| | Ok well I am alive just so you all know (not that anyone actually comes here anymore)
This year has perhaps been one of the most changing years of my life. Why? Well as i ponder that I can only come up with one thing. The Gospel, this year like never before I have come to grips with the significance of The Gospel. Your all saying "your were raised in a Christian home you know what the Gospel is" which is true. I knew that Jesus died for me and that I was a sinner. But what does that really mean......
What does it mean to be a sinner........to be a sinner means that you have sinned against God. The ruler of the universe. The all powerful one, Lord Jehovah,creator. The one in who has the right to say "I Am" He is so much higher than us that our minds can't even begin to comprehend who he is. You and I have sinned against this God. And not just once, but countless times. How often do we fail to give him first place in our lives. How many times have we taken a breath without proper thanks. How often even in our "good works" have we sought to gain glory for ourselves. We are like people who drink down sin as if it was water.
Do we ever think how much God must hate it when we worry. We may think it a small thing, but in reality we are denying (by our actions) the very nature of God. God is all knowing, all powerful, always has our best interests in mind. He loves us infinitely more than our parents and we don't trust that he knows what he's doing. What a slap in Gods face. Yet..........We still live. Why don't we see these things for what they are. It is because we don't understand who God truly is.
Sin is so destructive and without a proper knowledge of God we will not see our sin. But it works both ways, with a knowledge of sin comes a knowledge of God. That is why Paul says In 1Tim 1:15 "I am the worst of sinners!"Why would he say this? Paul was perhaps one of the holiest men around, yet he considered himself the worst of sinners? It is because he saw his sin in for what it truly was in contrast to Gods holiness. It is not a little thing to sin against God. By sinning once Adam and Eve brought the curse of death over the entire human race. How much more are our multitudes of sins going to bring about judgment on that great day.
Now all of this becomes very scary if you don't know the rest of the story. But we do, Jesus who was God, became flesh and lived a perfect life. He died on our behalf. Taking the wrath that God was going to pour out on us, and instead pouring it out on his son. Your eternity in hell. Christ took your penalty. This isn't just a slap on the wrist. This is God pouring out his righteous holy wrath on his own son for you. Do you realize what he did! If you think that your not really that bad of a person think again. The son of God suffered God the Fathers Wrath, In your place! your sin was so serious that God's own son alone could atone for it. And guess what It's free.......This is where every other religious system has it wrong. They say "but it can't be free, How could God let of sinners without requiring them to do something to atone for there sin. And besides if it's by grace alone (Eph2:8) then we'll just except it and then keep on sinning" If that is the case then you don't understand Christ's work on the cross and you are lost and damned to hell for eternity. Harsh words I know, but they are true. How could anyone in there right mind after seeing there sin for what it is, in contrast to a holy God. Want to keep wallowing in it.
This my friends is the beauty of the Gospel. That foul wretched stinking heathens who hate God and will have nothing to do with him(Rom3:10-17,Isiah 64:6,Rom1:28-30,Rom3:23), can be changed into people with a love and passion and a desire to serve him because of what he has done for them. And are willing to give there lives for his sake because they know what they have been saved from. There just punishment, which is eternity in hell.
So these days as I am seeing my sin more and more. I am so much more aware of Christ's sacrifice for me. And when I see what he has done for me I want to shout it from the roof tops. And I have a desire to keep his commandments. But since I am human I fail. But I know that I can keep coming back to the savior because he bore my sins to Calvary. And I love him more and more every time I think about what I was before God and how just he would have been in sending me to hell forever. But by his grace he gave me life Oh how great is our God.
Don't ever forget what he has done people, and stop minimizing your sins. See yourself as what you really were before God. Without the work of Jesus paying your fine.
For this reason I kneel before the Father,
fromwhom every family in heaven and on the earth is named.
I pray that according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person,
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love,
you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.
Now to him who by the power that is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think,
to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Eph3:14-21
So as Everyone seems to be saying these days :)
And until tomorrow, Go serve your King........
Thanks for reading..........
Joshua Denhollander
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| | Posted 10/28/2008 12:33 AM - 77 Views - 12 eProps - 6 comments
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Thanks for sharing so openly and honestly. It really doesn't matter where we were raised, we all need to come to a place of realizing just how much we really do need a Savior, sometimes I think it can take longer for those of us who have heard the talk all our lives....the benefit though is in the character training that we have that gives us some clue as to how to allow God to shape us and grow us....great post...keep it up.
