Category Archives: Choices And Consequences

What’s Eclipsing You??? Bible Ballistics: BBs #432

31 Wednesday Jan 2018

Posted by in Abundant Life In Jesus, Choices And Consequences, Eclipse, Holy Spirit, Jesus Is The Only Way!, Knowing God's Word, Let You Light So Shine, Salvation, The Only Way, Walking With Jesus

≈ Leave a comment

Bible Ballistics: BBs #432    What’s Eclipsing You???

 

Many people watched the “Lunar Eclipse” this morning as a shadow moved across the moon. It was an interesting sight and a rare combination of a “Blue Moon” (A blue moon is the appearance of 2 full moons in the same month!), an eclipse (generally speaking, an obstruction of light), and a blood moon (The phenomenon of an eclipse when there is a reddish hue on the moon due to atmospheric particles reflecting sunlight, causing the red hue during the eclipse.). As I watched the amazing sight this morning before daylight, my mind ran through so many things, the main one being the question, “What are we reflecting?”

As believers and followers of Jesus, we are to reflect HIS glory, not our own. Jesus is our “sun”, so to speak—HE is the light of our lives, and others should see Him in us.

“Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying,

I am the light of the world:

he that followeth me

shall not walk in darkness,

but shall have the light of life.”    John 8:12

Much as the ‘sun’ gives light and life to planet earth, Jesus is our “light of life”. Just as God set the ‘sun’ in the sky, HE sets the “Son” in hearts that are born again, imparting the power to live as HIS children, by His Holy Spirit within us—power to reflect HIS light and glory to a lost and dying world. Even as Paul testified of when he stood before King Agrippa, may we truly understand our calling?

“To open their eyes,

and to turn them from darkness

to light,

and from the power of Satan

unto God,

that they may receive forgiveness

of sins,

and inheritance

among them which are sanctified

by faith that is in me.” Acts 26:18

Paul took his mission seriously, and shared the Gospel everywhere God sent him that he might “turn them from darkness to light”! The mission hasn’t changed, yet to fulfill our mission, we must stay in a position to reflect the true light—Jesus, The light that saves and transforms lives!

“This then is the message

which we have heard of him,

and declare unto you,

that God is light,

and in him is no darkness at all.

6 If we say that we have fellowship with him,

and walk in darkness,

we lie,

and do not the truth:

7 But if we walk in the light,

as he is in the light,

we have fellowship one with another,

and the blood of Jesus Christ

his Son

cleanseth us from all sin.”   1 John 1:5-7

It’s all about Jesus, ‘The Light’—the “light of the world”—whose light should be what others see in us! Just a few thoughts for us this morning, am I walking “in the light, as he is in the light”? Or have I been walking “in darkness”, dimming the reflection of my Lord? Have I ever been born again, and received the light of Jesus? Questions that we each must answer for ourselves, but questions that will make an eternal difference, not only in our own life, but also in the lives of those who are watching and following us!

The Lord gave me this picture many years ago, and I think of it often as I strive to be His faithful child and follower.

“If I am the moon and Jesus is the sun, then I will have an affect on the “earth” — the world around me. When I am in direct relation to the sun (the Son!), then His light will be reflected in all I do to the world around me. If I come between the sun (the Son) and the earth, then all that people see is me, and I block out the true light of my Lord—The Son/sun!

But on the other hand if the world/earth gets between me and Jesus—my sun/The Son—there is no reflection at all. For when I am out of direct relation to my sun/ The Son, I have no light to give! For as Jesus said of Himself, “I am the light of the world”, and my job is to reflect HIS light and glory, not my own. Yet when I stand in His way, there is no true light for others to see, just as when I let others—the world—stand between Jesus, and me I have no light to shine. And my job is to shine, and I can’t do that without my ‘source’.”

John records Jesus’ instructions to us in this regard, and may we all ponder His words today.

“I am the true vine,

and my Father is the husbandman.

2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit

he taketh away:

and every branch that beareth fruit,

he purgeth it,

that it may bring forth more fruit.

3 Now ye are clean

through the word

which I have spoken unto you.

4 Abide in me,

and I in you.

As the branch cannot bear fruit

of itself,

except it abide in the vine;

no more can ye,

except ye abide in me.

5 I am the vine,

ye are the branches:

He that abideth in me,

and I in him,

the same bringeth forth much fruit:

for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:1-5

May we ever be found reflecting HIS glory—bringing “forth much fruit”! Ever being “doers of the word”—HIS Word!

“But be ye doers of the word,

and not hearers only,

deceiving your own selves.

23 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:

24 For he beholdeth himself,

and goeth his way,

and straightway forgetteth

what manner of man he was.

25 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.”   James 1:22-25

Be blessed today!!!

Depending On Who’s Goodness??? Bible Ballistics: BBs #431

26 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by in Approved Unto God, Choices And Consequences, Dependence, Jesus Is The Only Way!, Salvation, SIN, The Only Way, The Word

≈ Leave a comment

Bible Ballistics: BBs #431 Depending On Who’s Goodness???

 

We hear the expression, “Depending on”… the weather..the circumstances…my schedule…’I will’… do whatever. There are a lot of things that we “depend’ on in life, and there are many things that people depend on for their own eternal destiny, but are you depending on the right One?

I saw something this morning referring to the Tower of Babel; people who were depending on their own abilities, and wisdom to do what they wanted rather than what they knew God had told them to do—it didn’t work out for them–and it won’t work out for you! No matter how “good” we think our way is; no matter how many organizations (including the church, which in reality is an organism—not an ‘organization’), clubs, or philanthropic entities one may serve; our attempts to create our own ‘goodness’ or ‘righteousness’ will never succeed. Only God’s righteousness can take anyone to heaven.

“For since the beginning of the world

men have not heard,

nor perceived by the ear,

neither hath the eye seen,

O God, beside thee,

what he hath prepared for him

that waiteth for him.

5 Thou meetest him that rejoiceth

and worketh righteousness,

those that remember thee in thy ways:

behold, thou art wroth;

for we have sinned……..

6 But we are all as an unclean thing,

and all our righteousnesses

are as filthy rags;

and we all do fade as a leaf;

and our iniquities,

like the wind,

have taken us away.”   Portions of Isaiah 64:4-6

No matter how good we think we are God says that our efforts are “as filthy rags”! We have sinned—all of us—only God has the cure—salvation in the blood of Jesus!

“As it is written,

There is none righteous,

no,

not one:

11 There is none that understandeth,

there is none that seeketh after God.

12 They are all gone out of the way,

they are together become unprofitable;

there is none that doeth good,

no,

not one.” Romans 3:10-12

There is only ONE-WAY to be ‘good’/‘righteous’—and that Way is Jesus. Only the gift of God’s righteousness, that Jesus bought at Calvary, can give us a right relationship with God. All through the blood of Jesus Christ The Lord!

“Therefore if any man be in Christ,

he is a new creature:

old things are passed away;

behold, all things are become new.

18 And all things are of God,

who hath reconciled us to himself

by Jesus Christ….

God was in Christ,

reconciling the world

unto himself,

not imputing their trespasses

unto them….

be ye reconciled to God.

21 For he hath made him

to be sin

for us,

who knew no sin;

that we might be made

the righteousness

of God

in him.”   Portions of 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

We can deceive ourselves into believing that we are good enough to get to heaven, or we can believe God and come to Him through Jesus—The One who died for unrighteous, ungodly sinners, us. And only when we see our own helplessness in sin, will we need a redeemer—Jesus Christ, the only hope of salvation!

“And hope maketh not ashamed;

because the love of God

is shed abroad in our hearts

by the Holy Ghost

which is given unto us.

6 For when we were yet without strength,

in due time

Christ died for the ungodly.”    Romans 5:5-6

I’m so glad that HE did! How about you? Are you still trying to ‘be good enough’? Jesus stands ready to save! I join with Paul and invite you to the “good” news of Jesus.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”   Romans 1:16-17   Amen!

 

S.R.O.–How About You??? Bible Ballistics: Vol. 10 No. 26

22 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by in Changed Lives, Choices And Consequences, Choose You This Day!, Confidence, Every Knee Shall Bow, Heaven or Hell, Jesus Is The Only Way!, Salvation, SIN, The Only Way, The Word, Walking With Jesus, When Will You Bow?

≈ Leave a comment

Bible Ballistics: Vol. 10 No.26 S.R.O—How About You???

 

We’ve all heard the term “Standing Room Only”; it’s used for a situation at an event that doesn’t have enough seats for everyone to sit down at a particular time. Well my friends, I’d like is to consider another S.R.O. scenario: the day when Jesus comes again, and what we do with our time and our lives until He appears will dictate our position before Him when He comes—our eternal destiny depends on our choice.

In his letter to Ephesian believers, Paul calls followers of Jesus to stand up for Him, and in Him in order to not fall. Let’s look at some portions from that letter:

“Finally, my brethren,

be strong

in the Lord,

and in the power of his might.

11 Put on the whole armour of God,

that ye may be able to stand

against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not

against flesh and blood,

but against principalities,

against powers,

against the rulers of the darkness

of this world,

against spiritual wickedness

in high places.

13 Wherefore

take unto you the whole armour of God,

that ye may be able to withstand

in the evil day,

and having done all,

to stand.

14 Stand therefore,

having your loins girt about with truth,

and having on the breastplate

of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod

with the preparation

of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith,

wherewith ye shall be able

to quench all the fiery darts

of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation,

and the sword of the Spirit,

which is the word of God:

18 Praying always

with all prayer

and supplication

in the Spirit,

and watching thereunto

with all perseverance

and supplication

for all saints;”    Ephesians 6:10-18

Paul calls us to “be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might” so that we will be able to “stand” in enemy territory—knowing that our enemy isn’t “flesh and blood”, but the unseen forces of the devil—and yes, he is real! Four times Paul calls us to “be strong” or “to stand”, and we can only do that in the “power of his might”! And we can receive that “power…..to stand” as we kneel. We must come to Jesus in repentance and faith, trusting in His work of salvation on Calvary. Paul talked about that in his letter to the Philippians, reminding us that the question isn’t “Will you bow?” but when will you bow?

“And being found in fashion as a man,

he humbled himself,

and became obedient unto death,

even the death of the cross.

9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name

which is above every name:

10 That at the name of Jesus

every knee should bow,

of things in heaven,

and things in earth,

and things under the earth;

11 And that every tongue should confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.”   Philippians 2:8-11

Jesus came because He loves us; He came to be the ‘suffering servant’ of Isaiah 53, to be the perfect sacrifice for sin—the Only sacrifice for sin. And our eternal destiny—yours and mine—depends on what we do with that gift of salvation bought by His blood!

“For God so loved the world,

that he gave his only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in him

should not perish,

but have everlasting life.

17 For God sent not his Son into the world

to condemn the world;

but that the world

through him

might be saved.

18 He that believeth on him

is not condemned:

but he that believeth not

is condemned already,

because he hath not believed

in the name

of the only begotten Son of God.

19 And this is the condemnation,

that light is come into the world,

and men loved darkness

rather than light,

because their deeds were evil.”    John 3:16-19

We must decide if we will bow before at the cross and receive the gift that Jesus offers to all who will come to Him in repentance and faith, or if we will ‘stand’ against Him; but remember the day is coming when those who ‘stand’ against Him will “bow”, speechlessly, with no recourse, no Savior, but ‘standing’ before Judge Jesus at the Great White Throne.

“And I saw a great white throne,

and him that sat on it,

from whose face

the earth

and the heaven

fled away;

and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead,

small

and great,

stand before God;

and the books were opened:

and another book was opened,

which is the book of life:

and the dead were judged

out of those things

which were written

in the books, according to their works.

13 And the sea gave up the dead

which were in it;

and death and hell

delivered up the dead which were in them:

and they were judged

every man

according to their works.

14 And death and hell

were cast into the lake of fire.

This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written

in the book of life

was cast into the lake of fire.”   Revelation 20:11-15

There will be ‘standing room only’ before that Throne; no one will be sitting this one out! Those who have chosen to refuse the love that God has for them will give an account of why they refused to ‘bow’ before The Son of God! They will stand alone before the God who created them and who provided the salvation that they rejected. They will ‘bow’ before King Jesus as their judge with no opportunity for forgiveness and salvation -–that is only available in this life. Even as scripture tells us:

“And as it is appointed unto men

once to die,

but after this the judgment:”   Hebrews 9:27

This life is important, it is the only opportunity that we will have to receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and have our sins forgiven; not a “get out of jail free’ card to escape hell, but a life-transforming gift of eternal life that Jesus purchased at Calvary with His own, sinless perfect life’s blood! And when He saves us, heaven is our destiny because He writes our names in the “book of life”! So the questions that we must all answer are, “Will I stand on my own?” or “Will I bow before the Son in this life now, as Savior and Lord, or will I bow before Him then, as Judge?”

I know these are sobering questions, but they are questions that are of eternal import—what you decide to do with Jesus will determine whether you face a heavenly home or an eternal hell! I can’t think of anything more important, even though most these days, want to simply disregard Jesus as ‘pie in the sky’ and live like there is no tomorrow. Well my friend, there is a tomorrow—and only God knows what it holds. But when we come to Jesus, we can have confidence knowing Who holds our tomorrows (Oh, that might make a great song!). And we can trust Him to continue to do His work in us—for our good and His glory.

“Being confident of this very thing,

that he which hath begun a good work

in you

will perform it

until the day of Jesus Christ:”   Philippians 1:6

Jesus is coming soon; I believe that with all my heart. And while I don’t know the day or the hour, I know that when He comes, I’m going with Him!!! How about you? There is “Standing Room” only to kneel before Him today, and know we will never stand before that Great White Throne (Although believers will stand before the judgment seat of Christ to give an account of what we have done, or not done for Jesus, but that’s a subject for another day. See Romans 14:10 & 2 Corinthians 5:10, and it’s also pictured in 1 Corinthians 3:1-15)!

I pray that we will each examine our heart today and listen to His Spirit, drawing near to the Savior—either to bow before Him as Lord and Savior to receive His gift of salvation; or to draw nearer to Him and learn to know Him better if we are already His! Have a blessed week walking with Jesus, and “…take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand”! Amen and Amen!

“This” Time Is Now!!! Bible Ballistics: BBs #428

17 Wednesday Jan 2018

Posted by in Choices And Consequences, Choose You This Day!, Faithful is He that has Promised!, For Such A Time As This, Jesus Is The Only Way!, The Only Way, The Word, Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done, TODAY, Walking With Jesus

≈ Leave a comment

Bible Ballistics: BBs #428    “This” Time Is Now!!!

 

As we make our way through this cold winter weather that is gripping much of the U.S., I couldn’t help but think about the times that we live in—things are cold and then they get hot! When they’re cold everyone is crying for it to get warm, when it is hot, people clamor for it to cool off! It’s the nature of the dissatisfied human heart. But for those of us who are believers in Jesus Christ the King of Glory—we ought to look at things with different eyes; we ought to recognize that God is ever at work in our lives, regardless of the temperature, the time or the political climate. God has called us to serve Him faithfully wherever HE has placed us; or as someone as so aptly put it, “Bloom where you’re planted”; and while that isn’t scripture it does have it’s roots in scripture. Let’s take a ‘gander’ at The Word.

Esther was a godly young woman who found herself in a pagan culture, in the palace of a King—yet God hadn’t placed her there by mistake.

“Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther,

Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape

in the king’s house,

more than all the Jews.

14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace

at this time,

then shall there enlargement

and deliverance arise to the Jews

from another place;

but thou and thy father’s house

shall be destroyed:

and who knoweth

whether thou art come

to the kingdom

for such a time as this?

15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer,

16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan,

and fast ye for me,

and neither eat nor drink

three days,

night or day:

I also and my maidens

will fast likewise;

and so will I go in unto the king,

which is not according to the law:

and if I perish,

I perish.

17 So Mordecai went his way,

and did according to all

that Esther had commanded him.”   Esther 4:13-17

Esther wasn’t looking to be a hero, but when confronted with the opportunity to serve God ‘where she was planted’, even at the risk of her life, she chose to be available to God, for His service, even if it cost her life—so she fasted, prayed and obeyed God!

What is your “such a time as this”? What circumstances are you wanting to change, get out of, rearrange or scream and cry about? Well my friend, those circumstances haven’t caught God by surprise. “God never says ‘oops’!” and He hasn’t misplaced you or me! We are living here, now because God created us “for such a time as this”—no matter what our “this” is!

Only “YOU” can do what God has created ‘you’ to do, and we ought not wait for someone else to do what God wants us to do. Just as Mordecai told Esther, God’s plans won’t be thwarted because of our cowardice, laziness, apathy, fear or greed—God will use someone else if we refuse to heed His call. And we will never know the blessings that God had for us if we fail to step up to the bat right where we are!

We’re not called to fret over tomorrow, or yesterday but to live “this” day to its fullest for Jesus, to follow Him anywhere/everywhere He leads—to minister His Word, His grace and His love in whatever way He has called us to minister! And YES, we are all ministers of that which we have received from Jesus! Praying always, as He taught us!

“After this manner therefore pray ye:

Our Father

which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.(in me)

10 Thy kingdom come (in me)

Thy will be done

in earth, (in me)

as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread……”.   Matthew 6:9-11a

We are to seek His kingdom, His will, and His provision for each day! Just a little further on in this ‘Sermon On The Mount’, Jesus spoke these words to all of us who are HIS!

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God,

and his righteousness;

and all these things

shall be added unto you.

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.” Matthew 6:33-34

So what’s your “this”? You’re there for “such a time as this”; what will you do with your “this” today? Pray and obey, as Esther did, or desert? The choice is yours, but choose wisely, there’s a test at the end! Amen and Amen!

I’m Sorry! No I’m Not??? Bible Ballistics: Vol. 10 No. 25

14 Sunday Jan 2018

Posted by in Changed Lives, Choices And Consequences, Forgiveness, Holy Spirit, Jesus Is The Only Way!, Knowing God's Word, SIN, The Only Way, The Word, The Word Or The World?, Walking With Jesus, What's In Your Heart?, What's In Your Mouth?

≈ Leave a comment

Bible Ballistics: Vol. 10 No.25 I’m Sorry! No I’m Not???

 

We see and hear so much “ugly talk” around us that is has become acceptable in most circles. Even with many Christians it has become acceptable to use crude, vulgar and unholy language, with a simple disclaimer of apology for “the language” content in whatever medium the language us used in—be it spoken or written! Well my friends, a preface of apology doesn’t justify ‘ugly talk’ anymore than if I apologized for my ‘violent’ behavior and swiftly began to kick you in the shins! It’s still wrong, no matter how many times I preface bad behavior with an apology. Scripture has a lot to say about our actions—and that is always the best place to start!

Jesus makes it clear that the problem isn’t the “mouth” it’s the heart.

“And Jesus said,

Are ye also yet without understanding?

17 Do not ye yet understand,

that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth

goeth into the belly,

and is cast out into the draught?

18 But those things which proceed

out of the mouth

come forth from the heart;

and they defile the man.

19 For out of the heart proceed

evil thoughts,

murders,

adulteries,

fornications,

thefts,

false witness,

blasphemies:

20 These are the things which defile a man:

but to eat with unwashen hands

defileth not a man.” Mathew 15:16-20

What is “in” the heart will come “out” of the mouth! Whenever you squeeze something—whatever is “inside” will come out! And whatever is in a person’s heart will come out sooner or later, in one way or another—how sad that we have allowed ourselves to be deceived into accepting and approving of evil to accommodate the culture and please men. Isaiah tells us what God thinks of that kind of lifestyle, and while it is a lengthy passage, it is one from which we can benefit, when we take it to heart and allow God’s Spirit to touch our hearts with it.

“And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:

16 But the LORD of hosts

shall be exalted in judgment,

and God that is holy

shall be sanctified in righteousness.

17 Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.

18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity

with cords of vanity,

and sin as it were

with a cart rope:

19 That say,

Let him make speed,

and hasten his work,

that we may see it:

and let the counsel

of the Holy One of Israel

draw nigh and come,

that we may know it!

20 Woe unto them that call evil good,

and good evil;

that put darkness for light,

and light for darkness;

that put bitter for sweet,

and sweet for bitter!

21 Woe unto them that are wise

in their own eyes,

and prudent

in their own sight!

22 Woe unto them that are mighty

to drink wine,

and men of strength

to mingle strong drink:

23 Which justify the wicked

for reward,

and take away the righteousness

of the righteous from him!

24 Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff,

so their root shall be as rottenness,

and their blossom shall go up as dust:

because they have cast away

the law of the LORD of hosts,

and despised

the word of the Holy One of Israel.”   Isaiah 5:15-24

Even as we see all around us, men are claiming to be right because surely “God” would intervene if the scripture was true, but He hasn’t, so we are alright—in our own eyes and before “God”! They call evil good, and good evil; they are wise “in their own eyes” and “prudent in their own sight”! Mankind is creating a ‘god’ in their own image, rather than seeking and serving the “God” who created man in “HIS” own image! Peter refers to this willful rejection and arrogance.

“Knowing this first,

that there shall come in the last days

scoffers,

walking after their own lusts,

4 And saying,

Where is the promise

of his coming?

for since the fathers fell asleep,

all things continue as they were

from the beginning

of the creation.

5 For this they willingly are ignorant of,

that by the word of God

the heavens were of old,

and the earth standing out of the water

and in the water:

6 Whereby the world that then was,

being overflowed with water,

perished:

7 But the heavens and the earth,

which are now,

by the same word

are kept in store,

reserved unto fire

against the day of judgment

and perdition of ungodly men.”   2 Peter 3:3-7

Peter reminded his readers that while God may not be active to their ‘satisfaction’, He is not dead, or as the song says, “Nor doth He sleep”! People choose not to believe the Word of God or God Himself, especially the person of Jesus Christ the Son of God—and that my friends, is the whole truth of the matter! God has called us to be His children through the blood of Jesus’ sacrifice for sin, and be empowered to walk in His Spirit so we would “not fulfill the lusts of the flesh”! Yes, we all stumble and fall but we are called to “walk in the light as He is in the light”, and that means we don’t’ stay in the dark. (See 1 John 1:5+)

But what about saying ‘I’m sorry’? Isn’t that enough? I think Paul has some advise that is timely on that issue.

“Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus; 7 And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.

8 For though I made you sorry with a letter,

I do not repent,

though I did repent:

for I perceive that the same epistle

hath made you sorry,

though it were but for a season.

9 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.

10 For godly sorrow

worketh repentance to salvation

not to be repented of:

but the sorrow of the world

worketh death.

11 For behold this selfsame thing,

that ye sorrowed after a godly sort,

what carefulness it wrought in you,

yea, what clearing of yourselves,

yea, what indignation,

yea, what fear,

yea, what vehement desire,

yea, what zeal,

yea, what revenge!

In all things ye have approved yourselves

to be clear in this matter.” 2 Corinthians 7:6-11

Paul reminds us that “godly sorrow” leads to repentance, while the “sorrow of the world” doesn’t! Because worldly sorrow is often only, “I’m sorry I got caught”, not “I’m sorry I offended God, and I don’t want to do it anymore”! This is what John talked about in calling believers to repent and “confess our sins”, meaning that we agree with God that ‘sin’ is ‘sin’—not justifying our ‘sin’ to simply cover up our error with a ‘convenient’ apology. When we truly repent with “godly sorrow”, God hears our plea, forgives us and cleanses us!

“But if we walk in the light,

as he is in the light,

we have fellowship one with another,

and the blood of Jesus Christ

his Son

cleanseth us from all sin.

8 If we say that we have no sin,

we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us.

9 If we confess our sins,

he is faithful

and just

to forgive us our sins,

and to cleanse us

from all unrighteousness.

10 If we say that we have not sinned,

we make him a liar,

and his word is not in us.” 1 John 1:7-10

But as long as we fail to face or sin, and agree with God that it is sin, we will continue to fail and fall into the same sin time and time again. It is a sad state of affairs when we are more concerned with ‘fitting in’ than pleasing God with Holy behavior! But most today are so busy claiming that “we have not sinned”, that they don’t even hear The Word of God, much less any desire to adhere to its teaching or acknowledge its authority. There is no godly sorrow, until there is an acknowledgement that sin is sin. And foul, vulgar and crude language are sin, and ought not to be part of our vocabulary or our lives. If Jesus hasn’t changed my “mouth”, I might want to check and see if He has changed my heart! And Jesus knows those who are HIS own!

“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.”   2 Timothy 2:19

Jesus made it clear that just “saying so” doesn’t “make it so”. A changed heart will be seen in a changed life, and a changed ‘tongue’!

“Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

17 Even so every good tree

bringeth forth good fruit;

but a corrupt tree

bringeth forth evil fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bring forth

evil fruit,

neither can a corrupt tree

bring forth good fruit.

19 Every tree that bringeth not forth

good fruit

is hewn down,

and cast into the fire.

20 Wherefore by their fruits

ye shall know them.

21 Not every one that saith unto me,

Lord, Lord,

shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;

but he that doeth the will

of my Father which is in heaven.

22 Many will say to me in that day,

Lord, Lord,

have we not prophesied in thy name?

and in thy name have cast out devils?

and in thy name done many

wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them,

I never knew you:

depart from me,

ye that work iniquity.

24 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:

25 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.

26 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:

27 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 7:16-25

Jesus said “Ye shall know them by their fruits”! I think that we ought to take this call to heart, and examine our hearts to be sure that we belong to Jesus! Does my walk reflect the glory of Jesus and the work of His Spirit in me, or do I claim His name with my lips crying, “Lord, Lord” while walking the world’s way? Are you experiencing “godly sorrow” that leads to repentance, or are you choosing the “sorrow of the world” which “worketh death”? Are you really ‘sorry’? Or are you simply sorry you got caught? Only you and I can answer those questions, but the answers are imperative to our spiritual welfare!

May God open our eyes to see what He sees.

“Search me, O God,

and know my heart:

try me,

and know my thoughts:

24 And see if there be

any wicked way in me,

and lead me

in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

Amen and Amen!