All This and Heaven Too

"Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me into glory."  (Psalm 73:24)

For the child of God, heaven and all its glory is a promised future reality. We think often of our friends and loved ones already there in that marvelous place, that land where there are no tears, no death, neither sorrow, nor crying and no more pain. (Revelation 21:4)  It is a place of rare beauty whose chief resident is Jesus, our Savior, the Lamb of God.

But, until we step over into that wonderful land, we have the Lord's presence to guide us and counsel us.   He goes with us through the valley of the shadow of death.

If you are one of His you can depend on Him to correctly counsel you by His Word and by His Spirit while you are down here and afterward receive you to that home He has gone to prepare.

"Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine; Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine."

Hide God's Word in Your Heart

When Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness our Savior fought him with the Word of God, saying on three occasions recorded in Matthew and Luke "It is Written." (Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-13)  The devil left Jesus and He was ministered to by angels.

One of the outstanding truths in that confrontation is that Jesus did not have to roll out a scroll of Scripture, search for a good verse and then read it to the devil.

The key lies in what the Psalmist said years and years before,   "Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." (Psalm 119:11) Jesus had hidden God's Word in His heart in preparation for His battle against Satan. 

There is no substitute for hiding God's Word in your heart through Scripture memorization.  It will help you to always be prepared to give an answer to those who want to know the secret behind your lifestyle. And when the devil comes calling, and he will, having God's Word in your heart will give you victory over discouragement, temptation and sin.

Find Buried Treasure

Many people have dreamed of one day finding buried treasure while digging in their garden or flower bed.  The only thing I have found there is a rusty nail, an old hinge and a broken piece of glass.

In the Spring of 2014 a couple in California were walking their dog on a trail on their property, something they had done many times before.  Only this time they saw some old tin cans protruding above the soil under a large tree.  In the cans were gold coins minted from 1847 to 1894.  Their estimated value was more than $10,000,000.  None of the reports I read said anything about the couple being sad for having found that treasure. Instead, they were very, very happy.

I saw a bumper sticker which read, "Find buried treasure: Read your Bible."

The Psalmist wrote, "I rejoice at thy Word, as one that finds great treasure."  (Psalm 119:162)

In the Bible is the treasure of God's love, Eternal Life in Jesus, the presence of the Holy Spirit, the guarantee of Heaven, knowledge that our sins are forgiven, the promise of the Lord's return and much, much more. That treasure in the Bible is worth a lot more that some tin cans filled with rare and collectible coins.  Read it for yourself.

Give Thought to Doctrine

Evangelist, Billy Graham once stated that he was questioning someone about church attendance.  The response was, "I go to such and such church. They don't believe in doctrine or anything."

I heard a very similar statement made at a youth meeting.  The leader said, "Just preach and teach Jesus.  Don't worry about doctrine." We had better give thought to doctrine when teaching about Jesus.  Is He the Virgin born Jesus, or some other?  Is He the resurrected, ever living Jesus or the Jesus who is declared by some groups to be dead, forever dead?  Is He the total Savior or just a partial Savior?

When the Bible is emphasizing its own value and purpose, notice the very first emphasis: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness..." (II Timothy 3:16)  And then the apostle says to Timothy, "Preach the Word."  Wonder if Timothy preached doctrine?  Hmm.

Our beliefs, especially our doctrinal beliefs, will determine our behavior. When someone says "Don't worry about doctrine," they are waving a flag over their Biblical illiteracy.

When a Child's Game Becomes Deadly

Did you play "gossip" as a child?   Someone starts the game by whispering a short statement to the first child.  Next, that child whispers to the next child what he thought he heard.  Then that child whispers to the next child and that one to the next one and so on until the last child speaks aloud what he/she heard or thought they heard.  It is then matched against the original whispered message.

Many adults who should know better have ruined numerous lives by gossip. God's Word prohibits gossip.  "Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people." (Leviticus 19:16) James gives much instruction concerning the tongue calling it, "an unruly evil, full of deadly poison," and saying, "Out of the same mouth proceeds blessing and cursing.  My brethren, these things ought not so to be." (James 3:8, 10)

Gathering up gossip that has been scattered abroad would be like trying to gather up feathers that have been scattered in a wind storm.  It was Jesus who said, "But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."  (Matthew 12:36-37) 

Gossip is not a harmless child's game. Gossip is generated, not from a heart of Christian love and compassion, but from a heart of venomous hatred.  If you are guilty it is a sin that needs to be confessed and let the blood of Jesus cleanse you of it.

Tired of Waiting?

Waiting is sometimes difficult.  Going to town once a week was a big treat for country folks when I was a child.  Parents would go do the shopping, visit with neighbors who also went to town infrequently and catch up on world and community events.  Children would mingle with other kids and perhaps go to a cowboy movie.  We were told to meet at a certain place at a certain time and not be late.  We had chores that had to be done before dark. So we were at the place where Dad said meet him. It seemed that my father knew every farmer who had come to town and he was duty bound to talk to every one of them.  We would look way down the street and see him coming and we would wait and wait and wait.  It was difficult.

God, our heavenly Father, tells us to wait.  He hasn't told us how long to wait nor has He given us a timetable. He just says, "Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord." (Psalm 27:14)  One thing I have learned about waiting on God.  He is always on time.  As some of my Christian brothers sing, "He's an on-time God.  He's never been too early and He's never gonna' be too late.  He's an all time, on time God." 

I am looking for our Savior's return.  I don’t know when He will return; it will be when God says it is time.  "But until then, my heart will go on singing, until then with joy I'll carry on..."

Are You Christ-like?

I heard this in a sermon: "If you were arrested for being a Christian and you were being tried on that charge, would there be enough evidence to convict you?"

 The disciples of Jesus were scattered from Jerusalem as far as Antioch as a result of being persecuted. Those that were scattered went everywhere declaring the Gospel of Jesus.

 In Acts 11:26 the Bible says the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. Three things about the word "Christian:" First, it is used only three times in the Bible: Here, and Acts 26:28 and I Peter 4:16. Second, the Word Christian means "Christ-like." Third, it was given in derision as a derogatory term. The disciples, the true followers of Jesus, were a hated and despised people because they were like Christ. Notice, that name was given by others who observed the lives of the disciples.

Now, back to the question at the top of the page: "Would there be enough evidence to bring a conviction if you were charged with being a Christian?"