And St.
Peter declared, "Repent and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins,
and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost". (Acts
2:38)
During the past thirty
years our nation has taken a nose dive, and at present, we
are a people divided, despondent and depressed; politically,
economically and spiritually!
A divine call however, has
gone out to our Nation and the world at large. Now is
the time to turn around, the repent to Christ Jesus and
forsake sin. We are living in the end times, the last
days. We are facing world war, world crisis - the second
coming of Jesus Christ - the rapture - the
tribulation. We MUST surrender our wills to God and
give up the futile effort of "doing things our own
way."
It's time for the NATION
to turn back from their rebellious ways; confessing to
Christ our sins of unbelief, pride, immorality, jealousy,
envy and prejudice. To turn away from lust, greed, hatred,
selfishness, anger, bitterness and deceit! To confront the
devil - in the Name of Jesus Christ - telling him that he's
not welcome in our lives anymore!
Now is the time for
everyone to reject and renounce the many dangerous,
deceptive and occultist doctrines of the New Age Movement.
As well as the cult of Secular Humanism that teaches, 'man
ascended from the world of monkeys and apes, is
self-sufficient and is his own God'!
The Bible speaks about
humility, repentance and submission to the Almighty and a
total rejection of Satan, who is the god of this world! St.
James states, "Submit yourselves therefore unto God.
Resist the devil and he will flee from you". (James
4:7)
It's time to come home and
be reconciled to our Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. To accept His invitation to talk things over. To
straighten out past failures and right wrongs. And to
receive total forgiveness and assurance, with new direction
for the future!
The Bible says, "Let
the wicked forsake his ways, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord and He will have
mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly
pardon". (Is. 55:7)
The divine call of God
does not differentiate between rich or poor, educated or
illiterate, men or women, young or old. There is no class
distinction or favoritism due to race, color, nationality or
culture with the Almighty!
ALL MAY
APPROACH THE THRONE OF GOD AND RECEIVE HIS MERCY AND GRACE,
THROUGH FAITH IN THE FINISHED WORK OF CHRIST ON CALVARY'S
CROSS!
How is this possible? The
Gospel is free to everyone!
The Bible says, "For
by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is a gift of God: Not of works, lest any man
should boast". (Eph. 2:8-9)
There is no entry fee,
cover charge or red tape to delay our coming to Him, or to
stop the process of salvation from functioning in our
lives. Christ waits for you to repent, Christ Jesus or
Lord is willing to accept all and forgive sins.
The prophet invited,
"Lo, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters,
and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; come, ye,
buy wine and milk without money and without price".
(Is. 55:1) And Jesus assures us: "... him that cometh
unto Me, I will in no wise cast out". (John 6:37)
The enormous cost of our
freedom - redemption from sin and the power of Satan - has
been paid for us, through the substitutionary death of Jesus
Christ!
The Bible says, "For
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life". (John 3:16)
St. John declared,
"For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He
might destroy the works of the devil". (1 John 3:8)
St. Paul emphasized,
"That through death, He ( Jesus Christ ) might destroy
him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and
deliver those who through fear of death were all their
lifetime subject to bondage". (Heb. 2:14)
JESUS
CHRIST'S GOSPEL: GOD WANTS US!
The good news is that God
wants us. He wants you and me. No exceptions, and no
questions asked. We come just as we are! He knows all about
us and yet He wants us, even though we are sinners. WHY? He
is a specialist in the field of cleansing, reconciliation
and re-birth!
The Bible states, "If
we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us
our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteous". (1
John 1:9)
An old hymn says:
"Just
as I am, without one plea
But that Thy blood was shed for me
And that Thou bidst me come to Thee
O Lamb of God, I come. I come!
"Just
as I am, and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot
Because Thy blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come. I come!
"Just
as I am; poor, wretched, blind
Sight, riches, healing of the mind
All that I need, in Thee to find
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
"Just
as I am, Thou wilt receive
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve
Because Thy promise I believe
O Lamb of God, I come. I come!”
The Bible says: "For
the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole
earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose
heart is perfect toward Him..." (2 Chron. 16:9)
And God’s Word says:
"The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous and His
ears are open unto their prayers but the face of the Lord is
against them that do evil". (1 Pet. 3:12)
THE
CALL TO REPENTANCE
The very first
sermons preached by our Lord were, "Repent and
believe the gospel". (Mark 1:15) The same was true of
the great prophet, John the Baptist, (Luke 3:3; Matt. 3:2)
as well as all of the Apostles! (Mark 6:12)
And St. Peter declared,
"Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of
Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive
the gift of the Holy Ghost". (Acts 2:38)
To repent
means to turn, to change course! Repenting is godly sorrow
for sin; sorry enough to stop committing them!
After St. Paul’s letter
reached the Corinthian Church, they were sorry for their
sins, changing their evil ways. He writes: "Now I
rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed
to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner,
that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly
sorrow worketh repentance to salvation..." (2 Cor.
7:9-10)
REPENTANCE IS A TURNING
AROUND, FORSAKING THE EVIL AND UNRIGHTEOUS WAYS OF THE
WORLD, THE FLESH AND THE DEVIL! IT IS A TOTAL CHANGE OF
LIFESTYLE!
Jesus said,
"...except ye repent, ye shall all likewise
perish". (Luke 13:3)
In his Mars Hill sermons,
St. Paul shared with pagan Greek intellectuals the Gospel of
Jesus Christ and His glorious resurrection from the dead.
The End Times ~ Then he
challenged them: “And the times of this ignorance God
winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge
the world in righteousness by that man whom He hath
ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in
that He hath raised Him from the dead.”
Don’t let anyone deceive
you, my friend, there is going to be a ‘Great Day of
Judgment’ when all of us will stand before Almighty God to
give an account of our lives. We are living in the End
Times, the second coming of Jesus and rapture of the Church
is near.
TWO
JUDGMENT SEATS!
There will be two
judgments: the first one is called, ‘The Great White
Throne Judgment’ where all sinners and unjust persons
shall be judged in relation to their acceptance or rejection
of Jesus Christ the Jewish Messiah!
Here is Christ Jesus’
solemn warning: “And I saw a great white throne, and Him
that sat on it, from Whose face the earth and the heaven
fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw
the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books
were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book
of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which
were written in the books, according to their works.
“And the sea gave up the
dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the
dead which were in them: and they were judged every man
according to their works. And death and hell were cast into
the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever
was not found written in the book of life was cast out into
the lake of fire.” (Rev. 20:11-15)
The second one is called
the Bhema Seat Judgment of the Saints. That is where all
believers who have trusted in Jesus Christ as personal
Savior will be judged for our works!
St. Paul warns: “For
other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is
Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation
gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay stubble; Every man’s
work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it,
because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try
every man’s work of what sort it is.
“If any man’s work
abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a
reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer
loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”
(1 Cor. 3:8)
In his defense before King
Agrippa, the great Apostle rehearsed his Damascus Road
conversion experience, and the words of Jesus Christ to him:
"Delivering thee from
the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send
thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to
light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may
receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them
which are sanctified by faith that is in Me." (Acts
26:17-18)
So urgent is the call for
people to repent of their sins, the Bible says:
"Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men".
(2 Cor. 5:11) The Bible specifically declares: "All
have sinned and come short of the glory of God". (Rom.
3:23)
SIN MUST BE PAID FOR
UNLESS THERE IS REPENTANCE, and "the wages of sin is
death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord". (Rom. 6:23)
The great apostle wrote to
the church in Rome concerning those committing sinful acts
and others who condemn them, being guilty of the same sins!
"But we are sure that
the judgment of God is according to truth against them which
commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that
judgest them which do such things, and doest the same that
thou shalt escape the judgment of God? But after thy
hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself
wrath against the DAY OF WRATH and revelation of the
righteous judgment of God;
"Who will render to
every man according to his deeds: To them who by patient
continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and
immortality, ETERNAL LIFE: But unto them that are
contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and
anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew
first, and also of the Gentile;" (Romans 2:2-9)
GOD'S
GOODNESS AND PATIENCE CAUSES US TO REPENT & TURN TO
HIM!
Jesus said, "Behold,
I come quickly"- literal Greek: Without delay, at once,
soon. (Rev. 22:12)
St. Peter gave two reasons
why Jesus had not yet returned:
1) One thousand years with
us is like one day with the Lord! 2) God's mercy is reaching
out for more sinners to be saved!
"But, beloved, be not
ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as
a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord
is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count
slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that
any should perish, but that all should come to
repentance." (2 Peter 3:8-9)
The Bible says,
"Repent and be baptized...and ye shall receive the gift
of the Holy Spirit". (Acts 2:38-39) "Repent ye
therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted
out..." (Acts 3:19)
And Jesus says, "As
many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore,
and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any
man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him,
and will sup with him, and he with Me". (Rev. 3:19-20)
THE CALL TO
PRAYER
The Bible says, "If
My people, which are called by My name, shall humble
themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their
wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive
their sin, and will heal their land". (2 Chron. 7:14)
Prayer is vital, if we are
to have communion with God! The first prayer everyone needs
to pray is: "O God be merciful to me a sinner, forgive
my sins and save my soul! I trust in the blood of Jesus
Christ to atone for my sins. I now renounce the devil, all
his works & all his ways. I now receive Jesus Christ as
my personal Savior and Lord in His Name. Amen”.
When fellowship has been
restored with God, we can pray for our needs, and for
others! The Lord's prayer is a powerful model:
"Our Father Which art
in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will
be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive
those who trespass against us. And lead us not into
temptation, but deliver us from evil: for Thine is the
kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
(Matt. 6:9-13)
We should spend time alone
with God in prayer, praise and thanksgiving; as well as in
corporate prayer with fellow believers!
Jesus invites: "Ask,
and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you: For everyone that asketh
receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that
knocketh it shall be opened." (Matt. 7:7-8)
St. Jude wrote about the
EVIL, FILTHY, LUSTY LIFESTYLES OF MANY! He warned of the End
times - second coming of Jesus Christ - rapture - coming
judgment upon those who continue in their pernicious,
lascivious ways. Then he admonished the believers: "But
ye beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith,
praying in the Holy Spirit". (Jude 20)
We should always stay in
an attitude of prayer. The Bible says, "Pray without
ceasing". (1 Thess. 5:17)
The renowned Scottish
preacher, Robert Murray McCheyne stated, "Give yourself
to prayer, and get your texts, thoughts, your words from
God. Luther spent his best three hours in prayer".
Writing about the martyr
George Fox, William Penn stated: "But above all he
excelled in prayer... the most awful, living, reverend frame
I ever felt or beheld, I must say, was his prayer. He knew
and lived nearer to the Lord than other men..."
John
Wesley - founder of the Methodist Church - stated,
"Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but
sin, and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw
whether they be clergymen or laymen; such alone will shake
the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth.
God does nothing but in answer to prayer".
Martin
Luther stated, "If I should neglect prayer but a
single day, I should lose a great deal of the fire of
faith".
Jesus constantly urged His
disciples to pray: "Watch and pray, lest ye enter into
temptation". (Matt. 26:41) It was after an all night
prayer session with His Father in Heaven that Jesus chose
His twelve apostles!
And it was after His forty
day fast - being tempted by the devil in the wilderness -
that Jesus defeated Satan’s temptations by using the Word
of God to refute and overcome him! The Scripture records
that after His victory over Satan in that temptation that
Jesus “returned in the power of the Spirit” (Luke 4:14),
and great miracles of healing and casting out of demons were
overwhelmingly present in His ministry!
It was after a ten day
prayer meeting that the Holy Spirit fell upon 120 seeking
souls on the Day of Pentecost! (Acts 2:1-4)
GO
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