Are you really a Christian?

You will never guess where I found this definition for Christianity! I looked up the word “love” in my Encarta dictionary and this was a portion of the definition!  If they wanted to use the word “love” in a sentence, they could have use this one, because it says it so perfectly:. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  Good sentence; good formation and also truth! Of course, it has to be as it was taken from the very Word of God. The writer, John, explained so carefully and yet with urgency why Jesus came and how we must respond to this love so amazing.

In the coming month many people think about their “valentine”; what can we do for those we love to remind them how special they are to us? Do we have a valentine to celebrate with? Some may even be thinking, can I “get one by then”? Being married now for almost twenty years, I have learned many things about love. You do not need to be married to know about love, but a good marriage surely parallels Christ’s relationship to us when we are right with him ~ and with our spouses!  We have already been loved with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3 tells us that  “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”  When we are young and sometimes when we are old, we think that we need to do wonderful things so that someone will love us. The Lord loved me before my parents loved me and hard as it is to fathom, more! He loved me more.

When we love someone we do want them near us and we will draw them toward us; we hope that they will want to spend time with us. We want to do things to please them. God created this longing to love and to be loved and He wants us to be near Him! We can know this because we were created in His image. So, in love He draws us. Here is what He wants for us most of all. Adoption; He wants us to become His child. “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Romans 8:15.  We recognize the freedom that is in Christ. As a child we wanted our father to protect us and now we have The Father. Next the Bible tells us The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: This tells me that we should have a very strong sense that we are children, saved from eternal condemnation! A loving father does not want his children worrying; he wants them to have good things, to lead happy lives.  Matthew reminds us of this so clearly! If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

 Matthew 7:11  If you, my dear sister, have a secret doubt that you may not truly be saved for whatever reason, please write to me and I will share passages from The Bible to help you determine the truth. Know that God (according to His word) is not willing that any should perish. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. II Peter 3:9. This is a picture of Him waiting for us, drawing us, but never forcing us to come to Him. It is very important not to miss the word repentance. Many believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, the very existence of Him, but thankfulness is not there for the sacrifice He made for us. Belief will never be enough to get us to Heaven. Never. The belief must be deep enough to change our heart, to make us aware of how offensive our sin is toward Holy God. Many churches are teaching believe and be saved, without teaching what the word believe means from the Biblical text. We believe that Pittsburgh is a city in Pennsylvania, but it raises no passion. If we believe that Jesus is our Savior and it raises the same amount of passion, please examine your belief. One verse always comes to mind so clearly: In James 2:19 the Bible reads "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." The book of James, a small book just after Hebrews is a very short, practical and easy to understand book of the Bible that would be a great help to anyone that wants to assess where they are in their Christian faith. My suggestion would be to pick a month, say .. February and read it every day, sometimes aloud, other times slow and meditatively. This act can change your faith and therefore, your life!  

Ladies, we are loved with a perfect love, an everlasting love by the One that holds the keys to your eternal life. If you hear His voice in your spirit and hear Him knocking, then open the door of your heart to the altogether lovely one!: Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. What love … “God’s Love for Humani-Tea”. Yes, Encarta got it right when it came to this definition of Christianity!  

You may have heard (many times) the Bible being referred to as a love-letter from God to us. I could not agree more, yet we hear this so often, we become indifferent to this truth. When a love-letter arrives in the mail, we read it over and over, trying even to “read between the lines,” to understand the intent of every phrase. You will not sense the powerful and unwavering love of God unless you are listening to Him by reading His love letter to you, over and over. I never get tired of hearing my husband tell me how much he loves me yet I should have an even greater sense that I am accepted in THE BELOVED … To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.  Now, THAT is love!

Love embodies different characteristics to everyone. Here is what my marriage has given me and each is a corresponding gift from God to my life! Whatever is good in love, you will see it as an example of The Righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ!

There is a series of verses within Scripture all in one book that clearly show you all that is necessary to become adopted into the family of God. It is often referred to as the Roman's Road. Most of you are familiar with it. I enjoy reading the truths and being reminded of the Simplicity that is in Christ!

Who is good?

~Romans 3:10~
As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.



Who has sinned?

~Romans 3:23~
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.



Where sin came from.

~Romans 5:12~
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.



God's price of sin.

~Romans 6:23~
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.



Who paid The price?

~Romans 5:8~
God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.



How we can be saved from the penalty of sin.

~Romans 10:9-10~
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

~Romans 10:13~
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Now, that is love!
 

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