“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” II Corinthians 5:17-21
The message of reconciliation to God is the message that has been passed down from generation to generation ever since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christ came down to this earth and was crucified to death on a cross and three days later rose again from the dead. Thus making it possible for all to have new life in Him for in His death we all have died and in His life we all might live. This is the message that ought to give us the necessary love and motivation to go out and tell others about the sweet love of God.
Read the above Scripture again and let the good news of what is says sink deep, deep into your spirit. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a NEW creation. The OLD has PASSED away; behold the NEW has COME.” If you are in Christ today you are a new creation. You are no longer dead in your trespasses and sin but have been made alive unto God and been brought into a right relationship with Him. No longer are you destined for Hell and damnation but you are destined for Heaven and glorious living. You have been brought out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of light. Colossians 3 sheds some more light on this subject of being brought out of darkness and into the light very well. Verses 13-14 say, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” We have been given the righteousness of Christ and stand justified before God.
Just the other night I was watching the movie “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” and if you have seen the movie you will understand what I am talking about, if you have not, here is a brief synopsis. A priest has been charged with negligent homicide for the death of a nineteen year old girl named Emily who was demonically possessed and died under his care the day after he had performed an exorcism on her. Throughout the course of the movie we learn bits and pieces of Emily’s story during different stages of the trial. At the end of the movie the jury finds the priest guilty of negligent homicide, and this is where things begin to get really good. Not because of the greatness of the movie, but simply because of the very accurate portrayal of a truth of the Gospel message. After the jury has announced the verdict and the judge is about to pronounce his sentence a head of the jury stands and asks permission to give a recommendation for the sentence. The judge agrees to hear the recommendation and the jury asks that the sentence be “time served.” The judge agrees to the terms and turns to the priest and says, “YOU ARE GUILTY, AND YOU ARE FREE TO GO.” That is what Christ has done for us. We are guilty of breaking the laws of God but because Christ came and took our punishment for us, we are, as the priest was, free to go out and live as God intended for us to do.
by Justin Kantonen
originally posted June 2008
Showing posts with label creation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label creation. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
Speak Out - Go Green
Has your attention been drawn to the Green movement lately. It’s hard not to thank about, because it’s everywhere. I try not to laugh as I surf the net and find an article on “How to Green your Funeral,” but in all seriousness going green actually makes sense. Why not put in compact fluorescent light bulbs or buy organic produce from local farmers? Why not walk if you don’t have to drive or hang dry your clothes instead of using the dryer? In Genesis 1, as God creates the world we see the phrase “and God saw that it was good.” Verse 31 says, “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.” When God created the world, He did a good job. I love Spring. I love it when the snow melts. I love the way the air smells so clean after it rains. I love seeing new life as trees bud and flowers blossom. And as we appreciate God’s creation around us, shouldn’t we also want to take good care of it?
Why is everyone so caught up in being green? Why this huge social conscientiousness to protect our environment? Remember when NBC “went” green? They advertised green during every commercial break and wouldn’t you know it, green was referred to in all of their programming that week. People care about the world they live in. They want it to be a good world to live in. If you are listening to all the hype, we have to be green or else our world is going to fall apart. We have to save the world. So what does green have to do with being a follower of Christ?
In 56-58 A.D. Paul described the condition of mankind in Romans 1: 28-32 “Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Read Romans 1:18-32 for full context)
That is the condition of our world.
Romans 3:21-24 says “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
But, we also see that there is salvation for all. We have all sinned, but we are all offered grace and redemption through Christ.
To be green means to be mindful and intentional of protecting the environment.
Matthew 5: 13-16 says “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
To be green you have to recognize there is a need and then become part of the solution.
So I say we should copy this strategy.
Go Yellow.
The world does need to be saved. But, we are not talking about the physical world. This world of souls needs spiritual salvation. If you have a cause and you believe in it, you tell people. Tree huggers have earned their name because they have a passion for what they believe. They fight to protect what they value and they share their passion with others. Do I have a passion for Christ? Do I have a passion to see souls saved? We are lights, but we won’t shine if we stay hidden under bowls or in our houses, safe circle of Christian friends, convenient Lexus cages... Just like being green means taking action, so does being a witness for the Lord. Get out there; get active. Be a mentor, teach Sunday school, tell people Jesus loves them, invite your neighbor to church, volunteer at a soup kitchen… Love people and live your life in such a way that it points to Jesus and gives Him glory.
To be yellow means to be salt and light to a dying and dark spiritual environment.
Be a light that shines for Jesus amidst the darkness of this world. Go yellow.
by Naomi Andrews
originally posted June 2008
Why is everyone so caught up in being green? Why this huge social conscientiousness to protect our environment? Remember when NBC “went” green? They advertised green during every commercial break and wouldn’t you know it, green was referred to in all of their programming that week. People care about the world they live in. They want it to be a good world to live in. If you are listening to all the hype, we have to be green or else our world is going to fall apart. We have to save the world. So what does green have to do with being a follower of Christ?
In 56-58 A.D. Paul described the condition of mankind in Romans 1: 28-32 “Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Read Romans 1:18-32 for full context)
That is the condition of our world.
Romans 3:21-24 says “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
But, we also see that there is salvation for all. We have all sinned, but we are all offered grace and redemption through Christ.
To be green means to be mindful and intentional of protecting the environment.
Matthew 5: 13-16 says “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
To be green you have to recognize there is a need and then become part of the solution.
So I say we should copy this strategy.
Go Yellow.
The world does need to be saved. But, we are not talking about the physical world. This world of souls needs spiritual salvation. If you have a cause and you believe in it, you tell people. Tree huggers have earned their name because they have a passion for what they believe. They fight to protect what they value and they share their passion with others. Do I have a passion for Christ? Do I have a passion to see souls saved? We are lights, but we won’t shine if we stay hidden under bowls or in our houses, safe circle of Christian friends, convenient Lexus cages... Just like being green means taking action, so does being a witness for the Lord. Get out there; get active. Be a mentor, teach Sunday school, tell people Jesus loves them, invite your neighbor to church, volunteer at a soup kitchen… Love people and live your life in such a way that it points to Jesus and gives Him glory.
To be yellow means to be salt and light to a dying and dark spiritual environment.
Be a light that shines for Jesus amidst the darkness of this world. Go yellow.
by Naomi Andrews
originally posted June 2008
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