He Speaks And It Is So

O Lord, how manifold are your works!
    In wisdom you have made them all;
    the earth is full of your creatures.
                     (Psalm 104:24 NRSV)

God has created all things. By His Word all things came into being. He said, "Let there be..." and there it was.

In the beginning whatever God desired, it was. Just because it is so many years later that has not changed. God's will will be done. We can fight Him all we want. We can go against His will. But, he is still God and will be for all of eternity. Quit fighting Him! Quit rebelling and it will go a whole lot easier on us all!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Who Is The Antichrist?

Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 

                                                                           1 John 2:22-23 NKJV

So, exactly who is the antichrist? According to St. John the antichrist is anyone who would deny that Jesus is the Christ. Whoever denies the Son also denies the Father. Whoever denies either is a liar and the antichrist.

Next question: How does one deny that Jesus is the Christ? Response: By trusting in our own good works for our salvation. When we trust the world, ourselves, anything or anyone before Jesus the Christ we are denying him; we are denying his power and authority to save us.

The antichrist is not some mythical being. Generations have looked for the antichrist and pointed their fingers at various political or religious leaders saying, "he is the antichrist; these are the last days." Pointing the finger at one person only distracts us from looking within ourselves to see who it is that actually abides in us. Is it Jesus the Christ or the antichrist?

May the Word of God abide in us and we in him. May God help us to trust him above all others.

God's Peace - Pr. J

God Speaks To Us

"This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it—the Lord is his name: ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’" (Jer 33:2-3 NIV)

Prayer is not just about talking to God. It is also about listening to him. He promises to speak to us; but, we will not hear unless we take the time to listen. His voice comes to us in many ways: in the reading or the hearing of scripture; through the sermons or teachings that we hear while at Worship or Bible Study; through our neighbors as we spend time with them; and in so many other ways. Yes, we can even hear his whisper in our inmost being if we take the time to be quiet and listen. It is most difficult to hear God with the television or radio blaring. Elijah could not hear God in the chaotic winds or earthquake or fire. He heard God's gentle whisper in the sheer silence. (1 Kings 19:11-18)

But, not everyone wants to hear God speak to them. He may tell us something that we do not want to hear. He may ask us to go where we would not choose to go for ourselves; to do something for others that we'd rather not spend our time or talents on. He might even suggest very strongly that we repent; that we turn our lives around and follow His Son. That would require a sacrifice that we do not want to make. So, we turn on the radio, the television, and whatever other noise we can find to lessen the chance that when God speaks we might hear.

God still speaks to His children. Listen to Him!

God's Peace - Pr. J