Mark 8:36 NLT – And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
Every person on this planet has a soul and any one may lose his own soul. Think of the cost of that – that the loss of the soul is a loss for which nothing can make up. I want to say very clearly that there is a salvation in the gospel of Jesus the Christ for the chief of sinners and that anyone may have his soul saved.
2 Peter 3:9 NIV – The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
1 Peter 3:18 NIV – For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God…
I do not have the ability in my thoughts or with my mouth to explain the fullness of God’s love towards sinners and for the Lord Jesus Christ willingness to receive such sinners to save their souls. I know that there are no obstacles between our soul and eternal life, except our own will. Lay hold of Jesus the Christ every moment of every day.
The time is short, lay hold of eternal life. Your best things are yet to come. Speak to your neighbors, friends and relatives. Beg them to go with you and hear something on Sunday’s, try to persuade them to live. The souls of men are at stake. A few more years and they will be gathered into eternity. This world that knows them now will soon know them no more.
In the presence of Jesus the Christ their glory and yours will never end.
Romans 12:9,10 NIV – Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
What is described here is the different manifestations of God’s grace in the lives of individual believers. As we might expect, the list begins with love. The first manifestation of God’s character in the man or woman who has truly been overwhelmed by grace.
This love is to be without reservation as it relates to our neighbor. The only way that this has taken place is by the work of the grace of God overwhelming the believer. Love must be sincere…
It is not that love is to be frank and to tell the truth, no matter how unpalatable. The idea is that love, whether its object is God or fellow believers, neighbors or enemies, must be sincere and genuine. 1 John 3:18 NIV – …let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
Paul told Timothy – The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience and genuine faith. 1 Timothy 1:5 NLT. The grace of our Lord simply states that love is to take off every disguise and walk through the journey of life with our heart bared open for all to see.
This is what being overwhelmed by grace begins to look like. May our Lord bless you in these things and may your journey through this life reveal to all who meet you, the life, the love and the grace of God.
Philippians 4:4 NIV – Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Philippians 2:1-5 NLT - Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
Our attitude deals with our interpersonal relationships, because our attitude is about how we think and feel, which determines how we respond to each other. Along my journey I have learned that my attitude is an inward feeling which is expressed by my behavior.
Our attitude at the beginning of an opportunity will affect its outcome more than anything else. I have learned that whether I like it or not, character is built through problems. There is a quote from a conversation Abraham Lincoln had at the White House in 1865 which has become one of my favorites. “If I were to try to read, much less answer, all the attacks made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how – the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me won’t amount to any thing. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was right would make no difference.”
Let’s take our Lord’s Word to heart and be willing to approach our life situations from a positive perspective. A positive attitude see’s the future brighter, the journey more enjoyalbe and many times does that which looks impossible.
The bumblebee knows all about this. According to a theory of aerodynamics, the bumblebee should be unable to fly. Because of its size, weight and shape of its body in relationship to the total wing spread, flying is scientifically impossible. The bumblebee, being ignorant of scientific theory, goes ahead and flies anyway.
May we offer our attitude as worship and praise to our Lord, Jesus the Christ – enjoy the journey.
Deuteronomy 11:8-19
Our Lord continues to teach me that no condition of my life is ever permanent (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 NIV). He brings about every condition and ends every one according to his time. If I am in sorrow today, he brings me out tomorrow. If I feel blessed in all that I have today, that does not mean I will feel it or have it tomorrow.
Why does he give us altering conditions through our life? I believe it is to give us some balance concerning him and this life. He does not want one-track minds in his kingdom. Too much stuff or wealth can lead us into “arrogance and to put our hope in wealth” 1 Timothy 6:17 NIV. Too much sorrow leads us into despair. The combination is just right. The land he gave to Israel was “a land of mountains and valleys” Deuteronomy 11:11 NIV. There are no mountains without valleys.
The opportunity that bothers and even embarrasses me today will give way to something better or at least different. I am learning that in seeing the one who cannot be seen, I find myself in balance. Proverbs 3:5,6 NIV – Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.
The lesson that I am learning is that I will patiently look to the only constant and reality in my life and that is the Lord himself.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV – Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.