Published by admin on 14 Nov 2013 at 10:32 pm
GOD’S AMAZING GRACE
Sometimes I get comments on our website from people who don’t want anything to do with God whatsoever. Knowing He is a just God, you would think He would just zap them and be done with them, but that isn’t His nature at all. I guess His idea of justice must be different than that of mankind. In the old days and still today, if a ruler established himself over a group of people or a nation, if they despised him, the ruler would just have those people executed and they were out of his hair for good. And yet, though many even in our nation, the USA, are trying to remove every reference to God in our society, God is still patient and merciful with them, even though He would be just in destroying them. Why? Because He is not willing that any should perish, but that all come to repentance. You talk about MERCY! Would a dictator have that attitude toward those who don’t want to serve and love him? Absolutely NOT! That’s why I put my trust in God, and not in people.
In the old days, people gave animal sacrifices unto God, and yet He said He delighted in MERCY. Hosea 6:6 says, For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. If people would simply study God’s Word and learn of Him, their attitude toward Him would be different. Rather, they have let their incorrect knowledge of God be shaped by “so-and-so said they trusted God, and He let them down”. Trusting God is more than blind faith that He will make everything turn out ok. Sometimes, God’s grace requires action on OUR part, and if we don’t do what God has told us to do, we cannot hold Him responsible for the outcome. We don’t always do what we should, but we wouldn’t admit that, would we?
Mat 9:10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
Mat 9:11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?
Mat 9:12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
Mat 9:13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
The righteous were already doing what they were supposed to be doing. Jesus wasn’t trying to get them to change what they were doing, He came to call those who weren’t, to change, so THEY could also live in God’s blessing. You see, all over the world, mankind wants to do what is right in his own eyes, so as many different societies and races and cultures as there are, there are that many ideas as to what is “right”. All we have to do is look at the history of mankind, and we can see we are unable to govern ourselves successfully. Man can make rules and laws, but our sinful nature cannot be legislated away, for it will always find ways to pop up again. Man loves to look for “loopholes” in God’s laws, so he doesn’t have to be held accountable for his behavior. Someday that will change. Only by mankind turning unto the LORD and experiencing His grace, can we ever all live in peace with one another.
In the future Kingdom of God, it is written in Isa_11:6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And in Isa_65:25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD. Now THAT will be a wonderful thing. Even the animals will behave differently toward one another and toward people.
Just think about it for a moment; God sent His Son Christ Jesus of Nazareth to bear all our sicknesses and diseases and sins upon Himself, paying in FULL for our sins and rebellion against Him. He did what we could not do for ourselves, in paying for our salvation and healing. He extended grace we do not deserve, and while we were still deep in our rebellion against God, sinning against Him and one another and enjoying it, Christ died for us. WHY? Look at us! We whine and complain about every little thing we do not like, do not appreciate the things we DO have, do whatever we feel is right in our own eyes to get what we want, even if someone gets taken advantage of in the process. Yet God loves us. Why? I keep asking myself that, and cannot come up with a satisfactory answer. Perhaps you can. I can only attribute it to His amazing grace.
If you’re running from God right now, you’re running in the wrong direction. Stop, turn around and run TO Him, for He is quick to forgive and it puts a smile on His face to look upon one who was once lost, and is now found. Oh, HE knew where you were, you just didn’t. And if you’ve picked up sickness along the way while you wandered around without Him, He has already paid for your healing. Sickness is just part of the curse of sin and death. But you’ve probably heard all that before, haven’t you? Have you ever given much thought to the part that says He has REDEEMED you from the curse? Have you made that redemption your own? Or have you just considered it for “somebody else”, and not YOU? What are you waiting for??
God wants you to be free to make your own choice, and He will not force anyone to receive Him. However, His salvation is like a paid-up-for-eternity insurance policy that you never paid a cent to get. It’s free to YOU, but it cost Jesus his life, so it wasn’t free to Him. WHY would anyone pass up something like that?
Some have told me they think they have to give up too much in order to be saved. Well, there ARE some things you will have to give up….like hellfire, for example. Sorry, if you’re born again, you’re no longer eligible to take a dip in the Lake of Fire, or to ever be left alone or forsaken, or to be unloved of God. And while you may not be too popular with your old friends after receiving Christ Jesus, you have the unique opportunity to introduce them to your Savior, and perhaps your old unsaved friends will become your new saved friends.
“Born again”. I like that term. You were born once by your mother, and up to the time you receive Christ Jesus you get to sample all the hurt and disappointment, sin, sickness, and lousy stuff the world has to offer. But after receiving Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have a NEW life ahead, right now, without guilt and condemnation, and without limits on what you can become in Him. Your new life no longer needs to revolve around the “earthly system” and economy, even though you still live here. Your new citizenship is in God’s Kingdom, and if you will let HIM direct your life, you will never be without what you need. How does He do that? That’s no longer your worry, it’s His, and believe me, He isn’t worried about how He will take care of another mouth to feed. As it is written, The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.
God’s amazing grace just gets more amazing every day. There isn’t a problem you will ever face that He doesn’t already have the answer for. He has you covered, no matter what. No matter how loud the devil is yelling at you, no matter what kinds of threats he is making to you, no matter how high your mountain looks right now, it’s all light work to God. That’s why it’s called AMAZING grace. You’ll like it. And you’ll want to tell everyone about it, too, because there’s plenty to go around.
Like they’re saying on TV right now…”BUT WAIT!!! If you act RIGHT NOW we will double your offer!” You AND a friend can get saved at the same time, at no extra charge. Wherever you are, just call on Christ Jesus right now. “ Don’t wait! Do it right now! This is a limited-time offer.” Why? Because you don’t have forever, you only live so long, and there’s no guarantee HOW LONG that is. AAAAAANNNNNDD, Because God’s grace is SO AMAZING, you won’t want to wait another minute! INSTANT DELIVERY, NO WAITING! And the best part is, it’s FREE!!! Amazing, isn’t it? Yep. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound! That’s our GOD!