Random Thoughts on the Really Good News

 "...pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace, with all who are calling upon the Lord from a clean heart." (2 Timothy 2:22-23) Righteousness: Pursue things that are right for yourself and those around you. Faith: Expect things God has promised to come to pass even if you cannot see how they could happen. Love: Do for others what they cannot do for themselves, and do it without requiring anything in return. Peace: Attempt to get along with others, and get away from those you cannot.

“Now faith is an assumption of what is being expected, a conviction concerning matters which are not being observed” (Hebrews 11:1 CLNT) The faith that the Bible speaks of is not some blind leap into the dark, but it is believing that what God says is true even though we are not now observing it, or able to prove it.  For example,  God has promised to resurrect the dead when Jesus returns. We assume and expect it to happen even though we have never observed anyone dying and coming back to life. But we have chosen to believe the Bible. Some say there is no God and when we die that is it…that is their faith.  They have no hope beyond this world.  Choosing to have  faith in God gives me peace and hope in this chaotic world. I agree with Paul when he said… “If in this life only we have hope…we are of all men most miserable.” (1 Corinthians 15:19)

“Now Thomas, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, we have seen the Lord. So he said to them…I will not believe." (John 20:24-25) Thomas is called "doubting Thomas" because he refused to believe until he saw Jesus himself. Actually, that was true of all of the disciples. None of them believed until they saw him after his resurrection. Such is the case for the majority of people who live in this world. They will not believe until they see him. "And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came… and said be not be unbelieving, but believing. And Thomas answered…My Lord and my God!" (John 20:26-28) When Jesus returns to raise the dead, all will see him and all will confess him as Lord, just as Thomas did... "...every knee shall bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ i...

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him." (John 18:37-38) That mankind cannot be trusted to deal with this truth is quite obvious. Pilate found no fault with Jesus but had him crucified anyway.  What truth did Jesus come into the world to testify to? “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins…Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord….” (Ma...

"…a righteousness of God through Jesus Christ's faith, FOR all, and ON all who are believing, for there is no distinction...
” (Romans 3:21-22, CLNT) Some versions change "Jesus Christ's faith" to read “through faith in Christ Jesus” thus robbing us of the truth that righteousness, just like eternal life, is freely given sinners by the "GRACE" of God as the result of "JESUS CHRIST'S FAITH" . All will acknowledge Jesus at some point in time, and confess that he is Lord. "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place  and gave him the name that is above every name,  that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in  heaven and on earth and under the earth,  and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, t o the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11) For most this comes after they have been resurrected.  Many say it is too late for justification at that time, but there is no Scripture to back that up, onl...

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you... I will save you from all your uncleanness... I want you to know that I am NOT doing this for your sake... I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it." (Ezekiel 36:26-36) The above was written to Israel who was promised a New Covenant where God would save them by his GRACE after they learned they could not save themselves by doing the WORKS required in the Old Covenant.  God saves ALL people the same way…by His Grace. When he gives us the FAITH to realize we have been saved, our hearts are "established"  by His grace, and we experience the peace and joy of the salvation freely given us by GOD through CHRIST JESUS.  "…it is good that the heart be established by GRACE." (Hebrews 13:9) Salvation does not follow good works…but what tends to follow the realization of our Salvation is good works done in appreciation to God. "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of you...

"The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord...For it is by GRACE you have been SAVED through FAITH, and that not of yourselves, it is a gift from God..." (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8) Being "SAVED" refers to what happens to people after they die.   Jesus, the Son of God, became a  mortal man to SAVE the world.  So  Jesus  died as the "wages" for our sins (since he had none of his own) and was buried.  Yet three days and nights later God raised him to immortal life.  This salvation from death was a "gift from God"  his Father, God's righteous reward for one sinless life sacrificed to save "all" sinners, not just a few. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are JUSTIFIED FREELY by His GRACE through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus"  (Romans 3:23-24) The Greek word for  "JUSTIFIED"  is "dikaioo" and literally means ...

The Bible says this about Jesus Christ… “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.” (Colossians 1:19-23) “Before the creation of the world” God chose to RECONCILE sinners to God “through the blood of his cross” , “if” we “continue in” our faith. NOTE: He is talking about the gospel (good news) of “reconciliation” (being at peace with God)...

“We walk by faith, not by sight…” (2 Corinthians 5:7) Biblical faith is a term which most people struggle with. Faith is not a blind leap into the dark, nor is it just saying we trust God or Jesus. Faith is believing something God or Jesus has SAID he has done or will do for us. Salvation by faith is not “inviting Jesus into your heart”, or joining the church, or confessing your sin, or “calling upon the name of the Lord”, or getting baptized. If those things are of any value at all, they are just a way to express that we believe what God says he will do. Those things are NOT a condition to God being faithful to save mankind, they are a response to the realization that they have been saved by the GRACE of God “not of works lest any man should boast” . (Ephesians 2:8-10) “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…” (1 Timothy 1:15) All of our evangelistic efforts will not add to what Christ Jesus came into the wor...

“…the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God." (Hebrews 7:18-19) The "better hope" that we have for becoming perfect is the Gospel of God. The Gospel is the good news that in Christ Jesus all will be “made alive” , all will be “changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye”  and all will become a “new creation in Christ Jesus” where God is “All in all” . “As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive…we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet…that God may be All in all…a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come…” (1 Corinthians 15:22, 51-52, 28; 2 Corinthians 5:17) Perfection is a promise from God which occurs for us when in His GRACE our salvation is complete. And that salvation does not occur as a result of any works or good decisions we make, but is the result of a decision God has made to save si...

“…Now apart from faith it is impossible to be well pleasing (to God)” (Hebrews 11:6) That sounds great and Christian’s quote it a lot. Next time you hear someone quote that ask the question…Faith in what? The writer of Hebrews had just defined faith in verse 1 as follows… “Now faith is an assumption of what is being expected, a conviction concerning matters which are not being observed” In order to "expect" something, promises must have been made, in this case promises from God. And when we know what God has promised we are to assume that those promises will come to pass if we are to please God.  We are not to get concerned if we are not now observing what God has promised but are to have the assurance they will come to pass later in this age, or in the ages to come, because God made the promises. And remember, failure to have faith does not prevent the promises from happening...they will happen because God has promised.  Having faith does not make the promises h...

The Reconciliation of all : "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their sins against them" (2 Corinthians 5:19) "and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven." (Colossians 1:20) Faith and Justification : “Abraham believed God  (had Faith) , and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6;Romans 4:3;Galatians 3:6) "...having been justified by faith (believing God) , we have peace with God" (Romans 5:1) Rewards : “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” (Revelation 22:12) "For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ...and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man...

“…join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day. What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.” (2 Timothy 1:8-14) Paul was suffering for teaching the good news that… 1. God has saved us,...

To most secular Philosophers, faith in God is opposed to reason. He or she apparently knows nothing of biblical faith. Biblical faith rests on the sure foundation of perfect reason...reasoning with the Creator of all things. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18) When I observe the wonder of creation and learn some of the science of how it all works together I cannot help but see the beauty, wisdom and reason of the one behind the creation...like King David says “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 1:1-4) The Creator says it is reasonable to believe that whe...

"And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” (Acts 20:32) What does “the word of His grace” mean and what is this word? The Greek for “word” is “logo” and simply means that which is communicated to mankind by God. And what is that? His GRACE…unmerited favor among those who are sanctified.  Mankind is sanctified (deemed Holy by God) through the truth of His Word (what He has communicated to us)… “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.” (John 17:17-18) Christ Jesus came to save the world. He consecrated himself for that purpose and through his shed blood he succeeded. “…all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness… But he has appeared once FOR ...

“…without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6) Yesterday I pointed out that the Bible clearly says that God is going to save ALL ISRAEL as His unconditional promise. God is no respecter of persons and so the Bible also clearly says that God is going to unconditionally save everyone else. God says it and only those who believe what he says have FAITH that pleases God. Here is His unconditional promise… “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires (wills) all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time... it is a trustworthy statement deserving full accept...

“…without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6) Biblical FAITH is an interesting topic to study. The Greek word for faith is “pistis” and a short definition is simply “belief” or “trust”. As related to God in the Scripture it has to do with whether you believe and trust what God says. Of course it is important to actually KNOW what God has said. Simply believing or trusting what another person says about God is NOT the faith that will please God according to the Bible. I have made the choice to have FAITH (believe and trust) that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. I cannot prove it and do not spend any time trying to do so. I have also chosen NOT to believe that there are any other writings or teachings which are the inerrant Word of God. What that does for me is to give me a solid foundation upon which to test other people’s opinions about God and life in gener...

“God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them…The LORD God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed.” (Genesis 1:7; 2:8) There are certain things God does for mankind just because he wants to, creating Adam and putting him in a garden paradise was the first one of those things we are told about in Scripture. “…seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat...by faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.” (Joshua 6:4-7; Hebrews 11:30) There are certain things that God will do for people only if they have the ...

“Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME, AND WILL NOT DELAY. BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE SHALL LIVE BY FAITH; AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK, MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM. But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.” (Hebrews 10:35-39) Confidence and Faith in what? The return of Jesus the Messiah of course. What was the will of God for them? To endure in the faith of the return of Jesus to save them. “Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven…and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” (Acts 1:11; Hebrews 9:28) Some were shrinking back from believing Jesus would return and deliver them from the Roman E...

“In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk! And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. With a leap he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.” (Acts 3:6-8) What exactly caused this man to be healed? Modern day faith healers would say it was the FAITH of Peter, John and the lame man – and/or the collective prayer of the Saints…as if prayer and faith are currency given to God in exchange for the lame man’s healing. However, it clear to me that the lame man was healed BECAUSE IT WAS GOD’S PLAN TO HEAL HIM. It had nothing to do with the purchasing power of PRAYER or FAITH. You cannot can buy stuff from God. So why did God miraculously heal him? Well the context of Miracles in the Bible is always to confirm the word of God. So in this case it would have been to demonstrate to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. These miracles to confirm the Word of...