God Accepts You for Who You are in Christ

Many people have the picture that God is just waiting to scold them, when they do something wrong. We are too often like the abused child, waiting for the next incident of abuse to start. Now, God is a kind and loving parent. He does not criticize us on an ongoing basis. It is pretty obvious that a good parent does not continually point out all the things wrong with the child to the child. As a parent, our love tempers our perspective, and controls our mouths. Likewise, God our heavenly Father, knows who we are and the things we have done. When he forgives us, it covers everything wrong we have ever done or will do. This scares some religious types, who want to keep people in control and under guilt. However, God brings us freedom; not bondage. The message of the gospel of God is clear; you are 100% forgiven, and that is good news. God is not out to get you in trouble. He is ready to forgive you and give you an abundant life, but the one condition is that you accept what he said about Jesus Christ. Jesus is a loving Father’s solution to what is going wrong with us and our world. You may be thinking here does the religion pitch again; give me a real solution that works. Don’t give me this religious nonsense.
Why Jesus you may ask? Why not some other solution? Well, the Bible tells us that people are sinners, and do horrible things to themselves and to those around them. Now, God is a just God and crimes need to be punished. This is not abuse it is justice. Let’s say someone you know murders someone, you cannot just say to the judge, “Your honor. He promises never to do it again. Just let him go this time.” A horrible crime has been committed and a debt has to be paid to society, and a just punishment must be carried out. Likewise, people are under a spiritual death sentence from God, for doing things wrong. God cannot just say, “Well, that’s okay you are free to go. No harm done.” Harm has been done, and it must be fixed. The sentence needs to be carried out in full. We know many things we have done are not right, and guilt is the proper response for what we have done. But, the problem is how do we fix it, and we know that we cannot undo the bad things we have done, for they are done! Consequently, we need someone to stand in for us, and serve the sentence for us. Jesus took the death penalty for us, and died for our crimes. God allowed Jesus to take the full punishment upon himself. As the Bible says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2). Why did God do this? Simple, he loves us and wants to give us a real workable solution to the predicament we are in and the problems we face. And my friends, Jesus does work, and God freely offers this solution to everyone. A 100% pardon for all the things we have ever done or will do wrong; full forgiveness and freedom from punishment. Do you want it? It is simple; just ask God to apply the solution to your life – Jesus Christ.

What is True Religion?

Jesus gave a whole new focus to religion. He demonstrated that religion was about relationships with other people. It is not just about keeping a bunch of rules and traditions. It is about loving your neighbor, and going the extra mile to help others. Jesus pointed out by his ministry that religion is about matters of the heart.
God does not demand obedience for our subservience, but that we can have a full life of joy and happiness. He knows that if we live in a certain way, we will experience peace and fulfillment. Obedience to God is a matter for our benefit and well-being. He does not want to limit us or control our lives. He wants us to live life to the full. Mercy and grace are the primary attributes God has for us. He desires us to have a good and satisfying life. Forgiveness and love are the feelings he has for us. Like any good and loving Father, he wants the best for us.
Why then do men hate and despise him? What is it that people do not like about God? He is a pretty nice guy, once you get to know him. He is our Father and he is concerned about us, and what is happening in our lives. But, God does respect our desires, and even with all his power if you turn away from him, God will not force you back. You are free to live your life without him, but what a rich and glorious life you will miss. God is a wonderful companion and friend. He is the ideal parent and will shower us with gifts, if we receive them.
However, most people do not realize the life they pass up, because they desire to do their own thing and live their lives as they choose. By avoiding God, they are like children of a rich father not sharing in the family fortune. They ignore the riches and blessings God has for them, and live lives of poverty and need. Now, I am not talking about money here. I am talking about the true riches of life. People have settled for the false riches of money and power, when the real riches are in relationships with other people. Eternal life is not about prosperity forever, but about being with loved ones and enjoying their company and companionship for eternity.

God is Love

What does God expect from us? The church throughout the ages has added a lot of obligations of what God desires of men, and most of them are false. God basically wants us to be good people, who are thoughtful and kind to others. Now, that’s a simple statement, but a hard thing to do, for mostly we are too wrapped up with ourselves to care about others. God gave us three things to do: (1) Love God and serve him by (2) loving others and (3) loving ourselves. As the Scriptures say, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40). Everything contained in the Bible are in these three verses. Worth memorizing I would think. Of course, it takes the rest of the Bible to get us to understanding this simple truth. This is the entire obligation man has to God – to love others. Pretty simple right? God does not want to enslave you or take your Sunday mornings away from you. He does not want to control your life and your thoughts. Controlling others, this is a human desire and sin. He just wants you to become a better person, who loves others with a genuine heart, who is in a loving relationship with Him. God is our heavenly Father; not our heavenly tyrant. He is more concerned about our relationships than He is of us checking off a holy person to do list! The entire Bible is about relationships and how to maintain them. In fact, God points out in the Bible that if you hate people, you are not a Christian. In the book of First John it states, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the [forgiveness of] our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (1 John 4:7-12). Now that is straight to the point. I do not care what you believe or what great good works you have done. If you do not love people, you are not following the ways of God, He is not your heavenly Father, and you are not a Christian. For, “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God; and God abides in him” (1 John 4:15).