“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 

Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” Matthew 13:44-46

Do any of you collect things? Maybe someone collects stamps or coins. They have a huge collection of rare or unusual stamps or coins displayed in a case at home. It is a big passion for them and they enjoy doing it. But say for example they find the absolute rarest, most incredible stamp or coin in the world and they would extremely like to get it. However, they have a problem: they don’t have the ability to purchase it right now, because of the lack of funds. So they decide to sell the whole of their collection in order to purchase that one rarest thing of all.

I know some people who like to buy, sell and trade things. They will start out buying something smaller and cheaper like an older fishing boat, and then they will take that and trade it for something else, maybe a four wheeler and a trailer. They will then take that four wheeler and trailer and sell or trade that towards something else, until they get to a point to where they have several items which altogether is worth far more than the boat they started with. What they do then is they find something really good and sell all of those things that they aquired through trading or selling and buy one brand new thing. 

The kingdom of Heaven is that rarest treasure. It is the most spectacular, incredible find that anyone could ever attain. But to attain that treasure, a person needs to do something, and that is forsake the ways of the world and turn from their sins. They need to cast off all of the works of darkness and turn to the Light.

The Apostle Paul knew this very well. As a Pharisee, he spent his time growing in the knowledge of the Law.

“For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: 

And profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.” Galatians 1:13-14

But once he realized the truth about Jesus, he turned away from all of his accomplishments he had done as a Pharisee. He wrote in Philippians that he counted them all “but dung.” They weren’t important anymore. He gave it all up so that he could have Christ.

“Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.”

The things in the world are only temporary. They last for a short time and then they break or fade away. The world itself is aging and will eventually fade away and be destroyed. But there is something that will not: and that is the kingdom of Heaven. Heaven is a perfect place, free of sin and immorality. We know that we are only here for a short time, waiting until that day that we are redeemed and taken up to be with the Lord. 

This treasure and pearl of great price is available to everyone. All one needs to do is forsake the world and its deeds and come and accept Christ. Go get that pearl!

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at some scripture from Matthew Chapter 5, but before we do that I wanted to ask you a question.

What is the first thing that you do when you get up each morning? The word first means it comes before all others in time and order, it is the earliest.

Maybe when you get up, you get dressed and have a cup of coffee. Possibly you take a shower, eat some eggs and some toast and watch some news at the dining room table. Doing something first means to do it at the very beginning before any other things.

If you were going to take a long trip in your car and drive to visit somebody in another state what would be the first thing that you would do before leaving town? More than likely you would go to the gas station and check your oil and fill up your tank with gas for the trip. It’s very important to do that first because you would probably run out of gas on the way. Another dictionary defines first as meaning preceding all others because of importance.

When something is important to you it is of great significance and value. It is very prominent in your daily routine. If you were to sit in a classroom somewhere and the teacher asked you to write an essay you would first need a pen a pencil and a piece of paper. If you were going to go for a bike ride with your friends and family to the lake you would first have to go get your bike out of the garage. The scriptures teach us that God wants us to be reconciled with himself and each other. Before we even bring a gift to the church we are supposed to first be reconciled to somebody we have wronged. That’s how important reconciliation is to God.

Matt 5:23-24 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;

Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

I happen to be looking at some of my old studies from about 15 years ago. The following is an excerpt from one of those studies. I’m reposting it today to show you that my views have not changed on this issue.

(2007) …..[ Many people who profess Christianity sin against others in the church and could care less about repenting and being reconciled to them. Many of them simply join another church and bring numerous gifts, but the truth is this, if you have wronged a brother and know that they are upset with you, you must first repent and be reconciled to him, which means to be in a friendly relationship with him, before offering a gift to God. If you don’t care about a brother that you have sinned against, how can you possible care about God? Join us for today’s study. ]

I held these beliefs 15 years ago and I still hold them today. God doesn’t desire our money, he doesn’t want our possessions or gifts unless we learn that He wants reconciliation with others.

As we talked about recently, there are many people who are preaching a false gospel in the world today. They claim reconciliation with others in the church is not required. That’s as heretical as claiming that we don’t have to go to Christ to get to heaven. When they preach these things they are teaching lies against the truth of God. All liars are going to have their place in the lake of fire someday. Just knowing that fact should cause them to repent of their wickedness before it’s too late.

I’ve always taught that if we make mistakes we can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need but you have to admit that you are in error. Reconciliation is required with God. When people are incapable of admitting fault and reconciling with others, they’re rejecting one of main doctrines of the Christian faith. If some people actually preached the truth that they needed to be reconciled to others in their groups, I’m sure there would be a lot of people in the church who would get up and leave and go somewhere else. That is how hard their heart is when it comes to admitting fault. If they can’t admit fault to somebody in the church how can they admit their faults to God? It’s just a sham.

They would rather put some money in the offering plate each week then have to go apologize to somebody else and reconcile with them. That’s sad isn’t it. That is what’s going on in moderate forms of Christianity Today.

Many people would rather write out a check then have to forgive somebody else. These people are involved with feel-good Christianity. It really feels good but the truth is it’s all wrong. Those who cannot reconcile are turning away from true christian charity. Again, it hurts when people sin against us, but we need to be forgiving with others. When someone rebukes you and is upset with what you have done to them you need to apologize to them. To reject these simple teachings are to reject Christ.

When people apologize or say I repent you are supposed to forgive them and be reconcilled. When we admit fault to our Lord Jesus Christ he cleanses our hearts and our minds from all unrighteousness. If you claim to be ” in Christ ” that is going to be the same way that you treat others in the church.

There is a false form of Christianity that is growing in the world today. It’s not the true faith that was handed down to the apostles 2000 years ago. It’s a church that is not being lead by true charity for Christ and His Word. When you truly understand how forgiving God is you will take that forgiveness and show it to others.

Matt 5:23-24 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;

Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

So if you bring something to offer to God but you remember that your brother is upset with you, God wants you to be reconciled to him first.

When you remember something it means that you recollect something in your mind. It means to bear something in your mind and to recall it. To remember is to keep a person or event or thing in one’s mind.

As I have talked about recently, there are many commands and teachings by the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. This is one of them. This is a command of the Lord. If you remember in your mind that you have wronged somebody else and they’re upset with you, you need to go be reconciled to them. Before God wants any kind of gift, reconciliation has to be first. If you claim to love Jesus, He commands reconciliation. That’s why he commanded it here. That’s why the Apostle Paul called it the ministry of reconciliation.

Remember that reconciliation is impossible without forgiveness and confession. If you truly forgive another person there won’t be any grudges that are kept, and the past misdeeds will be forgotten. The relationship that was broken because of sin will be repaired and restored to the original state that it was in before the sins were committed. Remember that we are reconciled to God through his grace.

Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

If you have committed just one sin, then you have broken all of the Commandments unilaterally. Whether we have sinned one time or sinned numerous times, God gives us the grace that we need in order to become the people that he wants us to be.

God wants us to be reconciled in the church and to apologize and forgive each other from the heart.

Look at the things that God has forgiven you for. Look at the faults that you admitted to him. That is what I call a process of Grace. You cannot forgive others who don’t apologize. You can’t apologize if you’re filled up with pride. If you’re filled up with pride you cannot receive forgiveness.

When you do something wrong to others in the church and you’re aware that they are upset with you, you are commanded to be reconciled unto them. It’s not an option it’s mandatory. God does not want division in the church, the scriptures clearly teach that. He wants us to be reconciled. Truly we are reconciled unto God by the death of his son. Before we bring a gift to God we are commanded to be reconciled to a wronged brother first.

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

In the church when a brother sins against you you’re supposed to rebuke him. If he tells you I Repent you’re supposed to forgive him. God does not simply forgive everybody on the face of the Earth unless they first come to him and confess their faults to him. That has to happen first. Neither are we required to forgive other people in the church if they will not apologize. We have to be reconciled through Christ to get forgiven and to be with God someday in heaven. Those who don’t will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

It’s very similar here upon the Earth. If you have sinned against somebody else in the church you are supposed to reconcile with them. You need to be humble and apologize for your misdeeds and your wrongs committed against them so that they can forgive you from their heart. If somebody sins against you, you rebuke them. If the offending party apologizes for it then you forgive them. You cannot forgive others who will not apologize and admit fault. Forgiveness is not automatic with God otherwise there would be no eternal damnation. God requires an admission of guilt so that he can forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Confession has to happen in order for reconciliation to happen. If people don’t understand the concept of forgiveness and reconciliation in the Christian church they are missing everything about our faith. You’re missing everything about why Jesus died on the cross for our sins.

Col 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

Like I already said, how do you forgive other people who won’t apologize or confess sin? You can’t. You have the desire in your heart to forgive them, you want to forgive them but it’s because of their hard heart they won’t admit fault and apologize. That truly is a snare of the devil. Instead of being humble and admit that they did something wrong to somebody else they go the complete opposite way and get lifted up with pride.

Those people who tried to bring gifts to God in the church but didn’t reconcile with a brother that they wronged were walking in complete religious hypocrisy which was condemned by Jesus when he preached to certain Jews. It’s the appearance of being filled with Charity while the truth is you have no charity about the feelings of other people. There is a lot of this going on out in the world today and they label it as Christianity but don’t be deceived. They claim that you can confess your sins to God but don’t have to apologize to anybody else.

For those who really believe that lie, they need to heed this warning. If you do not truly forgive others in your heart, if you will not apologize to others and attempt reconciliation with them, God is not going to forgive you. If you love Christ you will obey his commands and apologize and forgive. These are doctrines of our faith that need to be kept.

I think that’s where I’m going to stop for right now, but Lord willing, we’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to took a look at the following passage of scripture.

Romans 2:7-8 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

When you continue to do something, it means to persist in an activity or process. Some synonyms are to persevere, to keep it up, to press on and to keep at it. When the apostle teaches us by patient continuance in well doing, he means to keep on doing good and kind things!

The bible teaches us that Jesus was filled up with so many good works, that all the books that were ever written could not contain all the wonderful things that He did. Whatever you may go through in this life, whatever trials that you may have to face, you want to patiently continue to do good things. When you continue, it means you don’t stop. A synonym is the word persist.

When you persist, it means to continue firmly in an opinion or a course of action, in spite of difficulty, opposition, or even failure. So the Apostle wants us to keep doing good no matter what kind of struggles that we have to go through in this life.

Many years ago, I can remember paddling a canoe in the Boundary Waters. We came to a river that we needed to paddle upstream. Sometimes the stream got really fast, and it was hard to go against the flow but eventually, with great persistence we managed to get up that stream. We didn’t give up and we didn’t quit.

The word persevere actually, is very similar to persistence because it means to continue in a course of action even in the face of difficulty, or with little or no prospect of success: or to persist in an undertaking in spite of counter influences, opposition or discouragement. God wants us to continue doing good, kind things to everybody that you meet, no matter what others may put you through. There is no end to doing good things.

Romans 2:7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

God wants to reward his obedient children with eternal life, but it requires that we do what’s good instead of what’s evil. We want to do what’s right in His sight, instead of what’s immoral. This is done through our deeds and our actions. When we believe in Jesus Christ and get forgiven for our sins, we turn away from the old sinful person that we were in the past, and then we get filled up with good works and deeds.

In each of our pasts, we did things that were immoral and bad, but through His grace, He gives us an opportunity to be in heaven, and to change and amend our ways.

In the church, we are justified not just by faith, but by works. The good things that you do are evidence to others that you truly believe in Jesus Christ and what he taught. It’s your deeds that show what you believe. I’ve said it many, many times before, the proof that you can build a beautiful deck on a person’s home is the finished product. It is your deeds that show what you are and what you can do. A person may profess that they’re a mechanic and that they can fix your car, but the proof that they are a mechanic is the repaired vehicle that’s running well.

We are justified by works and not just by faith alone. A lot of people might not like hearing that but it is the truth. Just claiming that you believe in something isn’t enough by itself to get to heaven. True faith will result in action.

………To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

Eternal life will be their reward. Thank God that He gives us grace to go through that change. We ourselves were at one time disobedient and rebellious, but God who is rich in mercy, even while we were yet sinners, Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Each of us can come boldly to Him, get forgiven, and begin living an obedient life of love towards Him.

Christianity is about becoming something different than what you were before. The Scriptures teach us to become obedient children and not fashioning ourselves according to our former lusts, the way that we used to live in our past.

People who stole in the past, now become a giver in the church. Somebody who committed adultery in the past, now becomes faithful to their spouse. Look at all the changes that people went through in the scriptures.

Moses was a leader in Egypt, but he left it all for Christ’s sake and completely turned his back on all of that. Imagine the riches he could have inherited. His greatest treasure was Jesus, and look what happened.. God used him greatly for the furtherance and leadership of the Israelites.

The apostle Paul was once trying to destroy churches, but when he became a Christian, he started planting churches. Christianity is turning from doing what’s wrong to doing what’s right. Christianity is about turning away from the immoral ways that we used to live and doing what’s good. It’s it’s turning away from disobedience to obedience. Anybody who professes to be a Christian should understand this, because if they don’t, they’re lying to themselves. God does not want us to live the way we used to live, but to undergo that change, and the reward someday is going to be eternal life.

Eternal Life is reserved for people who are filled with faith in Christ, who get forgiven for their sins and then they become obedient. It shows in their deeds and their actions.

…..To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:……

Glory means honor that is won by notable achievements.

But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

Being contentious is very similar to rebellion, which is the sin of witchcraft. A contentious person is inclined to dispute and disagree, some synonyms are belligerent and disagreeable.

A contentious and a belligerent person does not want to obey the truth. What they do is fight against God in their own heart and mind. God’s Word is the truth. When you want to understand and know the right path, you will find it in the scriptures. It’s a map to heaven, it’s a road of righteousness and goodness. God wants us to become obedient children, filled with faith and love and grace, but there are certain people who reject His will, some of which today refer to themselves as Christians.

Acts 7:51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

2 Tim 3:8 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.

Resisting simply means to withstand the action or the effect of something. It means to exert force in opposition, to withstand and to strive against, to oppose and to fight against. The people spoken of in our passage today are resisting the truth of God’s Word. Instead of becoming obedient to it, they disobey and fight against it.

The Apostle says these people are contentious and do not obey the truth.

A reprobate is somebody who refuses to accept biblical truth. It means that they are without morals and without any shame. It’s a person of completely bad and evil character. This happens because people resist biblical truth and won’t become obedient to it. They’re not sorry, and abide in a state of impenitence.

God’s word is the truth and filled with power.

Romans 13:2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.

We can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need, but we are talking about people who turn their ears from the truth, and turn to fables. Instead of accepting the truth that they are in error and repenting and apologizing for it, they completely go against it. If they die in this state, they are going to receive damnation.

I’ve taught for years at my home that you might make a mistake along the way. You might have done something that you regretted doing, but God gives us Grace in order to get back on the obedient path again. There is one thing that we can never do, its to turn away from the truth of what the Bible teaches. It’s by the acceptance of Truth that we realize the error of our way. When people reject the truth they start to believe a lie. Many times they want to keep their Christian faith and live a disobedient life, so in order to do that, they’ll start to twist scripture around so it says the things that they want to hear. They want to keep their Christian faith, but they really don’t want to abide by what it says.

…….But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

Unless they repent and believe what the Scriptures teach, unless they repent of their rebellious and stiff neck lives, they most certainly will inherit damnation someday. That’s a choice that everybody has to make on their own. It’s the choice of whether you are going to follow the teachings of Christ, or whether a person is going to resist them and turn away.

God cares for us so very much. He doesn’t want anybody to perish, but in order to inherit eternal life we have to love Christ and the truth that he preached.

We’ve all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Let’s get forgiven so that we can become obedient children. Just like you would try to please an earthly dad, let’s show God how much that we love him by obeying Him in everything we do!

I think that’s where I’m going to stop for right now, but Lord willing, I’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye Bye, everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; 

For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 

Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4

ln this passage, Paul was writing that he wanted the churches to pray for everyone. Your brother, neighbor, leaders and rulers, the family in the next town- everyone. Friends and enemies. Believers and unbelievers.

Pray for your enemies, pray that the Lord would show them the goodness of His mercy and that they would come to the Light. God wants all people to be saved. They might be fighting against God right now, and resisting the truth, but someday they could repent and turn to Christ, so pray that they would accept Jesus into their life and become believers.

“Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.” Luke 6:28

At one point in our life we were all lost without Christ. Now that we know Christ and what He has done for us we should pray that others would come to know Him too.

Many times in the New Testament, the apostles wrote to pray for them, and that they were praying for the church. They prayed that the church would continue in the truth of the gospel. They wanted them to continue to grow in the word of God and that they would strive to be perfect.

Pray that the Lord would give the leaders in your country wisdom to do what is right. We are not wise on our own. True wisdom comes from God, and for leaders of a country to do what is right, they need that wisdom. 

Pray for others when they are sick. It is nothing for the Lord to heal those who are sick and in pain, all you need to do is have the faith to come and ask. The centurian came to Jesus to ask Him to heal his servant of his sickness. His love for his servant caused him to go and ask Jesus to help him. James wrote that when somene was sick that they should come to the elders of the church to be prayed over and annointed with oil to be healed. Pray for those who are sick.

Pray for others if they have a problem with temptations or sins. To overcome sin we need to rely on Christ to help us to become better. In the church you might have a person who is starting to begin their walk but are having problems overcoming certain issues in their life. Someone may have had an issue with alcholism before they became a Christian, and now and then they feel tempted to go back into that. They need to be prayed for that they would overcome that urge to overindulge a fall back into sin. 

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5:16

Prayer is a powerful thing. Pray for others. 

In Christ,

Andrew

Psalms 32:5, “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.”

There are a few definitions of the word confess, but the one that deals with the verses here today means “to admit or state that one has committed a crime or is at fault in some way.”

If someone commits a crime and confesses, they are admitting that they are at fault and that they know that what they did was wrong. They are ready to change from their ways and become a better person. 

For some people, admitting their faults or shortcomings is one of the hardest things that they can do. For someone to admit that they have sinned is to admit that they are wrong. 

I can remember one time back when I was in elementary school that someone in the class had done something wrong, either broken something or tampered with something and the teacher asked who did it but no one came forward and confessed. And because no one confessed to what had happened, the entire class had to miss out on an activity that we were going to do that day. Whoever did it didn’t want to receive the punishment that would have come along with the wrong that they had done.

Admitting that you are a sinner is one of the first steps that a person needs to take as a new Christian. When someone confesses their sins to the Lord, they realize the fact that they have made a mistake and that they need God’s forgiveness to be made right with Him.

It takes humility and meekness to admit that you are a sinner and need to change something in your life. Before we become Christians, it is hard sometimes to admit to yourself that you are not perfect and that you need help to overcome your problems. But that is what we need to do in order to be forgiven for our sins. 

Unless a person confesses their sins and comes forward for forgiveness, how can they be forgiven? It is such a simple thing, to say, “I am a sinner, I confess my sins, please forgive me.” But because of the pride in a person’s life they refuse to admit that they have sinned and need forgiveness. It is so sad that people let their pride stand in the way of forgiveness and eternal life. 

Proverbs 28:13, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”

Paul was quick to admit that he was a sinner. In 1 Timothy 1:15, Paul wrote that he was the chief of sinners. But he confessed his sins to the Lord and was forgiven for all that he had done wrong in his life. 

Confess your sins to the Lord, and He will forgive you.

1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at a passage of scripture from the book of Romans, before we do that I wanted to tell you a story.

There were two children who were sitting together in a classroom at school one day. When one of the children got up to go ask the teacher a question, the other student reached over and took his friends pen off of his desk when he wasn’t looking. He used it for a few minutes but then he broke it. On his return the child realized what he had done and got very upset. Instead of apologizing, he said why are you so upset, it’s just a pen. He responded, no, it’s not just a pen, it is my favorite pen and very special to me because my dad gave it to me. Without any compassion in his heart the boy responded well it’s just a pen, get over it.

This is an example of not feeling sorry for hurting somebody else’s feelings. It may be a pen but it was very important to the other child. When somebody hurts you, rebuke them. Once they apologize you can forgive them. Refusing to apologize is caused by an impenitent heart.

Rom 2:5-6. 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;

Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

Today we’re going to start by taking a look at the word impenitent. Impenitence is when you don’t feel any regret or sorrow about something that you have done wrong. If you hurt somebody else, you should feel sorry and apologize quickly to those that you have wronged. Those are the teachings of the Christian faith.

Someone who is in a state of impenitence will not apologize and admit guilt. They will not say I’m sorry or simply admit the fact that the fault is theres. Impenitent people do not have true sorrow inside of their heart that would cause them to think about the feelings of the person that they have wronged.

Impenitent and unrepentant are synonyms in the dictionary. They both have to do with not being capable of apologizing.

Somebody who is impentient will not repent of the sins that they have done wrong because they have no contrition. That is caused by a hard heart. Instead of confessing sin and admitting their faults, they simply put a wall up around her heart. Somebody who is impenitent does not feel any regret about a mistake that they have committed.

When you truly regret something, it means that you feel sad or sorry about something that you did or did not do. One last dictionary defines regret as the emotion of wishing you had made a different decision in the past because the consequences of the decision were not favorable.

I’ve said for many years that in order to be forgiven for our sins we have to apologize first. We have to be able to say I’m sorry to somebody else. It doesn’t matter how trivial it may seem to you. It was important enough to the offended party that they rebuked you for it.

You have to be able to apologize to God and confess so that you can be forgiven. God expects that you extend that same treatment to others whom you have wronged. He expects you to be reconciled to a brother to whom you have wronged in the church, even before you bring your offering.

If you have a hard heart it is incapable of being moved to pity or tenderness. It is completely unfeeling. When somebody is hard-hearted they are callous and cold and completely insensitive. An insensitive person shows or feels no concern for other people’s feelings. It’s like their heart is a lightswitch that they simply turn off. They really don’t care about the feelings of another person so they’re not going to apologize. Somebody who is insensitive does not show sympathy for someone else’s feelings.

Hebrews 3:8 – Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

Hebrews 3:13  But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Nehemiah 9:16. But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments,

So you see, these things were going on in the Old Testament but in certain forms of modern Christianity they’re doing the very same thing today. Whether it’s the Old Testament or the New Testament, whether it’s in Judaism or Christianity, a refusal to not listen to the commands of the Lord Jesus Christ is caused by a hardened heart.

Jeremiah 7:26 Yet they hearkened not unto me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than their fathers.

So these Old Testament scriptures are relevant today because they’re happening in modern forms of Christianity.

Rom 2:5-6. 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;

2 Chronicles 30:8 – Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the LORD, and enter into his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified for ever: and serve the LORD your God, that the fierceness of his wrath may turn away from you.

A hard heart is caused by the deceitfulness of sin. It may feel like the right way to go but it’s actually the wrong way and that’s how It deceives you. That’s why we need to accept the scriptures as our absolute authority on truth in each of our lives. It needs to be our guide so that we are not let astray. Impenitent people do not apologize, they won’t admit guilt , they are callus and cold and don’t care about the feelings of others. Because of this they are storing up God’s Wrath.

Treasure is defined as something that is stored up or accumulated. When someone is impenitent day by day by day, it’s just like putting another coin into a ceramic bank that you have at home. Unrepentant sin keeps adding up each day when you refuse to apologize to God and to others, and someday that coin bank is going to be completely filled up.

The longer that somebody refuses to manifest any feelings of contrition, every day that passes without feeling regret towards others that they have hurt, is another day of perpetuated sin. That is why in that state of mind you are treasuring up wrath.

God extends to us an offer of his grace and wants us to come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need. Grace is available, the problem is that certain people don’t want to apologize to God and to others. Impenitence is caused by pride which is something that God hates.

Romans 1:18 – For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

This is what we were just discussing. They really believe a lie as if it’s true. They go completely against the teachings of scriptures and they really believe in their heart and their mind that it’s acceptable.

2 thess 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:”

If you’re going to take a trip through an area that you are unfamiliar with and then throw the map out the window, you’re going to get lost. If you’re going to take the compass when you’re out in the unknown wilderness throw it to the ground and smash it you’re going to get lost. When you turn away from Biblical teachings and the truth of Holy Scripture and wholeheartedly reject what it says, you’re going to get lost.

The worst part is when people turn away from the teachings of Christ they start to believe a lie.

2 Thess 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

These same people who turn away from Christ and what He taught will actually claim that they are happy or they are at peace. They turn away from biblical truth and start to live life the way that they want to live instead of Gods way. They have pleasure in unrighteousness, it is shown in their disobedience.

All they are doing is storing up for themselves wrath. God is going to render to every man according to his deeds. A deed is something that is performed, done or accomplished.

In the end, we either have deeds that show that show loyalty to Christ and the things that he taught, or we have the deeds of an impenitent disobedient heart. It’s going to be one or the other at judgment. Thank God for his grace so that we can become what he wants us to be.

Let’s think about those things for today and Lord willing I’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then bye-bye everybody. ♥️

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When I was younger, I would make card houses often. We had a folding table that we used when we were going to play cards, and this is usually what I used as my “foundation” for my cards. I varied my designs, some I tried to make as tall as I could, and others wide. But one thing almost always happened while I was building. Because the table that I was using to build on was the folding leg type, the table was very wobbly and not stable. Sooner or later I would bump into the table and cause it to shake and all my cards would come tumbling down.

But when I chose to build my card houses on the floor, instead of the table, there was nothing for me to bump into and  knock the cards down. The cards were on a firm foundation.

That is how we want our faith in Christ to be. Strong and unshakeable. When we are founded on Christ, we will be firm and strong when we encounter times of temptation or persecution for our  beliefs. Look at what happened to the apostles. They were thrown in jail, persecuted, stoned, and even killed for what they believed in. But did all of that persecution shake their faith in Christ or cause them to waver? No, in fact it filled them with joy that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ. (Acts 5:41). We too should be filled with joy when we are persecuted for our faith in Jesus.

“Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake. 

Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.” Luke 6:22-23

Pray that your faith would be increased everyday, so that when times of persecution arise you will stand strong for Christ. When your faith is founded firmly in Christ, there will be no one who can cause it to fail.

“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 

And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 

And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 

And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” Matthew 7:24-27

Remember that they persecuted even Jesus. The Lord of lords and King of kings! So when you are persecuted for your beliefs you can know that you are standing up for your faith.

“Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.” John 15:20

Place your faith in Christ the Rock of our salvation, and stay strong!

“Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” 1 Corinthians 16:13

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we are going to take a look at some scripture from the book of Romans, but before we do that I wanted to tell you a story.

A few years ago, one of our neighbors purchased a house. For many months we drove by it on the highway and it looked like a nice little home. The shingles looked good, it had some really decent siding on it along with a nice little deck out front.

A few months passed by when the owner gave me a jingle on the phone and asked if I would come over and help carry some things out of the basement. We went over there and as soon as I opened the front door, you could see that the interior of the house was completely gutted. In one of the corners in the living room there were piles of broken sheetrock and two-by-fours that they had ripped out of the walls and ceiling.

But in one corner of the house they had started completely rebuilding the inside. They had just put down some new tile on the floor and new cupboards on the walls. They had even gone so far as to buy some new appliances. It was completely different from what it looked like on the outside. You never really would have known what was going on inside of that home, but things were being torn out and replaced with new things. It was going through a complete change.

I realize that this is exactly like the Christian Life. Through God’s grace we are undergoing a change inside of our hearts. On the exterior everybody sees the same person but on the inside something completely different it’s happening.

Rom 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

For many years on our website, we have had a cross that has a heart in the middle. The heart represents that Christianity is about the heart. Christianity is about what’s going on in the inside.

When you change something, it means to make it different or to replace it with something else, especially something that is new or better. Christianity is about modification of the heart. It is about a change for the better. Everything that God teaches us in His Holy Word is so that we can have a better life.

There are many people today who feel that it’s too restrictive while the truth is that when we do what it says, the results will be a better and a happier life. God’s way is the best way but we have to allow ourselves to undergo that change. It’s a modification for the better.

How many wives out there have had a recipe that they modified? They simply took the original recipe and changed a few things to make it even better than it was before. Instead of an eighth of a cup of chocolate chips, you put in a quarter cup instead and decided to use real butter. Those cookies taste really good now! That’s similar to what God wants to do in each of our lives. The word modify actually means to change or to transform. Transformation has to do with a change in your form and your character.

Think about the many changes that a butterfly has gone through in its life in order to fly. Think about how many changes that a frog had to undergo before it could jump high up into the air. God wants to take us to a better place but we have to allow ourselves to undergo that change.

Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

God wants to renew our minds. Renew means to make new spiritually or to regenerate. It means to make like new.

Have you ever taken an old pair of cowboy boots and rub some mink oil on them and clean them all up so that they look just like new again? Have you ever fixed up an old collector antique car to the point that it looks just like it did when it orginally rolled off the assembly line? That’s what it means to renew something, to make it new again. God wants to create new people who serve him out of love, and that change needs to happen inside of our hearts and our minds. We want to be reborn or born again inside of our heart. It’s starting over again at ground zero and ripping out all that junk inside and confessing those sins to God and getting forgiven for them Then comes the process of rebuilding with new material, the teachings of the king james bible.

1 Peter 1:23 – Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

In many years of life, I have learned that if you’re going to do just about anything you need to be able to follow directions. If you’re going to bring something home and put it together you need to follow the directions written on the box. If you’re going to cook some food you need to follow the directions that are written on recipe card. If you’re going to try to repair something on your vehicle, you need to follow the directions that come with the manual. Ffollowing directions is a fact of life. When we decide that we want to become a Christian, we need to follow the directions in order to become one. They are found in the teachings all the King James Bible. In order for our faith to be increased day by day, we need to hear the word of God preached and taught. We need to study it and to grow in it. Just like a newborn child, each of us need nourishment day by day to grow up big and strong into maturity.

Rom 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

In Christianity this is more than just hearing with your ears but it is hearing with your heart.

How many of you have been in a classroom at school and you noticed that there was a student who wasn’t paying attention to what the teacher was saying.

After a few minutes the teacher calls on him and asks him a question about what he had just said. Because he was daydreaming and wasn’t listening, he has no response. The point is that we need to listen and hear what the Bible teaches us in order to be transformed and changed into what God wants us to become.

Born again is more than just saying those two words but rather, an application of the things that Jesus teaches us. It’s becoming a door of God’s will. It is following the directions that He has given unto us.

When people go off to college, they need to study to eventually become what they want to be. When you study it means you are devoting your time and attention to acquiring knowledge of a certain subject. The church is a place of learning. It is a spiritual school where we are learning to become what God wants us to be. Just like at a college somewhere, in a church we are gaining the knowledge of God’s will. It happens through the preaching of the Holy scriptures, but we must remember what the Apostle James taught. Knowledge by itself isn’t enough to be able to get us into heaven someday. We need to take what we have learned in the scriptures and apply it to our lives. That is becoming a door of God’s word.

When I went into my neighbor’s house there was a lot of work that was going on inside. Something was getting done. There was a change that was happening and progressing. There was a work that was going on inside of that home. We want to allow God to work on our hearts but it requires that we grow in the scriptures and follow his guidance. Each day we are attempting to become different than what we have been in the past and that truly is what it means to be born again. We start out as little children all over again, relearning the things that we have learned wrong all of our lives. We begin with baby steps, as we learn to walk. In order for a child to grow, they have to be fed. We are fed with God’s word each and every day. Just like you feed your children, your pets, or your chickens, it is something that needs to be done daily.

John 3:1-8 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

The Lord Jesus teaches Nicodemus that a rebirth needed to happen.on the inside.

John 4:24 – God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

God wants to transform and change us but we have to hear God’s word regularly preached and apply the things that we hear to our own lives day by. We need to follow the directions on how to become a Christian.

Ezekiel 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you:

Are you allowing yourself to undergo that change? Are you allowing God to rip out all that old stuff in your life so He can rebuild something new? God wants to do some remodeling in our lives. Today I ask you a question, will you hand over the keys of your house to him so that he can get started working on the inside?

I think that’s where I’m going to stop for right now but Lord willing, I’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody♥️

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