attitude in which he should approach her? It should be one of
tremendous humility, asking for forgiveness, and determining in his heart
never to even think of committing adultery again. That's how you should
approach God. If you are not sure how to pray, read Psalm 51 and make it
your prayer. Then put your faith in Jesus Christ in the same way you would
put your faith in a parachute. You don't just 'believe' it will benefit
you, you actually trust yourself to it by putting it on. Then, once you
have made peace with God read the Bible daily and obey what you read.
By the way, someone cared enough
about you to give you this tract. Show God you love others by doing the
same for them. Write to us for a free list of unique tracts, books, tapes,
and videos to help you in this respect. Thank you for taking the time to
read this tract. May God bless you -- Ray Comfort, Living Waters
Publications, P.O. Box 1172, Bellflower, CA 90706 . *Condensed from,
Hell's Best Kept Secret, Ray Comfort (Whitaker House).
Evangelist Ray
Comfort and Living Waters Publications
www.raycomfort.com
Save Yourself Some Pain - by
www.raycomfort.com
If there was something you could
do to live forever, would you look into it? Who in his right mind
wouldn't? There is something you can do. Please, give this a
few minutes serious investigation--you have nothing to lose, and
everything to gain.
The Bible says that we will
die because we have broken an eternal law. It says, "the soul that sins,
will die." Let's see if you are a soul that has "sinned." We will do so by
looking briefly at the Ten Commandments. Have you ever told a lie? If you
have, then you are a liar. Have you ever stolen something (value is
irrelevant)? Then you are a thief. Jesus said if you look with lust, you
have committed adultery in your heart. If you hate, then you have
committed murder in your heart. Have you loved God above all else? Have
you made a 'god' to suit yourself (having your own beliefs about God)?
Have you used God's name to curse, kept the Sabbath holy, honored your
parents, or been greedy? Judge yourself--have you broken the Ten
Commandments? Knowing that God has seen your thought-life, and every
deed done in darkness, will you be innocent or guilty on Judgment Day? You
know you will be guilty. So, will you end up in Heaven or Hell? Don't look
to God's "goodness" to save you from Hell. If God is good, He will
punish murderers, rapists, thieves and liars. He is so righteous, He will
punish all sin.
The only thing you can do to
be saved from His wrath, is to repent and put your faith in the Savior,
Jesus Christ. When He died on the Cross, He took the punishment for our
sins. He stepped into the Courtroom and paid the fine for us. Then He rose
from the dead, defeating death. To find peace with God, pray something
like this now: "God, please forgive my sins (name them). I turn from them
and put my faith in Jesus Christ as my Lord and my Savior." Now read the
Bible daily and obey what you read (see John 14:21) -- God will never let
you down. Here now are some important principles that will save you a lot
of pain:
1. Feeding on the Word --
Daily Nutrition
A healthy baby has a healthy appetite. If you have truly been "born" of
the Spirit of God, you will have a healthy appetite. The Bible
says, "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word that ye may
grow thereby" (1 Peter 2:2). Feed yourself every day without fail. Job
said, "I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food"
(Job 23:12). The more you eat, the quicker you will grow, and the less
bruising you will have. Speed up the process and save yourself some pain
-- vow to read God's Word every day, without fail. Say to yourself,
"No Bible, no breakfast. No read, no feed." Be like Job, and put your
Bible before your belly. If you do that, God promises that you will
be like a fruitful, strong and healthy tree (see Psalm 1). Each day, find
somewhere quiet, and thoroughly soak your soul in the Word of God.
There may be times when you read through
its pages with great enthusiasm, and there may be other times when it
seems dry and even boring. But food profits your body whether you enjoy it
or not. As a child, you no doubt ate desserts with great enthusiasm.
Perhaps vegetables weren't so exciting. If you were a normal child, you
probably had to be encouraged to eat them at first. Then, as you
matured in life you were taught to discipline yourself to eat vegetables.
This is because they would physically benefit you, even though they may
not have at the time, brought pleasure to your taste buds.
2. Faith -- Elevators Can Let You
Down
When a young man once looked at me and said, "I find it hard to believe
some of the things in the Bible," I smiled and asked, "What's your name?"
When he said, "Paul," I casually answered, "I don't believe you." He
looked at me questioningly. I repeated, "What's your name?" Again he said,
"Paul," and again I answered, "I don't believe you." Then I asked,
"Where do you live?" When he told me, I said, "I don't believe that
either." You should have seen his reaction. He was angry. I said, "You
look a little upset. Do you know why? You're upset because I didn't
believe what you told me. If you tell me that your name is Paul, and I
say, 'I don't believe you,' it means that I think you are a liar. You are
trying to deceive me by telling me your name is Paul, when it's not." Then
I told him that if he, a mere man, felt insulted by my lack of faith in
his word, how much more does he insult Almighty God by refusing to believe
His Word. In doing so, he was saying that God isn't worth trusting -- that
He is a liar and a deceiver. The Bible says, "He that believes not God has
made Him a liar" (1 John 5:10). It also says, "Take heed, brethren, lest
there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief . . ." (Hebrews
3:12, italics added). Martin Luther said, "What greater insult . . . can
there be to God, than not to believe His promises."
I have heard people say, "But I just find
it hard to have faith in God," not realizing the implications of their
words. These are the same people who often believe the weather forecast,
believe the newspapers, and trust their lives to a pilot they have never
seen whenever they fly in a plane. We exercise faith every day. We trust
our car's brakes. We trust our history books, our medical books, and we
trust elevators. Yet elevators can let us down. History books can be
wrong. Planes can crash. How much more then should we trust the sure and
true promises of Almighty God. He will never let us down . . . if
we trust Him.
I have often heard cynics say, "The Bible
is full of mistakes." It is. The first mistake was when man rejected God,
and the Scriptures show men and women making the same tragic mistake again
and again. It's also full of what seem to be contradictions. For
example, the Scriptures tell us "with God, nothing shall be impossible"
(Luke 1:37). We are told that there is nothing Almighty God can't do. Yet
we are also told that it is "impossible for God to lie" (Hebrews 6:18). So
there is something God cannot do! There's an obvious "mistake" in the
Bible. The answer to this dilemma is to be found in the lowly worm.
Do you know that it would be impossible for
me to eat worms, although I have seen it done. I once saw a man on TV
butter his toast, then pour on a can of live, fat, wriggling, blood-filled
worms. He carefully took a knife and fork, cut into his moving meal, and
ate it. It made me feel sick. It was disgusting. The thought of
chewing cold, live worms is so repulsive, so distasteful, I can candidly
say it would be impossible for me to eat them, even though I have
seen it done. It is so abhorrent, I draw on the strength of the word
"impossible" to substantiate my claim.
Lying, deception, bearing false witness,
etc., is so repulsive to God, so disgusting to Him, so against His holy
character, that the Scriptures draw on the strength of the word
"impossible" to substantiate the claim. He cannot, could not, and would
not lie.
That means that in a world where we are
continually let down, we can totally rely on, trust in, and count on His
promises. They are sure, certain, indisputable, true, trustworthy,
reliable, faithful, unfailing, dependable, steadfast, and an anchor for
the soul. In other words, you can truly believe them, and because of that,
you can throw yourself blindfolded and without reserve, into His mighty
hands. He will never, ever, let you down. Do you believe that?
3. Evangelism -- Our Most Sobering
Task
It was late in December, 1996. A large family gathered in Los Angeles for
the joyous occasion of wrapping Christmas presents. It was a big family
because it was the product of two marriages. There were so many gathered
that night, five of the children slept in the garage. It was a converted
structure, kept warm during the cold night by an electric heater which sat
by the door.
During the early hours of the morning, the
heater suddenly burst into flames, blocking the doorway. In seconds the
room became a blazing inferno. The frantic 911 call revealed the
unspeakable terror of the moment. One of the children could be heard
screaming, "I'm on fire!" The distraught father vainly rushed into
the flames to try and save his beloved children. He received burns to 50%
of his body. Tragically, all five of the children burned to death. They
died because steel bars on the windows of the garage thwarted their
escape. There was only one door, and that was stopped by the flames.
You are back in time. It's minutes before
the heater burst into flames. You peer through the darkness at the
peaceful sight of five sleeping youngsters. You know that at any moment
the room is going to erupt into an inferno and burn the flesh of horrified
children. Can you in good conscience walk away? No! You must
awaken them, and warn them to run from that death trap!
The world sleeps peacefully in the darkness
of ignorance. There is only one Door by which they may escape death. The
steel bars of sin prevent their salvation, and at the same time call for
the flames of Eternal Justice. What a fearful thing Judgment Day will be!
The fires of the wrath of Almighty God will burn for eternity. The Church
has been entrusted with the task of awakening them before it's too late.
We cannot turn our backs and walk away in complacency. Think of how the
father ran into the flames. His love knew no bounds, and our devotion
to the sober task that God has given us will be in direct proportion to
our love for the lost. There are only a few who run headlong into the
flames to warn them to flee (Luke 10:2). Please be one of them. We
really have no choice. The Apostle Paul said, "Woe is unto me, if I preach
not the Gospel" (1 Corinthians 9:16).
It was the "Prince of Preachers," Charles
Spurgeon, who said the words, "Have you no wish for others to be saved?
Then you are not saved yourself. Be sure of that." A Christian cannot
be apathetic about the salvation of the world. The love of God in him will
motivate him to seek and save that which is lost.
You probably have a limited amount of time
after your conversion to impact your unsaved friends and family with the
Gospel. After the initial shock of your conversion, they will put you in a
neat little ribbon-tied box, and keep you at arm's length. So it's
important that you take advantage of the short time you have while you
still have their ears.
Here's some advice that will save you a
great deal of grief. As a new Christian, I did almost irreparable damage
by acting like a wild bull in a crystal showroom. I bullied my mom, my
dad, and many of my friends into making a "decision for Christ". I was
sincere, zealous, loving, kind, and stupid. I didn't understand that
salvation doesn't come through making a "decision," but through
repentance, and repentance is God-given (see 2 Timothy 2:25). The
Bible teaches that no one can come to the Son unless God "draws" him. If
you are able to get a decision but they have no conviction of sin, you
will almost certainly end up with a still-born on your hands.
In my "zeal without knowledge" I actually
inoculated the very ones I was so desperately trying to reach. There is
nothing more important to you than the salvation of your loved ones, and
you don't want to blow it. If you do, you may find that you don't have a
second chance. Fervently pray for them, thanking God for their salvation.
Let them see your faith. Let them feel your kindness, your
genuine love, and your gentleness. Buy gifts for no reason. Do chores when
you are not asked to. Go the extra mile. Put yourself in their position.
You know that you have found everlasting life. Death has lost its
sting! Your joy is unspeakable -- but as far as they are concerned,
you have been brain-washed. You have become part of a weird sect. So your
loving actions will speak more loudly than ten thousand eloquent sermons.
It is because of these thoughts that you
should hold back from verbal confrontation until you have knowledge
that will guide your zeal. Pray for wisdom and for a sensitivity to God's
timing. You may have only one shot, so make it count. Keep your cool. If
you don't, you may end up with a lifetime of regret. Believe me. It
is better to hear a loved one or a close friend say, "Tell me about your
faith in Jesus Christ," rather than you saying, "Sit down. I want to talk
to you."
It is important to realize that we should
share our faith with others whenever we can. The Bible says that
there are only two times we should do this -- "in season and out of
season" (2 Timothy 4:2). The Apostle Paul pleaded for prayer for
his own personal witness. He said, ". . . that utterance may be given unto
me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the
Gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak
boldly, as I ought to speak" (Ephesians 6:19-20).
Remember that you have the sobering
responsibility of speaking to other peoples' loved ones. Many times when
you open your mouth for the Gospel, you may be the answer to the earnest
prayer of another Christian. Perhaps he has cried out to God that He would
use a faithful witness to speak to his beloved mom or dad, and you
are that answer to prayer. You are that true and faithful witness that God
wants to use.
Never lose sight of the world and all its
pains. Keep the fate of the ungodly before your eyes. Too many of us
settle down on a padded pew and become introverted. Our world becomes a
monastery without walls. Our friends are confined solely to those
within the Church, when Jesus was the "friend of sinners." So take the
time to deliberately befriend them for the sake of their salvation.
Remember that each and every person who dies in their sins has an
appointment with the Judge of the Universe. Hell opens wide its terrible
jaws. There is no more sobering task than to be entrusted with the Gospel
of Salvation -- working with God for the eternal well-being of dying
humanity.
4. Prayer -- "Wait For A Minute."
It has been well said that God always answers prayer.
Sometimes He says, "Yes." sometimes He says, "NO." Sometimes He says,
"Wait for a minute," and a day to the Lord is a thousand years to us (2
Peter 3:8). That means that a ten year wait for us, is 14 minutes and 24
seconds to God, so ask in faith, but rest in peace-filled patience.
Surveys show that more than 90% of America prays daily.
No doubt they pray for health, wealth, happiness, etc. They also pray when
grandma gets sick, and when grandma doesn't get better (or dies), many end
up disillusioned, and some end up bitter. This is because they don't
understand what the Bible says about prayer. It teaches that sin will stop
God even hearing your prayer (Psalm 66:18). It teaches, among other
things, that if we pray with doubt, we will not get an answer (James
1:6-7).
Here's how to be heard.
1. Pray with faith (Hebrews 11:6).
2. Pray with clean hands and a pure heart
(Psalm 24:3-4).
3. Pray genuine heart-felt prayers, rather
than vain repetitions (Matthew 6:7).
4. Make sure that you are praying to the
God revealed in the Holy Scriptures (Exodus 20:3-6).
How do you "pray with faith?" Someone once said to me,
"Ray, you're a man of great faith in God," thinking that they were paying
me a compliment. They weren't If I said to you, "I'm a man of great faith
in my doctor? It's to the doctor. If I have great faith in him, it means
that I see him as being a man of integrity, a man of great ability -- that
he is trustworthy. I give "glory" to the man through my faith in him. The
Bible says that Abraham "staggered not at the promise of God through
unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, being fully
persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able to also perform" (Romans
4:20-21). Abraham was a man of great faith in God. Remember, that is not a
compliment to Abraham. He merely caught a glimpse of God's incredible
ability, His impeccable integrity, and His wonderful faithfulness to keep
every promise He makes. His faith gave "glory" to a faithful God.
As far as God is concerned, if you belong to Jesus, you
are a VIP. You can boldly come before the throne of Grace (Hebrews 4:16).
You have access to the king, because you are the son or daughter of the
king. When you were a child, did you have to grovel to get your needs
met by your mom or dad? I hope not.
So, when you pray, don't say, "Oh God, I hope you
will supply my needs." Instead say something like, "Father, thank you that
you keep every promise You make. Your Word says that you will
supply all my needs according to Your riches in glory, by Christ
Jesus (Philippians 4:19). Therefore, I thank you that you will do this
thing for my family. I ask this in the wonderful name of Jesus. Amen"
It was the great missionary, Hudson Taylor, who said,
"The prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity. If we want to
see Divine power wrought in the place of weakness, failure, and
disappointment, let us answer God's standing challenge, 'Call unto me, and
I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things of which thou
knowest not of.'"
How do you get "clean hands and a pure heart?" Simply by
confessing your sins to God, through Jesus Christ. His blood cleanses from
all sin (1 John 1:7-9). When you confess them to God through Jesus, God
will not only forgive your every sin, He promises to forget that
sin (Hebrew 8:12). He will even justify you, on the grounds of the
sacrifice of the Savior. That means He will count it as though you have
never sinned in the first place. He will make you pure in His sight --
sinless. he will even "purge" your conscience, so that you will no longer
have that sense of guilt that you sinned in the first place. That's what I
mean "to be justified by faith." That's why you need to soak yourself in
Holy Scripture -- to read the letters to the churches and see the
wonderful things that God has done for us through the Cross of Calvary. If
you don't bother to read the will, you won't have any idea of what has
been left for you.
How do you pray "genuine heart-felt prayers?" Simply by
keeping yourself in the love of God. If they love of God is in you, you
will never pray hypocritical, or selfish prayers. In fact, you won't have
to pray selfish prayers, if you have a heart of love. When your
prayer-life is pleasing to God, the Bible says that He will reward you
openly (Matthew 6:6).
How do you know that you are praying to "the God
revealed in Holy Scripture?" Study the Word. Don't accept the image of God
portrayed by the world, even though it appeals to the natural mind. A
loving, kind fatherly-figure, with no sense of justice or truth appeal s
to guilty sinners. Look to the thunderings and lightnings of Mount Sinai.
Gaze at Jesus on the cross of Calvary -- hanging in unspeakable agony
because of the Justice of a holy God. Such thoughts tend to banish
idolatry.
5. Warfare -- Praise The Lord and Pass the
Ammunition
When you became a Christian, you stepped right into the
heat of an age-old battle. You have a three-fold enemy--the world, the
flesh, and the devil. Before you became a Christian, you floated down
stream with the other dead fish. But now, God has put His life within you,
and you will find yourself swimming against a three-fold current. Let's
look at these three resistant enemies.
First, the world. When the Bible speaks of the "world"
in this context, it is referring to the sinful, rebellious, world system.
This is the world that loves the darkness and hates the light (John 3:20),
governed by the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4)( -- the "prince
power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2). The Bible says the Christian has
escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. "Lust" is
unlawful desire, and is the life's blood of the world --whether it be the
lust for sexual sin, for power, for money, for material things. Lust is a
monster that will never be gratified, so don't feed it. It will grow
bigger and bigger, until it weighs heavy upon your back, and will be the
death of you -- see James 1:15.
There is nothing wrong with sex, power, money, or
material things, but when these become predominant in God's sight, the
Bible calls this "inordinate affection" (Colossians 3:5). We are told,
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man
loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him . . . whoever is a
friend of the world is an enemy of God" (1 John 2:15, James 4:4).
The second enemy is the devil. As we have seen, he is
known as the "god of this world." He was your spiritual father before you
joined the family of God (John 8:44, Ephesians 2:2. Jesus called the devil
a thief, who came to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10).
The way to overcome him and his demons is to make sure
you are outfitted with the spiritual armor of God listed in Ephesians
6:10-20. Become intimately familiar with it. Sleep in it. Never take it
off. Bind the two-edged sword to your hand so that you never lose its
grip. The reason for this brings us to the third enemy.
The third enemy is what the Bible calls the "flesh."
This is your sinful nature. The domain for the battle, is your mind.
If you have a mind to, you
will be attracted to the world and all its sin. The mind is the
data-processing control panel for the eyes and the ears. It is the center
of your appetites. All sin begins in the "heart" (Proverbs 4:23, Matthew
15:19). We think before we sin. This happens because we don't think
before we sin. The Bible warns that lust brings forth sin, and sin when
it's conceived brings forth death. Every day we have life, we have a
choice. To sin or not to sin -- that is the question. The answer to the
question of sin, is the fear of God. If you don't fear God, you will sin
to your sinful heart's delight.
Did you know that God kills people? He killed a man
because he didn't like what he did sexually (Genesis 38:10). He killed a
husband and wife because they told just one lie (Acts 5:1-11). Knowledge
of God's goodness -- His righteous judgments against evil, should put the
fear of God in us, and help us not to indulge in sin.
If we know that the eye of the Lord is in every place
beholding the evil land the good, and that He will bring every work to
judgment, we will live accordingly. Such weighty thoughts are valuable,
for "by the fear of the Lord, men depart from evil" (Proverbs 16:6). Jesus
said,
"And I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid of those
who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I
will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him, who after He has killed, has
power to cast into Hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!" (Luke 12:4-5).
6. Fellowship -- Flutter by Butterfly
Pray about where you should fellowship. Make sure the
place you are going to call your church home calls sin what it is -- sin.
Do they believe the promises of God? Are they loving? Does the pastor
treat his wife with respect? Is he a man of the Word? Does he have a
humble heart, and a gentle spirit? Listen closely to his teaching. It
should glorify God, magnify Jesus, and edify the believer. One evidence
that you have been truly saved is that you will have a love for other
Christians (1 John 3:14). You will want to fellowship with them. The old
saying that "birds of a feather flock together" is true of Christians. You
gather together for the breaking of bread (communion), for teaching from
the Word, and for fellowship. You share the same inspirations,
illuminations, inclinations, temptations, aspirations, motivations, and
perspirations -- you are working together for the same thing, for the
furtherance of the Kingdom of God on earth. This is why you attend church
-- not because you have to, but because you want to.
Don't become a "spiritual butterfly." Send your roots
down. If you are moving from church to church, how I will your pastor know
what type of food you are digesting? The Bible says that your shepherd
will have to give an account to Him that has entrusted you to him (Hebrews
13:17), so make yourself known to your pastor. Pray for him regularly.
Pray also for his wife, his family, and the elders. Being a pastor is no
easy task. Most people don't realize how many hours it takes to gather a
fresh sermon each week. They don't appreciate the time spent in prayer and
in the study of the Word. If the pastor makes the same joke twice, or
shares something he has shared before, remember, he's human. So give him a
great deal of grace, and double honor. Never murmur about him. If you
don't like something he has said, pray about it, then leave the issue with
God. If that doesn't satisfy you, leave the church, rather than divide it
through murmuring and complaining.
A woman once spread some hot gossip about a local
pastor. What he had supposedly done became common knowledge around town.
Then she found that what she had heard wasn't true. She gallantly went to
the pastor, and asked for his forgiveness. The pastor forgave here, but
then told her to take a pillow full of tiny feathers to a corner of the
town, and in high winds, shake the feather out. Then he told her to try
and pick up every feather. He explained that the damage had already been
done. She had destroyed his good reputation, and trying to repair the
damage was like trying to pick up feathers in high winds.
The Bible says that there is life and death in the power
of the tongue. We can kill or make something alive with our words. The
Scriptures also reveal that God hates those who cause division among the
brethren (Proverbs 6:16). Pray with the psalmist, "Set a watch O Lord,
before my mouth; keep the door of my lips."
Remember the old saying, "He that gossips to you,
will gossip about you."
7. Thanksgiving -- Do the Right Thing
For the Christian, every day should be Thanksgiving Day.
We should even be thankful in the midst of problems. The Apostle Paul
said, "I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation" (2 Corinthians
7:4). He knew that God was working all things together for his good, even
though he was going through trials (Romans 8:28).
Problems will come your way. God will see to it
personally that you grow as a Christian. He will allow the storms, to send
your roots deep into the soil of His Word. We pray more in the midst of
problems, but it's been well said that you will see more from your knees,
than you will on your tip toes.
A man once watched a butterfly struggling to get out of
its cocoon. In an effort to help it, he took a razor blade, and carefully
slit the edge of the cocoon. The butterfly escaped form its problem . . .
and immediately died.
It is God's way to have the butterfly struggle. It is
the struggle that causes its tiny heart to beat fast, and send the life's
blood into its wings.
Trials have their purpose. They make us struggle -- they
bring us to our knees. They are the cocoon in which we often find
ourselves. It is there that the life's blood of faith in God helps us
spread our wings.
Faith and thanksgiving are close friends. If you have
faith in God, you will be thankful because you know His loving hand is
upon you, even though you are in a lion's den. That will give you a deep
sense of joy, and joy is the barometer of the depth of faith you have in
God. Let me give you an example. Imagine if I said I would give you one
million dollars if you ripped out the last page of this booklet, and
mailed it to me. Of course, you don't believe that I would do that. But
imagine if you did. Imagine if you had knowledge of more than 1,000 people
who had sent in the page, and every one received their million dollars --
no strings attached. More than that. You had actually called me, and I had
assured you personally that I would keep my word. If you believed me,
wouldn't you have joy? If you didn't believe me -- no joy. The amount
of joy you have would be a barometer as to how much you believed my
promise.
We have so much to be thankful for. God has given us
"exceeding great and precious promises" that are "more to be desired than
gold." Do yourself a big favor -- believe those promises, thank God
continually for them, and "let your joy be full."
An old farmer once had an ungodly relative visit him.
After the farmer had bowed his head and thanked God for the food they were
about to eat, the relative rudely said, "What did you do that for? There's
no God. We live in an age of enlightenment." The old farmer smiled and
said, "There is one on the farm who doesn't thank God before he eats." The
relative sat up and said, "Who is this enlightened one?" To which the
farmer quietly replied, "My pig."
8. Water Baptism -- Sprinkle or Immerse?
The Bible Says , "Repent and be baptized, every one of
you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. . ." (Acts
2:38). There is therefore no question as to whether or not you >should
be baptized. The questions are how, when, and by whom?
It would also seem clear from scripture that those who
were baptized, were fully immersed in water. Here's one reason why:
"And John was also baptizing in Aenon near to Salim,
because there was much water there. . ."
(John 3:23).
If John was merely sprinkling believers, he would have
only needed a cup full of water.
The Philippian jailer and his family were baptized at
midnight, as soon as they believed. So what are you waiting for?
Who should baptize you? It is clear from Scripture that
other believers had the privilege, but check with your pastor, he may want
the honor himself.
9. Tithing. The Last Frontier.
It was once said that the wallet is the "last frontier."
It is the final area to be conquered -- the last thing that comes to God
in surrender. Jesus spoke much about money. He said that we cannot serve
God and mammon (Matthew 6:24). The word "mammon" was the common Aramaic
word for riches, which is akin to a Hebrew word signifying "that which is
to be trusted." In other words, we cannot trust God and money. Either
money is our source of life, our great love, our joy, our sense of
security, the supplier of our needs -- or God is.
When you open your purse or wallet, give generously and
regularly to your local church. A guide as to how much you should give can
be found in the "tithe" of the Old Testament -- 10% of your income.
Whether you give this amount or not, make sure you do give something
to the work of God (see Malachi 3:8-10). Give because you want to,
not because you have to. God loves a cheerful giver (2Corinthians
9:7), so learn to hold your money with a loose hand.
10. Troubleshooting. Cults, Atheists, Skeptics
If you know the Lord, nothing will shake your faith. It
is true that the man with an experience is not at the mercy of a
man with an argument. Take for example a little boy who is looking at a
heater. His father warns him that it's hot. The child says, "O.K. I
believe it's hot." At that point, he has an intellectual belief that the
heater is hot. When his Dad leaves the room, he says, "I wonder if it
really is hot?" He then reaches out his little hand and grabs the
heater bar with his fingers. The second his flesh burns he stops
believing the heater is hot. He now knows it's hot! He has
moved out of the realm of "faith" into the realm of "experience."
In comes a heater expert and says, "Son, I have a B.A.
in the study of heat. The heater is definitely not hot. I can prove it
to you." The child would probably say, "Mr Expert, I don't care how
many B.A.'s you have. I know that heater is hot -- I touched it!
I'm not in the realm of belief, I'm in the realm of experience. Goodbye."
If you have touched the heater bar of God's love and
forgiveness, if the Holy Spirit has "born witness" that you are a child of
God (Romans 8:16), if you have received the Gospel with "power, the Holy
Ghost and much assurance" (1 Thessalonians 1:5), you will never be
shaken by a skeptic.
When cults tell you that you must acknowledge God's name
to be saved, that you must worship on a certain day that you must be
baptized by an elder of their church, don't panic. Merely go back to the
Instruction Manual. The Bible has all the answers, and searching them out,
will make you grow.
If you feel intimidated by atheists -- if you think they
are "intellectuals," read the book, God Doesn't Believe in Atheists.
It will show you that they are the opposite. It will also instruct you on
how you can prove God's existence, and also prove that the
"atheist" doesn't exist.
Finally, the way to prevent sporting injury and pain, is
to keep yourself fit. Exercise. The Apostle Paul kept fit through
exercise. He said, "Herein do I exercise myself, to always have a
conscience void of offense toward God, and toward men" (Acts 24:16). Do
the same. Listen to the voice of conscience. It's your friend, not your
enemy. Remember the words of Solomon:
"Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the
whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with
every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil"
(Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).
Keep the Day of Judgment before your eyes. On that Day,
you will be glad for the cultivations of a tender conscience.
Thank you for taking the time to read this booklet. I
hope the principles expounded in it have been helpful, and that any
knowledge you have gained from it, will some day save you some pain.
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