Published by admin on 07 Jan 2011 at 08:58 pm
KICKING THE CAN
The other day as I was listening to the news about the Federal Deficit, the realization came to me that the country would not be in this mess if our leaders would not have kept putting the problem off for another day. It is like walking down the road, kicking a can, rather than picking it up and putting it in the trash can. Many people are like that, they just keep kicking the can a little further down the road every day, hoping someone else will deal with the problem so they won’t have to. This attitude not only destroys individuals, it destroys entire nations.
With every lesson the Lord teaches us, there is both a physical and spiritual aspect. We have just entered into a new year, and what are many doing? They keep doing what they’ve always done, just like they did last week, last month, last year, for who knows how long now. Isn’t it time to move onto better things? Many of us have issues the Lord has been trying to deal with so He can bring us into a better place, but we just keep kicking the can right on down the road.
For one person, the issue might be an addiction they have wanted to stop, but sometimes it seems easier to just stay in their mess, rather than take the steps necessary to break free. The devil will do anything he can to keep you in captivity, and most of the time he uses threats and fear to do it. Believe it or not, most people resist change. Some say they want new adventure in their lives, but for the most part, people just want to keep doing what they are familiar with.
Another person might be living in an abusive relationship, perhaps suffering physical violence. Well, we both know God didn’t create people to live like that, but fear of the unknown keeps many people in bad relationships because they think they will not be able to make it on their own. So they stay and endure it, rather than take charge of their lives and change their circumstances.
There are those who hold onto grudges, often for so long they have forgotten what they were mad about in the first place, yet for them it is easier to feel sorry for themselves than to forgive. Their reasoning is this: we will say the person who did them wrong asked God to forgive them. And God DID forgive them. Now, the one who was hurt wants justice, so why should the offender go free while they are still suffering? They think God is not fair. And it’s true: God is NOT fair. We have ALL sinned, and deserve hellfire for what we have done, each and every one of us, without exception. There is not one among us with a clean heart, deserving heaven on our own merit. And of course, we feel WE deserve to be forgiven, because our sins are so tiny, and everyone else’s are, well….. so BIG!
And God, demanding justice for sin, put the entire punishment for our sin upon His own Son! Can that be fair? Consider Jesus, who in all eternity, never did anything to displease his heavenly Father; was murdered, and made to pay for our sins, even though he had no sin of his own.
Now, consider us, who for all practical reasons, are rotten to the core, altogether born full of sin and evil imaginations, we have been offered free salvation by the Lord Jesus, although we deserve to die and go straight to hell. Can this be justice? I ask you again, Is God fair?
You see, God could have chosen to just kick the can a little further down the road, like many of us do. He could have refrained from doing anything at all to save us, for in truth, sin isn’t His problem anyway; it’s OUR problerm. He could have demanded we save ourselves, but He knew we can’t save ourselves. So God, in His mercy, dealt with the problem we could not solve.
Now, what are YOU going to do? It is written in Psalm 103:2-6; Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
Knowing that the price for your sins has been paid in full, and that the Lord Jesus willingly took upon Himself every sickness, every disease known to man, and even those that are not known to man, and that HE will deal with those who offended you, will you choose to kick the can down the road, putting off what you know in your heart you should do, or will you agree that it’s time to take advantage of what Christ Jesus has done for you?
I cannot choose for you, I can only give you the information you need to make the right choice. The choice is entirely up to you. It’s not possible to say, I’ll be saved and healed if it’s God’s will. God has made His will known to us through the Holy Bible, and also through the words and deeds of the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus healed all who came to Him, never refusing anyone. It is written in Hebrews 13:8, Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. He also said in John 6:37, All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
The Lord kicked the devil out of heaven long ago, giving him no place there, for an example for us to follow. Well, maybe you’ve finally “kicked the can” long enough to realize the problems won’t go away unless you make some drastic changes. Now it’s time to kick the devil out of your mind, out of your body, out of your finances, out of your household and out of your family. And all heaven will back you up!