A Gift From God

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Not of works, lest any man should boast.

                                                                                           (Eph 2:8-9 KJV)

Those who say they are Christian of course try to do good to their neighbor. But, it is never by these good works that one can be saved. It does not matter how much good that we do we are saved by God's grace through faith in the one who lived and died and yet lives for us. Salvation is not something that we can earn in any way, shape, or form. It comes as a gift from God through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. 

It is this one, Jesus the Christ, who inspires us by the Holy Spirit to follow in his footsteps and to do good. So, when if and when you find yourselves sitting high and mighty up on your horse and claiming your alleged goodness for yourself; think again. You will never be so high and mighty as the Lord. 

Remember, the story of how the people of Babel fell. The people's plan was to build a tower to reach to the heavens. God saw and dispersed the people to various regions; confounding their languages so that they could not get together and plan such things again. Their plan they had considered to be a good thing. God did not think it so. Their good plan came to nothing.

We will never reach the heavenly kingdom on our own. We cannot. God came down from the heavens to reach us and to reach out to us so that we might live in his heavenly kingdom, in his presence, for all eternity. This is a gift from God!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

I Am Is Who He Is

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." Isa 7:14

The incarnation of God, as foretold by Isaiah, as foretold by Isaiah is not such a great mystery as some would make it out to be. Jesus; after all, is God. God can do what He pleases. He created the heavens and the earth with His Word. He confused the language of the people at Babel. He brought the Israelites out of bondage to Egypt. The list of the awesome works of God goes on and on.

God can do whatever He wants when He wants. He is God! He wanted to save the whole world from ourselves so He came to earth, born as a baby in a barn, so that He could walk in our shoes. As true man, He faced the same temptations as we face and overcame them. For about thirty-three years, He lived life as one of us so that when He was killed by us, He might also save us by His death and by His resurrection.

Many say this is a great mystery. But, just because we can't comprehend every detail of the incarnation of God does not mean it is a great mystery. A mystery is something that we have to figure out. We don't have to figure anything out. It is as plain as the noses on our faces. God is God. He is who He is. He can do anything and all things. That is not a mystery. It is also not supposed to be a secret. So, go and tell. Go and tell the world that our Savior, Jesus the Christ, who is God incarnate, has come to set us free to be His own beloved children.

God's Peace - Pr. J