If you had never heard the Good News of Jesus…where would you be today? It’s a very sobering thought, and for many of us, we’d probably be dead. Now whether it was spiritual or physical death, we’d all be doomed to spend eternity in hell. But instead, someone brought us the Good News…proclaiming deliverance and victory over the guilt and punishment of sin. And so we stand here today, forgiven and set free. So why wouldn’t we want to proclaim His salvation to others?
Tag: victorious life
Matthew 16:25 ” For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will find it.”
It tells us in John 12:25 that, “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” Everyday is a struggle, where our affections are pulled one way or the other. The glitter and lure of the world is great, with its promises of immediate gratification and unending ecstasy. But the cold hard truth is that our excessive fondness for things of the world will only lead us down a path to self-destruction and death. For the world tells us to live today to the fullest… to eat, drink, and be merry, with no regard for tomorrow. But the Lord tells us that there is life beyond the grave, and that the world is blinding us from this truth. If I want to save my life, I must lose it in the person of Jesus Christ…I must turn my focus and affections from the temporal to the eternal…from the fleeting to the everlasting.
Matthew 7: 13-14 ” Enter by the narrow gate…Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life…”
Living for Christ is hard…there’s no way around it. The moment you say “Yes” to Jesus, the world labels you as “One of those crazy religious people”. But it’s by those troubles we encounter that we learn perseverance and are forged into a willing vessel for God . And with each difficulty, we go from wounded to winner. As Oswald Chambers once said, “Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His Highest – our best for His glory?” Yes, the way is narrow and filled with difficulties, but just look where it leads.
John 10:10 ” The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. “
Make no bones about it – Satan would like you dead…and He’s out to kill you by any means he can. He’d love to get you entangled in an addiction that would take your life, or get you to compromise and make bad choices that would lead to your demise. You see, Satan doesn’t have an ounce of compassion or regard for you. He’d rather take your joy…ruin your life…and ravage your body than watch you grow strong in the Lord. But in Jesus Christ…you are stronger than any threat Satan can throw your way…you are more powerful than any addiction that holds you bound…and you are tougher than you could ever imagine yourself.
Psalm 39:5 ” You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before You. Each man’s life is but a breath. “
Take a deep breath…inhale and exhale slowly. Without breath, you’re dead. Your life force is gone, your body shut down. This verse looks at the very fleeting nature of one’s existence. That life is but one breath away from dying…and that our life span is measured as a blink of the eye in the eternal scheme of things. Let us then determine that while we’re here on earth for such a short duration, our focus should be on what we can do to better the world, rather than just exist in it.
II Peter 1:4 ” Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
You can be part of this world, but not polluted by it. (James 1:27) God has given you everything you need to live a victorious life here on earth. The Bible is full of His assurances that you can do it…just take a look.
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