HEART OF THE MATTER

Tag: sin

  • BE THE ONE.

    BE THE ONE.

    I remembered that I wanted to be a part of the world. I made it my business to fit in with what my family and friends were doing so I wouldn’t stand out. It looked like fun, and they said it was fun, so I wanted in. I wanted to be one in the crowds, because even if they were heading down a dead-end road, at least I wasn’t by myself. The wild parties, the clubs, the talk, and the walk fit perfectly in the life of those heading for destruction. The only defense I would’ve had on the Day of Judgment was that at least I ain’t the only one. I made the choices, and I suffered the consequences that followed until I cried out to God for something different. I wanted to change the way I walked and talked, and I prayed to God to give me the insight to live right. And he answered. I don’t hold grudges or harbor unforgiveness because I asked God to set me straight, even if I was the only one. And he has removed and is still removing all those things in my life that are unlike him.

    In the beginning, I walked alone. Many didn’t understand the transformation I was going through, and neither did I. It hurt to lose family and friends that I loved, but I had to bear my cross to follow him. I felt the loneliness of being left out until the Lord spoke to me and said, “They are heading for destruction, and if you follow, so will you.” Those tears dried up quickly. I had to remember what I asked God for, and he answered the prayer that I earnestly and honestly prayed. He made what many of us have stated was hard or impossible, possible. God set a standard, and I chose to live by it. There were, and still are, times when I am ridiculed for doing the right thing, which used to bother me, but no more. I realize that now I make people uncomfortable in their sin, the sin that I used to partake in. We can always justify our wrongs with those who are a part of it. I am a light in the darkness, and I intend for my light to shine. I choose to be that one.

    I recall the story in Genesis 18:16-33 when Abraham pleaded with God not to destroy the city of Sodom for the sake of the righteous. God said, “I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and families to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just.” Abraham started with a request of fifty righteous people, “Suppose you find fifty righteous people living there in the city, will you sweep it away and not spare it for their sakes?”  Abraham made the same request again and again, lowering it all the way down to ten. God agreed not to destroy the city if there were only ten righteous people. But ultimately, only one was saved, Lot, Abraham’s nephew, because of Abraham’s right standing with God. Lot and his two daughters lived. Lot did what was right in the Lord’s sight and was spared.

    God calls us into a closer walk with him to save us. Abraham was called righteous because of his faith in God. God is proud to look around and say I have one who is willing to love me with all their heart, soul, and mind. The children of God are no longer slaves of the enemy. We have the Holy Spirit living inside us that has freed us from the enemy’s captivity. Now, when I walk into a room filled with people entangled in sin, I don’t feel the need to fit in. I have been set apart, even if I am the only one. God only needs one to save many. I am proud to be the one. Glory to God for the turnaround.

  • THE SEED, NOT THE DEED

    THE SEED, NOT THE DEED

    Many of us have thought: Why do bad things happen to good people? We view people by the way they live their lives and by the things that they do, which is not wrong from our point of view. We are basing their goodness on their deeds. And not the bare thought of their existence. Many of us strive to do the right things in life because we know in our hearts right from wrong. We have been taught by parents and others what to do and not to do. But our good deeds aren’t enough for us to enter into eternity with God. Our striving isn’t enough to satisfy God, the Father. In fact, it’s when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior that God becomes satisfied. The gift of salvation is given to anyone who will believe Jesus Christ died for our sins. (Romans 5:15-18)

    The other morning, I was preparing for work, and the Lord said to me,” Many ask why good things happen to bad people. There are no good people because it’s not based on deeds, but on the seed. When Adam and Eve sinned and disobeyed God, the bloodline of our lineage was sinful. When they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, their eyes opened. We then make a conscious decision to obey God or not. We gained the ability to see and know. With that came the responsibility of right and wrong choices, because God said, “Let us make human beings in our own image.” Genesis 1:27 NLT)

    Our good deeds are not the key to our eternity; Jesus Christ is. “For everyone has sinned and we all have fallen short of God’s glorious standard. (Romans 3:23) NLT.

    When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, the human race’s bloodline became sinful. Jesus Christ came and paid for the sins of humanity because he wasn’t imparted by man but implanted by God. God implanted Jesus in the Virgin Mary, and not through Joseph. He became the innocent Lamb to pay for the sins of the world.

    In Mark 10:18, Jesus asked his disciple, “Why do you call me good?” Only God is good. Jesus didn’t consider himself to be good because he knew he would soon have to bear the sins of the world and die to recover what had been given away.

    It’s not about the good and the bad but the righteous and the unrighteous, the people who follow Christ and those who don’t. And the righteous are the ones who get the reward, because they believe in God. And without faith we know that it is impossible to please God. (Hebrews 11:6) God didn’t consider Abraham as righteous because of his deeds, but by his belief. His strong faith in God is what brought forth the blessing in Abraham’s life. Abraham believed in God, and God counted him as righteous, along with many others who trusted God.

    Many of us strive to be right in God’s eyes by the things that we do upon the earth, that our good deeds will get us the rewards of heaven, but it is not only our good deeds that help us to achieve. Our obedience to God helps us to encounter his favor. He is pleased by our belief in his son, Jesus Christ, in whom he is well pleased. It was never about the good deed; it was always about the seed. If you believe, you will receive what you achieve in Jesus’ name. When you believe in God, you walk in obedience to his way and in his will.

  • Understanding God’s Greater Grace in Troubling Times

    Understanding God’s Greater Grace in Troubling Times

    God’s grace is greater. Where sin abounds, grace abounds more. (Romans 5:20). In a recent event that I experienced, I heard the Lord say that his grace is greater. Grace is the mercy and the love of God that all people are worth saving to him. “It is not my desire that any should perish but that they all will come to repentance.” (2nd Peter 3:9). God’s grace abounds more where sin is. We see the sin, but God sees the person suffering. The grace of God is gifted to every person, whether a believer or a non-believer. It is through the good grace of God that his love is shared with humanity. His grace is amazing. The people who we are ready to wash our hands of God’s hands are ready to hold them. God’s grace is greater. His grace is what drew sinners to Jesus Christ.” Jesus died for our sins, while we were still sinners.” God’s grace must be displayed through believers whom he has called to be the light. 

    God’s grace is what navigates us through the ups and downs of life. In our times of weakness, his grace is sufficient.” It is his grace that makes us stand under his power, which is greater than anything that comes against us or on the earth. His grace is not earned through the works that we do; his grace is given out of the love that he has for us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son that we may not perish, but have eternal life.” It is the essence of God, pure love, pure motive, pure favor. “He rains on the just as well as the unjust.” (Matthew 5:45). Scripture reveals that God’s grace is greater. His saving grace is what led Jesus to the cross that tore the veil that separated us from God. Now, we have access to God through the righteousness of Jesus. He permitted us to enter in by God’s love, mercy, and grace. It’s not about what you have done, and it is about who God is. His grace is greater than anything that we can face along the way. 

    The woman caught in adultery was shown God’s grace. (John 8:1-11). The townspeople were ready to stone her for the sin of adultery that she had committed. And by the Jewish law, they had the right to cause her death. But Jesus, knowing the sins of all, challenged them by saying, “Let he without sin cast the first stone.” The crowd that stood ready to throw each dropped their stone one by one and walked away. Jesus looked at the woman and said, “Where are your accusers? and neither do I condemn you. He releases her with his grace as he cautions her to sin no more. That is a visible picture of what God’s grace displays. His grace and mercy are greater than any sin we can commit.  Then we begin to understand that the grace of God draws men to him and away from darkness.

    In the process of our growth with God, we are not graded; we are graced in the areas where we struggle. God loves us too much to leave us in despair. His grace for us led Jesus to the cross to pay for our sins and bring us into right standing with God. God doesn’t turn away from those who need him. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16). There is a greater grace that only God gives, which helps us to live.