"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
Some say the purpose of life is the pursuit of happiness. That is too small a thing for the Omnipotent, Magnificent God of Heaven and Earth-the Great I AM, Yahweh. He gave us earthly life and offers us eternal life with Him. The way to the Father is through the Son.
'Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." ' John 14:6
"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." Revelations 3:20
Jesus is waiting for us to ask Him into our hearts to be Lord and Saviour of our souls. Jesus is the ultimate sacrificial atonement for our sins. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1John 1:9 All we have to do is invite Him into our lives.
'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. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.' Romans 10:9-10
Now, once you are saved, you must GROW.
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:1-5
How do you GROW? What do you nourish yourself with? How are you to be certain that you are doing the right thing? Why do you need to GROW?
1 comment:
I have been a believer for about six and a half years now. Athough I am learning that length of years in Christ and level of growth are not necessarily related, I am definitely seeing how much less mature I actually am, compared to where I thought I was say, three or four years ago!
It seems that when we think we understand a certain biblical principle, God uses circumstances that really challenge us and sometimes reveals how shallow our level of understanding of that principle actually is! I am also seeing how progress made can be lost when we don't "abide" in Jesus ... when we begin straying away in thoughts and little thoughtless actions. Or when the amount of time we spend with God, or listening to God, gets less, and less, even if it doesn't totally disappear.
We can only grow so much as we spend time in the Word every day, really praying about what we read and asking God to bring understanding and application of the truths we read into our lives. Otherwise it becomes intellecutual understanding, which is worthless for changing our hearts.
I find it tremendously encouraging to read about how he has changed others' lives, such as in that baptism service. It brings me hope for my family and for the things in my life that still need God's deliverance.
I am thankful for God's promise to all of us that He who began a good work in me will be faithful to complete until the day of Christ Jesus :)
(Philippians 1:6)
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