Jesus Smacked Sin In The Face!

A long time ago at church I was told that Jesus wasn't without sin.  I found out a couple nights ago that isn't the case at all.  In Hebrews Paul refers to Jesus as a high priest saying:

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin.  (Hebrews 4:15, NIV)

Jesus never sinned at all.  It didn't matter that he was born into humanity, we still have to remember that he is God too.  Not half human and half God, but wholly human and wholly God.  Since he was wholly human Jesus was tempted just as we are "in every way".  Jesus isn't being unfair when he is telling us to be like him.  He knows what it is like to be hated and betrayed.  Jesus' entire life was dedicated to bringing people to God.  He knew the scriptures word by word.  He could have quoted them backward if he wanted to.  He traveled from place to place preaching to massive crowds but only had twelve men who were serious about preaching his word.  Jesus' life was no picnic. 

It's really easy to want to go along with the crowd and not live the Christian life you know God wants you to live.  You think there are to many standards to live up to and you have to stop doing the things you love to do.  I was afraid of that too.  I was afraid that God would transform me so much and that I wouldn't enjoy life any longer.  As I started reading the Bible I found selfish ambitions in my heart that Satan had planted there and I uprooted them.  I started replacing them with godly things and I began to see a transformation.  I became a new creation.  I began to see the ways of Satan being revealed and I learned how to resist them.

  I am still nowhere near the end of my journey to becoming Christlike.  Only then when I acquire the Kingdom of Heaven will I be Christlike.  The chains of the devil no longer have their hold on me, but now I wear new chains, the chains of righteousness.  I do not resist them because they aren't dragging me to my death, but closer to the Lord every day.

Don't Let The Sun Go Down . . . On Your Anger!

Have you ever heard the saying "Don't let the sun go down on your anger"?  That's what one of my aunts told me at a family reunion.  Ever since my aunt told me that I have thought and thought about how true that is.  I was reading a couple nights ago and it turns out she got it from the Bible.  In Ephesians  Paul says:

In your anger do not sin.  Do not let then sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Ephesians (4:26,27, NIV)

I used to have a tough time with this.  I was good with controlling my anger but there are some people that just got under my skin and I stayed mad at them.  Paul tells us that if you stay mad at someone then a grudge forms.  I have never liked grudges.  They are so hard to get rid of.  Sometimes we have them without even realizing it.  That is the "foothold" Paul doesn't want the devil to have in our lives.  Grudges can grow bigger and more infectious if we don't forgive and let go of our anger.  Paul reminded me of this last night:

But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  (Colosians 3:8, NIV)

Keeping a grudge almost always results in wanting to get even.  Wanting justice for yourself is natural, but revenge isn't the way to get it.  Paul has an alternative that is way more effective:

Do not repay anyone evil for evil.  Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.  Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord.  On the contrary:

"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:17-21, NIV)

Paul tells us to be at peace with everyone and if you do get mad at someone, don't do revenge.  In fact, he wants us to do the opposite.  He wants us to be nice especially to the people who do us wrong and try to make our lives miserable.  People like that expect you to fight back, being nice to them is the equivalent of a smack in the face.  When we be nice to them the person that is being mean to us won't have a logical reason to be mean in the eyes of others and it will make that person look especially bad.  God will serve the revenge for you, His revenge is perfect in every way.

So don't let the sun go down on your anger, nothing good can ever come from that.  You can be an example for that person and maybe even lead them to Christ in the process!

Jesus Didn't Die For Nothing

Some "Christians" think Christianity is all about following the Ten Commandments.  Paul reminds us that that isn't the case at all.

I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!  (Galatians 2:21, NIV)

That verse seriously caught my attention.  If we could get into heaven just by following the Ten Commandments Jesus died for nothing.  If following rules is all Christianity is to us then it's like Jesus never died for us at all.  God sent his only son to earth so that we could have a relationship with him.  God gave us the opportunity for a relationship that is far greater than any other. The opportunity for a relationship better than friendship and far more intimate than any marriage.  If we are focusing on rule following more than having a relationship with Jesus then we are not Christians, we are Jews.

If you have a relationship with Jesus he will lead you to follow the Ten Commandments and you might not even realize it.  Jesus will lead you to be like him.  Jesus has molded this past school year to be amazing for me.  He lead me to start this blog which has changed my life in ways I never would  have imagined.  I am closer to God than I have ever been in my life and I am so full of joy because I know I still have so far to go.

Clean Yourself Like Jesus Cleans Dishes!

When people look your way what do they see?  Do they see a Christian?  Do they know they see a Christian?  In 2 Corinthians 3:2,3 Paul says:

You yourselves are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by everybody.  You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on the tablets of human hearts.(NIV)

Paul is telling the Corinthians to be a letter of recommendation from Jesus. To act in such a way that everyone notices Jesus living in them.  To act in such a way that nobody even questions if they are Christians.  Paul wants them to act and be Christlike.

This is what Jesus says about the matter in John 14:12,13. He says:

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing.  He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to Father.(NIV)

Jesus says that anyone who believes in him can do things even greater than what he did in his short time on earth.  How cool is that!  Jesus believes we can be like him. So how do we be Christlike?

Back in the Bible days there were Pharisees.  They were basically the preachers of the day.  Jesus didn't approve of them because they just preached about the Lord because they liked getting praise for seeming "holy".  They were all show.  Jesus told some Pharisees to get their acts together:

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!  You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.  (Matthew 23:25,26, NIV)

Jesus wasn't worried about their dish cleaning habits. He was telling them not to just preach the word of God to get praise. He was telling them to actually practice what they preach. If they they did that they wouldn't have had to act at all.  Jesus said in Luke 6:45 that:

The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the overflow of his heart the mouth speaks.(NIV)

Fill your heart with God pleasing things. Read the Bible and fill your heart with the word of God everyday.  Listen to God pleasing music. I don't mean listen to hymns everyday, there are plenty of Christian bands out there.  That's the whole reason I have the Christian bands gadget on my blog, to show people that there are some pretty awesome Christian artists out there. Rid your life of things that you feel are keeping you apart from God, for example, friends that tempt you to do ungodly things. If you do this then you are working towards being Christlike. 

Stand Out

In today's culture everyone wants to fit in. To catch the latest trend. To be popular and to fit in. God doesn't care about any of those things. He could care less about trends. He doesn't want you to fit in. God wants you to be His witness no matter what other people think.

Witnessing doesn't come naturally for Christians, it never is easy. When you feel the holy spirit pushing you to witness to someone don't ignore it. Every time you say "no" to God you are saying that you don't need God and that is far from the truth. My definition of love is wanting to do something for someone everyday on your own premonition. So if you love God wouldn't you want to witness for Him no matter what the cost?

Fitting in is overrated to God. Standing out for the Lord is definitely worth it. Don't worry about what clique might be waiting to tear you down or what your friends might think. God promises he will take care of us. In Matthew 12:22-24  Jesus says:

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!(NIV)

If you are following God He will provide for your needs and keep you under His wing. Being a Christian truly is an adventure and can trump fitting in any day.

You hear all the time how people are trying to "find themselves" so they can find their purpose in the world, those people will be really disappointed when they don't find anything. They were looking in the wrong place. They shouldn't find themselves, they should find God. God created you to have a relationship with Him.  God made you with a purpose. He made you with strengths and weaknesses. God made you with those strengths and weaknesses so you can use them to witness to others and make Him known. The only way you can use those strengths to their full capacity is to follow Him. God told me to start this blog and I thank Him from the bottom of my heart that He did. Writing is one of my strengths and my writing is improving as well as my faith. I wouldn't dare have it any other way.

So stand out for God. It may seem horrifying now but I promise you will have no regrets. You might have some trouble along the way but God ensures it is all worth it in Romans 5:3-5. It says:

Let us rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. (NIV)

The Holy Spirit will help you out whenever you are down and you are being discouraged. That's why Jesus called it "the comforter". God knows it will be hard for you to live out your Christian faith. He is always willing to comfort you whenever you need it. In 1 Corinthians 1:3 Paul tells us:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort. (NIV)

There is a reason God is called Father. He is like our all powerful all knowing dad. Just like any parent, God is willing to comfort His children. When you are following God you are never alone, God is right there to have your back every minute of every hour. So stand out. You have the God of the universe on your side.

Stay Strong

Sharing the gospel and leading a Christian life can be really tough. Sometimes God can tell us to do things that just seem downright crazy. God pointed this verse out to me when I was reading the Bible in school.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
 (1 Corinthians 15:58, NIV)

God doesn't want anything to phase our relationship with Him. God ensures that everything you do for Him isn't for no reason. We probably won't know the reason right away, but that is where faith comes in. In the book of acts Stephen was stoned to death because he was witnessing to a group of people and they didn't like what he had to say. It wasn't in vain. Peter was flogged. It wasn't in vain. Jesus was crucified. It wasn't in vain.
Never be afraid to live out your Christian life. Because you know whatever the consequences, it's not in vain.