Too Bad vs. Too Good

When it comes to the gospel of Jesus Christ, there is no such thing as being too bad or too good. We are all in need of a Savior no matter what we've done in this life. There are those who think that God could never love them because......you could fill in the blank with just about anything you've ever done wrong. Or you could fall into the opposite camp of I'm not such a bad person because.......and list off all of the things that you've done in this life thinking that you really don't need God because you're just not that bad. Both views would leave you hopelessly separated from God. The truth is Christ died for ALL of us. Romans 5:8 says, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." You don't have to be perfect to come to know Jesus as your Savior. We are to come to Christ, as we are, and confess our sin to him and ask for his forgiveness and turn from our sin. It doesn't matter what you've done in the past. Jesus died for ALL of our sin, past, present, and future. Before I came to know Christ I fell into the "I'm not that bad group". I had never murdered anyone, never robbed a bank, and the worst thing I ever did was try to stay out a little past my curfew. I thought that I would be safe because I was a "pretty good" person. In Isaiah 64:6, it says "...all our righteous acts are like filthy rags..." That means you can never do enough good to balance out the fact that we are all sinners. When all is said and done, and our lives are placed in the balance, our good deeds can never tip the balance in our favor. The only thing that will cover our sins is the blood that God's son shed on the cross for us. Ephesians 2:8-9 sums it up for us so well, "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast." So you see, no matter where you are, you can never be so far gone that God cannot save you, or too good, that you aren't in need of his saving grace.

Bullseye!

Many people have heard the word "sin", but I don't know that we all realize the seriousness of sin. The Bible says in Romans 3:23 "For ALL have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God." Later in the book of Romans 6:23, we read that "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." What is sin? Sin literally means "to miss the mark". What is the mark that we are missing? The mark is God's Holiness. In order to experience a relationship with God-We MUST BE PERFECT!! That is what holiness is.
Picture a bullseye. Right smack dab in the middle of that dartboard is a tiny little circle. In order to be perfect you would have to hit that mark EVERY SINGLE TIME you threw the dart. One tiny bit off in any direction would be less than perfect. That's the way it is when we try to measure up to God's perfect standard. There are no "little sins". Just one "little sin" is enough to keep us from having a relationship with God. That is why God sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for our sin. Jesus was the only person that could bridge the gap between sinful man and Holy God. Jesus is the BULLSEYE! You can be kind to your neighbors, help out those in need, go to church, and do all kinds of great things, but the Bible says that "He who stumbles at one point, is guilty of breaking all of it." I have always been a pretty good person, but pretty good isn't good enough. In order to hit the BULLSEYE, Romans 10:9 says, "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."

Just another Sunday

For many people, this will be just another Sunday. A day just like any other day. No different than the rest. For many, it will be another day to fill a seat in church, just like many Sundays before. Many will simply enjoy this day as a day to rest up from a long week, only to face the world again bright and early Monday morning. I hope that you spent the day in worship. A straightforward definition of worship from dictionary.com is:

worship (v) To regard with ardent or adoring esteem or devotion.

Notice that worship is a verb! It is not simply a service that we attend on Sunday mornings. Worship is something that we can engage in at anytime, anywhere. You might conclude, by looking at that definition, that many people are engaged in worship at a concert, football game, or even at the local shopping mall. These are all things that we may find ourself "...regarding with ardent or adoring esteem or devotion." I have certainly been guilty of this type of esteem or devotion, especially when one of my children is playing on sport's teams, giving a piano recital, or playing a special part in a drama. I am NOT a quiet, sidelines mom! My mouth can yell, scream, and cheer with the best of them. The problem occurs when we find ourself thinking about, dreaming about, and focusing all of our attention on a certain object, event, or activity.

Only one person deserves our "..ardent or adoring esteem or devotion." That is God, the Father, who "... so loved the world that he gave His one and only son.." (John 3:16 NIV) Not only did God send His one and only Son, He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins-past, present, and future! Only in Christianity do we find our Savior dying for US! Virtually all other religions hold us responsible for our own Salvation through good works, good deeds, or good living. Isaiah 54:6, says that "...all our righteous acts are like filthy rags..." (NIV) The good news is that you don't have to be good enough-Jesus took care of it all when he died on the cross for our sins. All that is required on our part is for us to admit that we are sinners, and believe that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins. It's that simple!

I hope that you have found Jesus, the "One and Only" as your Savior. If you haven't, email me and I would be glad to show you how you can know MY Savior!!!