Sinful Lifestyles.

I admit the fact that I don't shy away from controversy. There is just something in me that thrives on speaking on those topics which normally make people cringe or even get put on fire. I am forewarning that this is one of those topics. In this topic I am going to call out a lot of people. Now, this is not for the sake of calling people out. You see, I have noticed this lack of consistency among evangelical Americans. I always hear about how terrible it is that so many people live a homosexual lifestyle. This has come back into the vocabulary with last week's decision to allow same-sex marriages in New York. I've heard all about how so and so pastor is declaring that God will destroy America for allowing the homosexual lifestyle to go on.

BUT, I have also began to notice something; a lot of these people who are out there yelling about gays being evil living a sinful lifestyle, are themselves living sinful lifestyles. How many times have you seen one of these people yelling about this and that, and you look and realize they are way overweight? Now, I am not poking fun at anyone! God forbid me to do that, when I have a few pounds to lose myself. However, I am all for consistency. Scripture says that we should avoid gluttony. Proverbs 23:20 and 21 says this:

Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags

Just a few verses before that:

Put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.

Now, we know that people become overweight for a few reasons. One of them is a poor diet, such as overeating(gluttony). Of course, there is also the lack of exercise(sloth), that also plays part in this. It really is a lifestyle choice, being overweight. I mean, you can say no to that extra helping right? You can get up early and go to the gym? You can change yourself, right?

It is quite upsetting to me to see so many brothers and sisters hollering about sinful lives, yet the church has made a sinful lifestyle a staple of church services! How many times have you been to a "fellowship dinner" and seen people just eat and eat and eat. All the men have big bellies, and just go to make them bigger. And these men are leaders in the churches. How can they lead a church, if they cannot control their tummies? ( I am sure that is scripture! I just can't find it, at the moment). If they cannot remove their own plank, how are they supposed to ask a gay man or lesbian woman to remove the speck from his or her eye?

But this isn't just about overweight people(I'm serious, I am not against them!). Let's look at other sinful lifestyle that are common in the church:

*Gossip. This one is outright forbidden, especially for the wife of a leader (1 Timothy 3:11). Yet gossip is one of the top things I hear among Christian circles. The other night I had to leave a conversation on Skype because some of my Christian friends began to talk about another Christian on a forum. This is common. This is not acceptable. This is a sinful lifestyle.

*Failure to Pray and read the Word. Scripture says we are to always pray(now, that's not meaning like every second of the day, but to do it as often as possible). Most Christians do good to spend two minutes in prayer a day. I am confident that this is a sin because it is a failure to do what God tells us to do (pray), and it shows our true devotion to Him. If a person can spend 5 hours on the internet, playing a game, going out to see a 2 hour movie, going out to spend hours dancing in a club/bar, etc, then can't that same person spend a few moments in honest, humbled, devoted prayer to God? I would imagine that should be the case. The same can be said of reading scripture. We manage to make excuses about why we can't read the Word(I'm too busy, except when I am on Xbox Live, or texting my friends all night long), but yet we have ample time to do anything else out heart desires. I say with certainty that failing to come in contact with God on a regular basis is indeed a sinful lifestyle.

Now, I can go on and on with other examples, such as pride, being too lavish(which can fit in with pride), not attending a church, etc. However, I think with just the few examples I gave, I hit most American Christians. The point, again, is not to call people out for the sake of being a jerk. Instead, it is a call to get serious.

I am not saying we cannot call sin out. However, I believe firmly Jesus gave the teaching about the plank in one's eye for a reason. How can we, who claim to be redeemed and different from the world, show the change that Christ brings, if we live exactly like the world. If a Christian truly believes a person is sinning, he or she should obviously try to correct them. But how can you correct a person if you live in the wrong? If I cannot properly do mathematics, can I be a teacher of mathematics, correcting students when they are wrong? Surely not!

I think it is time we pull a Nehemiah. There is a lot of junk in our churches. And by junk, I mean sin. And I don't mean "those" churches down the road. I mean the church you and I sit in every Sunday (or SHOULD be sitting in). Nehemiah, when he came from captivity to rebuild the wall, also went into the Temple to clean out the idols in there. Idolatry was the sin that caused God to pour His wrath on the Jews in the form of captivity. We are being held captive in our own Church, by the sin we continue to let go on. Once more I ask: How can we tell the world to repent and leave their sins behind, when we have all these idols stored up in the temple, living JUST LIKE THE WORLD?

This is a call, not to be silent, allowing the world to slip by. RATHER, this is a call for the body to purify itself, that it may go into the world with boldness, authority, and the Grace of God. As it is now, we are laughed at, mocked, and ignored, not for the sake of the Gospel, but because we, ourselves, are failing to understand what the Gospel truly means for US. Is it not a lifestyle changing power? Then let our planks removed.

God I pray you will remove the planks from my eyes, that I may see your truth and show that truth to a world that is dying. Amen

Christian Community.

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

What is the image you conjure up when you think about the body of Christ? What do you picture when you hear the word "fellowship"? I was reading an article today which said this:

Today, churches have fellowship halls, fellowship dinners, and fellowship retreats, but very few have real fellowship.

This quote really caught me off guard. I, like many, have taken up the idea of fellowship as meeting once in awhile to have a lunch, movie night, game time, etc. Those are all nice, and can be part of the fellowship experience. However, if our community is limited to a game night once every few months, or a dinner every few weeks, doesn't it seem as if we are missing out on something?

I've seen both sides of the coin, regarding this issue. I have been in churches where there was no community. I look at those churches today, and I see them struggling to hold on as members pass away, or other move on to other churches. At the same time, I have been blessed to have been involved in ministries where my brothers and sisters in Christ are as close as my biological brothers and sisters. I was very blessed to have become a follower of Christ and accepted into a body of believers who I lived with, worked with, played with, ate with, lived with, shared my entire life with. Even now, a few years after leaving them, I am still touched by their willingness to love me and accept me. I love them more than any of them will ever know.

Yet, I realize I cannot live in that past, as nice as it was. Since then, I have both struggled and flourished. There were months of darkness, when I gave up on going to church and being with believers. Sin crept back in. It destroyed me. It destroyed my hope. It destroyed my relationships. I changed from one who know their purpose in Christ, to one who barely knew how to move on. Yet, in that darkness, I was able to find light. I re-established old friendships, and even met new people. Three dears brothers helped pick me up out of the dirt and showed me what it means to be a body of believers. I am forever indebted to Eric, Billy, and Blake. They helped me see the love that Jesus told us to have for one another. That love rekindled the fire in my heart, and soon after I was in full fellowship once more.

And here I am now. I thought I would move out to DC and have a hard time finding a place to connect. Yet, I have found a church that I adore. I have been connected to a group of teens that I think I would honestly die for, to protect. I have people who I barely even know, who are bringing me into their home. I have others who will invite me to breakfast, to pray with me, to mentor me, to help me find my place in the world....only after two talks! I am so blown away by the generosity, the love, the support, the willingness to help and mold. They are simply living out Christ's command to us all; love another, as He has loved us. This love will show the ENTIRE world that we are different from any other group. We are the elect in Christ. Nothing can break the bond that we have. Our bond is Christ, who reigns forever. Death could not stop Him. Hell could not overcome Him. If we are bound in him, together as one, then who can stand against us and prevail? Jesus himself said that the gates of Hell could not prevail against His Church!!!

If you are like I was, and are avoiding connecting with your brothers and sisters, then I HIGHLY suggest you get out and mingle with them! Hebrews 10:25 says;

And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

I know that some churches are totally lame. I know there are places where they judge you, or where cliques are formed. I FULLY understand those places. I have been to plenty. Don't let that stop you from meeting regularly with a group of Christians though! Make those relationships, water them, and watch them blossom. I promise that the effort is worth it in the end.

I will leave you with part of the prayer that Jesus prayed in the garden, according to John's Gospel:

I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Something New.

I think I have too grand of plans at times. When I started this blog I wanted to get into the pressing issues of Christian faith. I wanted to explore the complexities of theology, and fashion myself after the great thinkers. However, I get burnt out on the heavy thinking, to be quite honest. I think most people do. I am not saying it is bad, that I will stop, or anything of this sort. I am simply saying I am going to switch things up a bit, every now and then, and return to more simple posts. I think this will help keep me writing on a more consistent basis. I know that there were several weeks in between me saying "I will do blog posts on Heaven and Hell" and actually doing the one blog post on Hell. I am not sure Heaven is going to follow anytime soon. It isn't because I don't dislike Heaven, or think it is an important issue to discuss; I do. However, I believe there are other issues which people deal with on a daily basis, and they need to be addressed. For example, I have been thinking about how to address the typical Evangelical church is very inconsistent in thought about sin. Or how do Christians handle politics and government? What about the Spiritual disciplines? These are all things which shape our world view, and need to be addressed.

SO, I will still have theological discussions (things like hermeneutics, soteriology, eschatology, etc). However, I will add in simply devotionals and talks about everyday topics.

I will start with this, a mini devotional.

Grace and Mercy

I admit it. I struggle with the two most basic concepts of Christ and Christianity: Grace and mercy. It isn't that I doubt God is gracious and merciful. Nor is it that I wrestle with the idea that God is Good and loves man and desire to see man be redeemed, through His grace and mercy. The reason I struggle with these concepts is because I know how unworthy I am. I feel like part of me is Jonah, and the other part is Nineveh. Jonah saw the sins of Nineveh and saw they were evil. God desired for the city to be redeemed, but Jonah couldn't see past the sin. He limited God to just a god who brings destruction and justice to evil. God indeed does this, yet it is only part of who He is. Jonah, and this part of me inside, both fail to see God in the full picture. Not only is He the judge who brings justice, but he is the redeemer who cancels the punishment for those who repent.

Imagine it like this: A man is driving well over the speed limit and is caught by the cops. He is put before the judge, who has the power to get him real bad for his transgression. The man, sorrowful for his crimes, reveals how sorry he is for the crime. The judge, instead of punishing, acknowledges the man is guilty of the crime but says his crimes are forgiven. Not only are they forgiven, but the judge will take the man out for dinner! The crime is completely forgiven, and the judge gives something wonderful to the criminal!

This is what Christ has done for us. He didn't just say "Thomas, you crimes against me are forgiven", but rather, said "Thomas, your crimes against me are forgiven, and here are all the riches of Heaven that I alone have the authority to give away".

Apostle Peter said this:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Think about what this means. We are not simply 'saved' from a bad thing, but are given good- no, the BEST- things from God above. Who can say they deserve it? Can the liar, whose lies have distorted reality and hurt people? Can the thief, whose envy has lead him to take from others? Can the adulterer, whose lust and sexual depravity has divorced them from their God-give spouse? No, NONE, for "none are righteous, no not one".

This is why I struggle! I know the depths of my heart, and the darkness that has filled it! I know the sin I commit, even if it remains hidden. I know that sin has separated from God in the beginning. That should have been the end. BUT, (and a MAJOR but it is), God took my punishment...OUR PUNISHMENT... and when He rose from suffering our punishment, He rose to Heaven and now blesses us with all the treasures of above, not only to know now, but to know forever! These are not simply treasures like gold or silver, women or men, or whatever. But the greatest treasure is the full communion and fellowship with God. How can any gift be greater? Even more, how can I say that I deserve that gift?! How can I say I deserve the gift of God himself?!? And this is why I, a fallen man who has sinned and deserves death, struggle. I know I am not worthy. I know I deserve only my punishment. Yet, God is so good, and has given hope.

This is my challenge for my friends. Since you know the gift you have is a gift, something you can NEVER earn, but is given by God's grace and mercy, I want YOU to show this same thing to someone else. Take something which you find precious and give it to someone who doesn't deserve it. Go to a person who has hurt you and hug them in love. Go to a homeless man and give him money/food/time/etc. Go to a prisoner and give them time and forgiveness that they don't deserve. Go to anyone, anywhere, anytime and impart some gift to them. Let them know you are simply doing what God has done for you. Share the love. Share the hope!!!

Hell and Wrath.

When you think of Hell, what is the first image to pop in your mind? Is it like this picture? Do you imagine little imps with horns and pitchforks? Rivers of lava? Who do you think is there? People like you? No, can't be. Hell is reserved for only the worst of the worst- the Hitlers, Stalins, Maos, and Bin Ladens. Don't forget all the icky Atheists, Muslims, Hindus, etc! Most of them are probably there. How about the non-churchy type in America? Well, if they live good enough lives then they can go to heaven!

If you cringed at all while reading the above, then congrats!!! You probably already know the truth about Hell. Everyone else, have a seat. We have some discussing to do.

Before we get into that, I want to add that this is the typical type of reading about Hell. I'm not trying to scare you. I'm not trying to preach fire and brimstone. I am simply stating what the Bible has to say about this place called Hell. And this will not, of course, be an exhaustive study.

So what is Hell? Most people would answer something like "the place where evil people are punished forever". This is sort of correct, but not quite. The first thing we need to look at all the terms associated with what is commonly called Hell.

*Sheol- This is the first term found in the Bible to signify an afterlife for those who have died. The ancient Israelites believed that all people who died, regardless of wicked or righteous, would go to Sheol to await the Resurrection.

*Hades- The Greek equivalent to Sheol. In the Parable of Lazarus and the rich man, Jesus seems to imply a separation in Hades/Sheol, as the rich man is being punished with Fire and Lazarus was in "Abraham's Bosom", a place of comfort.

*Gehenna- Literally named after the Valley of the Son of Hinnom. The valley was a very wicked place where pagans and apostate Jews sacrificed children to the god Moloch or Baal, by burning them. (2 Chronicles 33:6, 2 Kings 23:10, Jeremiah 19:2-6). Jesus spoke about Hell using this word (Mark 9:43-48, Matthew 10:28)

*Lake of Fire- This is different from Hades/Sheol as Revelation 20: 13&14 point out:

13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.
14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.

The Lake of Fire, therefore, cannot be the same as Hades/Sheol. However, when Jesus does talk about Gehenna, he mentions fire and darkness and such, so I think it is reasonable to assume that Gehenna and Lake of Fire are referring to the same place: Eternal Hell.

Now, the big confusion about the proper usage of Hell has come from poor translations of the above words. In the KJV Hades/Sheol is often translated as Hell, along with Gehenna. So people have this mumble jumble view of the after life in regards to Hell. My use of Hell in this blog is not that mumble jumble view where Hades/Gehenna are combined. My use of Hell will strictly be used for the concept of Gehenna/Lake of Fire, the eternal death. Any place where I say Hell, I mean that. If I mean Hades/Sheol, I will explicitly say those words.

Okay, so we have the basic concepts down. Let's starting building a picture here. When a person dies, Scripture says they will go into Hades/Sheol until the Second Coming of Christ and the Resurrection of believers(1 Corinthians 6:14,15:12-13; 2 Corinthians 4:14,Hebrews 6:2 1 Thessalonians 4:13-16.)or final judgement for unbelievers (Revelation 19:20, 20:10-15, 21:8). Upon being judged and receiving eternal death, people will be cast into the Lake of Fire, where there is no escape.

So far, so good, I hope. We did the "what", now its time to do the "who" and "why". This is really easy to answer: Hell is for those who do not profess faith in Christ. They will be judged, not simply for taking a namesake, but are punished for rebelling against the fundamentals of God's character and His commands. It is easy to give that answer, simply for an answers sake. However, when I think about what that implies it causes me physical illness. My stomach gets in knots.

That is why I wrote this particular blog.

There are quite a few people in the world, heck even in my own life, that reject Christ. I am not the Judge, but scripture makes it quite clear that those who reject God will be punished in Hell, eternally separated from His grace. I can name a whole host of people who I know who are without Christ, and if they die, it is almost certain they will spend eternity apart from God. This is a depressing thought, is it not? Family, friends, co-workers, people I admire and love dearly; all will be cast away. I know we all have these people in our lives. This brings up another question: why don't we do more to express this reality to those people? Hell isn't simply reserved for Hitler, Stalin, and Satan. It's reserved for every, mom, cousin, husband, child, best friend, pew-filler, cop, soldier, postal worker, manager, lawyer(yeah, duh!), etc.

There are, I imagine, many people who assume they will be in Paradise, but will be surprised to find out that simply living a 'good life' won't cut it before a Holy and Righteous God. People don't realize that simply not murdering(in their heart), not lying(too much), not lusting(in front of your spouse), isn't enough to gain God's favor. Nothing we can do will make up for the rebellion we have. That is why it is imperative we stress the Gospel of Christ, which alone saves people from Hell. Man is depraved, and if God is in anyway at all a God of justice, the evil will be punished. Either we accept Christ's punishment on our behalf, or we take the eternal punishment on ourselves. It is that simple.

So our picture now looks more like this:

A person who lives a life apart from God. They may do various good things, such as avoiding murdering a person, but those deeds alone are not enough to bridge the gap between them and God. As a result, when they die they will, along with the believer be sent to Sheol, awaiting the Second Coming of Christ. They will be separated from the believer, who is in comfort while waiting. Instead, the unbeliever will face some torment and darkness. Christ will come back and raise His saint and judge them as Righteous. Those left will face Christ and give an account of their life, which will be lacking of Him. They will then be cast away into the Lake of Fire to be punished.

This brings us to the most controversial part of Hell, which is, undoubtedly, hardly spoken on. Not everyone agrees with this viewpoint, and it isn't explicitly stated in Scripture, but I believe following logic a person would come to this conclusion. There is no sugar coated way to say this, so I will be blunt. God is in Hell.

Whoa. HOLD UP. God...in HELL??? Before you assume I am some Heretic or smoking the marijuana, let me explain. Trust me, when I first heard this idea I was like WHAT??? That is crazy!! God cannot be in Hell. After all, most Christians believe Hell will be absent of God.

First we must understand that God is everywhere. This is one of His characteristics: omnipresent. As such, there is NO place that God cannot go. Hell is no different. Theologian Wayne Grudem said this in his book, Systematic Theology:

The idea of God’s omnipresence has sometimes troubled people who wonder how God can be present, for example, in hell. In fact, isn’t hell the opposite of God’s presence, or the absence of God? [No.] This difficulty can be resolved by realizing that God is present in different ways in different places, or that God acts differently in different places in His creation. Sometimes God is present to punish.

Sometimes God is present to punish. Now, there are some who believe that Satan is the one in Hell who punishes people. This is where we get the image of Satan with a pitch fork, I think. However:

And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Revelation 20:10

If Satan is tormented day and night, then how can he punish others? Who is punishing him? There can only be one: God.

I suppose I take a very Eastern Orthodox approach to God in regards to both Heaven and Hell. They believe (roughly summarized) that Hell is where God is present releasing His unrestrained wrath on sinners who rejected Him. On the other hand, Heaven is where God's mercy and grace is completely unrestrained for the Saints. No matter where you are, you will be in God's presence(Psalm 139...especially verses 7 and 8).

It's up to you to decide if you want to face wrath or enjoy mercy. God's wrath isn't something to take lightly. Take in consideration what happened to Jesus in the Garden before He died:

Luke 22:42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.
44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

Why was Jesus so worried? What could possibly have Him worried that he SWEAT BLOOD? Some may say He was worried about being crucified. This seems reasonable enough, but I don't think its the whole answer. Sure, crucifixion is terrible, and I'd hate to have it done to me or anyone else. And I know for sure that Christ suffered much pain. I don't discredit that. However, I agree with a point that David Platt, author of "Radical", made once (I'm taking the point he made in a sermon, and using it in sort of my own words :P): "I don't think Jesus was scared of being crucified. Jesus isn't a wimp or weak. This is considering, especially, that many of His followers died JOYFULLY in far worse ways, such as being boiled alive, burned, eviscerated, etc. What had Jesus worried was knowing that He was going face an eternities worth of the wrath of the Father".

Now, as I said in the beginning, I am not preaching the Fire and Brimestone, like the old time preachers. I am simply giving an accurate view of Hell, and more importantly a part of God that is not spoken about in Christian circles. You see, we've reduced God from being God, into being our soft hearted best friend, who seemingly lost his anger in the 400 years between OT and NT. This is simply not so. Yes, God is indeed love. His love is vast and far beyond our imagination. His grace is completely and utterly amazing. He is, indeed, the lover of my soul. I recognize all of this and will tell anyone about this side of God. YET, I am afraid that if I just speak of love then people will not take God seriously, because they have not known the full picture of God. A.W. Pink(oddly, I'm quoting Calvinists tonight :P) said this, in The Attributes of God:

It is sad to find so many professing Christians who appear to regard the wrath of God as something for which they need to make an apology, or at least they wish there were no such thing. While some would not go so far as to openly admit that they consider it a blemish on the Divine character, yet they are far from regarding it with delight; they like not to think about it, and they rarely hear it mentioned without a secret resentment rising up in their hearts against it. Even with those who are more sober in their judgment, not a few seem to imagine that there is a severity about the Divine wrath which is too terrifying to form a theme for profitable contemplation. Others harbor the delusion that God’s wrath is not consistent with His goodness, and so seek to banish it from their thoughts.

Yes, many there are who turn away from a vision of God’s wrath as though they were called to look upon some blotch in the Divine character, or some blot upon the Divine government. But what saith the Scriptures? As we turn to them we find that God has made no attempt to conceal the fact of His wrath. He is not ashamed to make it known that vengeance and fury belong unto Him.

He further claims:

A study of the concordance will show that there are more references in Scripture to the anger, fury, and wrath of God, than there are to His love and tenderness.

Yet, it was His love and tenderness, which saved us from wrath. That is the Gospel. Man rebelled and deserves God's eternal wrath. God, who is both love and wrath, therefore developed a plan, before time existed, upon which He himself would take the flesh of man, so that He could both pour out an eternities worth of wrath, exposing His justice and raw power as God, while simultaneously exposing His deep love for us by drinking the wrath Himself. Now, because of Christ Jesus, I do not have to face God's wrath in eternal Hell. Neither do you, or anyone. This is the Good News.

I hope this exposes some new light for people. As I mentioned before, this isn't 100% everything about Hell,or wrath. Nor will people agree with me on many things. That's cool. I've posted verses for a reason. The truth is there. Read them yourself. Seek God's wisdom in understanding. I'll admit it, the biggest problem I have had with my faith was this concept of Hell. I echoed the sentiments of many "How can a good, loving God send people to Hell?" On the surface, it seems like a valid point. That is, until you realize the full character of God. Then you ask yourself "How could a just, righteous God not punish evil?" That is why Hell exist. Evil must be punished. But praise be to God that we have a way from punishment and into Mercy.

Blessings,
Thomas

Hot as Hell, High like Heaven.

Okay, I know. What's with the title? Well I don't know! I tried to think of something catchy, because, while "Theology about Heaven and Hell" is straight to the point, such a title isn't all that inviting. And I want many people to read these posts. I've notice some things lately, especially after a conversation a few weeks back with a close friend. Many people are confused about the very basics about Heaven and Hell. I mean, REALLY confused. I am not surprised if some people think Heaven is a big boring church service, and hell is where the party is at. In fact, I have even heard some church goers say things like this. Or they imagine fluffy clouds with harps, or imps with pitchforks. And this diluting of the images of both Hell and Heaven have caused some major problems.

What type of problems??

Here is one example:

With the death of Bin Laden came a lot of Christians saying things like "good riddance, burn in Hell" Or "enjoy Hell, you scumbag' or Mike Huckabee, former minister saying in a very casual way "Welcome to Hell!". This upset me quite a lot, because it made me realize how little people really know about Hell. I barely know much of what there is to know, but I know enough that I NEVER will wish Hell upon anyone. But many Christians, against the wishes of scriptures, do, and have, and will continue.

So my goal is this: To use scripture to paint as clear a picture of both Hell and Heaven, as possible. I will limit my own guesses and speculations as much as possible. This is a topic of most importance, with no room for errors.

So, as I compile my though I want you to get your own images of heaven and hell in your mind. Ask yourself why you believe them this way. Write it all down. And then in a few days we will begin with the first lesson, which will focus on Hell.

Blessings,
Thomas

What is the Gospel?

If you are looking for a deep theological discourse, then this isn't the post for it. I might do this another time. Instead, I want to give an insight on the Gospel as it pertains to me. This is how the Gospel has changed me, is continuing to change me, and will change me more in the future.

I used to lie. Why lie? Because, it made me feel like I was worth something. A friend and I used to always tell lies to each other, as teenagers. We'd say "Oh, I was with so and so girl, and did such and such thing". Now, I know we both lied, and I am sure we knew that we both were lying. So why did we continue this terrible thing? Because, it was a competition to see who the best was. We just tried to see who was better liar.

The Gospel saved me from this.

I used to have an issue with lust, and looking at pornography. But hey, guess what? The Gospel saved me from this.

I used to live in the confines of a demonic world system, but, yeah, you guess it, the Gospel saved me.

The Gospel not only saved me, but it healed me. It is healing me with my battle of self worth/depression. This is a battle that is being won!!! The Gospel healed me from the need to always be right. It healed me of the desire to be approved by everyone.

It redeemed me from the bondage of self. I lived very much for self. I wanted to help people, to get glory and fame. I want to go into politics to be known by people. I wanted to make all this money to live nice. But I was redeemed from self living. And I was transformed into one who cares immensely for the suffering and weak, and less about my own achievements.

It has taught me to live, to love, to laugh, to learn. It has given me freedom from fear. It has soared my soul high, and now I sing psalms of salvation from heavenly places.

I have learned who I am, as a creation in Christ. I have learned who he wants me to be, and how to get there. I have learned, more importantly, who He was, he is, and will always be. I have gained intimate knowledge of a Father who bruised his beloved son, the pinnacle of humanity, that we, the depraved and diseased, may be counted righteous in His eyes.

I don't think people fully grasp what this means. I don't think we fully understand the notion that we are seated in Christ, who is seated at the right hand of the Father. I don't think we know what it means to be called Royalty, by God. I don't think we quite get the physical punishment Christ suffered. And by the Glory of God, if we are in Christ, we will NEVER have to know what it feels like to be fully away from God's mercy and under His wrath.

If we did, I then I know there'd be more emphasis on Gospel, and less on everything else.

Suddenly, politics wouldn't matter. Nor would sports. Or movies. or games. or Do's and Don'ts. We would not be content with simply telling people they need Jesus to save them. Save them from what? Most people look at us and see us using Christ as a crutch. We haven't shown the how inadequate everything is compared to this Gospel of Jesus. We, instead have reduced it down to a meaningless formulaic prayer. There is no suffering, or discomfort, or giving up. There is a nice little prayer, a warm feeling, and life that resembles the former, only instead sleeping in on Sunday, the person is now wasting an hour of their life in a pew.

Where is the Gospel in this? Where is the real, life changing Gospel? Where are those people who go out and not only preach the spiritual need, but fulfill the physical needs? Where are the Churches who stop playing pulpit politics, and are instead welcoming in all those who most need the touch of God?

The Gospel saves us. And if it saves us, then it transforms. And if transforming, then it is giving urgent motivation. And if there an urgent motivation going on in our hearts, then why aren't we acting upon it?

The Gospel saves, but how will people know it, if those who have it, keep it hidden?

My earnest prayer is that every brother and sister in Christ falls to their face, and cries out to Abba, our Father in Heaven, and asks to know the cost of the Cross. I pray we will be filled with the urgency of knowing millions of people are starving, homeless, abused, living a life away from the grace of God, and are dying without knowing Christ.

So what is the Gospel? For me, it has been everything. It has changed me from who I was, to who God called me to be. It saved me, redeemed me, healed me, and has given me the urgency to spread this same love to everyone.

The Gospel is fundamentally more important than my next breath. It is more important than any achievement, any thought, affiliation, or desire.

The Gospel tells of the love and mercy of a Father, who looks upon his children who have rejected him and have loved many other false fathers, and feels pity for them. He desires them so much, that He would spare the best, brightest, most wonderful, in place of us. This is more than just a story, my friends. This is God, stepping down into his own creation. Unlike other gods, he didn't do it to have fun, or to fulfill manlike carnal desires. He, the True God, stepped down to be punished for our sins, so we could be with Him.

So the Gospel is really a love story of Creator and creation. Father and children. God and man.

It is of a God who desires us more than anything else, and pursues us all the days of our lives.

That, is the Gospel.

Gratitude

Hebrews 12:28,29

Let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.

As I have grown and matured in the American society, I have seen how increasingly difficult it has become for the majority of people to be grateful. I have seen the transformation from me excitedly opening Christmas presents and loving everything I got, to seeing my little brothers grumble and complain when they get less than everything they see on TV. They literally are not grateful for what they got, and instead, let their lust for more ruins their experience.

And how can we blame them?

We live in a society in which greed is espoused as a virtue, and is spoon feed to children from the earliest ages. Of course it is NOT limited to just children. I have seen people who have more than plenty in their life, yet are very miserable because they don't have more. I, too, have fallen in this trap. I see a man with a better job than mine, a house, a nice car, a beautiful wife, and so on, and I grow very discontent with my own life. I am sure we've all been there at some point.

Yet, this is quite different than what we SHOULD do. As a believer I am fully aware that all my blessings are from God above. Everything I have is a *gift* to me. And many times, these gifts are simply just for me, but they are also meant to bless others as well. For instance, I am gifted with a car, but I can also bless others by giving them a ride some place. So what does it say to God when I say "I don't want THIS gift, I want that gift over there. It is so much better than what you have given me!" ? I think it show God that I am not deserving of either gift. If I cannot appreciate what God has given me now, why would He think that giving me a newer gift would suddenly change me?

We should be certain that we most certainly have wonderful gifts from God above. The greatest of these is grace. Grace is the gift that can never be taken away, only rejected by us. Grace allows us to be in right standing with God. And with right standing we are given all the treasures of Heaven! We are co-heirs with Christ, after all; a royal people! So, we ought to be a people who are on our knees praising God for this great gift, for none of us are deserving of anything, lest it be death. And if we deserve nothing, and are given the treasures of heaven, why do we grumble about not having the next fad? Why do we act as ungrateful children on Christmas morning?

My prayers for you, brothers and sisters, as well as myself, is that we will never cease to praise God for his great gifts in our lives, whether it is the gift of redemption, the gift of a junker car, the gift of a hand me down, or whatever it may be.