"Jesus aint for me, you know, I dont want more rules to follow" Or "Jesus aint for me, I like drinking", "I sleep around", "I'm a lair", "I've had an abortion" or "I'm Gay! God cant love me!". This are some of the "rebuttals" some people use, or think, in order to excuse themselves for not following Jesus; sometimes, they really think that being this things actually bar them from becoming Christian. I've even heard the "You know, I cant be a christian, I love gays way too much". To be honest, this is utter nonsense. If you are broken, a sinner, doesnt matter the type of life you got, Jesus can, will, and does love you and is eager for you to follow him.
Now here comes the issue, many of us have felt that because we are too broken, God cant use us, that we ought to resign ourselves to a life of earthly living because we are not "good enough" to follow Jesus, when actually, Jesus didn't come to save the good people, Jesus didnt invite pharisees to dinner, his disciples were not righteous and outstanding religious leaders, His followers, were fishermen, tax collectors, physicians, and later on, even a killer of Chrisitans, who then came to write 13 books of the now New testament, so if God called someone who killed and pursued Christians, how he cannot use you? He used someone that willingly and directly spit in His face by killing His disciples. God used a prophet that didnt want to be such and that actively did the opposite as God commanded, Jonah, when commanded to go to Nineveh, he jumped into a ship and sailed in the opposite direction. So, God can use even the most rebellious person. I heard someone once say "God has a unique way of choosing the most clueless, unsuspecting, and ordinary people to do His will, I think this is to allow for His glory to be recognized and such works not to be attributed to some person's brilliance"
You see, Jesus did not promised His father's, His, Kingdom to the pharisees, but to the meek, to the poor, to the broken and repented, to those that call on His name (Romans 10:11-13) . We are sinners, and sometimes those three words feel like an insult, like if I were attacking you, "You are a sinner!" is, I have to recognize, sometimes used by some, I'd call non christian bible thumpers, as condemnation. However, "You are a sinner" is no more a fact of all humans as the phrase "you are Human", now this parallel is easy to spot. One thing that I always use when speaking of the subject of sin, is something that I learned and heard in the Mormon church in a Gospel principles' class and which I believe to be truly true, is Humans have a natural tendency towards evil, an inherent bend towards Sin. Even at our earliest age, studies have shown that babies cry as if they were hungry, only to receive attention. Humans are far from God's presence nowadays, so its only logical that our default position be to sin. So its not a denouncement of your bad actions, nor is me calling you a bad person, but rather a call to revert them! When I say "You are a sinner" I also imply "Brother, I am too a sinner, we all are sinners, lets do something about it". The only one that can say "I'm not a sinner!" is the guy that died in the cross, about 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ.
For this reason, Jesus, knowing the heart of humans, he didn't come to give a pat on the back to those who were on the right path, neither he came to assure the good that they'd be saved, he came to show the lost, to show the weak, to show the sinners, that there is a way out of it, and that the only thing he asks is repentance and faith. I use a parable that I love, and that I pretty much know by heart, this is the Parable of the prodigal son, (If you know it, skip the rest of the paragraph) in this parable, a son goes to his father and impatiently, asks for his share of the inheritance before time, the father gives it to him, and the son goes away to a foreign country and spends it all in parties, drinks, and "living the life". Then, when the money had run out, he hired himself to feed the pigs, which as you know, was something too low to be done by a jew (not even mentioning the spending money among gentiles, which was also a bad thing in the jewish community), yet, he does it because thats the only way he sees a way to survive, Jesus even tells how the pigs were eating better than this guy. One day, famine struck the nation, and he's forced to return home in order to survive, but he does not return like "Yo wassup?! boy prodigal son issa here! gimme som food", no, he's ashamed, he even goes back remembering about how his father servants live better, is that drove him to return in the first place, asking to be treated as a servant, as he's not worthy of being the son. When he arrives, his father runs to him (In jewish culture it was dishonorable for a patriarch to run, so we see how the father doesnt care about society but about his son), and as soon as he meets him, the son gives this speech, about being treated like a servant, but the father doesnt even acknowledges his apology and plea, but turns to a servant as says put shoes on his feet, and a ring on his finger, and bring the fatten calf and kill it and lets feast, for this is my lost son who was found, he was dead but now is alive.
To this his brother, is furious, because he was always faithful to his father, and he never got even a small goat to eat with his friends, the father replies that all that is of him, is his because he has always been there, but this is a moment of celebration, for his lost son has return, safe and sound.
Jesus, when the parable ends, teaches us how there is more joy in heaven when one lost soul finds his way to Him, that for all of those that are already saved, why? because those that are saved, already got the reward, God's Kingdom is theirs, so why celebrate that? why celebrate that someone remains saved? but when one lost soul finds its way back, its a moment of celebration, Jesus adds, if you were to loose one sheep, wouldnt you leave the rest and go look for the lost sheep? This is the same.
Brother, if you're reading this, it means you're alive (duh!) but that means you have probably sinned more than you can remember. You have probably lied, been extremely lazy, maybe you have been too prideful, or stubborn, maybe you have had sex, maybe you've gotten so drunk that you cant even remember, or you are a porn addict, you have probably hated someone's guts, maybe you're even further down the rabbit hole and you have stolen, or committed other despicable acts, however, I love how Paul puts in in his letter to the Corinthians: 1 Corinthians 6:10-11 reads:
Now here comes the issue, many of us have felt that because we are too broken, God cant use us, that we ought to resign ourselves to a life of earthly living because we are not "good enough" to follow Jesus, when actually, Jesus didn't come to save the good people, Jesus didnt invite pharisees to dinner, his disciples were not righteous and outstanding religious leaders, His followers, were fishermen, tax collectors, physicians, and later on, even a killer of Chrisitans, who then came to write 13 books of the now New testament, so if God called someone who killed and pursued Christians, how he cannot use you? He used someone that willingly and directly spit in His face by killing His disciples. God used a prophet that didnt want to be such and that actively did the opposite as God commanded, Jonah, when commanded to go to Nineveh, he jumped into a ship and sailed in the opposite direction. So, God can use even the most rebellious person. I heard someone once say "God has a unique way of choosing the most clueless, unsuspecting, and ordinary people to do His will, I think this is to allow for His glory to be recognized and such works not to be attributed to some person's brilliance"
You see, Jesus did not promised His father's, His, Kingdom to the pharisees, but to the meek, to the poor, to the broken and repented, to those that call on His name (Romans 10:11-13) . We are sinners, and sometimes those three words feel like an insult, like if I were attacking you, "You are a sinner!" is, I have to recognize, sometimes used by some, I'd call non christian bible thumpers, as condemnation. However, "You are a sinner" is no more a fact of all humans as the phrase "you are Human", now this parallel is easy to spot. One thing that I always use when speaking of the subject of sin, is something that I learned and heard in the Mormon church in a Gospel principles' class and which I believe to be truly true, is Humans have a natural tendency towards evil, an inherent bend towards Sin. Even at our earliest age, studies have shown that babies cry as if they were hungry, only to receive attention. Humans are far from God's presence nowadays, so its only logical that our default position be to sin. So its not a denouncement of your bad actions, nor is me calling you a bad person, but rather a call to revert them! When I say "You are a sinner" I also imply "Brother, I am too a sinner, we all are sinners, lets do something about it". The only one that can say "I'm not a sinner!" is the guy that died in the cross, about 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ.
For this reason, Jesus, knowing the heart of humans, he didn't come to give a pat on the back to those who were on the right path, neither he came to assure the good that they'd be saved, he came to show the lost, to show the weak, to show the sinners, that there is a way out of it, and that the only thing he asks is repentance and faith. I use a parable that I love, and that I pretty much know by heart, this is the Parable of the prodigal son, (If you know it, skip the rest of the paragraph) in this parable, a son goes to his father and impatiently, asks for his share of the inheritance before time, the father gives it to him, and the son goes away to a foreign country and spends it all in parties, drinks, and "living the life". Then, when the money had run out, he hired himself to feed the pigs, which as you know, was something too low to be done by a jew (not even mentioning the spending money among gentiles, which was also a bad thing in the jewish community), yet, he does it because thats the only way he sees a way to survive, Jesus even tells how the pigs were eating better than this guy. One day, famine struck the nation, and he's forced to return home in order to survive, but he does not return like "Yo wassup?! boy prodigal son issa here! gimme som food", no, he's ashamed, he even goes back remembering about how his father servants live better, is that drove him to return in the first place, asking to be treated as a servant, as he's not worthy of being the son. When he arrives, his father runs to him (In jewish culture it was dishonorable for a patriarch to run, so we see how the father doesnt care about society but about his son), and as soon as he meets him, the son gives this speech, about being treated like a servant, but the father doesnt even acknowledges his apology and plea, but turns to a servant as says put shoes on his feet, and a ring on his finger, and bring the fatten calf and kill it and lets feast, for this is my lost son who was found, he was dead but now is alive.
To this his brother, is furious, because he was always faithful to his father, and he never got even a small goat to eat with his friends, the father replies that all that is of him, is his because he has always been there, but this is a moment of celebration, for his lost son has return, safe and sound.
Jesus, when the parable ends, teaches us how there is more joy in heaven when one lost soul finds his way to Him, that for all of those that are already saved, why? because those that are saved, already got the reward, God's Kingdom is theirs, so why celebrate that? why celebrate that someone remains saved? but when one lost soul finds its way back, its a moment of celebration, Jesus adds, if you were to loose one sheep, wouldnt you leave the rest and go look for the lost sheep? This is the same.
Brother, if you're reading this, it means you're alive (duh!) but that means you have probably sinned more than you can remember. You have probably lied, been extremely lazy, maybe you have been too prideful, or stubborn, maybe you have had sex, maybe you've gotten so drunk that you cant even remember, or you are a porn addict, you have probably hated someone's guts, maybe you're even further down the rabbit hole and you have stolen, or committed other despicable acts, however, I love how Paul puts in in his letter to the Corinthians: 1 Corinthians 6:10-11 reads:
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
(11) And such were some of you. But you were washed,
you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
I like how it goes, basically covering everyone, Have you stolen? (check), have you been drunk? (check) Have you spoke abusively to someone? (check), Have you used trickery and deceiving means to obtain a goal? (Check and double check). So as you see, most people would check some of this categories, for me, all of them, however the following verse makes it clear that that doesnt matter, that you were washed, not that you washed yourself by works, but that you were washed, sanctified, justified by the Lord Jesus Christs' glory. Thats powerful, aint it?
I've heard somewhere, that yes, murders and rapists can find salvation. For us, that's unfair, I mean, they have killed, raped, and tortured people, why should they get a chance? well, if Jesus was fair, we would all be damned to eternal agony, because none of us is a saint, all of us have spent our father's inheritance among gentiles and in lavishness like the prodigal son, yet Jesus have gave us a second, third, and 100th chance, and will give us such chances always that we ask it, if we ask with sincere hearts. So yes, even the most broken, lost, and sinful people can gain salvation.
I know I have gone somewhat with a tangent today, sincerely, I was sleeping before writing this, and i'm kinda behind on my schedule, so I dont have much time for re-reading it and proof reading it, (and even less time to allow for one day to pass, re read it, correct it and publish it, as I usually do) but I did want to make a point clear, Jesus, the church, and God's mercy and glory are not a museum for good people, they are a hospital for the broken as Jeff Bethke puts it. So, go, repent, ask for forgiveness and sin no more, or at least make every single effort to not do so.
Jesus forgives, that's why he died in the cross. He got what you deserve, He died in your place so that you, in Him, might find eternal life. God makes it clear in the Old testament, Sin must be atoned with blood, but not bull, Calf, or goat's blood is enough to wash you clean forever, Jesus' blood is on the other hand, the perfect sacrifice, is God turned human and saying "You have denied me, you have beaten me, you have forsaken me, you have sinned against me more times that you can remember, but I'm willing to suffer like you do, in human flesh, so that you might be saved, just accept my grace, thats all I ask"
I've heard somewhere, that yes, murders and rapists can find salvation. For us, that's unfair, I mean, they have killed, raped, and tortured people, why should they get a chance? well, if Jesus was fair, we would all be damned to eternal agony, because none of us is a saint, all of us have spent our father's inheritance among gentiles and in lavishness like the prodigal son, yet Jesus have gave us a second, third, and 100th chance, and will give us such chances always that we ask it, if we ask with sincere hearts. So yes, even the most broken, lost, and sinful people can gain salvation.
I know I have gone somewhat with a tangent today, sincerely, I was sleeping before writing this, and i'm kinda behind on my schedule, so I dont have much time for re-reading it and proof reading it, (and even less time to allow for one day to pass, re read it, correct it and publish it, as I usually do) but I did want to make a point clear, Jesus, the church, and God's mercy and glory are not a museum for good people, they are a hospital for the broken as Jeff Bethke puts it. So, go, repent, ask for forgiveness and sin no more, or at least make every single effort to not do so.
Jesus forgives, that's why he died in the cross. He got what you deserve, He died in your place so that you, in Him, might find eternal life. God makes it clear in the Old testament, Sin must be atoned with blood, but not bull, Calf, or goat's blood is enough to wash you clean forever, Jesus' blood is on the other hand, the perfect sacrifice, is God turned human and saying "You have denied me, you have beaten me, you have forsaken me, you have sinned against me more times that you can remember, but I'm willing to suffer like you do, in human flesh, so that you might be saved, just accept my grace, thats all I ask"
Grace is defined as an unearned gift. We dont earn grace, grace is given to us by God's mercy. Its God's say of saying, Humans, I know we had a rough start back in Genesis, and such, but hey, if you are willing to obey me, and live with me, I can dwell with you, and you can have eternal life, what you think?"
I dont know about you, but I want that Gift.
I dont know about you, but I want that Gift.
May God bless y'all
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