“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
[John 3:16 NKJV]
For God so loved the world. Sometimes we need to go back to the beginning, and start with the basics, to get our footing again. There is nothing wrong with revisiting the basics. The basics are the foundation of anything we do.
As children we learned the basics of math, 2+2 = 4. The mathematical foundations helped us move on to more complex equations. The same with learning English, or any other language. You start with the basics, the fundamentals, and build from there.
Many in the Church in our nation have tossed out or forgotten the basics of being a Christian. It all starts with John 3:16. God sent His son to die for us so we could have everlasting life, eternal life, with God. We know how the Bible starts, with Genesis, but our life with Christ starts at the cross.
Christ was sent to pay the debt for our sins. God sent His son to pay the ultimate price, the ultimate sacrifice so we wouldn’t have to die an eternal death. The ABCs of Salvation explain exactly what we need to do in order to be saved from eternal death.
Calvary Chapel Kaneohe, and JD Farag have a page dedicated to the ABCs of Salvation.
A: Admit you are a sinner.
B: Believe in your heart that Jesus came to earth, died for your sins, and was resurrected.
C: Call upon the Lord, confess your sins, and commit your life to Him.
Being a Christian isn’t a religion it is a relationship. It is a relationship with Christ. There are instructions given to us in the Bible on how to live for Christ, and honor God, but our believing in Christ and committing ourselves to the Lord is all that is required to have eternal life with God and His Son.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God,
[Eph 2:8 NKJV]
There are acts (works) we do to demonstrate our faith and commitment to Christ, but that isn’t what saves us. The church has become so divided because of man made rules. In the eternal life with God there will not be denominations and man made rules.
There is so much divisiveness because evil wants us separated. Evil works through man to put rules in place, and disagreements between people in the church, because he knows we are weaker when we are divided.
But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.
[Mat 12:25 NKJV]
God calls us to love one another. Division among believers is not love. There are many who might disagree with this because they want to be right. The only one who is ever perfectly right is God.
We have forgotten where truth really resides. It resides in God, through Christ Jesus, and the Word given to us in the Bible.
“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
[Jhn 17:17 NKJV]
Truth doesn’t reside in the world and how the world thinks. Sadly, more Christians and churches fall into the “world thinks” category.
We need to get back to the basics. We need to get back to the solid truth that is the foundation for our Christian lives, and that is found in the Bible.
For God so loved the world…..
For the law was given through Moses, [but] grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
[Jhn 1:17 NKJV]
| “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as [it is] in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. [Mat 6:9-13 NKJV] |
Prayer Day 14: Forgive