"To be saved,and come to the knowledge of truth"-Part 1

God's greatest desire for each one of us is for us to be saved.

But we need a thorough knowledge of how we ought to be saved.God desires not only that we be saved,but to also "come unto the knowledge of truth"-1 Timothy 2:4

Even when sin entered,God did not leave it to man to decide how they ought to be reconciled with Him.Instead,God,having foreseen the existence of sin,came with the plan of redemption,with conditions,even though free.

We see him impressing it upon the minds of the first pair that,there is no remission of sin without the shedding of blood.Thus,pointing that Christ was to die for man and shed his blood for mankind (John 1:29).

Throughout the ages,we find God instructing his servants concerning the way to salvation,amongst the many lessons.We see him instructing Noah,the prophets,choosing Israel,disciples,missionaries and even inspiring men through the aid of the Holy Spirit to write the Bible (2 Peter 2:21;2 Timothy 3:16).

The way to salvation has been made clear through God's Word:"And that from a child thou hast known the scriptures,WHICH ARE ABLE TO MAKE THEE WISE UNTO SALVATION THROUGH FAITH WHICH IS IN CHRIST JESUS"(2 Timothy 3:15).

I hope to explore these principles that are outlined in God's Word.But may this thought be impressed:salvation only comes through Jesus Christ ( Acts 4:12).We need no mortal to speak on our behalf,to make us acceptable to God.This is Christ's work.He is the ONLY mediator between God and man (2 Timothy 2:5).Not your pastor,your church,I,or any other thing or person.

It is crucial to note that,as merciful as God is,He does not overlook ignorance.As sincere as our motives can be,if not in sync with His will,He cannot overlook them.

In fact,the reason the devil is working tirelessly to deceive and twist the truth is that,mankind will be lost.He makes it seem like it ends with earnest desires.It doesn't.It ends with aligning these desires with His will.

We must humble ourselves,our own opinions must be laid aside.Even the opinons of others.We must allow God Himself,to teach us through His Word.

"The words of the Lord are pure words:as silver tried in a furnace of earth,purified seven times"(Psalm 12:6).

God's greatest desire for each one of us

"Who will have all men saved,and to come unto the knowledge of truth"-1 Timothy 2:5

"As thou hast given him(Jesus) power over all flesh,that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him."-John 17:2

"This is a faithful saying,and worthy of all acception,that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners"-1 Timothy 1:15

We see Christ,God essentially and the Creator of mankind,incarnated,that you and I could be saved.

The salvation of mankind is the only thing that consumed Christ-all He did revolved around this,whether by serving at home,healing,blessing little children etc
We find him in childhood,youth,and manhood immersed in it
We find him spending nights in prayer for strength
We find Christ,taking upon Him the nature of man,with the risk of yielding to temptation
We find him scourged,reviled at,sorrowful,seperated from God the Father
All this for one thing:for mankind to be reconciled with God,to renew in man desire for holiness and to break the fetters of sin that hold him:"who gave himself for our sins,that he might delives us from this present evil worls,according to the will of God and our Father"-Galatians 1:4

This is what continues to consume Christ and the rest of the Godhead,the salvation of men.Even the heavenly angels are involved:"Are they not ministering spirits,sent forth for them who shall be heirs of salvation?"-Hebrews 1:14

"The heart of God yearns over His earthly children with a love stronger than death.In giving up His Son,He has poured out to us all heaven in one gift.The Saviour's life and death and intercession,the ministry of angels,the pleading of the Spirit,the Father working above and through all,the unceasing interest of heavenly beings,-all these are enlisted in behalf of man's redemption."-Steps to Christ,p.10

God is enough

For the past week,I've been studying about Christ's life as man's Saviour.And there are a few things that stand up for me,but let me explore this one:

"For even Christ pleased not himself;but as it is written,The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me"-Romans 15:3

From the tender age of 12,we find Jesus asking a profound question:"How is that ye sought me?wist ye not that I must be about my father's business?"-Luke 2:49

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor;he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives,and recovering of sight to the blind,to set at liberty them that are bruised."-Luke 4:18

"Jesus saith unto them,My meat is to do the will of him that sent me,and to finish his work."-John 4:34

"Who gave himself (Jesus Christ) for our sins,that he might deliver us from this present evil world,according to the will of God and our Father."-Galatians 1:4

Christ,the Creator of the universe and God (John 1:1,14;Colossians 1:16,17) took upon himself the nature of man,choosing the nature that will allow him to tempted (Hebrews 2:9;16-17).This nature would also allow him to die in our place, since God is immortal (1 Timothy 6:16).

In his childhood,we see him absorbed and engrossed with one thing:doing God's will.In his manhood we see Jesus aware of his mission and living for it solely. Every moment was spent in service,in prayer,watchfulness, and resisting sin,so that he could be a perfect sacrifice-sinless (1 Peter 2:22).

This did not come easy.It came with the sorest opposition and reviling,and thus He offered His life for you and I,so that we may be reconciled to God and get to enjoy the privilege of a relationship with Him.
And He gives us grace,which brings about hate for that which is sinful.
His death also means eternal life and a future where webwill finally dwell with God (Revelation 21:3).

No greater love can surpuss this:"while were yet sinners,Christ died for us"
Christ resisted so that we can resist and be set free from the fruits of the flesh (Galatians 5:19).

With all that Christ has done:Can we afford to live a self-centered life,where we are constantly looking for our own good? Can we afford to live to embellish the outward,while the inside is full of envy,hate,hurt,which God is more than willing to uproot (Galatians 5:22)!
Can we afford to choose sensuality and mere mortals?
 
I admit,the battle is tough.Daily,there's a pulling from that which is right,but are they worth it,in light of all that God has done for us?Does all that God calls us to let go off even measure up?
Perhaps like me,you've been a slave to the devils' suggestions.
Perhaps he has told you:
-You are unworthy
-Your sins cannot be forgiven
-You are beyond repair
-You will never amount to anything
-You need a man to be worthy
-You will never meet someone else,so stick around with the wrong one
-Singleness is a shame
-Beauty is all you've got to offer
-It is impossible to be holy
-Quit, stop!You can never be a blessing
-You might as well continue,God cannot help you
-It's all a joke,there's no God.
-God's grace overlooks your sin
-You've got to wear it a lil' shorter,to receive attention and the amount of attention you receive shows your worth

But today,I personally know no one is beyond God's grace.He needs you in Heaven and He is more than willing to give you a life of victory over sin.See that habit/sin that has made you conclude that you will never make it to heaven,He is eagerly waiting to help you with it too.Ask and you will receive!

The secret is realizing you need help...even the realization comes through the aid of the Holy Spirit.All it takes is faith,regardless of the feelings, claiming God's promise,and entire dependence,like a baby!!!

"For consider him that endureth such contradiction of sinners against himself,lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds"-Hebrews 123

Even if it means a change in a status,diet,look,conversation, loneliness,a broken heart,entertainment, friendship loss,as long as it won't come between us and God.
God wants to make us spectacles. God is yearning for a different breed of women(and men):women who want to please him,who open their innermost souls to Him,depend on Him entirely and are willing to proclaim His goodness through deeds and words,as He holds them by His righteous hand.

Look not to me,the left or right or anyone; but Christ.He is all you need.Friends,mentors all have their place but they are not to take God's place(Jeremiah 17:5).Let Him be your all,and as you let Him,even by a simple,"Have mercy on me God", you will see Him doing wonders.

To you young woman or young man:

"Let no man despise thy youth,but be thou an example of the believers,in word,in conversation, in charity, in spirit,in faith,in purity"-1 Timothy 4:12

"Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith,charity,peace,with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart."-2 Timothy 2:22

Let's pray for each other.

Redeem the time:Part 2

While the whole Godhead and the angels cooperate in our salvation,applying every agent for us to be saved,the devil does the exact thing so that we may not be saved.

Another admonition:"Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea!for the devil is come with great wrath,because he knoweth that he hath but a short time"(Revelation 14:12).

Satan is very aware of the time he has.On the other hand,Christ,patiently yearns that all will be saved (2 Peter 3:9).It is Christ's desire that,in the short time we have on this earth we may cooperate with Him to be like Him and for the salvation of mankind.While we grow careless,while I choose a series over prayer and Bible study,the devil is working tirelessly so that I may perish.

The following statement really disturbed me:

"As the people of God approach the perils of the last days,Satan holds earnest consultation with his angels as to the most successful plan of overthrowing their faith.He sees that the popular churches are already lulled to sleep by his deceptive power.By pleasing sophistry and lying wonders he can continue to hold them under his control.Therefore he directs his angels to lay their snares especially for those who are looking for the second advent of Christ and endeavoring to keep all the commandments."-Counsels on Stewardship,p.154

The statement continues to be even scarier-God willing, I will share the rest tomorrow.

Dear friend,you and I are NOT invincible to the snares of satan nor can we stand them.Hence we need to be acquainted with the,and we need God to help to put on His armor.Prayer,watchfulness, and entire trust in God will shield us.

P/S: I hope no edits are needed :).

Redeem the time:Part 1

"Wherewith he saith,Awake thou that sleepest,and arise from the dead,and Christ shall give thee light.
See that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools,but as wise,
Redeeming the time,because the days are evil."-Ephesians 5:14-16

"And that,knowing the time,that now it is high time to awake out of sleep:for now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed.
The night is far spent,the day is at hand:let us therefore cast off the works of darkness,and let us put on the armour of light.
Let us walk honestly, as in the day;not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying."-Romans 13:11-13

"This know also,that in the last days perilous times shall come."-2 Timothy 3:1

Indeed we are living in the last days,for we see much evil.2 Timothy3:1-7 is fulfilled and each day is a testimony of how much little time we have.

What is our duty? "Wherefore be ye not unwise,but understanding what the will of the Lord is."-Ephesians 5:17

Our present duty is to be aligned with God's will.To clearly know what our duty is towards God and man.That's a study for another day.

But if you read most of the New Testament,you will realise the overall theme,amongst many is:Now that we have been redeemed we should no longer live according to flesh, instead,through God's aid,we are to live for others and be constantly growing in grace.And through this growth,many will be drawn by our consistent,holy lives.

Christ's redemption also means we have a duty to the next person:to tell of God's desire for them to be saved.Our talents,mental endowments,strength,speech,writing,preaching, teaching,have been given for the plan of salvation.

So,our duty revolves around obeying God,thus being purified to meet Him and to let others know Him.

Lastly,we are to watch and pray.

Just from the conflict that is happening in my life,you can tell that we are drawing to the end.Daily,you have to consciously choose between the temporal and that which will affect your destiny.Satan is constantly trying to draw our minds from that which is of most importance:working out our salvation (Philippians 2:12).

He makes sin appear glorious, like glittering gold.He's constantly bringing seemingly exciting things.And his desire is such that we may grow careless,while he breaks the boundaries making us easy targets. A life of ease is also his way of distracting us.He accomplished this in Sodom and what a sad ending it was.

"Idleness is the greatest curse that can fall upon man,for vice and crime follow in its train.It enfeebles the mind,perverts the understanding, and debases the soul.Satan lies in ambush,ready to destroy those who are UNGUARDED,whose leisure gives him opportunity to insinuate himself under some ATTRACTIVE disguise.He is never more successful than when he comes to men in their idle hours"(emphasis added).-Patriarchs and Prophets,pp.156,157

Hence the admonition to redeem the time.

Reflections:The conclusion of the matter,God is love!

The beauty about the Christian journey is that,it is not stagnant.God is daily revealing things we thought we understood very well and makes them even more meaningful and clear.All I can say is,letting the Holy Spirit teach you is a blessing and I am thankful for this privilege,which is free to all.

For the past few weeks,I've been learning about God's love for mankind and for me specifically.What humbles me is this thought:God doesn't owe me anything yet He still chooses to love me.

In light of the plan of redemption:God,who is omniscient,foresaw sin before it existed BUT did not ordain that it should exist.Yet He still chose to create the one who will instigate it.Not only did He create satan but allowed Him time till He rebelled.Had I been in God's shoes I would have probably never created satan,after all it's not like He was obliged.Yet God still chose to,because love hopes in all things and is "unsuspecting,ever placing the most favorable construction upon the motives and acts of others"(1T,p168,169).All this because it's who God is-love (1 John 4:8)

He even went to create me and gave me free will,well aware that I'd sin,that I would resist His advances of love,choosing sin over Him.And even when I accept Him,I'd  often get blinded by self.Yet His love hopeth in all things and yearningly hopes that I'll co-operate with divinity to serve Him and man.

And the most amazing thing still is,God is the One who stood to lose much.To lose His reputation,His position:when he became incarnate-a possibility of yielding to temptation,losing adoration,and much more.

Yet love led Him to choose to be a baby,taking man's nature,with all its liabilities so that I may be reconciled with God and through His help,may no longer live for self,a slave to the flesh.

"To wit,that God was in Christ,reconciling the world unto himself,not imputing their trespasses unto them"-2 Corinthians 5:19

"For he hath made him to be sin for us,who knew no sin;that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."-2 Corinthians 5:21

"But God,who is rich in mercy,for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Even when we were dear in sin,hath quickened us together with Christ,(by his grace ye are saved:)"-Ephesians 2:4-5

"For even Christ pleased not himself;but as it is written,The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me."-Romans 15:3

For more references,do read the following epistles:Ephesians,Colossians,Philippians 2:5-8.Also the book of Hebrews and The book Desire of Ages,chapter 1.