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Jesus Shall Not Fail

Only Believe Saved Me

"Only believe" Mark 5:36

It [self-righteousness] teaches sinners that in order to have true faith in Christ there are certain conditions that must be met. The doctrine goes like this: "salvation is by grace alone. It is not what you do, but what Christ has done that saves you. But before you can truly trust Christ and be saved, you must be terrified with conviction, you must weep and mourn over your sin, you must desire holiness, you must repent, you must long for Christ, you must come to see yourself as a lost sinner and then earnestly seek the Lord."

This doctrine may sound good on the surface, but it is only a roundabout way of preaching salvation by works. There are no prerequisites, no conditions, qualifications to be met by sinners before they trust Christ. The gospel of Christ is addressed to sinners as sinners, not awakened sinners, not sensible sinners, not convicted sinners, not lost sinners, not repentant sinners - just sinners! God does not command sinners to feel a certain way, experience something or come to realize something about themselves. God commands sinners to "believe on his Son, Jesus Christ." The moment a preacher places any condition or qualification of any kind upon the sinner before he can trust Christ and be saved, he ceases to preach a gospel of pure grace. Repentance, conviction of sin, lamentation and sorrow over sin are not prerequisites for coming to Christ and trusting him. These things do not precede faith. They are the results of faith (Zech. 12:10; John 16:7-14).

Read John 3:11-21

An excerpt from Grace for Today, Don Fortner, February 23.

(bold emphasis mine)

Thoughts

There are many places where we are not permitted to travel.

Here are some thoughts that we should never experience:

1. A negative thought is a down payment on an obligation to fail.

2. Complaining is the refuge of those who have no self-reliance.

3. People who have not set a worthwhile purpose in life are easy prey for anxiety.

4. The worst bankruptcy is the person who lost enthusiasm.

Have a good day!
Love,
Dad


For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh (for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the casting down of strongholds), casting down imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience shall be made full.
(2 Corinthians 10:3-6)

To Whom Will You Liken Me?

Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Who hath directed the Spirit of Jehovah, or being his counsellor hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding? Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are accounted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering. All the nations are as nothing before him; they are accounted by him as less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? The image, a workman hath cast it, and the goldsmith overlayeth it with gold, and casteth for it silver chains. He that is too impoverished for such an oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a skilful workman to set up a graven image, that shall not be moved. Have ye not known? have yet not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth above the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in; that bringeth princes to nothing; that maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. Yea, they have not been planted; yea, they have not been sown; yea, their stock hath not taken root in the earth: moreover he bloweth upon them, and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble. To whom then will ye liken me, that I should be equal to him? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and see who hath created these, that bringeth out their host by number; he calleth them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and for that he is strong in power, not one is lacking. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from Jehovah, and the justice due to me is passed away from my God? Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard? The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint.
(Isaiah 40:12-31)

True Heart Faith

"With the heart man believeth" Romans 10:10

Thus saith Jehovah: Cursed is the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from Jehovah. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in Jehovah, and whose trust Jehovah is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, that spreadeth out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when heat cometh, but its leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly corrupt: who can know it? I, Jehovah, search the mind, I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. As the partridge that sitteth on eggs which she hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool. A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary. O Jehovah, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be put to shame. They that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken Jehovah, the fountain of living waters. Heal me, O Jehovah, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise. (Jeremiah 17:5-14)


"If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus; and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." This is the one thing that is essential: you must believe in thine heart. I urge you to "examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith." I would do nothing to rob any true believer of the joy of confident assurance. But I must warn all men to guard against religious presumption. It is Satan's cheap counterfeit.

False faith can be very deceptive. False faith produces good works. It excites the emotions. It reforms the outward life. It performs deeds of religion. It causes sorrow for sin. It speaks well of Christ. It does works of charity. It trembles under the preaching of the gospel. False faith gains high offices in the church. It secures peace of mind. It walks in the company of great preachers. False faith even holds out to the Day of Judgment (Matt. 7:22-23). My friend, beware of false faith! Remember Lot's wife, Judas, Simon, Demas and Diotrephes. Be not numbered among them.

True faith is the heart knowledge of, trust in and submission to the Lord Jesus Christ. God has revealed Christ to us in the gospel, by which we know our desperate need and his saving power and fairness. Trusting Christ alone as our all-sufficient Savior, we commit ourselves, boy and soul, to him. And where there is true faith, there is the submission of heart to Christ as our sovereign Lord and King. This faith comes not by heredity, nor by the logic and persuasiveness of the preacher. It is the gift of God. Christ is revealed in the heart by the Holy Spirit.

This heart faith can be known by those who possess it. Have we believed? If so, we have firmly, cordially and voluntarily received Christ in all his offices. To them that believe, Christ is precious. Heart faith purifies the heart and weans it from the world. Heart faith works by love, lives in hope and rests in Christ. This is true faith. This is heart faith. Forsaking all I take Him.

Grace for Today by Don Fortner for February 17.

Presidents

Back to school after a long weekend. Hope that you enjoyed yourself. Monday was President's Day. Was this created only to give federal employees and school children additional time off?

Although the day set aside for Presidents is for all of them, usually we only think of Lincoln and Washington. Both of them had a high regard for God and His Word.

Abraham Lincoln: "I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book."

George Washington: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible."

Shouldn't our regard for the Bible be as high as these two great leaders?

Have a good day!
Love,
Dad

Real Love

This Sunday we observe Valentine's Day. I wonder if this wasn't created by the florists and card companies? On this day, individuals will usually express some feelings toward another with flowers, cards, and/or gifts. It is a shame that some only express their love on this special day of the year.

In reality, what is love?
-It's more than the exchange of cards and gifts.
-It's more than an occasional verbal "I love you."
-It's more than a physical relationship.

According to Webster's, "love" is:
"a strong affection for or attachment or devotion to a person or persons."

True love has no limits, it only looks for outlets.

I'm afraid that we have been deceived (by TV, books, movies, music, etc.) into thinking that love is strictly physical and emotional attachment.

Love is selfless and not personal gratification.
-It is giving and not taking.
-It is seeking the welfare and betterment of the one(s) loved.

The greatest display of true love is, of course, Christ!
-He willingly gave up His eternal glory to become flesh.
-He subjected Himself willingly to the role of a servant.
-He purposefully and deliberately gave Himself to the pains of suffering and death.

That's real love!

Have a good day!
Love,
Dad

Generosity of America

The authors of Hillsdale College's mission "proclaimed themselves 'grateful to God for the inestimable blessings resulting from the prevalence of civil and religious liberty and intelligent piety in the land, and believing that the diffusion of sound learning is essential to the perpetuity of these blessings.'

...Ransom Dunn did not raise funds for Hillsdale by appealing to donors' guilt, or by urging them to 'give back' to society. Instead, he appealed to their ideals and aspirations, their religious principles, and their desire to create an institution of learning in the upper Midwest.

...the tradition of private generosity in America has always been central to our free society. Voluntary donations from the farm families of the Midwest made it possible for Hillsdale to be independent, which in turn gave Hillsdale the freedom to challenge prevailing cultural and political wisdom. Following another private institution, Oberlin, Hillsdale was the second American college to grant four-year liberal-arts degrees to women. Founded at a time when Michigan public schools were officially segregated by race, Hillsdale was also the first American college to prohibit in its charter any discrimination on the basis of race, religion or sex. Without the indepedence that comes from private support, Hillsdale would not have been able to provide this leadership.

...Private support has continued to sustain Hillsdale's independence by enabling it to forego state and federal government support altogether."

"The Generosity of America" by Adam Meyerson appearing in the January 2010 edition of Imprimis.

Read the article in its entirety here.

We have been the grateful recipients of this monthly publication of Hillsdale College for many years. It is now touted by Rush Limbaugh. I highly recommend you follow the article link above to sign up for your own free subscription. You will not be disappointed.

What Love Is

Whatever an individual truly is will manifest itself by words and actions. The normal pattern of behavior of a person is the evidence of what is inside.

If there is love within a person, it will display itself by actions:

The apostle Paul says,
"Charity suffereth long" - love is patience.
In any relationship, if it is to remain, there will be patience. Patience in love is that ability to bear with the differences between those involved in that relationship. Each party will be slow in anger and not hasty in revenge.
"Charity is kind" - love is displayed with a liberal desire for good to the one loved. Kindness is not limited only to gifts but also with words and actions.

The matter of love is an ongoing and on-growing relationship.

Have a good day!
Love,
Dad


If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not its own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil; rejoiceth not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth with the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know fully even as also I was fully known. But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:1-13)

Pit of Despair

Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall overwhelm me, And the light about me shall be night; Even the darkness hideth not from thee, But the night shineth as the day: The darkness and the light are both alike to thee. (Psalms 139:7-12)

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Over the past few years, I have enjoyed the music of Andrew Peterson, who is an artist after my own taste. (His "Behold the Lamb of God" album is listed on the right margin.) Below you will find a selection of a recent post to his blog that I found particularly rewarding. You can find his blog at The Rabbit Room .

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The Pit of Despair, or, A New Lament
By Andrew Peterson

The oldest song on my new album is also the title track.

I wrote it in Pennsylvania in 2008, after spending a few days at Lancaster Bible College, a fine establishment that flew me in to talk to the students about writing and to put on a concert with the Captains Courageous the next day. (Psst! Lancaster! I had a great time and would love to come back.)

So there I was in Lancaster, feeling as sorry for myself as I ever had, languishing in the hotel room alone, wishing Andy and Ben’s plane would hurry up and arrive. The road is, of all lonely places, one of the loneliest. There’s a certain thrill in the beginning of the trip. I love seeing the sights, exploring new towns, feeling for a while like an observer of life rather than a liver of one. Of course, that’s a dangerous place to be.

Soon the excitement fades, and before you know it every face you see is a reminder of the faces you left behind. Every house looks sad. You start paying attention to the weather in your hometown. My heart literally aches sometimes when I hear my children’s voices on the phone. Along with the homesickness, on this particular trip I was shadowboxing some old familiar demons. I’m susceptible to a particular set of lies, voices that ring in my ears, voices that would have me believe a thousand things of myself and my God other than the truth to which I cling. When my faith falters and I forget my God, when I forget that his undying love now stands guard against all condemnation, I hold myself in contempt. I can hardly look in the mirror because all I see is sin, sin, sin. All I see is a fool. I see a failure.
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Click here to read the rest of this post, including the lyrics to the resulting song.

Warning Signs

Warning signs are given to us in order to beware of potential dangers. These signs are not there to discourage us from using that road, but for our safety so that we must proceed with caution.

Life is such:

We have two ends
With a common link;
With one we sit,
With one we think.
Success depends on what we use-
Heads we win;
Tails we lose.

Have a good day!
Love,
Dad


"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill (1874-1965)