simple

July 28, 2019

“How God Loved”

16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.— John 3:16 NLT

John 3:16-20 NLT

God made the plan of salvation very simple. Believe that He sent His Son to die for our sins. The name of Jesus is the only name in heaven or earth that can save us. We say, this is easy, I know all this, but we need to be reminded daily that our redemption cost more than we can ever repay. We need to be reminded that we are bought with a price. A price that only God’s great love could pay. Often those in the world and some Christians, as well. have the idea that God is looking down on us, just waiting for us to mess up, so He can zap us. Nothing could be further from the truth. He is looking for someone who is obedient and faithful. Someone that He can bless. Someone who is spreading His story. Make it a habit to tell someone every day about God’s great love.

6 My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land,That they may dwell with me; He who walks in a perfect way, He shall serve me.  — Psalm 101:6 NKJV

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” – Anonymous

Post 07-28-2019

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April 1, 2019

A Simple Plan For Joy

7 “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight.
8 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.”  — Romans 4:7, 8 NLT 

Romans 4: 8-10 NLT

God, because of His great love, mercy and grace made the plan of salvation so simple that a child can understand it.  Because of the simplicity of the plan, it often brings the question, “Is that really all I need to do to be saved?’.  And the simple answer is yes.  So, we can just keep doing what we were doing?  No! and again No!  But now we are talking about sanctification which is a lifelong process.  The good works we do are not to gain a greater salvation.  If we could do enough good works to be saved then Jesus died in vain.  We might as well still be living under the law and all of its impossible requirements.  But Jesus did not die in vain. His death and resurrection fulfilled the law and opened the gate to heaven so that all that chose Him in faith could come in.  When Paul tells the Philippians to “work out your own salvation”, he is not telling them to look for another way to be saved.  He is telling them to do good works to show the world the results of their salvation.

Phil, 2:12-15 NLT  

Jesus “went about doing good”.  He is our example of how we are to live our lives as His brothers and sisters.  As Christians, our response to certain things should be so different from the response of the worldly that it gets their attention. Our good works not only attract others to Jesus but they are also how we “lay up rewards in heaven”.

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” – Anonymous

Post 04-01-2019

May 2, 2018

Power Is For Witnessing, Not Wasting

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9 Do not get involved in foolish discussions about spiritual pedigrees or in quarrels and fights about obedience to Jewish laws. These things are useless and a waste of time. – Titus 3:9 NLT
Paul’s advice to Titus was given at a time when the discussion about the law was the single most divisive issue in the new church.  Did Jesus fulfill the law or abolish the law?  We have grace but don’t we still need to be circumcised? Even the apostles had differing opinions on some of these things. In today’s church, we get involved in foolish controversies over things not nearly as important as the law. Carpet colors, steeple or no steeple, immersion or sprinkling and the list goes on and on. Not one of these discussions will lead a soul to Christ but they may very well turn people away from the church altogether. They are definitely unprofitable and useless.  Jesus instructed us to “go and make disciples”.  He did not instruct us to go and make denominations, etc.  When we are in front of outsiders, our conversations and teachings should be limited to instructing people in how to be saved. All true Christians agree on the plan of salvation. That is the story Jesus wants us to tell. It is simple and powerful. Wherever we are or whomever we are speaking to, our sentiment must be the same as Paul’s:2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. — 1 Cor. 2:2-5 NIV

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” – Anonymous

Post 05-02-2018

February 1, 2018

One Message – Plain and Simple

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11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. – 1 Cor. 3:11 NLT
One Foundation
​In our witnessing, there is only one message and that message is the foundation of Christianity. The message is this; Jesus died on the cross at Calvary to redeem us from our sinful nature. He was buried and three days later, He arose. That is the foundation upon which the church of Jesus Christ is built. We can build on that foundation by teaching others that the Bible is completely true. If we do this with understanding and wisdom from heaven, then we will be building with gold, silver and costly stones. This builder will receive his crowns and rewards in heaven. If we do it with only human understanding without the illumination of the Holy Spirit, we will be building with wood, hay or straw. This builder will narrowly make it to heaven, but suffer the loss of any rewards he thought he had earned.
22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh–Jude 22, 23 NIV

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

Post 02-01-2018

January 15, 2018

Keep the Message Simple

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9 This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough! – Gal. 5:9 NLT
Gal. 5:9-12 NLT

Just as it only takes a little bit of yeast to make the whole batch self-rising, it only takes a little untruth to make the whole message a lie. God does not need our help to make His glorious Good News any better. He doesn’t need us to stretch the truth to make His miracles any bigger and we don’t need to add anything to His plan of salvation to make it effective. We must be very careful in witnessing to others that we do not add to or subtract from what God has said. We must be confident in what we believe and share it with the love of Jesus Christ. Anything more or less than what Jesus said takes away everything that He did for us at the cross. We must saturate our efforts with prayer and the love of Jesus Christ. But, just as Paul was adamant about rebuking those that sowed confusion to the new converts, we must be courageous in sharing the Gospel. There are lines we do not cross and there is a stance from which we do not back down. Share the Gospel with love, pure and simple, with no apologies.
32 “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.–Matt. 10:32,33 (NIV)


“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

Post 01-15-2018

April 8, 2017

Anyone Can Do It!

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14 Remind everyone about these things, and command them in God’s presence to stop fighting over words. Such arguments are useless, and they can ruin those who hear them. –2 Timothy 2:14 NLT
2 Timothy 2:14-18 NLT
Paul is instructing Timothy (and us) about the destruction and divisions that are caused by debating over doctrines. He is instructing us that our time would be better spent in meditating on God’s Word and doing exactly what it says without adding anything to it.  This is what the scribes and Pharisees had done to the Old Testament law. They had added their own interpretations to it and were weighing the people down with useless requirements. Some of us do the same thing today and then wonder why our church attendance is down.  The important thing for us to remember is that God made the plan of salvation very simple for a reason. It is not a burden to bear, it is easy to understand and for us, it is free, even though, it cost God His only Son. Anyone can do it.

 16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.–John 3:16 NIV

Is there more to the story?  Yes, but just believing and repenting is all there is to salvation. Knowing the rest of the story will help you enjoy the journey.

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

Post 04-08-2017

March 15, 2017

Nothing But the Truth!

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3 So you can see we were not preaching with any deceit or impure motives or trickery.
– 1 Thess.2:3 NLT
1 Thessalonians 2:2-6 NLT
We don’t need smoke and mirrors, cards up our sleeves or any other sort of deceptive illusions or devices. We just need to spread the simple truth of the Good News that Jesus came in the flesh and died for our sins. When we feel the urge of God’s Spirit telling us to speak to someone He has put in our path, we can be sure that the soil has been tilled and the heart is ready to receive the Word. Just speak the Truth in Love and the rest is up to God. The answer won’t always be “Yes”, but just remember it is Jesus they are rejecting, not you. God gives us this assurance in His Word.

If we do our part, God will certainly not fail in doing His part. We must not quit just because people don’t like what we say. As long as we speak the truth in love from a pure heart, we are doing what God has asked us to do.

“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

Post 03-15-2017

March 7, 2017

Pious Self-Denial

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18 Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud — Col. 2:18 NLT

In the Old Testament, God established certain traditions and feasts for His people to observe at specific times of the year. He had very specific rules as to how the sacrifices were to be prepared and offered. These things were shadows of the sacrificial work of Jesus in the New Testament. But as time went by, the ruling religious class added thousand of rules to what God had given. These additional rules are why Jesus rebuked the Sadducees and the Pharisees. They laid too heavy a burden on the people. Jesus fulfilled the law and many of the prophecies of the Old Testament. We are no longer required to observe all the feasts and traditions. Jesus gave us a very simple plan of salvation. But, just as corruption came into the old law because of prideful humans, it has crept into the plan that Jesus gave us. False prophets have arisen and they go about preaching all kinds of requirements that Jesus does not place on us. Study and meditate on the Scriptures daily so that you are not taken captive by such drivel. The path is narrow and the way is straight, stay on the true path guided by God’s Holy Spirit.


“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

Post 03-07-2017

November 26, 2016

Reconciliation

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18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.  — 2 Cor. 5:18 NLT


God’s plan of salvation is simple. If we believe that Jesus was born to a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, arose from the tomb three days later, ascended into heaven where He is today interceding in prayer for us, we are saved. Nothing more, nothing less. You have taken the first step on your journey to heaven. Once we have asked Jesus to forgive us of our sins, God’s Holy Spirit takes up residence and abides in us. This causes us to look at everyone and everything differently. We are now a new creation, our old life is gone and we are now in Christ Jesus. As we continue on our journey, we need to spend time talking with Jesus and meditating on God’s Holy Word. This is a free gift from God and we are now restored in our relationship with Jesus Christ. Now, we have become His ambassadors to the world. God is asking each of us to join His work in bringing others into reconciliation with Him. The more we practice this lifestyle, the sweeter our relationship with Jesus becomes. We find that He truly does “grow sweeter and sweeter as the days go by”.  Jesus becomes everything to us and provides everything for us.
“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous
Post 11-26-2016
September 13, 2016

A Sure Foundation

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23 And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. — 1 John 3:23 NLT
1 John 3:18-24 NLT

Believe in Jesus and love one another.  Simple to say, not so simple to do. How can we know that we truly believe in Jesus?  Do we instantly change or do we suddenly feel different?  Or is it a gradual change over the years?  It is some of both, we are instantly saved the moment we believe.  We may not feel any different but salvation is based on knowledge not on feelings or emotions although we may get emotional when it happens.  Salvation is the foundation of Christianity, it is involved in our lifelong process of sanctification and it is the capstone of the completed temple God is building in our bodies.  So, how do we know this process is taking place on a daily basis?   Do we love others more or differently?  Does the grief and sorrow of others affect us more than before?  Is our outlook slowing changing from “what about me?” to “what can I do for Jesus and His Kingdom today?”  Does it break our hearts to know that we have done or said something that hurt Jesus and His Kingdom?  If the answer to all of these questions is “Yes”, then we can be sure that the Holy Spirit is dwelling inside of us accomplishing what God wants in our lives.  If the answers are no or I’m not sure, then perhaps it would not hurt to take another look at the foundation and see if it is solid.

11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.
— 1 Cor. 3:11 NLT
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