It's Simple But Foolish

It's simple, but also foolish that I would be so madly in love with something I cannot see. However, just because I don't see it, that does not mean that I cannot feel it.

It is love. But more than that, it is my love for my savior Jesus Christ & the love He shares with me. Many people view this as a religion. Many people call me religious. Many people just see this as something to quiet my wandering thoughts, to settle my doubts, and somehow answer my fears. Yes, it does some of those things. But it also does so much more than that.

Have you ever longed for someone that you've missed so much that when they've finally arrived you run up to them, embrace them in your arms, & touch their face as if they're the last thing in the world that you'll ever touch?

That kind of intimate moment that you want to take a picture of & frame so you can hang it above your fireplace and reminisce upon it every day. However, you know that the moment won't last and the picture won't fully capture the enormity of that moment in time. So you do that of which you only truly know how to, you seize every second. You embrace every breath, take in the aroma, & let the cascading colors of your whole environment invade and seep into your heart.

You never want to go, you never want them to leave, this moment in time needs to be frozen in time for all eternity & for all to see. Yet, many don't see.

I desire all to see. The Father wants all to see. I only want what the Father wants.

Yet, I can't do anything about your belief...about your way of life...what you think or why.

Yes, you are right.

But so was Jesus when He said, "I am the Way, the Truth, & the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me. And no one comes to me unless the Father has revealed myself to him/her."

Ahhh if only my words were of more eloquence; if only my body reflected everyday, every hour what my spirit knows!

I sat beside a tree in a camp ground with a group of students all searching for something to fulfill their identities, in a state I barely knew, coming back from a festival that laid the ground work of a life long journey I've always dreamed of, and I read these words:

"Behold anyone who is in Christ is a new creation! Therefore, see the old has gone and the new has come!"

What mighty & weighty words! What glorious & out of this world joy I had found in Jesus!

Don't you want to be made new? To have joy that nobody or no thing can ever take from you?

He was/is my best friend when others left, my Father I needed, the protector during those rough nights, my God I had not truly worshipped until I laid down my life.

He gets me. He knows me. He made me. I love Him. I want Him.

Jesus. God. Holy Spirit.

I don't need traditions.

I need relationships...

Jesus is the only way to God. How you come to Jesus I don't care. I just care that you come.

He waits for you like He waited for me. A fool who once thought works made me good enough, who thought heaven would be really boring, & how this life was just about pretending to be someone I'm not.

I'll tell you who I am...who you are. You are God's child, you are royal, a city on a hill, a twinkle in His eye, a priceless gem, a friend who will never be forsaken or forgotten.

You're not alone in this life.

He has so much in store for you!

I know this all can be a lot. I know you find it hard to believe. I know you find no logic in faith.

Ohhh man but once you find it, you never want to lose it!

Love so amazing, so invigorating, so extravagant, & powerful!!!

For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son to die, so that if the world would believe they would be saved.

For He was in the world but the world did not recognize Him.

How can you not recognize the Savior of the world?

Better yet, why do you ignore Him?

Are you ashamed? Embarrassed? Confused?

Come, come, all who are thirty & drink. I give free of charge! For I have come to open the eyes of the blind & heal the lame, so that they may see that I am good & walk in the way of righteous.

Or do you not care?

This I can not compute. How can you not care about your own life? How you got here & why? Where you're going & why?

Deciding not to do anything about your belief is the choice to go against it.

Didn't Jesus say, you will know who are my true disciples by the way they live?

I know I'm addressing different crowds here. Take & leave what you must. But the Good News stands regardless:

Jesus (who was fully God & fully man) was crucified for our sins and resurrected on the third day making it possible for us to have access to the Father forevermore.

Can I get a hallelujah and amen?!

Israelites-part 3

Life/Law in the Spirit
_ our identity

<<Israelites part 1 was an introduction to this brief study on who we are as Christians relating to being the same promise as given to the Israelites of Old Testament. I was introduced to this concept through a conversation with a friend. Israelites part 2 then identified who it is we believe in-meaning both as Christians and Jews. My next exploration is examining how Christians are to identify themselves as we are now equal-meaning Gentiles and Jews now being equal. What does this look like as presented in the New Testament? Please read along with me as I complete this brief study>>

The context of this conversation stems from Ephesians 2:11-22.

"He did away with the law of the commandments in regulations, so that He might create in himself one new man from the two, resulting in peace." verse 15

What did he do away with? The Commandments in regulations. These can be found in the Book of Leviticus, or the law of the Old Testament. These were doctrines given to help establish the society and culture of the Israelites. The primary focus was that the Israelites would be set apart, or holy. These Commandments of daily life were different from the cultures around them for that very reason. It was a symbolic outwardly way to emphasize that they were God's chosen people. Some of these laws for example were to not eat pork, women to not cut their hair, to not get tattoos, to not work on the Sabbath, ect.

Going back a verse, it says: "For He is our peace, who made both groups one and tore the dividing wall of hostility. In His flesh..." verse 14

This is and no doubt reflecting upon what happened during Jesus's crucifixion and death. As we read and Mark 15:33-41 with the emphasis being on verse 38, God has torn the veil separating the Holy of Holies place in the sanctuary; thus, allowing all people to enter into His presence. This of course symbolically showing what had already physically happened with Jesus's body being broken for all men's sins.

As we read on in Ephesians 2 verse 21 it says: "that the whole building is being fitted together in Him and is growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for God's dwelling in the Spirit"

As echoed many times in the New Testament, we see that the importance of God's presence is not located in a four-walled building, but rather in our bodies. His Spirit now dwells in US! He now dwells in all people. All people are His "chosen people" when we call upon Jesus to save us.

We will now transition to what it says in the Book of Romans. It is here that we see a progression of laws. In the beginning we had the most dominant law being the Mosaic Law. As we read on through the prophets, like Isaiah,we see that God allows our hearts to become a heart of flesh. This allows us to feel and not just do. Later on Paul calls it the Law of the Flesh. This is soon becomes the binding law of sin, as Paul claims it: you do that of which you don't want to do. But finally comes the Law of the Spirit. This Law of the Spirit is described in Romans 8.

So what is the Spirit & what does it do?

The Greek word for Spirit means wind. Wind is described as an always moving or forcible source.  The other imagery given towards the Holy Spirit are: the Breath of God, the dove that descended upon Jesus during His baptism and tongues of fire as seen in Acts.

In Matthew 10:20 we see that in the moments that we are being tested by man the Holy Spirit speaks on our behalf.

In 2nd Timothy 1:7 we see that the Holy Spirit gives us power, love, and sound judgment.

Galatians 5:22-23 says that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control.

Thus, evidence of the Holy Spirit being present is by what comes out of my mouth, what is presented in my actions and is ultimately my new way of life.

This is what God had originally designed in the beginning. That being a unbreakable bond between Creator and His creation, mankind. It was never about knowing a list of laws,commands, and regulations to make things right. It was all about acknowledging that we could never live up to the holy of holies so He humbled himself for us and took our punishment. All so that connection could be restored!

The Mosaic law taught us what sin was. It taught us how to live in this world. It was full of works, but the concept was to be set apart. Ultimately, though it put a spirit of fear within us. Holiness was too much for us to bear. The law says if you break one commandment, you break them all. Thus, we were screwed. It was all about works, works, works, works. But the cross of Jesus did for us what we could not. God desired grace and mercy, not sacrifice. It is by faith combined with works powered only through the Holy Spirit of Jesus that we are able to be Christians or Messianic Jews. This Law of the Spirit or Law of Grace, teaches us how to live for eternity and not just for the present. It is the spirit of freedom and Truth.

*Knowing these things, why would someone want to follow the Old Testament laws, commandments of regulations, traditions and rituals? What are you achieving from these things?

It is true that we would not know Grace if we did not know the law. However, we must live in Grace and not under the burden of the law. Jesus had emphasized this over and over again in the New Testament/the new promise. The regulations (not the Mosaic Law which are just the 10 and not 600+) set in Old Testament/the old promise, where for that particular time and place. God does not condemn us if we do not live by those regulations in today's time period. The main objective is to be set apart or holy. And that Holiness ONLY comes through a life in the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Atheist-part 2

Arguments against God and Christianity

1) "God is not good. If He was good, He wouldn't send people to hell..."

= God doesn't send people to hell, we choose it. God is just like any other parent who when they see you've done wrong there is a punishment for it. Every good parent corrects their child when they are wrong.
- you could then ask: if it's free will then why is there a right and wrong choice?= Free Will is the power to choose for ourselves what path to take, not the power to say this is the truth and this isn't.

Scripture: John 10 "Good Shepard", James 1 "God is good & does good", Hebrews 12 "discipline", Romans 6 "sin is death & damnation", Isaiah 59 "sin is separation from God"

2)"I have more sympathy for Satan's character. It was Satan in the Garden of Eden that gave Adam & Eve wisdom."

= Genesis 1-3 we have/had free will, if we didn't we wouldn't even have come up with the excuses/reasons to disobey God. The serpent's real focus was us being like God, to know ALL things. Does this mean God didn't want us to know things? No. It was that THIS knowledge would make us more confused, afraid, and ashamed. It would lead to a spiritual death-death to that relationship with God and lead to ultimate death meaning hell, a place without God. We already established that God is good, but they didn't have scripture like we do. They had GOOD right in front of them. God called all He created good, but they didn't see it. They wanted more. And instead of letting time with God satisfy them, they allowed their reason to deceive them. This is where we see Eve's rationale to eat the fruit. God knew we couldn't handle being like Him and having all of His knowledge. We weren't created to be Him, but to follow, serve, and love Him. There is a separation between us and God, our creator.

3) "I've dug deep, like really deep and found there's nothing in Christianity."

Scripture= Hebrews 11, emphasis on verse 6, faith in unseen, examples from the Ancients, and God rewarding us.

James 1, God gives wisdom and our trials produce endurance

2nd Corinthians 4:1-6, Satan has blinded your eyes

Hebrew 6, you couldn't have had a relationship with Jesus and then denounce Him

John 4:1-42, He is the Living Water whose well never goes dry

Hosea 6, God's people continue to disappoint / sin and God punishes, then restores, He desires a relationship not religion

Colossians 1:15-23, everything is to be because God ordained it to be

2nd Timothy 3, "show me your friends and I'll show you your future", all scripture is God-breathed and not merely from men

4) "God/Jesus is against government, hierarchy and statism."

1st Samuel 8=Israelites ask for a King instead of Judges. God is offended, but He allows it to happen so we could see the errors in our ways. (Note the moment you regret getting what you ask for) Their focus was on military strength, yet God was/had already given them Victory. (Again, us humans wanting more and not allowing God to satisfy)

Judges 3=first judges / Israelites really needed a savior because they were blind and kept disobeying God

= God appoints everything and still uses our government and leaders for His will regardless of who they are. 1st Timothy is all about leaders in the church and our conduct. One of the spiritual gifts is leadership.

Side note: the people were focused on having someone going behind them, supporting them. They were always focused as well on someone going before them, a leader. But they really needed was someone inside them. And that comes when the Holy Spirit from Jesus descended in Acts.

5) "I have more freedom now. I can do what I want. I mean I still follow the morals. It taught me some good things. I still Follow The Ten Commandments, all but the first one."

Scripture: James 2:10, if you break one commandment, you break them all

The book of Romans, grace and mercy from Jesus's sacrifice / forgiveness and Resurrection / Redemption trumps the law of Moses because the law was to just show us we could never be holy as God is Holy and God wanted a relationship

Acts 4:12, No other name by which we must be saved (Jesus)

6) "Eternity spent stroking God's ego seems like God is an ass and a bunch of BS."

=Eternity with God is our joy not our burden because we have tasted and seen that God is good and we love Him. We love Him because He first loved us with an unspeakable,  uncomprehendible type of love. We were created to know Him/have a relationship with Him. All things experienced on Earth are His blessings, but they are not our prize. It's like getting to see all the merchandise for the band you came to listen to and never hearing them play. You came to see the band! God does love Himself, He is fully contained in Himself. If He didn't/wasn't, that would mean there was something greater than He to fill His needs/wants. He doesn't need us to praise him, but it is built in us and all creation because He is so good and He deserves it. If we do not worship God, Yahway, then we still are worshipping something. What is that something?

***these six points were based off a real conversation. I do not endorse debating or arguing in regards to make someone believe the same Faith as I do. Thus, my answers to these six statements were not given until now. I believe to "win" unbelievers is to love them like Jesus.