KNOW WHAT YOU ARE REDEEMED FOR

"For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:" (1 Peter 3:18).

Today at Trinity I did exposition of 1 Peter 3:16-22 where we talked about suffering from doing good.
I didn't really prepare the message as I was preoccupied (don't imitate that), but as I read through the word of God and looked at the bible commentary I found something that God wanted His people to know. For me personally, the word of God came to me as a reminder.

We learned today about our relationship with God and about our fellowship with Him.
Not many people really understand that God desires a relationship with us.
In the bible God is pictured as a Father and as a Bridegroom. He desires a relationship with us. When Jesus came to this earth, He introduced a new perception of our relationship with God. In Mathew 6, Jesus teaches us to call God as Father. He even used the prodigal son parable to show us the love of the Father.
It is more than enough to assure us again that God desires a relationship.

He created us that He may show His perfect love. He wants to live with us but since Adam and Eve fell into sin we lost that opportunity, because He is holy and cannot compromise with sin. We lost our relationship with Him since then.

Men used to walk with God in the garden of Eden and enjoyed a wonderful fellowship with Him, but its all gone when men fell into sin. Men were separated with God.
But amazingly, God, because of His great love, He had already planned the day when He would send Jesus to redeem us, to sanctify us and to bring us back to Him.

God wants us to be with Him forever. And what a great price He had to pay just to get us back to Him. He sacrificed His only begotten Son just for us.
Because the cost of sin is death, men should die for their sins but the bible says in John 3:16 Because of His great love He sent Jesus so that we won't perish but has eternal life. Jesus took our place that we might be made righteous before God and live with Him forever.

God required the shedding of blood for the remission of sin and because none of the people on earth whose blood is able to cover sins, it takes the blood of Someone who is without sin to be shed for the world and that blood cannot be found in any other men but God Himself through Jesus Christ.

We are made new in Christ, He redeem us and He sanctify us so that we may obtain what we have lost, which was our relationship with God.
He opens the way for us through His life and His righteousness that we may get a direct access to God's presence.

Now, since Jesus suffered to bring us back to our fellowship with God, how wrong it is to not to come to the Father for a fellowship and for relationship.

I personally admit that I've been slacking a lot with my devotional time with Him lately and always get myself busy with things that are not necessary, even things that are not pleasing to Him. I've been disobedient and I learn today that it grieves the Lord.
I decided to start a new beginning with my Dad in heaven and I beg your prayers for that.

I also encourage you to give a special time for Him. Because when we don't fellowship with God, we under estimate Jesus' suffering.

My friend, know that this is what we are redeemed for ; "To have a relationship with God"

I hope you are blessed by this note.

Your brother in Christ,
-Jack Loloin-
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One Day in His Return

Hi everyone, thanks for always reading all my posts. Thanks to everyone who always looks forward to read my notes through the group The HOPE (The House Of Prayer), Jesus/Testimonies, FAITHbook and my blog www.jack-online.co.nr . I hope you are blessed with all the articles I've posted so far.

Well, let's jump right in to today's revelation.

I've always asked God to help me making people understand His deity, and to share the gospel in a way that even those who are not believers can accept as truth. I met many people who try hard just to find a way to share Jesus with others, even when it seems impossible.
It has been my prayer that I can reach out to those who are unbelievers and share the gospel in a simpler way that they can understand, but I end up finding that even Christians don't know what and who they believe in and when the unbelievers ask them they just change the topic and embarrassed because they cannot give a good answer and so I always ask God to help me to know Him more and to make Him known.

Sometimes people ask me about so many things dealing with my faith, they ask about The Godhead, about resurection, Holy Spirit, rapture and of course about Jesus. "How can He becomes God and man?, How can He redeem all the sins of the mankind? How can He died and rose again and will come back again in the end times?" All these things are beyond human knowledge and so these will be the things that make people cannot receive Jesus, especially the non-christian.

I live in one of the largest moeslim countries in the world and you know, those who don't believe will question your faith everyday, so I always ask God how can I tell them about Jesus and how can I make them understand? But one day in my devotion, Jesus revealed the truth which for me is a great promise. Here we go :

"WE CAN NEVER UNDERSTAND GOD UNLESS HE REVEALS HIMSLEF TO US".

One greatest revelation of God is His word. That's why the only possible way to understand Him is by reading and studying it.
Not even pastors can understand God, nor apostles nor prophets.

"Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it."
(Psalm 139:6).

In the book of Colossians, the apostle Paul said that there is a mystery that not everyone can understand, the mystery of Jesus.
Someone told me one day; in sharing your faith with others, your job is simply to share, the Holy Spirit will make them understand. You're not responsible for their response. They will believe it or not, its not your business. God will take care of everything. Sometimes we will be mocked for our faith, even killed, sometimes people call us freak, they might despise our faith in Jesus but its ok, because at the end in His return, we will appear with Him in glory. Check it out,

"When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory." (Colossians 3:4).

What a promise! :) Can you see the promise inside that verse? What does it mean "shall ye also appear with him in glory"? Christ will bring you and I (His witness on earth) and have us standing side by side with Him when He comes back and guess what, everyone will see that we are not liars, we are not mis-leaders. I believe Jesus will declare that day "These are My servants whom you despised, the ones you called liars, the ones you called mis-leaders, the ones you called freak, the ones you killed. I set them forth before you as a prove that their faith is real. Here I am, Jesus, the One they spoke about, the Savior they preached about. Now you see that their faith is evident and is as real as I am real"

And then, the scripture will be fulfilled ;

"That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:10-11).

How I'm looking forward to that day.. God is fair, isn't He? :)
Today we become His witnesses, but there'll come a day when He returns, He will become our witness to the whole world that what we believe is true.

One day in His return, we all will share in His glory forever.

So I encourage you, not to grow weary in sharing the gospel. Know the truth that Jesus is right there by your side.
And when you think you can't understand Him, HAVE FAITH IN HIM!

In sharing Jesus with others, use your faith, not your brain!

May God bless you all.

-Jack Loloin-
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