Beware Of False Gods

 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;

But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.

Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.

But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? 

                                                                      (Gal 4:1-9 KJV)

We know that through Christ we are free men and women. We know that we are the children of God and have been freed from bondage to those who by nature are not gods. Yet, something within us keeps driving us back into bondage to serve those false gods. Beware of the false gods that would creep into your life. Some of those false gods might seem innocent enough. But, they are not. They will take away our freedom. 

We are not always even aware when we have become obsessed with them; after all, we live in a world where false gods tend to take center stage in the world. When we cannot do without something or some activity then, dear friends, know that you have sold yourself back into bondage. You have sold yourself to a false god. as you are giving your time, your money, your life, to serve this false god. These false gods cannot save you. They can even bring you any real happiness or joy. They will not give you peace of heart or mind or soul.

We are children and heirs of the living God. Jesus freed us from bondage with his blood. Take hold of that freedom and turn away from all that would return you to bondage. 

Rejoice, for the Son has set you free and you are free indeed! (John 8-36)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Our Father

Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. 

                                                                            (Gal 4:3-7 KJV)

As the preacher reminds us in Ecclesiastes there is a time and a season for every purpose. (Eccl 3:1)  When the fulness of time came, God sent his only begotten Son so that through Jesus we too might become his beloved children. 

God chooses his time. He chooses his children. He chooses to care for us. He chooses to love us. He chose to save us by sacrificing His Son for us.  This is not a work of humankind. Our relationship with God is a direct consequence of His love for us and as His children He has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts that we might love him and one another as Jesus does. Without the abiding presence of the Spirit of Christ we cannot ever love as he loves us.

God bless you on this Sunday in Advent and everyday with the abiding presence of the one who died that you might live life in him.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Children of a Heavenly Father

But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

                                                                                        (Gal 4:4-6 KJV)

Children are an awesome blessing. They can be a lot of work, though. Our attempts to bring them up in the way they should be going doesn't always work the way that we planned.

We have a Father in heaven. We have been adopted as His own children; redeemed by His only begotten Son to be His children. I have often wondered what God, my Father, thought when I really did stuff that were not in His plans. Does he get as frustrated as I do when the children I care about are straying? I am sure that He is not all that pleased when we do things to the detriment of others; when we do not love as He loves us. As children of God we try to please Him even as our own children try to please us. We all fall short. We don't always do what we ought to be doing. We don't and our children don't. But, we keep on loving even as our heavenly Father loves us.

All who believe in His Son, Jesus the Christ, are the children of God. May He help us to follow in His Way.

God's Peace - Pr. J