Tag: God is also a righteous judge

Who Is God?

Many Will Ask: Who is God?

Who is God?

Are God and Jesus the same person?

To delight in God, we must first know who He is.

For the answer to that, we turn to His Word.

He reveals Himself in Scripture this way:

God the Father

God the Son

God the Holy Spirit

Matthew 28

This truth forms one of the essential foundations of our faith: We serve a triune God – that is, God in three persons.

Granted, the blessed mystery of the Trinity is hard to understand at times.

I’m humbly raising my hand here.

Pastor John MacArthur wrote, “the doctrine of the Trinity stands as a perpetual reminder that we cannot comprehend everything God has revealed about Himself.” (Pastor John MacArthur, March 4, 2020)1

There’s a reason for that.

All that I can write about God, when compared to the totality of His attributes, is like one grain of sand compared to every beach, every mountain, and every planet in the universe. In order to comprehend God, we would need to be God’s intellectual equals, but He has no equals and doesn’t tolerate the impudent pretense of anyone who claims to understand things better than He does (Job 40:6–41:34). – Pastor John MAcArthur, pastor and bible teacher from Grace To You.2

Even though we deserve eternal punishment for our wickedness, nothing about you and me is a surprise to God.

He is faithful – making a way for us to receive salvation through His Son.

What a beautiful example of His indescribable grace and love that should humble us every single day.

Therefore, we delight in Him not only for His faithfulness, but for Who He is.

God is the Source of all things and we are His created ones.

Who is God?

As our Righteous Judge, He punishes sin, but by His grace and mercy, He will also forgive repentant hearts.

Blessed be the name of the Lord!

Heavenly Father, thank You for Who You are.

No matter what comes our way – whether rich blessings

or humbling trials – we thank You.

The single, greatest act of worship you can render to God is to thank Him. It’s the epitome of worship because through gratitude, we affirm God as the ultimate source of both trial and blessing—and acknowledge our humble acceptance of both. –Pastor John MacArthur, pastor and bible teacher from Grace To You.3

God The Son

Jesus!

It is our imperfection that brought Him here, and it is our weaknesses that will bring Him back to save us from our sins.

Lord, thank You for Your grace and

for sending us Your Son, Jesus.

Through Him, and by His death and resurrection,

You saved a wretch like me (and you who are reading this!)

With a thankful heart, we can recognize that, through Jesus, we are reconciled to the very One Who gave us life in our mothers’ wombs.

Only God could know what it would take to make a sinner acceptable to Him so that that sinner could escape eternal hell and live in the very presence of God in His own house. Only God could determine how the spiritual nature and the supreme authority and the unchangeable perfection of His law which is holy, just and good could be completely satisfied and the lawbreaker completely justified and rightly and purely forgiven and accepted, though fallen, guilty and depraved. Only God could bring all of those components to reconciliation. Only God knew what it would take. – Pastor John MacArthur, pastor and bible teacher from Grace To You.4

The Holy Spirit – A Distinct Member of the Trinity

What is the role of the Holy Spirit?

Pastor Alistair Begg writes this, “Enabling us to bow to Scripture’s authority and not man’s, the Holy Spirit plays the central role in the conversion of unbelievers. Being theologically accurate is of no assistance if the Holy Spirit does not live inside us.” (Pastor Alistair Begg, August 23, 2018)5

In John 14:26, Jesus comforted the disciples with the promise of the Holy Spirit’s coming.

John 14:26

Thank You, Lord, for Your gift of the Holy Spirit –

our Comforter, Intercessor, Counselor, and

a divine and distinct member

of the blessed Trinity.

Heavenly Father, it is with gratitude,

that our hearts remain focused on You.

May we wake up every day praising Your Name.

# # # 

1-2 John MacArthur quotation, courtesy of GTY.org/library/sermons-library. “God Is a Trinity.” para. 10, March 4, 2020. Web. Accessed 22 August, 2023. Retrieved from God Is a Trinity.

3 John MacArthur quotation, courtesy of GTY.org/library/sermons-library. “God Wants you to Give Thanks, Part 1.” para. 4, March 4, 2020. Web. Accessed 22 August, 2023. Retrieved from Give Thanks.

4 John MacArthur quotation, courtesy of GTY.org/library/sermons-library. “Fifteen Words of Hope.” para. 16, April 23, 1995. Web. Accessed 16 August, 2023. Retrieved from Words of Hope.

5 Alistair Begg quotation, Christian pastor, author, and founder of  Truth For Life Teaching Ministry. “Sermons on the Holy Spirit.” para. 2, August 23, 2018. Web. Accessed 28 August, 2023. Retrieved from the Holy Spirit.

6 Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

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Discerning False Teachers

We Should Be Discerning False Teachers

Discerning false teachers

Have you ever heard the howling sounds of a pack of coyotes?

They’re fascinating, but also a little frightening.

Late one night, my husband and I heard some loud, high-pitched, noises outside. They were so loud we could hear them over the television.

We cracked open our back door and realized that we were hearing the yipping and barking of coyotes in the woods nearby.

It was pitch black dark and we couldn’t “see” anything, but we sure heard them, several yards behind our house.

From the sound of them, you could tell they had a fresh kill and were whipped into a frenzy.

Glad we didn’t go for a late-night walk.
They’re so close!

These coyotes creep in and devour their unsuspecting prey.

Kind of reminds me of what has happened in some churches across the United States.

If you do the research, you hear sad news such as this church or that church is compromising the Bible and teaching instead a counterfeit gospel.

These teachings slowly eat away at Scripture piece by piece so that His Word hardly resembles what God originally inspired.

Honoring God’s Word

Since when does God’s Word need to conform to the world because a majority don’t want to hear about sin anymore and their need for a Savior?

“Unfortunately, preachers who distort God’s Word are all too common today. Sometimes this springs from a sincere desire to soften hard hearts, but hearts aren’t changed by compromise.”

 

– Alistair Begg, Christian pastor, Truth For Life Teaching Ministry, and Author.

A Healthy Balance

Is your church still teaching about Sin, God’s forgiveness, grace, mercy, Heaven, Hell and the End Times?

If not, why not?

Is the emphasis in your church “only” on the love of God?

That may sound good initially, but there are important fundamental truths missing if the consequences of sin are never discussed.

Christianity-Lite bothers me because eternal lives are at stake.

God is a Loving Father and He is also our Righteous Judge.

The last thing churches need to do is compromise God’s Word and leave out the message that we desperately need Salvation through Jesus Christ.

Real Issues

need to be discerning

Do any of these concerning statements sound familiar?

The Bible is offensive.

 The Bible is too hard.

 God is Love. He will not judge unrepentant sinners.

 If a person just believes hard enough, God will make them rich and prosperous.

 Rich people don’t deserve God’s grace and mercy like the rest of us.

 There are many paths to God, Christianity is too exclusive.

 Universalism is the key to peace and unity in this world.

I heard a popular Christian artist say a few days ago at a concert that he believes “a revival is coming.”

We need a holy revival where people aren’t afraid to stand up for their faith, have the courage to love and care for others, but also teach people about their need for the Savior.

The apostle Paul never compromised the truths of the gospel to make them more palatable to the masses. He laid out the pure gospel message. A beautiful thing happened, churches spread throughout the Roman Empire.

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*Pastor Alistair Begg quotation, as quoted from Christian quotes.info

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Don’t Bury The Lead

Don't bury the lead

A lot has changed for the better in my life since my former career as a TV reporter, but I still miss that adrenaline rush.

I learned so much about writing. The biggest lesson of all – don’t bury the lead!

In other words, don’t put the “leading” information in a news story way down at the bottom of the report.

Can that relate to sharing our faith as well?

I believe it can.

Don’t Bury The Lead

The “lead” is the most important fact of the story, followed by the supporting details after that.

Here’s an example of “burying the lead”:

“A terrible car crash tied up traffic on North Central today. State troopers think that today’s stormy weather played a big part in the collision. The massive car pileup backed up traffic for several miles. People living nearby heard the crash and described it as a loud bang. One man died when his car careened off the shoulder.”

See what happened there?

A poor soul lost his life, and the mention of his death is at the end of our example. Our fictitious reporter “buried the lead.”

It’s a good lesson for a lot of things in life.

Don’t bury the lead.

Don’t beat around the bush.

Get to the point!

Sharing Our Faith and The Good News

As Christians, we’re not supposed to dwell on the bad news in the world, because we can lose sight of the Good.

And there is Good News, Praise the Lord!

We see mere glimpses of it in our lifetime, but as Bible-believing Christians, we can also have what is Eternally Good forever.

So why aren’t we reaching out more?

teaching about sin and salvation

Why do so many church leaders today feel too intimidated to preach the truth about sin and salvation?

The younger generation, (or so I’ve read) says they don’t want pastors preaching to them anymore. A growing number of these folks, although not all of them, want to change the crux of what the Bible teaches, so it’s less convicting. They only want the good works of a social gospel and don’t want to hear about sin, forgiveness, salvation, or the End Times.

Say, what?

If someone you cared about was driving towards a dangerous cliff, would you warn them?

Of course, you would!

Why are so many Christians pressured to bury the “lead” of the Gospel because it makes some people (of any age) uncomfortable?

Does this mean absolute truth now has to take a back seat to popular culture?

Lord, have mercy.

Whosoever Believeth In Him

The absolute truth of the spiritual battle we’re in is revealed throughout the pages of Scripture

Please see John 3:16, for example.

I bet you have it memorized.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  – John 3:16, KJV, public domain

God is real.

Heaven is real.

Satan is real.

Hell is real.

“Should not perish,” and, some will perish. This is why, once we have a connection building with a lost person, we must talk to them about sin and salvation through Christ alone. There are lives at stake.

The Battle Is Real

There’s a spiritual battle going on right now.

Don’t let popular culture, (Hollywood, etc.) dictate to you what to think about God. (“The Shack,” movie, anyone?). Nor, should we allow the culture to define or interpret the Bible.

God is most definitely our loving and merciful Father.

ongoing spiritual battle

But, God is also a Righteous Judge.

He will judge unrepentant sinners.

That means people that you love, who are living life with no concern for God or salvation, are in trouble, if they continue on their present course of apathy.

Here’s where we come in:

If they don’t know Christ, they are your mission field.

Invite them to church and share the Good News.

Please know that the road will not be easy. As Christians, we were never promised that, but peace in Christ can sustain us.

*No joy can excel that of the soldier of Christ: Jesus reveals Himself so graciously and gives such sweet refreshment that the warrior feels more calm and peace in his daily strife than others in their hours of rest. – Alistair Begg, Christian Pastor.

God bless

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*Begg, Alistair, “Outside the Camp.”  Crosswalk.com. 06 April 2017, Web Access 06 April 2017. Copyright Truth For Life. Used with Permission.

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