Waiting on a Savior?

I have always thought it interesting about how a number of Jewish people still claim to be waiting on the promised Messiah.  This is their view, even given the scriptures that point to Jesus being the one that is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Scriptures.

I started wondering how the Pharisees who witnessed Jesus and his ministry could have walked away and not believed…which led me to wonder about those who still today are waiting for the fulfillment of the Old Scriptures…which then helped me understand why today there are so many who are living a life that is not showing that they are Christians.

I’m sure that a number of you reading this are wondering what I mean with this statement.  Let me explain – when Jesus came, John the Baptist told the world of his arrival.  John then baptized Jesus into the life that we all must accept…but there were a number of men in that day that refused to accept Jesus as the promised Messiah.  They were waiting on someone who they felt would fight, someone that they could count on to lead a rebellion that would overthrow the current leaders and lead them into a new era…

What the Pharisees and Sadducees failed to realize was that Jesus was doing just that.  Jesus came to lead his followers into a new rebellion…not against the current government, but against the law that was impossible for man to keep.  Jesus kept the law, he lived by the law, and he was the only one who could do so…which is why he came.  Jesus came to save the world (John 3:17).

There are a number of Jewish followers today who still try to live under the law…they are still trying to keep up with the laws that Jesus said he came to correct.  Not that the law is wrong, but there is no way for a man to reach eternal salvation without knowing the sacrifice that Jesus made.  Jesus stated that he came to form a ‘new covenant’.  Today, this covenant is the New Testament.

Today, we are called to live under the New Testament…this means that we are no longer bound under the Old Testament laws, but are sinners saved by grace.  That grace is the only thing that can get us to heaven, no matter how ‘good’ we live…we can only reach the promise that awaits us by fully giving ourselves over to the teachings of the Apostles, and giving our lives fully to the only Savior that Scripture promises…Jesus Christ.

Jesus tells us in John 14:6 that he is the only way to heaven…he is the only truth that we will find…and he is the only life that we need…Jesus came to give us hope and give us a future.  Are you still waiting on a Savior? If so, Jesus is standing at the door and knocking, waiting on you to open the door and let him in…don’t miss this opportunity to change your life and find true happiness.  You don’t have to wait any longer on a promised Savior, he is waiting at the door now…won’t you let him in?

Pay It Forward

Many people have heard or used the term ‘Pay it Forward’ when talking about doing good deeds.  That statement has gotten me thinking on more than one occasion, and I finally sat down and decided to study a little deeper into what paying it forward means.  The term first arose in my mind when the movie “Pay It Forward” was released back in 2000.  In that film a young boy named Trevor uses a class project to devise an idea to change the world.  His idea: to do three acts of kindness, for three different people, who in turn would do the same for three others…a plan that would better Mankind.

Another example that was released around the same time was a song, released by Clay Walker, titled “Chain of Love”.  The lyrics are a powerful story, told in song, about a woman who breaks down with a flat tire, a man who changes the tire, refuses any type of payment by saying, “Don’t let this chain of love end with you.”  The lady is then in a diner and her waitress is around 8 months pregnant; she leaves a large tip with a note on a napkin, stating the same words.  The song then reveals that the pregnant waitress is the man’s wife.

Two stories with the same plot…pay it forward.

Upon further study however, I realized that the Idea has been around since before time began.  God has always used this method to reach His children.  You can see it in the Garden of Eden, when God asks Adam to take care of His creation…with the promise that Adam would be taken care of…pay it forward.

We see it again throughout the Old Testament, with many acts of kindness being offered down through the generations.

But the greatest example of paying it forward took place around two thousand years ago…you might know the story…when a man named Jesus carried out His Father’s will by hanging on a cross.  Throughout Jesus’ ministry we see many accounts of paying it forward.

When Jesus heals the blind man, Jesus tells him to go tell others.  When Jesus heals a paralytic, he tells the man to share the good news.  When he heals the harlot who touches his robe…go and sin no more.  Jesus believed in paying it forward…still having doubts?  Look to the cross!

The story of the cross starts in the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prays to his Father, assuring God that His will would be accomplished.  Jesus then prays for the 12 who had followed him faithfully, asking for protection…and then prays for those who would hear their message…Jesus prayed for us.  He then died on a cross, our cross…with our nails in his hands and feet…with our crown of thorns on his head….taking a spear in our place…dying so that we might live.

The price he asks us in return?  To pay it forward.

Matthew 25:40 states, “Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me” – pay it forward…

Matthew 28:18-20 says, “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” – pay it forward…

The idea of paying it forward was central to Jesus ministry…whatever good deed has been done for you…do the same for others.

So the next time you’re faced with a situation in which you have the opportunity to do a good deed for someone, remember the good that has been done for you…and pay it forward.  This world may seem to be a cruel place…but paying it forward offers great reward; because the ultimate gift was given with that in mind.  The cross is the ultimate gift…where Jesus took our sin, paid the price we should have paid…and simply said to each of us, “Pay it forward…tell others about the gift I have given…share the news that their life was saved too…don’t let this chain of love end with you…please, pay it forward.”

Now its your turn…pay it forward!

Walking by Faith

I have spent a lot of time over the past four years reflecting on 2 Corinthians 5:7 which states, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”  These words have been ringing through my mind over these past four years, and one reason is the huge step that I have taken by undertaking the radio ministry that my dad had started.

While studying on this scripture, however, I have noticed that a number of people tend to reverse how they are viewing this verse in their lives.  If you look at our Government and how it was founded, you see a number of men who took a stand and stepped out on faith to establish a country that allowed them freedom from oppression…a government that allowed them to be who they were and practice religious freedom.  This same government today is trying to limit our religious freedoms as Christians because we are willing to take a stand against the “norms” of the world.

What I have realized is that people have started to turn their backs on God, and one of the biggest reasons is that we have lost faith.  Many today are living walking by sight, not trusting in the unseen, but as Christians we are to “walk by faith.”  In Hebrews 11:1 we are told that, “Faith is being sure of what you hope for, and certain of things you do not see.”  With this being the case, we should always take steps to believe God is working in the unseen areas of our lives.

Too many of us are taking ourselves out of blessings because we have become skeptical of what God can do, this is because we are basing our lives only on the things that we can see…and what we perceive is overtaking what we believe to be truth.

If we want our Government to see that we are still a Christian country, a country that is based on Christian beliefs and morals, we must refuel our faith…we must refocus ourselves to the ways of the Lord.

Where do you stand when it comes to your faith?  Are you living by faith and not by sight? Or, are you losing faith and only trusting in what you can see?  Please take a moment to reconsider your stance, especially when it comes to our daily battles.

Remember the words of Proverbs 3:5-6, which states, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

In all you do, all you say, and with all your heart…trust in the Lord and walk by faith…it is the only way for us to return to the nation that we once were.  Today is the day to make a change…together, with faith, we can accomplish much.