What are you doing tomorrow? This is a question that many people are asked every day. What are you going to eat, where are you going to go, who are you going to meet. But these are questions that we don’t really know for certain, do we? We don’t know where we are going to go tomorrow for certain because we haven’t gone there yet. If you are driving to a destination, your car might break down and you will not arrive at your destination. 

We don’t know these things because, unlike God, we are not omniscient (all knowing.) We cannot see our future like some kind of science fiction movie plot. We live in the present, not the future, and as such the apostle James taught that these things will happen “if the Lord will.”

James 4:13-15  “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:

Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.”

If it is the Lord’s will, we will go to a certain place. If it is God’s will, the sun will shine or the rain will fall. If it is His will we will wake up the next morning, and begin another new day. Whatever happens will happen according to God’s design and purpose. And we cannot understand everything that God does, and why He does them, “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” 1 Corinthians 1:25.

Take it one day at a time, because each day has enough for you to focus on without worrying about things in the future that haven’t even happened yet. Place your trust and faith in the Son of God that He will take care of your needs and keep you safe. Jesus used an example of the birds of the air, how they don’t plant crops, yet they don’t go hungry because God has provided them with food. The lily flowers, Jesus said, don’t toil over a piece of cloth trying to make themselves clothes, yet all of the clothes that King Solomon had couldn’t compare to their beauty. Instead of worrying about these things, what did Jesus say?

Matthew 6:34  “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

Each day has enough for you to work on in that 24 hours. Tomorrow will take care of itself. Focus on today. You can’t begin building the roof of a house until you first make the walls. You can’t finish a marathon until after you first start it. One. Day. At. A. Time. 

If the Lord will.

In Christ,

Andrew

Goodmorning and welcome in everyone.  Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.

How many times would you continue touching a hot wood stove until you finally learned not to do it anymore?  A little child is growing and it can take them many times to learn how to do something correctly.  When we become a Christian we are born again, becoming children all over again, but we too can also take some time to eventually learn to get things right.  God provides us with the grace we need so that we can overcome problems in our lives and eventually serve him perfectly.  This is truly the goal of a Christian.  True repentance is like training wheels on a child’s bicycle.  Eventually when you learn how to ride, you don’t need them anymore. 

God wants us to go on and to perfection, to the place in our lives where we don’t have to repent from dead works because they no longer exist.  He wants us to attain perfection but it’s going to require practice and commitment, striving to do the will of God from our hearts. Just like other things in life, the more you practice something, the better that you will get at it.  Like a violinist preparing for an upcoming orchestra concert, things require effort on your part if you truly want to achieve something.  If somebody wants a paycheck, then they need to get out of bed and get to work.  If somebody wants to paint their house, they need to pick up the paintbrush.  If someone wants to live the Christian Life, they need to submit to the will of God.

Hebrews 6:1  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works,….

Each of us have been raised in different ways, but I had been taught since I was a very young child that I could never be perfect, and it was pointless to even try.  Later on in life, I realized that this belief was completely contrary to the calling of God in Christ Jesus.  The only thing it did was produce a lackadaisical lifestyle in me.  It produced an underachiever.  Perfection is simply getting good enough at something, that you don’t make a mistake anymore.

But some of us, including myself, are slow learners and it takes a few more attempts in our lives before we can do it perfectly. God wants us to be very forgiving with each other, so forgiving that he taught Peter to forgive others 70 x 7.  How many attempts did it take you to learn how to ride your bike? Some might do it in six tries, while others did it in 3.  For some, it takes even longer, but the important thing is to keep trying, and not giving up.

God’s grace is like a bridge that He gives us, to help us overcome sinful obstacles in our lives,… so that we can eventually get to the place where we don’t need to repent from that behavior anymore.  This is how we become an overcomer, with a portion of God’s grace, and a willing heart that submits to His teachings.  When combined together, these two things will result in an amazing transformation in someone’s life.

Luke 15:7  I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

The very first step of a repentant heart is someone who confesses fault, regretting something that they have done.  This shows a willingness inside a person’s heart that they want to attempt to get things right.  The Apostle Peter was chosen by Christ as one of his first disciples, yet the one that Jesus chose to build his church upon, sinned when he denied Christ before the crucifixion.  He was filled with contrition and regret for what he had done, but even as an apostle, Jesus forgave him.  Peter was even corrected by the Apostle Paul when he separated himself from the gentiles. Each of us can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need, so that we can go forth unto perfection, eventually getting to the point where we need not repent anymore. To overcome sin completely, one must possess Godly sorrow.

2 Corinthians 7:9-10  Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing.  For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

This is the same sorrow that Peter was filled with when he denied Christ.  It’s a sorrow that truly regrets something that you have done, with the intention of self-improvement and going on unto perfection.  A person might be rebuked or corrected, but that doesn’t always mean that they will change.  Lasting change happens because of true sorrow within a person’s heart.  It’s a change that is motivated out of love for God and others.  Although we have grace and mercy in the church, and may make mistakes along the way, the final result that we want to achieve is to completely overcome sin.  We wanted to defeat it and go and sin no more. This is the final goal of the Christian Life.  

Romans 6:1-2  What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid…….

God gives us grace for a purpose, so that we learn from the wrongs that we have committed, and change our ways.  When you continue something it means to proceed with an activity without ceasing, while the desire of a Christian should be to terminate, stop, and discontinue sinful living.  Sometimes this can be as simple as changing your habits, routines, or even your daily schedule.  I’ve always felt that we are habitual creatures, who have a tendency at times to slip into bad routines. This is why we need to refocus on scripture.  To meditate on the things of God and His calling for us, making the attempt to become a good and obedient child.

2 Corinthians 6:1  We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

Our beloved Apostle Paul received forgiveness for his sins, and look at what it did to him. He went through a complete transformation from a Jewish Pharisee to an apostle of Christ.  This would never have happened without God’s grace, and his submission to God’s purpose in his life.

Just like Paul, we want to use God’s grace as an opportunity to please God, and someday, get to the point in our lives, when we can finally remove the….

……Training Wheels

Let’s think about these things for right now, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow.  Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Have you ever been cooking something but in the middle of preparing everything you realized that you were missing an ingredient or two? What did you do? You could either try to run to the store quickly and pick up what you needed, or you can do what many people do, and try to substitute those ingredients for something else.

I have made pancakes for many years, and on some occasions I would start to mix up my first set of ingredients, only soon to realize that I didn’t have any cooking oil left. But I have learned from previous experience that applesauce will make an excellent alternative for oil in pancakes, so I used that in it’s place.

And that is what a substitute is; a replacement or a stand-in for something that achieves a similar result or purpose.

In sports, players are substituted all the time, to either give a player a rest, or if they are not performing well. If you spill something on your bed, you might change out the sheets and blankets with something clean until you get the other ones washed.

Well, the Bible teaches us that all have sinned. There is none that doeth good, no, not one. We have all made mistakes, and are deserving of punishment. But what Jesus did is take our punishment that we deserved, and placed it upon Himself. He took the nails into Himself, suffering so that we wouldn’t have to. 

Philippians 2:5-8  “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

Sin is greatly displeasing to God the Father, but the love of Christ towards us is so great that He sacrificed Himself in the greatest act of love that has ever happened. He became the propitiation for our sins.

Romans 3:23-25  “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;”

It could have been us receiving that punishment as a result of our sin. We could have been on the receiving end of those nails. We certainly deserved punishment, according to the Law, but that is the beauty of what Christ has done for us. Instead of that punishment, Jesus has given us grace. Instead making us struggle under the weight of our sins, Jesus bears our sins for us.

Without the forgiveness of Christ, we would be consumed with the knowledge of our sins. But we now can have peace in our minds, knowing that we have been forgiven. Always remember that. In Christ lies our salvation. In Christ, we have life.

In Christ 

Andrew

Goodmorning and welcome in everyone.  Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.

One sunny morning, there was a young man driving down the highway on his way to work, when all of a sudden, his car completely died.  He managed to pull safely onto the shoulder of the road, and pop the hood.  For a few minutes he was trying to ascertain the problem, when a car drove up behind him.  An older gentleman approached him and kindly asked him what had happened.  The boy explained, while the man listened intently.  

” Well, I have a good idea where you could start looking.  It might be something relatively easy to fix.” he said, as he stroked his gray beard. 

The boy responded, ” I do quite a bit of tinkering at home in my garage.  I’ll get this figured out.”

An hour later the boy eventually had to call a tow truck, who pulled his vehicle to the nearest auto mechanic.  When he walked into the shop, he tapped on the back of someone wearing a greasy pair of coveralls. To his surprise, it was the same man that he had met on the highway a few hours earlier.  

“Well, we meet again,” the mechanic said with a gentle smile. He grabbed a can of gas from the shop, and dumped a gallon of unleaded into the boy’s tank.  A few moments later, the car fired right up.  

This reminds me of the Christian Life.

Some people can make life very difficult for themselves, simply because they choose not to listen. The scriptures teach us that God’s way is always the better way.  The Lord Jesus came into this world to help us, by turning each of us away from our iniquities, but some are so blinded by their own pride and sin, that they turn their ears away from the truth. They cannot even see where they are going because that darkness has blinded their eyes.  One of the worst things is claiming that you understand something, but you really have no comprehension of it at all.

John 9:39-41  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Have you ever had dinner with a group of people, when someone started speaking on a topic, but you knew that they really didn’t have any idea of what they were talking about?  Pride does that.  They just wanted to impress others with their feigned knowledge. Spiritual pride is a stumbling block to overcoming sin.  The proud Pharisee is an example of this. (Luke 18:10-14)  He was filled up with so much religious pride that he couldn’t even see his own faults. His sin blinded his eyes to the truth.  He really felt that he was a wonderful human being, but the reality was that he was a sinner just like everybody else.  Instead of humbling himself, and realizing his shortcomings, his sins remained.

In order to go through a conversion and transformation in our lives, we need to look inside of our own hearts, and recognize things that are displeasing to God. Scripture is there for that very reason, so that we can go on to spiritual maturity.

2 Timothy 3:16-17  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

The thing that can prevent this from happening is being dull of hearing, refusing to receive or believe the truth of God’s Word.

Matthew 13:14-15  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

God wants to heal us, not only physically but spiritually, but you really can’t help people who don’t want any help.  He wants to free them from their sins, but some don’t want to hear the truth.  Like a radio station that somebody doesn’t want to listen to, people shut off the thing that can help them the most, the teachings of Christ.

2 Timothy 4:3-4  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

If someone is truly going to attempt the Christian Life, you must be capable of hearing God’s Word and allowing it to change your life and direction. If that doesn’t happen, there’s no faith.  Genuine faith will motivate you to become obedient to the will of God which is found throughout the new Testament. If you truly are of God, you will open your ears to the truth.

1 John 4:5-6  They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.  We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

John 8:47  He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

God wants to purify us from sin, but that means turning away from the things that are displeasing to him.  What pleases God is obedience to His teachings, which results in sanctification.

2 Thessalonians 2:13  But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:

It’s by God’s Word that we are purified of sin.

John 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Keeping his commands are not that difficult.

1 John 5:2-4  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.  For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

Our precious Lord wants to make things easier for us, if we would only open our ears to the truth.

Matthew 11:29-30  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Are you going to listen to the truth? Will you choose the easy way, or….

….The Hard Way?

Let’s think about these things for right now, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow.  Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

When was the last time that you had a private conversation with someone, just between you and them? There are certain times when the things that we speak about don’t need to be heard by others because others just don’t need to know about it.

When we pray to God, we are praying to Him, not to others. Our conversations with God in our prayers are between us and Him. Jesus taught that when we pray, do it in secret. 

Matthew 6:5-6  “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.”

If something is secret, it is being, or kept, hidden. It is private, or confidential; concealed. That is how Jesus taught that our prayers should be, but some people use prayer to give themselves an appearance of righteousness or holiness in the sight of others. The Pharisees, specifically, Jesus rebuked because they loved to pray out in the public, but they did it not because they wanted to spend time in prayer with God. They did it to be seen. They did it to receive praise from others, which is just vanity. We need to seek the praise that comes from God.

God is a rewarder of those who seek Him. When you come seeking God in your private prayers, God will hear you, and reward you openly, but for some people, that isn’t good enough. They want others to admire them, and laud them with praise. But you need to remember, it is the praise from God that matters, not of men. People could hate you to the point of extreme anger, but if God is pleased with you that is all that matters. 

There is a time and place for prayer in the church, of course, as that is a part of our worship and admiration to the Lord, but when it is our personal prayer time with God, our conversations with Him should be kept between Him and us.

Many times when Jesus prayed, He went up into a mountain by Himself, or went a distance away from His disciples and prayed to the Father. Before Jesus was led away to be crucified, Jesus commanded His discples to sit a little distance away while He prayed in Matthew 26. As Jesus should be our example and model for everything that we do, we should follow this example that He set when we have our prayers with God.

We may not always have a “closet” to lift up our prayers to God in, but we can always find someplace to petition Him without letting others know it, even if it is just a prayer that we lift up in our minds. 

In Christ,

Andrew

Goodmorning and welcome in everyone.  Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.

In 1752 there was a large bell that was ordered from the London firm of Lester and Pack.  It was owned by the city of Philadelphia and apparently weighed around 1 ton.  It used to be kept at the Pennsylvania state house which is now Independence Hall.  This bell is commonly known as the Liberty Bell.  But the very interesting thing about this bell, is when it was first rung, it cracked!  So two men named John Pass and John Stow completely melted down and recast the bell. They tried adding an ounce and a half of copper per pound to strengthen it, but guess what, it cracked again! These men were very busy, because for the second time they had to melt it down and remake it again!

This reminds me of the Christian Life. 

The truest Liberty of all, is the freedom from sinful living.  When the Bible speaks about liberty, it teaches us about casting off the works of darkness and walking in the light.  This means destroying the old sinful person within each of us, and recasting a new one, one that is forged through the fire of the Holy Spirit, through belief in God’s Word.

John 8:30-36  As he spake these words, many believed on him.  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.  They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Many people think of liberty as the freedom to do things in this country.  Freedom to walk in the woods or to go for a hike with your family.  Freedom to eat the kinds of foods that you like or go to a rummage sale.  Freedom to take a drive from ocean to ocean and look at all of the beautiful scenery.  Freedom is defined as having the ability to act without constraint, rather than in confinement or under physical restraint.  

But there is a difference between worldly freedom and biblical freedom.  Many people feel that they are free, while the truth is that they are not, because they are enslaved to their own sinful living.  True Liberty from a Christian standpoint, is freedom from your sins when you believe the truth of Holy Scripture.  This will result in turning away from sin in order to do the perfect will of God.  To possess true freedom, one must become obedient to the teachings of scripture.  True Liberty is to go and sin no more.  True disciples of Jesus will continue in His teachings because it’s the acceptance of biblical truth that frees you from being enslaved to sinful living.

The Lord Jesus frees us from our sin by His grace, so that we are no longer enslaved to that life anymore. He grants us a gift of forgiveness so that we can turn to him in faith, so we can obediently serve Him from our heart.  You are a slave to whatever you choose to obey.  Jesus is our Lord and Master, and to become a Christian one must serve Him as our Master.  This requires believing the truth of His word, and obeying the teachings of His church.

Romans 6:16-18  Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

God’s Word is truth, and we are sanctified by it through faith.  Genuine faith results in love and obedience to Christ.  When we truly believe His word, we will be converted, possessing a great eagerness to please Him, no longer abiding on the wide world of sin, but breaking the chains of sinful living.  This is so we can walk the narrow road of righteousness, and serve Him.  

The truth of God’s Word is like having a bolt cutter in your possession.  When you believe it and accept it, you can use it to cut the chains of sin away, so that you can begin a brand new life.  To truly break those chains, we must submit to biblical teaching.  We want to become obedient children to the heavenly father.  Sinful living and the deeds of the flesh will only lead to death.  To live, we must cut sin out of our lives, and walk in the truth.  It first requires changing your mind, because if you cannot change your mind you cannot change anything in your life for the better.  God desires to free us from our sin, but we need to cooperate with Him and the leading of the Holy Spirit through obedience.  If faith doesn’t result in obedience, then you are only deceiving your own heart.  This is just what the beloved Apostle James taught.

James 1:21-25  Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.  But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:  For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.  But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

The Apostle teaches that the Word of God is able to save your soul, but you need to obey it.  Notice that he calls it the perfect law of liberty.  The law of liberty is believing the truth of scripture, and doing what it says.  When you do what it says you are not sinning anymore.   That is true freedom.  A person in that state has cut the chain, in order to serve God in truth.

There are many false prophets in the world today who preach liberty, but it’s not the law of liberty that’s spoken of by James. They are leading people astray from the truth, and are corrupt, appearing as angels of light but are the sons of darkness.  Christian liberty is not freedom to sin, it’s freedom from sin, which results by obeying biblical truth.  Those who teach otherwise are unspiritual frauds, disobedient and corrupt.

2 Peter 2:18-19  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.   While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.

In order to completely be freed from our sins, we have to accept the truth of our sinful condition. We have to understand that the things that we are doing are wrong in the eyes of God. It’s only then that you can turn away from it, and do what is right in His sight. If you don’t accept biblical truth,you will never turn away from the wrong things that you do.

2 Timothy 2:19  Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

If you continue to live in sin each day, that isn’t freedom, it’s called rebellion.  It’s not breaking the chains of sin, it’s forging them.  It’s not setting yourself free through a life of obedience, it is incarcerating your soul.  It’s the hammer of spiritual truth that we need to work upon our hearts, reforging the sinner into a saint.  It’s the hammer of truth that can help us break the chains of darkness.  It’s the hammer of truth that each of us need to allow into our lives so that we can eventually ring……

……The Liberty Bell.

Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.❤️

tlkjbc.com

Note: Any copies may be printed and freely distributed among those who have no internet service. There is no AI creative involvement in my writings, and must be left intact because they are very personal to me. These are not to be sold, and are made public only for the free benefit of Spiritual knowledge to those who are genuinely seeking the will of God.

Set free

This story that you are about to read probably doesn’t happen to many people, but it is a little bit more common up here in our frigid Minnesota winters.

One chilly winter day while I was playing on the playground, one of my fellow classmates dared me to stick out my tongue and touch it to one of the freezing cold pipes of the swing set. I was young, and rather foolish, so I took that dare and stuck my tongue to the metal. And if there is one thing that I have learned over the years, it is that wet things freeze in the cold, and that is exactly what happened to my tongue. It became stuck in place as I became effectually imprisoned and unable to easily free myself, and it was only after I patiently breathed onto the pipe until it slowly warmed up enough that I was able to free myself.

As you can probably guess, the next time that someone dared me to touch my tongue to the swing, I said, No thank you! There was no way that I was going to do that again.

The apostle Paul in his letter to the Galatians taught the church to not get themselves caught up in trying to go back into the bondage of the Law from which they had been set free.

Galatians 5:1-5  “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.

For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.”

When Jesus died on the cross it marked the end of the Old Testament and the Law, and He brought in the New. He kept the Law Himself, and took it away, setting us free from the demands of the Law. He gave us liberty, and this is what Paul had been trying to teach the church. They had been freed from the Law; why would you try to go back into it again to try to keep it?  If there was anything that should have been learned over the years is that no one could keep and did keep the Law, except for Christ. 

Salvation cannot be attained through trying to keep the Law, because of it was then what would have been the purpose of Jesus coming to the Earth to save us? There would have been no point. Jesus took the Law from saying “do this, and this, and this, and this” to “love one another, as I have loved you.” He made our burdens light. (Matthew 11:30)

In the book of Acts, a certain group of Pharisees had begun to believe in Christ, but they were still hanging onto the teachings of the Law and we’re telling other believers that they needed to be keeping the law of Moses. But after much discussion and disputing, Peter stood up and taught them that it was through the grace of God that we are saved, and not through the Law.

Acts 15:4-11  “And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them.

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.

And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;

And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.”

We have been set free because of Christ’s sacrifice of love toward us. The Old Testament is just that: old. It is done with, over, and complete. We live in the New Testament now. Don’t go back to the Old and try to keep it-it has been shown already that we cannot keep it perfectly. Live in the freedom that Christ has provided.

In Christ,

Andrew

Goodmorning and welcome in everyone.  Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from the book of Colossians.

Colossians 3:12-14  Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;  Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.  And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.

The Christian church is supposed to be a place that is filled with bowels of mercy.  Bowels means, the deep and inward or interior parts, such as coming from the depths of our heart.  It is to have feelings of pity and compassion towards others.  When we consider what Jesus did for this entire world when He died on the cross for our sins, it should compel you to grant that same mercy to other people.  Instead of destroying the world, as He was very capable of doing, He did not impute sin, but extended to each of us a gift of forgiveness through the blood that He shed at the cross.

Scriptures teach us that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  When we come to God in our prayer life and admit our faults, confessing and apologizing for our sins, He offers complete remission and forgiveness.  The reason why God offers this gift of Grace, is so that we can turn around and do His will from our hearts which are found in the teachings of the Holy scriptures.  Someone may have been a thief in the past, but through God’s grace they can turn around and become a kind hearted giver.  Before he became an Apostle, Paul was once destroying churches, but the gift of God’s grace caused him to turn around and begin to start churches.  The Apostle Peter was a man chosen by Jesus to be one of his original disciples, but even though Peter regretfully denied Christ, Jesus forgave him, so that Peter could go on unto spiritual maturity and feed the sheep of God.

In order for any of us to be forgiven, we have to confess faults and apologize.  If you truly are filled with bowels of mercies, you will be quick to forgive others just as He has forgiven you.  You will show others the riches of God’s grace that he has shown you.  God loves us and cares for us so much that He laid down His own life for our salvation.  He wants all men to come to a place of repentance.  Sadly, not everyone will, but He wants them to come forward, admitting their faults humbly in His presence. Forgiveness is His very nature.  The thing that prevents us from obtaining that forgiveness from Him is refusing to humble ourselves before him and admit our sins.  

James 4:6-10  But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.  Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

Jesus had the ability to destroy the world when He was lifted up on the cross, but He showed this world mercy.  Even though this world wronged Him, hurt Him, scourged Him, hated Him, disowned Him, spoke evil about Him, called Him a liar, railed on Him, persecuted Him, and pounded the nails into Him, He refrained from punishing and destroying this world.  This is called Mercy.  Mercy is compassion shown towards somebody, whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.  It is showing kindly forbearance towards an offender, or an enemy.  Jesus was very upset and threw over tables in the temple and made a scourge, but do you realize what he could have done?  He could have destroyed them all in the blink of an eye, but He didn’t.  He could have done what He did to Sodom and Gomorrah, but He didn’t.  He gives this world the opportunity to come to Him, so he can grant them forgiveness before the final judgment and punishment of wickedness.

Forbearance is the quality of being able to forgive somebody.  God is filled with this quality.  We are in the age of grace, and this is why people need to take advantage of the incredible gift of God’s forgiveness, granted to us when we come humbly to His son Jesus, confessing our faults, and throwing ourselves at His feet with a contrite and penitent heart.

When we confess our faults to God, and apologize for our misdeeds, He is forbearing with us, and grants us a holy pardon.  Instead of punishing us when we confess faults, He forgives us, and washes our sins away in his precious blood through Holy Communion.  In this world when people confess faults, the world punishes them, but with God when we admit them, He forgives us.  This is how we need to treat one another in the church.  The world lives the way the world does, but as a Christian, we are not of this world.  We are called to come out from the world, and live the way Christ lived, being merciful with each other.

The church is a place where people occasionally make mistakes.  This is why we need to confess our faults one to another.  This is why we need to come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need, so that we can return to God, turn around, and do His will. But even as Christ forgives you, you must be forgiving with each other. People who are truly penitent will apologize quickly for their faults, because it weighs heavy on their conscience.  Those who refuse to do this are storing up God’s wrath and punishment.

Romans 2:5  But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;

If we truly love others, you will forgive and forget.  This is the way that God is towards us.  When you forget something it means to cease to remember it anymore.  I’ve always thought that the world’s concept of forgiveness is just that, worldly.  It’s a forgiveness that doesn’t possess love for an offender.  It is cold and bitter and cruel, filled with impenitence and non-reconciliation.  Those who cannot love and forgive others, are exempting themselves from forgiveness with God.  When you receive His forgiveness, God expects us to forgive others who confess their faults, as we do towards Him.  Those who refuse to do this, are closing themselves off from their own salvation.  Expecting forgiveness from God and then not showing that forgiveness to others is an unforgivable sin. God is love, and God is forgiving, but  when someone is unforgiving when someone has asked for mercy from them, God will show them no mercy.  I guarantee you that this is a place that you never want to go to with God.  One who abides in that state resides in a state of eternal damnation.

Be forgiving with one another, admit your faults and show mercy to each other. To possess these qualities shows that you are filled with divine love.  It is a love that is eternal and never fails.  It is a love that covers a multitude of sins, not just one or two, but as much as is required to become the person that God wants us to be.

True charity and forgiveness is the bond that holds the church together.  Non-reconciliation with other people in the church is not forgiveness at all, it’s just living a lie. God is love, and true love is forgiving.  Demonstrate these graces and the manifold forgiveness of our God to one another in the church when it’s needed.  

Let’s think about these things for right now, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow.  Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

In this digital age that we live in, it seems like nearly everything revolves around one single thing: energy. It was hardly a century ago when everything that you used was powered not by electricity, but was powered manually. Clocks, for instance, were made with all sorts of gears and springs and needed to be rewound regularly to ensure that they would continue to run. There are still clocks like this today, but most clocks now are either plugged into an electrical outlet or have a battery that powers them. 

Speaking of batteries, those are something else that have changed over the years.  I can remember a time when the sight of a rechargable AA or AAA battery in a store was an uncommon sight. I can remember this because in order for me to power my many remote controlled cars, I would need to grab 2 4-packs of non-rechargeable AA’s from the store and insert them into my toy: 6 into the car itself (having 2 left over) as well as a 9v battery for the controller. As these cars were some of my favorite things to play with, I went through A LOT of batteries. Sometimes every two days I was changing those dead batteries out with fresh ones, and as a result I was left with ice cream buckets full of dead AA’s. 

Do you know what I did with all of those dead batteries? I threw them into the trash. They weren’t good for anything anymore. I couldn’t recharge them like the batteries that I use today. They were junk.

Thinking about this made me remember this passage in Matthew 5, about a parable that Jesus used about salt.

Matthew 5:13-16  “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

Imagine taking a cob of corn and sprinkling some salt on it, but when you took a bite you didn’t taste any of it. It would be kind of disappointing, wouldn’t it? Salt is used for it’s flavor, but if that flavor isn’t there, it is good for nothing, but to be thrown out.

Here Jesus was teaching and explained that we (Christians) are the salt of the Earth, having the “flavor” of Christ. But if our salt doesn’t “taste” like Jesus, meaning that if we don’t act, live, mirror the teachings and life of Christ, then what kind of a Christian are we? We would be no different than those who don’t claim to be Christians at all. If we lost our saltiness, how could we be re-salted? 

The same goes for a light bulb. If a bulb burns out, what are they good for anymore? You throw them away. We are the light of the world, Jesus taught. Just as a light bulb draws it’s power from the electricity and glows, Christians draw their light from the Light, Jesus, and show that light to others so that they may see, and can come to the Truth.

The kingdom of heaven will be ready and waiting on that glorious day that Jesus returns for His faithful followers, and as His followers we need to set an example to others how we need to live. We need the world to see the love of Christ working in us, and bring glory to God. We are the salt of the Earth, seasoned in Christ’s words, not a bucket full of dead batteries. Have salt in yourselves.

In Christ,

Andrew

I’m hoping to release a bunch of music this summer, that I’ve been recording for over 10 years. I have approximately 200 original pieces, in various stages of completion. They are all songs that glorify my precious Lord, and I’m hoping to have the finances available to get them done. I’m an incredible perfectionist, and that’s why I’ve been holding on to them for so many years. I spent many years traveling around the country and playing secular music, but that all changed when I was baptized into the faith. But I will keep you updated this year on what’s going on. Thanks for your patience. There are so many gifted musicians, use your music for the glory of God, and He will bless you for it!