SPRING CLEANING TIME!

2 CORINTHIANS 7:1

"Because we have the promise of God that He lives in us, let us CLEANSE OURSELVES from everything that can defile our body or spirit. Let us work toward complete Holiness because we fear God."

Every year I remember my mother going through our house and doing what she called spring cleaning. She went into every room and closet and even our garage and threw out what was old and no longer valuable to the family. In the process she would clean and make everything of value sparkle in our home. The rugs got beaten, the floors polished the entire home was made to look as close to new as possible. Even the tiny things did not escape her zeal to make everything as clean as possible. We always appreciated how neat and tidy our house was and it was a source of pride to the entire family. It was almost a holy project to her and she new it pleased God.

It may be hard to think of yourself as a house but let us not forget that Jesus Christ said He would come in and dwell or live within us. The Holy Spirit is always present within us as believer's and we need to remember that. We are like a new child when we are born again into God's kingdom. That child has an environment that will have a lot to do with their growth and holiness. We each control our own environment and are responsible for what we do. If you fear God you have a duty to please Him and work toward complete Holiness.

I remember my daughter asking after accepting Christ if she could keep her worldly records. I asked her if Jesus would like to hear them. Out they went. My son had magazines and pictures that had to be dealt with. Out they went. That is how we need to think. We need to every once in a while do some spring cleaning in ourselves. What about the tv programs and dvds, what about the places that Jesus would not like to go with us, we should stop going there. What about the clothing that we wear, what about our make up or hair styles, what about our language? Go throughout your whole house and do the right thing. Cleanse yourself from everything that can defile your body or spirit. Work toward becoming more Holy and remember that the Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. Get smart!

THE RIGHT TIME!

2 CORINTHIANS 6:2

"Indeed the THE RIGHT TIME is now. Today is the day of salvation.:

When is it the right time for anyone to accept the Lord? Is it on a Sunday? Is it at church? Is it when an alter call is made by an evangelistic pastor? Is it when you are dressed up and looking good? Is it when you are with others or when you are alone? Is it in a foxhole? Is it when you are in prison or held in confinement? Is it on your 13Th birthday? Is there an age that is just right or can it be anytime in your life? Can you wait until you think that today you may die or that your death is imminent? What if you do not accept the Lord into your heart and although it is not in you plan you die today, is it too late? Do you have to give up being your own God before you accept the real God? Is there a right time, then when is it?

God welcomes us every day that we are alive. He will listen to you favorably at any time. To Him every day is the day of deliverance and salvation. Jesus Christ says that now is truly the time for a gracious welcome and acceptance by Him. If now is the right time to accept the Lord into your heart, then that makes this moment THE RIGHT TIME and your day of salvation! God says that He will hear us at just the right time, and He says that He will help us. That means right now, today!

In short, there is no right time or right place or right setting. Every persons story of how they came to accept the Lord into their heart is different. They can give a different witness than anyone else. We are all individuals with different identities and every story is also different. Your stories ending will depend on one thing. Did you come to know, love and fear God? Did you bend your knee and confess with your tongue that Jesus Christ is the Lord God. Did you open the door to your heart and ask the Lord to come in and live with you? Do you believe the Good News? Indeed THE RIGHT TIME to do this is now! TODAY IS THE DAY OF YOUR SALVATION!

WHOSE ON YOUR TEAM?

2 CORINTHIANS 6:14

"Do not team up with those who are unbeliever's. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness?"

There is no harmony between Jesus Christ and the devil! So the question is how can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? The picture the Lord paints is being unequally yoked. When two oxen of different attitudes and beliefs are pulling the load they do not work well together and they have different behaviors. The results are predictable and not good. We make it hard on ourselves when we make alliances with non believers. There is a major inconsistency in our beliefs and our actions. Right living and right standing with God compels an entire different set of principals and actions that are not consistent with those who do not fear God

Believer's tend to seek the light and the truth. Non believer's tend to seek darkness and lawlessness and try to avoid the light. How can light fellowship with darkness? We must remember that God said that He would live in us, and walk among us. We are to be His people and He is our God. We are His sons and daughters and He welcomes us to His heart. He wants us to separate ourselves from the filth and unbelief that is associated with non believers. The reason is that the two positions are diametrically opposed to each other in every way.

In this life we are always a part of a team in one sense or another. The family is a team. Your partners in a business and its employees are a team. Your political party is a team. Your church is a team. So it makes perfect sense for us to always be attracted and attempt to be like minded on our team. We should be in harmony if we hope to succeed and be compatible. Heed the Lord's advice and save yourself as much difficulty and pain as possible. When you team up for marriage, make sure you are equally yoked and of the same mind and belief. Teach your family and make sure they are an equal part of the team. Seek employment and political parties that have your common beliefs and share your values. WHOSE ON YOUR TEAM?

EVERYTHING IS MEANINGLESS?

ECCLESIASTES 1:2

"Everything is meaningless, says the teacher, completely meaningless!"

Have you ever wondered how the "wisdom of Solomon" could ever lead to such despair and false conclusions? You would think that the "wisest man that ever lived" would have something a little more edifying and uplifting to say about life. In Solomons opinion hard work is useless, and we are never satisfied. History just repeats itself and there is nothing new under the sun according to our teacher. He tells us what is wrong can not be made right and to increase wisdom is to increase sorrow. He even said that no one will bring us back from death to enjoy life after we die. If that were true then everything would be completely meaningless.

We must remember however, that Solomon lived before Christ and that the Good News and the New Testament had not been revealed to him or other old testament recipients. The truth to Solomon was without the knowledge of Jesus Christ the Lord God who came to earth and died for our sins so that we could have everlasting life in Heaven with Him. So if we listen in perspective to Solomons conclusions we can grasp the despair of those who never knew of Jesus Christ and His Saving Grace. We can understand how he could despair and see how useless life is without Jesus Christ.

Now lets apply this same lesson to the people of today. If you do not know of or believe in Jesus Christ then your life is meaningless, completely meaningless. Nothing is new and everything is just history repeating itself. You die and everything you have done is of no value. You can have nothing to hold forever and there is great despair and a recklessness that comes with no future. The more earthly wisdom you obtain the more sorrow comes your way. What is wrong you can not make right. You ask, what do people get for all their hard work. The answer is the same for all those who do not know or believe in our Saviour Jesus Christ. EVERYTHING IS MEANINGLESS, without the saving grace and mercy of the Lord. This world has no real value and your eternal destination is determined by your knowing, loving and believing in Jesus Christ! That is true wisdom and that is true knowledge and that makes it all worthwhile!

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

2 CORINTHIANS 5:10

"For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body."

Many have a veil over their eyes and just can not see what happens when they die. Unless they overcome the attempts of Satan to obscure the truth, they will not receive Christ into their heart and they will not be saved from a certain eternal death. They must choose whom they will serve. You have to serve someone, will it be yourself, Satan or the living God? Irregardless of your answer the same thing will happen to all of us. It is only the result that will be so different.

FOR WE MUST ALL STAND BEFORE CHRIST TO BE JUDGED. Their is no wiggle room here. All means all, and it is absolute. No one will be passed over and everyone will have the same obligation. We must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgement seat of Christ. We will all receive whatever we deserve. What have you attempted, what have you accomplished and what good or evil have you done in your lifetime? The difference is that those of us who have Jesus in our hearts and His Holy Spirit residing within us will have an advocate that will be the substitute for our sins.

Believers will be able to come home to the Lord and be with Him forever. So if you know of anyone wondering what will happen to them after their life on earth ends, you must tell them the Good News of Jesus Christ. You can help them to save their eternal life. Jesus will forgive them of all their evil and all their sins and He will make it possible for them to receive mercy at the time of judgement. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God and we all need a Saviour who is Jesus Christ the Lord God. What you choose to believe and who you serve will determine your judgement. You choose WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!

WE NEVER GIVE UP!

2 CORINTHIANS 4:1-2

"Therefore since God in His mercy has given us this new way, WE NEVER GIVE UP. We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We do not try to trick anyone or distort the Word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this."

We who received the mercy of God, have gone into His ministry. God has granted us favor and opportunities which can be translated into benefits to others. We are compelled to tell others of the Salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because of God we do not get discouraged or fearful and we do not become faint or weary in telling others of the Good News. Once we receive God's mercy and walk in His way, WE NEVER GIVE UP!

A famous graduation speech was given by Winston Churchill. What made it famous was that it consisted of only three sentences. He said them and paused for a long time between each sentence. If you want to be successful then you must, NEVER GIVE UP----NEVER GIVE UP---NEVER GIVE UP! Churchill then sat down and after a brief pause, the student body arose as one and thunderous applause followed. They understood that there was a powerful message and it was short and concise. Paul is saying that he and his co-workers, never give up teaching God's way, the truth in a short and concise and candid way.

Even in Paul's lifetime there had been disgraceful methods and arts that adulterated the Word of God. Underhanded methods had been used full of trickery and cunning that dishonestly handled the Word of God. Many had been misleading and using an adulterated version of the Truth to gain benefit for themselves. Sounds just like today and the deception continues. Just like Paul we must never give up telling the Truth openly, clearly and candidly. We must never faint and never become weary and we must tell the truth before God. WE NEVER GIVE UP!