• Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.

  • CF has always been a site that welcomes people from different backgrounds and beliefs to participate in discussion and even debate. That is the nature of its ministry. In view of recent events emotions are running very high. We need to remind people of some basic principles in debating on this site. We need to be civil when we express differences in opinion. No personal attacks. Avoid you, your statements. Don't characterize an entire political party with comparisons to Fascism or Communism or other extreme movements that committed atrocities. CF is not the place for broad brush or blanket statements about groups and political parties. Put the broad brushes and blankets away when you come to CF, better yet, put them in the incinerator. Debate had no place for them. We need to remember that people that commit acts of violence represent themselves or a small extreme faction.

Free Will

When discussing the topic of free will, after you cut through the smoke screen, inevitably the "free will" adherent begins to backpedal:
"No one is saved against their will". The fact of the matter is whether you love it or leave it, the offer is on the table,
"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant." Ezek 37:26 "Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,” Isa 54:10
The Lord will declare peace to his faithful people, Ps 85:8 Jesus said, “Peace be with you!" John 20:21 Rom 5:1
And the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, will make you complete through Jesus Christ; Heb 13:20-21

In contrast, those who willingly oppose Christ are hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. The way of peace they have not known; Isa 59:8 Rom 3:17 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief; Heb 3:12

Orlando restaurant Hamburger Mary’s sues Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over anti-drag law

Orlando restaurant Hamburger Mary’s sues Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over anti-drag law


The Orlando Sentinel reports that the restaurant — known for hosting family-friendly drag events each Sunday — is seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent the new law’s restrictions on drag performances from being enforced.

According to the lawsuit, the restaurant is already losing customers, after recently informing the public that children would no longer be allowed at the Sunday events.

The lawsuit claims that the law (SB 1438) violates the restaurant’s First Amendment rights,

“The broad, sweeping nature of the statute, and the vagueness regarding what conduct is and is not prohibited, will have a chilling effect on the First Amendment rights of the citizens of Florida,” the lawsuit states.

At the behest of the DeSantis administration, undercover agents were deployed to a drag event at Orlando’s Plaza Live in December. And although the agents found thatthere was no lewd content during the performance, the state has tried to revoke the small nonprofit's liquor license anyway, as well as that of a hotel in Miami that hosted a similar, holiday-themed show.

Arizona Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borrelli says a non-binding resolution trumps AZ law, and therefore all election machines are banned

Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borrelli penned a letter to all 15 Arizona counties on Monday, telling them that they were barred from using any machines to administer future elections.

He claimed that the legislature’s recent approval of Senate Concurrent Resolution 1037 was binding under a radical interpretation of a constitutional provision that would effectively allow state legislatures to do whatever they want with elections.

The core of the so-called “plenary powers” theory is that legislatures can change election rules and administration whenever they want and however they want, with no checks or balances by the judicial or executive branches.

In this case, Borrelli claimed that, even though Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed actual legislation that would have changed state law to ban all election machines used in Arizona, a change in the law isn’t needed to bar those machines because of SCR1037.


It doesn't sound like any of the counties are buying his garbage. Hopefully they each send him a Cleveland Stadium letter.

Man who crashed U-Haul truck near White House had Nazi flag in vehicle (ETA: Pleads Guilty)

A 19-year-old Missouri man was arrested after police say he intentionally crashed a rented U-Haul truck near the White House, and investigators recovered a Nazi flag from the vehicle.
The man, whom police identified as Sai Varshith Kandula of Chesterfield, Mo., was charged with threatening to kill, kidnap or inflict harm on the president, vice president or a family member, along with other counts including assault with a dangerous weapon and trespassing.

--

Police have declined to provide further details about the nature of the alleged attack or information about the suspect. Law enforcement officials also indicated the suspect made threatening statements during his arrest.

“There were no injuries to any Secret Service or White House personnel and the cause and manner of the crash remain under investigation,” Anthony Guglielmi, the Secret Service chief of communications, said in a statement on Monday night.

--

Daily Fail:

Missouri teenager Sai Varshith Kandula, 19, told FBI he wanted to kill Biden and 'take over' after crashing U-Haul truck into White House security gates while carrying Swastika flag​

Ellen White: Inspired?

In case you do not know who Ellen White was, she is one of the founders of the 7th Day Adventist Church and is often considered a prophet by this denomination. Her writings are considered inspired, but there is some debate within the church over what exactly that means in relation to the Bible.

I've been looking for a nuanced, unbiased discussion about White, and whether she is actually inspired.

What are your thoughts?

John Durham concludes FBI should NOT have investigated Trump


YES - that is CNN reporting:

Special counsel John Durham concluded that the FBI should never have launched a full investigation into connections between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia during the 2016 election, according to a report compiled over three years by the Trump-administration appointee and released on Monday.​
Durham’s 300-plus page report also states that the FBI used “raw, unanalyzed, and uncorroborated intelligence,” to launch the “Crossfire Hurricane” investigation into Trump and Russia but used a different standard when weighing concerns about alleged election interference regarding Hillary Clinton’s campaign.​
“Indeed, based on the evidence gathered in the multiple exhaustive and costly federal investigations of these matters, including the instant investigation, neither U.S. law enforcement nor the Intelligence Community appears to have possessed any actual evidence of collusion in their holdings at the commencement of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation,” Durham said in his report.
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The New Covenant

Makes the Old Covenant Obsolete. The New supersedes the Old.

Luke 22:20
In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.

2 Corinthians 3:6
And He has qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!

Hebrews 7:22
Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.

Hebrews 8:6
Now, however, Jesus has received a much more excellent ministry, just as the covenant He mediates is better and is founded on better promises.

Hebrews 8:8
But God found fault with the people and said: "Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

Hebrews 8:13
By speaking of a new covenant, He has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear

Hebrews 9:16,28
For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator

Hebrews 9:15-23
And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance…

Hebrews 12:24
And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Romans 7:4
Therefore, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God

Romans 6:14
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.

hope this helps !!!

Christ Is Risen, So Why Is There a Crucifix in Every Church?

The Crucifixion shows us most clearly what true love looks like.

One of the many accusations made against the Catholic Church is that we should not have crucifixes hanging all over the place. Jesus rose from the dead. The work is done. The Cross is empty. Why is Jesus still on the cross in every Catholic Church? Wouldn’t a bare cross more gloriously proclaim the power of God in the Resurrection? As St. John Paul II said, “We are the Easter people.” But if we are the Easter people, why have crucifixes?

First of all, let’s be clear: Jesus rose from the dead. Nevertheless, it is still more than appropriate for us to create, venerate and meditate on images of Jesus on the Cross. I don’t claim to be giving the specific reasons people first began to paint and sculpt crucifixes, but I want to give a list of reasons I have come to believe that it is right to have a crucifix front and center in every Church.

The Crucifixion is a tacit pledge of the resurrection.

The Crucifixion reveals the all-consuming heat of the infinite fire of divine love, the same love that creates and sustains the cosmos.

The Crucifixion is Christ’s marriage bed where he was wedded to the Church (St. Augustine).

The Crucifixion shows us most clearly how God loves us, not just how much, but the manner in which He loves us. Love is not just about quantity, but about quality. He is willing to suffer.

Continued below.

Widowed last June and still have a lot to do.

My husband passed away last June and I am still kept very busy with his affairs, doing stuff that he would have been responsible for, working on things needing done around the house, helping my 3 special needs children with their many issues plus all the responsibilities I had and continue to have. When I tell people I am tired and busy, they say oh it's good to be busy, but it's not the kind of busy I enjoy.

There are a lot of maintenance jobs needing done around the house and someone suggested I just put it up for sale and my sister has taken on the role of encouraging me to do that, but it's not as easy as it sounds as I am not ready for that change.

One thing I took a while to get used to was the fact of widowhood - I knew my husband had passed away and that made me a widow, but it was difficult to get my head around or believe the fact that I was a widow. I had to keep saying it to myself - 'You are a widow'.

Through the two years of his illness and his passing I have known the peace of God and the assurance that He is in control and doesn't make mistakes.

Gillian

Prayer request that I won't have a stroke or anything worse happen to my brain

Will you please pray for me?
I have pulmonary embolism (blood clots in my lungs) and a blood clot in my heart. It makes me at risk of stroke or other horrible things to the brain. I am getting an MRI of the brain tomorrow as I am having bad headaches, dizziness etc and they want to check if I have clots in the veins of my brain (in addition to the ones in my heart and lungs).
Can you please pray they do the test well, report on it thoroughly, find what is going on a s treat ne urgently and safely.
And that nothing bad happens to me. I am so extremely scared.
In addition, my mum is in hospital and I don't want her to die

Please will you pray God heals us and ends this nightmare

Thank you very much

Numbers 1:1-4:20 The first "IDF" (Israel Defense Forces) established

NUMBERS 1:1-4:20 "B'Midbar" (in the wilderness, desert)


We start the new Torah Sefer called “Numbers” in English because it talks about “numbering” the tribes of Israel. In the Greek Septuagint we get the Greek word "Arithmoi" from whence we get "arithmetic." wonder why the reason for “numbering the people?” for this reason, we need to go back to the beginning to see.

In Egypt, Israel was a hodge-podge of undisciplined slaves working for Pharaoh, In Adonai’s timing, He sent Moshe, a “Messiah Type” to lead the people out of slavery to freedom. Once out of Egypt, came the task of taking Egypt out of the Israelites. They came to Har Sinai, ready to become a nation united under YHVH. The Ten Commandments served as the document in stone, a “Ketubah” to solidify the covenant. Now, the United Tribes of Israel under YHVH is established. But this is only the first part. Each Shavuot, we remember the giving of the “Torah in Stone” in the midst of thunder and fire.

Now that the nation is established, YHVH takes a count, why the count? As a nation, as every nation in the world has, the Nation of Israel needs an army! So, the count is taken to form the very first IDF (Israel Defense Force). I am sure that many of you that are reading this have served in one of the branches of the Armed Forces of the USA, or of other countries. I myself served in the US Army from 1972-1984. I met many people and learned many things. It was a great experience and a special time in my life. Quite a few of my family members also served in the Armed Forces, the first being an ancestor of mine, Richard Ellis, who served in the Massachusetts Militia in 1640. I also served for 6 weeks with the IDF in Israel, and for 3 years, as a volunteer chaplain in the Armed Forces here in El Salvador.

One interesting aspect with the Word "B'Midbar" is that there is also the word "d'bar" or "D'ber" (to speak) So, we can see that even there in the wilderness, God is speaking and will continue to speak to His chosen people. He will speak and guide them for 40 years in that wilderness of Midian. There is also the word "Adat" which is "congregation" in verse two. The heads of the congregation (the 12 tribes) were chosen to lead them. In the word "Adat" (Ayin, Dalet, Hey) there are the letters (Ayin, Dalet) which is "Ad" this word is "testimony" These heads of the Tribes will serve as "testimonies" to their followers and to those who come after them, as to the faithfulness of God throughout their "journeys".

YHVH takes up the count and “enlists” every man who is 20 years old and older. They will serve in the armies of Israel. All those who are …”20 years old and upward who are able to go to war.” After the numbering, part of daily life would have been practicing and learning how to use different combat weapons, back then would have been swords, spears, bows and arrows, and slingshots.

Every soldier has a job to do. Today we call these jobs MOS, (Military Occupation Specialties) One of mine was that of chaplain assistant. I was to assist a catholic chaplain who everyone called; “Father McCarthy” who had a bulldog named “Gus” who also went to chapel with him. 11 of the 12 tribes were called to be fighting men yet the tribe of Levi, was called to be the “chaplain tribe” They were exempt from combat duty, they would attend the Tabernacle and services. There were the cohanim (the priests) who would be the “chaplains” and the “Levites” who would serve as the “chaplain assistants” sort of speaking.

So, you are thinking, what does this numbering have to do with us as born-again believers in Messiah Yeshua? We are all soldiers in God’s army of believers. He’s got us all numbered. Yes, he has your number! We need to again, go back and look at our lives before and after Messiah Yeshua.

Before, we were just a bunch of “hodge-podge lost sinners in the camp of HaSatan, until Yeshua took us out of that camp by shedding his blood on the cross of Calvary, when we accepted his sacrifice, we were officially “out” of the camp. Yet, there would still be a lot of “HaSatan and worldly influence” still in us, so, like the Israelites, “Egypt” was still in us.

When we accepted Messiah Yeshua as our Mashiach and Goel (Redeemer) we were added to the Family of God. Israel was the first Community, the “Adat” which began at Sinai 3500 years ago. We are the “olive branches” that have been “grafted into” the Olive Tree, which is Israel.

Now that we are members and citizens of “HIS People” we also are considered “soldiers” in the LORD’s Army. However, we fight a different type of war. In this world, armies fight with RPGs, M-16s, Kalashnikovs, Berettas, M-60s, etc. We fight against, “spirits and principalities of darkness” it is a spiritual war against HaSatan and his demons. Only through the Ruach HaKodesh (The Holy Spirit) and the power of His WORD can we overcome the onslaughts of the enemy. He realizes he has lost the war, yet still continues to fight a losing battle, which was won at the cross 2000 years ago.

As the Cohenim ministered and had jobs to do, and also the soldiers had their jobs to do, we believers also have jobs within our “Kehilot” and “Adat” (congregations). That is why the Holy Spirit has given gifts of the Spirit so that we might all serve in different capacities in the body of Messiah. In this way, the body grows and prospers. Some of us are rabbis, and pastors, who also serve as teachers, also we have ministers in music and praise, finances, maintenance, prayer intercessors, counselors, and the list can go on.

The twelve tribes of Israel encircled the Tabernacle, with the tribe of Levi next to it. The “Mishkan” was at the center of the People. So also, YHVH should be the “Center” of our life. The whole purpose of our life is to serve our God and Creator, while loving and supporting our brothers and sisters in the faith, reaching out to others who are lost, and teaching Torah to those who have ears to hear and learn. We are “numbered” in the eyes of Elohim, HE knows who we are, He has numbered the hairs on our head, and there is no such thing as “retirement” in the work of YHVH, well, there is…. It is called d-e-a-t-h.

Another detail which I would like to add to this midrash. About the leaders who were chosen as "heads" of their tribes. Their names have special meanings, and these are meanings; These tell a lot about the character and nature of God;

“Elizur’ = My God is the rock;” Shelumiel” = At peace with God. (I know, it sounds like “Schlemiel” but it isn’t. “Zurishaddai” = My Rock is Shaddai; “Nahshon” = Serpent, “Amminadab” = The (Divine) kinsman is generous; “Nethaniel” = God hath given; “Eliab” = God is Father; “Elishama” = God hath heard, or God hears; “Ammihud” = The (Divine) kinsman is glorious; “Gammaliel” = God is my reward. In later times, it was the name of many famous rabbis, like the rabbi of Apostle Paul; “Pedahzur” = The Rock hath redeemed; “Abidan” = The Father hath judged; “Ahiezer” = The (divine) Brother is a help; “Ammishaddai” = The People of Shaddai; “Pagiel” = The lot (or fate) is given by God; “Eliasaph” = God has added; “Deuel” or “Reuel” = God is a friend; “Ahira” the (divine) brother is a friend.

Prayer request for me

Hello everyone

Please can people pray for me. I'm going through a terrible period at the moment. I've suffered with anxiety for many years and it has become very bad again. My marriage is going through a very difficult period and I'm unsure if we can save it, I'm struggling to focus at work and worried my job is at risk as I only started 2 weeks ago, and the anxiety is taking its toll me on me physically. I can't really eat much and my belly is very uncomfortable when I walk.

Please pray for me. I need God's strength to get me through this and guide me. At the moment I can only take one day at a time and pray.

A Miracle in Missouri? Pilgrims Flock to Town Near Kansas City After Exhumed Body of Benedictine Sisters’ Foundress Appears to Be Incorrupt

Hundreds of pilgrims have descended on a Benedictine monastery for religious sisters in rural Missouri in recent days after news began to spread on social media last week that the recently exhumed remains of the contemplative order’s African American foundress appear to be incorrupt, four years after her death and burial in a simple wooden coffin.

Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster, OSB, founded the Benedictine Sisters of Mary, Queen of the Apostles — best known for their chart-topping Gregorian chant and classic Catholic hymn albums — in 1995 at the age of 70, leaving the Oblate Sisters of Providence, her community of over 50 years, to do so.

Known for her devotion to the Traditional Latin Mass and her faithfulness to Benedictine contemplation and the Liturgy of the Hours, she died at age 95 on May 29, 2019, on the solemnity of the Ascension.

Roughly four years later, on the solemnity of the Ascension in the Latin rite, the abbess and sisters decided to move her body to a final resting place inside their monastery chapel, a long-standing custom for founders and foundresses.

Continued below.
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Kari Lake’s Second Election Contest Trial Concludes, No Experts Dispute 274,000 Ballot Signatures Were ‘Verified’ at a Rate of 3 Seconds Each

Olsen expressed his concern that only after digging into the circumstances, did Lake’s team discover that the county had additional signature reviewers that were not working on camera with observers watching them; employees were conducting signature review in their private offices and remotely from home. He referenced Level 1 signature reviewer Andy Meyers, who testified on the first day of the trial that the Level 2 workers told him they were overwhelmed, not realizing there were others doing things secretly. “Why, why was this all done behind closed doors? That is the secret army that Maricopa employed that goes to the heart of the observation of Andrew Meyers, who testified that the math never added up.”
Olsen concluded by citing the standard Lake’s team was required to prove. “Maricopa’s own timestamp log data proves by clear and convincing evidence that Maricopa is not conducting signature verification. … 70,000 ballots approximately were reportedly compared and verified. Within less than two seconds.
Only now do we find out that signatures were being examined for verification in secret with no observers present.

Discussing the end of times

I want to know and understand why Christians emphasize the end of days or chaos and disaster scenarios. Hearing discussion about it sets me off and it existentially scares me.

I now believe we could very well be in the end times because words of the Bible happen to correspond a lot with today's news in the recent past. But I am scared to experience things like all-powerful evil leaders with no accountability, not being able to make a living, being persecuted and killed in horrific ways. And that it is prophesied and pre-determined to happen and I can't do anything to stop or avoid it from happening to me.

The other part is that I would rather see the world change and have a better positive future than seeing its existence canceled. I honestly long more for a world where banks, entertainment, media, sports, corporations, etc. still exist but this time they are in line with more traditional or Christian values. I am also relatively young and thinking about not getting to do certain things I want to do. Ideally I don't want my existence to end until at least my 60s and I want to die in a relatively peaceful world, but I might not get to have that.

I guess I just don't want to worry about things happening. If an asteroid or nuclear war broke out and was going to hit me, I'd rather be in blissful ignorance in my last moments than be spend it living in anxiety over warning. So guess I'm asking why Christians want to warn others about a future imminent time, but it scares some people or makes them anxious even if it isn't intended like that.

With tears streaming down my face…

My dear CF family,
Hello. I am writing this with tears streaming down my face because it feels as if life has put such a weight on my chest that I feel like we (my husband and I) cannot escape from anymore. In the last year, my husband and I have lived in roughly four hotels, my parents home (which was just myself) and currently at the moment with a “friend “.

The reason for the tears is because come June 9th, we will be homeless. Our friend hasn’t paid her rent since getting this trailer and is getting evicted. I’m really upset about it because we do as much as we can to keep the house afloat aside from rent yet all she does is complain about how nothing is done yet all she wants to do is be lazy all day and expect us to drive her everywhere and not pay us gas or anything.

The only option we have is for me to go home to my parents again but he cannot go with me due to his felony background. Don’t get me wrong, my parents love him as their own and were his biggest supporters other than myself when he was incarcerated for five years of our fourteen year relationship thus far as his own family either basically disowned him, want nothing to do with him or have passed (his own parents- dad was the worst influence and his mom left him when he was just six years old). There are stipulations hindering why my dad won’t allow him to stay.

My husband’s health has also been a factor lately too as he has bad ulcers, suffered third degree burns recently and everything else. I’m our sole provider and I cannot simply do it myself anymore.

So I’m asking for prayers for a miracle or blessing before then. If anyone wants to ask questions or pray personally for us via PM, I’m open to the messages. I prefer them actually.

Thank you all for the continued love and support and prayers.
Love,
somebodysangel :angel:

Question for the guys

I have been talking to someone recently, been out on dates, and I don't feel much if anything romantic with him. He's younger than me and isn't a Christian so I feel like that's my deal breaker. What is the best way to I guess reject him without destroying his confidence. There's nothing really wrong with him just that I don't feel like he's right for me. I've been single my entire life and I don't want to fall into the trap of settling because I'm so lonely. I feel like being with someone I'm not in love with also is unfair to him. Any advice??

My Funeral Message

Three years ago the Lord Jesus led me to write my own funeral sermon, and today, May 22, 2023, he led me to record it. So, the dated information here is three years old, but the message has not changed.

January 24, 2020

We are all going to die one day. It is inevitable, unless the Lord returns first to take us home to be with him. My youngest sister died 5 years ago this month at the age of 61. My next to oldest brother died this past November at the age of 71.

Although, as far as I know, I am in good health, I am 70, and so I have lived a lifetime. And so I am thinking about death and what I would want to have at my funeral, should there be one for me, and especially what I would want the sermon to say. For the message is very important to me. I believe that is the critical point of all funerals.

So, this evening I felt the Lord had something for me to write. He put the song in my head, “My Jesus, I Love Thee,” which talks about death and heaven. But my brain was in a fog. I was reading scriptures, but nothing was working with my brain.

So, I closed up my computer, and I lay down on the sofa. In the dark I closed my eyes, and in the quiet I prayed. And, then these words here began to come to me. So, I am now going to write whatever the Lord Jesus gives me to write this evening, which I believe is to be my funeral sermon, although anyone can use it who wants to, if it fits.

The Message

If you are hearing this read to you right now, then that means that I have gone home to be with the Lord for eternity. I am no longer suffering. I no longer am in a spiritual battle against the enemy of my soul who would want to destroy my life. My tears are gone. I am rejoicing that I now get to be with my Savior forever. I am at rest. The war is over. The battle is won!

It has been a long hard road that I have been traveling. Life has not been easy for me. It was hard from the very beginning. But, God had a plan and a purpose for it all. He was preparing me for something special that he had designed for my life from even before I was formed in the womb of my mother. For, he was preparing me to be one of his messengers who would take his gospel message to the ends of the earth in these last days before our Lord’s return. And that is why Satan has fought against me so hard.

But I am at peace now. The battle is over. The victory is won! And, I am with my Lord forever, and I am rejoicing in Him. And, yes, I am repeating myself, because sometimes we need to hear things more than just once.

Most Critical

So, what message should I leave with you? What is the most important thing you need to hear right now? If I could tell you anything, what would it be?

What I need to tell you is the same thing many of you have heard me say over and over again, because it is what God’s Word teaches over and over again, and because you understanding and believing this message, and you applying it to your life is critical to determining where you will spend eternity.

If you want to be saved from your sins and have eternal life with God, you must die with Christ to sin and live with Christ to his righteousness – all in the power and working of his Spirit. And His Spirit is living within those who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin, and who have been raised with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Read Rom. 6:1-23 and Eph. 4:17-24).

“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’” Luke 9:23-26 ESV

Thus, we are not saved from our sins and bound for heaven on a mere confession of Christ, or on a mere profession of faith in Jesus Christ. We aren’t “saved,” then we live however we want, and then one day, when we die, we get to go to heaven. That is not what God’s Word teaches.

Faith in Jesus Christ is something we must exercise every day. And, that faith is realized in what we do, not in what we profess. And the doing has to be in obedience to our Lord and to his commandments (New Testament). And, we have to be walking (living, in practice) according to (in agreement with) the Holy Spirit of God. And, we have to NOT be walking (conducting our lives) according to the flesh, if we want to have eternal life with God (Read Rom. 8:1-17 and 1 John 1:5-9).

“And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” 1 John 2:3-6 ESV

For, Jesus Christ, God the Son, did not give his life up for us on that cross just so we could be forgiven our sins and so we could go to heaven when we die. He died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. And he gave his life blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God that we might now be God’s possession, and that we might now honor God with our lives (Read 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Co. 6:20; 2 Co. 5:15, 21; Tit. 2:14).

In fact, his grace to us is not just a “get-out-of-jail-free-card.” His grace to us is that he died to deliver us out of our slavery to sin. So, contrary to popular opinion, God’s grace is not free license to now continue in willful, blatant sinful rebellion against God as a matter of life course, and then claim that all your sins are covered under God’s grace. What a slap in the face to God. What a mockery that is of God’s grace to us.

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” Titus 2:11-14 ESV

So, please know that if you are claiming Jesus as your Savior, but you are still living for the flesh, doing what you want to do, and your life is not committed to Jesus Christ, to following him in obedience to his ways, and if you are not surrendered to your Lord to do his will for your life, the scriptures teach that you do not know God, he doesn’t know you, and you don’t have eternal life with God, but you will die in your sins, because you would not die to your sins and live to Christ and to his righteousness (Read Gal. 5:16-21; Eph. 5:3-6; Rom. 2:6-8; Gal. 6:7-8 and Rom. 8:1-17).

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:7-8 ESV

So, take this to heart, for not one of us knows if we have tomorrow. In fact, if you are hearing this read at my funeral, and I am gone, please know that I did not know when I would breathe my last breath, either. So, don’t play with fire. Surrender your life to Jesus Christ today while you still have today.

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My Jesus, I Love Thee

Hymn lyrics by William R. Featherstone, 1864
Music by Adoniram J. Gordon, 1876


My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine;
For thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou;
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I love thee because thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow;
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;
And say, when the death-dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight;
I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright;
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

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