Random Thoughts on the Really Good News

“But it is God who has wronged me, capturing me in his net. “I cry out, ‘Help!’ but no one answers me. I protest, but there is no justice. God has blocked my way so I cannot move. He has plunged my path into darkness. He has stripped me of my honor and removed the crown from my head. He has demolished me on every side, and I am finished. He has uprooted my hope like a fallen tree. His fury burns against me; he counts me as an enemy.” (Job 19:6-11) Job had just been through the Olympics of bad days. He was a good man and had not sinned when God  "wronged" him by allowing all his kids and grandkids to be killed and then all his his wealth and health to be taken away - and in case that wasn't enough, his wife tells him to curse God and die. He didn't but he does proclaim his innocence and says that God "wronged" him. But does God really wrong good people for no apparent reason? Yes he does. So how are we to deal with that?  Well, Job told his friends what...

"God ... endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction...And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy... even us, whom He also called." (Romans 9:19-24) We humans are rarely merciful to our enemies. However, God is both gracious and merciful to both His enemies and friends. Christians often say “love the sinner, but hate the sin." It is a nice little catch phrase that justifies judging those we think are worse sinners than us, and sounding all righteous in doing so. I know it is hard, but we need to try to spread a little mercy around from time to time like our heavenly Father. "For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all...give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good: His mercy endures forever..." (Romans 11:32; Psalm 136) Sinful people are like a coin in God's hand, with Grace on one side and Mercy on the other.   The coin gets spent for both good and evil over...

“For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly…But he is a Jew who is one inwardly...” (Romans 2:28-29) There are many who think believers in Jesus, which they refer to as the "church", are “spiritual Israel” based on this verse (ignoring the context). This false teaching assumes that because Israel as a nation rejected Jesus as the Christ (Messiah) God discarded Israel and the believers in Jesus among all nations are now the church, or “spiritual Israel”. They are wrong. A "Jew" who is one "outwardly" is simply a person whose linage can be traced back to Abraham through his son Isaac. A "Jew" who is one "inwardly" is any person who has ever believed what God says, just like Abraham did. "Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: 'All nations will be blessed through you.' So those who ...

Thank you Lord God! I pray you will supernaturally fill President Trump and Vice President Pence with all it will take to undo what those have done who have ignored You and the working people of America these many years. Please remove those who oppose Your will from public office and replace them all with those who submit to Your will in all matters of life. And for those who continue to oppose Your will, well please bless them also, and in that blessing may they be humbled and become thankful to You for making America once again the “Shining City Upon a Hill” radiating the glory of your grace for all the world to see and follow. Do so I pray in the name of Your only begotten Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

"For to vanity was the creation subjected, not voluntarily, but because of Him Who subjects it, in expectation that the creation itself, also, shall be freed from the slavery of corruption into the glorious freedom of the children of God."  How do sinful people become "children of God" ?  By being "freed from the slavery of corruption" at the "deliverance of our body" . "For we are aware that the entire creation is groaning and travailing together until now. Yet not only so, but we ourselves also, who have the first fruit of the spirit, we ourselves also, are groaning in ourselves, awaiting the sonship, the deliverance of our body. For to expectation were we saved..." (Romans 8:20-24) People are slaves to corruption.  By corruption I am not talking about the worldly idea of being corrupted by evil men.  I am talking about the biblical idea of the dying process.   We are all born of a women to die with all mankind, that is our l...

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth (aletheia) came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17) The New Testament was written in Greek. I have read that in ancient Greek culture the Greek word aletheia  was synonymous for “reality” as the opposite of “illusion”. So, Moses received the Law, which had the illusion of providing a way for men to become righteous before God. But of course, it was only an illusion for mankind is not able to keep it, because… “…it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God…” (Romans 3:10-11) Most of what is taught among Christianity and all that is taught in other religions of the world is the “illusion” that we can do stuff to please God and therefore become "righteous" by those good works. That broad and proverbial religious road leads to destruction for… “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” and “…the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 3:23; 6:23) The Law...

“For sin shall not have power over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14) What does Paul mean when he says sin shall not have power over us? Well, the wages for sin is death, and all of us sin and die, so he means that death, the power sin has over us is temporary, for by the GRACE of God we sinners will be raised to eternal life. It really is that simple. .. “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life…” (Romans 6:23) Christianity has managed to complicate the gospel of salvation, making it a matter of choice, not grace. I suppose we have done so because we have a hard time giving stuff to those we consider to be far worse sinners than ourselves.  To hell with them.   But the biblical GRACE of God has to do with “unmerited favor”. The salvation of the most egregious sinner magnifies the grace of God, and distinguishes Him from us. Paul understood this and wanted us to understand… “Here is a trustworthy saying that de...