Have you been crucified with Christ?

Paul strongly rejects the erroneous conclusion that being justified by faith in Christ actually made Jews sinners, thus painting Christ as a promoter of sin.  Those who attempt to be justified through “the works of the law” are “cursed” (Galatians 3:10).  If anyone attempts to reassert the “works of the law” as having any part in justification before God, the law itself convicts that person of being a transgressor (Galatians 3:19–25).  The law itself is not sinful; its purpose is to convince individuals of their personal spiritual deadness in sin outside of faith in Christ (Romans 7:7–13).

“But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not!  For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.  For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. (Galatians 2:17-19)

Rejoice In the Lord!

The word happiness evokes visions of unwrapping gifts on Christmas morning, strolling hand in hand with the one you love, being surprised on your birthday, responding with unbridled laugher to a comedian, or vacationing in an exotic locale.  Everyone wants to be happy; we make chasing this elusive ideal a lifelong pursuit: spending money, collecting things, and searching for new experiences.  But if happiness depends on our circumstances, what happens when the toys rust, loved ones die, health deteriorates, money is stolen, and the party’s over?  Running deeper and stronger, joy is the quiet, confident assurance of God’s love and work in our lives – that He will be there no matter what!  Happiness depends on happenings, but joy depends on Christ.

Philippians is Paul’s joy letter.  The church in that Macedonian city had been a great encouragement to Paul.  The Philippian believers had enjoyed a very special relationship with Paul, so he wrote them a personal expression of his love and affection.  They had brought him great joy (Philippians 4:1).  Philippians is also a joyful book because it emphasizes the real joy of the Christian life.  The concept of rejoicing or joy appears sixteen times in four chapters, and the pages radiate this positive message, culminating in the exhortation to “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4).

Are You Blessed by God?

In His longest recorded sermon, Jesus began by describing the traits He was looking for in His followers.  He called those who lived out those traits blessed because God had something special in store for them.  Each beatitude is an almost direct contradiction of society's typical way of life.  In the last beatitude, Jesus even points out that a serious effort to develop these traits is bound to create opposition.  The best example of each trait is found in Jesus Himself.  If our goal is to become like Him, the Beatitudes will challenge the way we live each day.

The Gift of Righteousness

Romans 5:8

For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)

Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. (Romans 5:9-11)

All three members of the Trinity are involved in salvation.  The Father loved us so much that He sent His Son to bridge the gap between us (John 3:16).  The Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit to fill our lives with love and to enable us to live by His power (Acts 1:8).  With all this loving care, how can we do less than serve Him completely!

Who is The LORD?

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exodus 3:11-13)

Moses made excuses because he felt inadequate for the job God asked him to do (Exodus 3:10). It was natural for him to feel that way. He was inadequate all by himself. But God wasn't asking Moses to work alone. He offered other resources to help (God Himself, Aaron, and the ability to do miracles). God often calls us to tasks that seem too difficult, but He doesn't ask us to do them alone. God offers us His resources, just as He did to Moses. We should not hide behind our inadequacies, as Moses did, but look beyond ourselves to the great resources available. Then we can allow God to use our unique contributions.

Merry Christmas!

I would like to wish all of my blogging friends a MERRY CHRISTMAS.  You have all been a blessing in my life and it is my hope that this blog is a blessing too you. 

May our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ always remain the focus of our lives.  In everything we do we will always give God the honor and glory that He so richly deserves.  May God bless each and every one of you with His love, joy, comfort, and peace this coming year.

Humbly I pray for all who are still hurting and suffering that our Lord will touch you with His healing hands and give you comfort and peace just knowing that He is near.

God bless, Lloyd

Jesus Is Our Advocate!

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2)

John uses the address “dear children” in a warm, fatherly way.  He is not talking down to his readers but is showing affection for them.  At this writing, John was a very old man.  He had spent almost all his life in ministry, and many of his readers were indeed his spiritual children.

PM Netanyahu's Christmas Greetings

PM Netanyahu's Christmas Greetings to Israel's Christian citizens and to Christians throughout the world.  (Please turn off music button on sidebar)

_________________________________________________

Thank you PM Netanyahu for your Christmas wishes for all Christians around the world. In return, we wish Israel will have God's blessings of peace, joy and happiness and that the aggression against your people will end.

It is interesting to note that the Bible commands us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6), to speak out for Zion’s sake (Isaiah 62:1), to be watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem (Isaiah 62:6) and to bless the Jewish people (Genesis 12:3). These and many other Bible verses have one overriding message - as Christians we have a Biblical obligation to defend Israel and the Jewish people in their time of need.

Let us all join in and lift up our brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus all around the world as we celebrate the birth of our Savior and Lord. Amen.

The Olivet Discourse

Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.  And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” (Matthew 24:1-2)

The discourse of Matthew 23:1-39 had evidently been given in the temple precincts. The first temple, built by Solomon, was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C..  The second temple, built under the encouragement of Haggai and Zechariah and the leadership of Zerubbabel and Joshua (Hag. 1:1), was completed after considerable delay in 516 B.C..  This second temple was completely and lavishly renovated by Herod the Great.  He began the work around 20 B.C., but the renovations were not completed during the lifetime of Christ (John 2:20).  The work was finally finished in A.D. 64, and the temple stood completed for only six years before it was reduced to rubble by the Romans.

Jesus Saves Sinners!

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  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.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:14-17)

When the Israelites were wandering in the desert, God sent a plague of snakes to punish the people for their rebellious attitudes.  Those doomed to die from snakebite could be healed by obeying God's command to look up at the elevated bronze snake and by believing that God would heal them if they did (Numbers 21:8, 9).  Every time the words "lifted up" occur in the Gospel of John there is a reference to Jesus’ death (John 8:28; 12:32, 34).  When Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, those who looked at it lived.  So it is with the Son of Man (John 1:51).  Our salvation happens when we look up to Jesus, believing He will save us.  God has provided this way for us to be healed of sin's deadly bite.

Thanksgiving Day Praise!

I want to take time to thank God for everything that He has done for me, because without His love, mercy, and grace, I would have no hope, joy or peace in this world.

Thank you Lord for dying on the cross for me.

Thank you Lord for my wife, Margaret, three wonderful boys, and lots of grandkids.

Thank you Lord for providing for my family even when things were tough.

Thank you Lord for giving me and my family a loving church home.

Thank you Lord for allowing me to go out and witness in Your name.

Thank you Lord for this Christian Blog and the friendship of other Christian Bloggers.

When I think of how much God has done for me it just humbles me that even though I am a sinner He will never leave me nor forsaken me.  It is my prayer this Thanksgiving Day that everyone that reads this post will experience the love, mercy and grace of God... for without Him we are nothing.  God bless each and every one of you and your families.  

Happy 2nd Anniversary!

It is hard to believe that the Solid Rock or Sinking Sand blog has been up and running now for two years.  My whole idea when I first began blogging was to get the message of Jesus Christ out to folks that needed to hear that God loves them.  And, that God wants them to come to Him just as they are, no matter what is happening in their lives.

The more I searched the internet the more I realized that there was a need for Christian bloggers to put out the truth regarding the Word of God.  There are so many folks out there that are hurting and need to know that Jesus loves them and that He is waiting for them to humble themselves, repent of their sins, and accept Him as their Savior and Lord.

I want to thank all of my followers who have dropped by and made comments on the different posts that are published.  I sincerely appreciate your comments that you leave even if they sometimes do not agree with what I say.

It is my believe that "Unity" in the Christian community is very important and that even though we might disagree on non-essential doctrines, it is important that we come to agreement on the essential doctrines that makes us all members of the family of God.  We need to remember that the "World" is always watching us.

Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart for being a part of my life and a part of Solid Rock or Sinking Sand.    God's blessings to you all.  Lloyd

Rejoice in the Lord!

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.  (1 Peter 1:6-9)

Peter mentions suffering several times in this letter:  1 Peter 1:6-7; 3:13-17; 4:12-19; 5:9.  When he speaks of trials, he is not talking about natural disasters or the experience of God’s punishments, but the response of an unbelieving world to people of faith.  All believers face such trials when they let their light shine into the darkness.  We must accept trials as part of the refining process that burns away impurities and prepares us to meet Christ.  Trials teach us patience (Romans 5:3, 4; James 1:2, 3) and help us grow to be the kind of people God wants.

Worship God in Spirit and Truth

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:21-24)

By mentioning the two different worship sites (John 4:20), the woman at the well was perhaps trying to shift the conversation away from the subject of her own sins to theological questions. Or perhaps she realized that she was a sinner (John 4:18), and knew that she was required to offer a sacrifice.

Did God create Women and Men equally?

While surfing the Internet, I have come across several Christian blog sites that sometimes tend to place women as second class citizens.  When God created man, did He actually intend for him to have total control (dominate) over women?  Or, did God create woman to be man’s companion and to share equally (Genesis 1:27) in their dominion over all of the earth (Genesis 1:26).

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26)

Why does God use the plural form, "Let us make man in our image"?  One view says this is a reference to the Trinity - God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit - all of whom are God.  Another view is that the plural wording is used to denote majesty.  Kings traditionally use the plural form in speaking of themselves.  From Job 33:4 and Psalm 104:30, we do know that God's Spirit was present in the creation.  From Colossians 1:16 we know that Christ, God's Son, was at work in the creation.

Take up your Cross and Follow Me

Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels." (Luke 9:23-26)

Although Jesus offered salvation as a free gift (John 1:12; 3:16–18; Eph. 2:8, 9), He also warned that following Him would entail suffering and hardship (Matt. 5:10–12; Rom. 8:17; 2 Thess. 1:5). People are willing to pay a high price for something they value. Is it any surprise that Jesus would demand this much commitment from His followers? There are at least three conditions that must be met by people who want to follow Jesus. We must be willing to deny self, to take up our crosses, and to follow Him. Anything less is superficial lip service.

Unity within Christ's Church

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. (Philippians 2: 1-4)

Many people - even Christians - live only to make a good impression on others or to please themselves. But "selfish ambition or vain conceit" brings discord. Paul therefore stressed spiritual unity, asking the Philippians to love one another and to be one in spirit and purpose. When we work together, caring for the problems of others as if they were our problems, we demonstrate Christ's example of putting others first, and we experience unity. Don't be so concerned about making a good impression or meeting your own needs that you strain relationships in God's family.

In Christ Alone

So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. (Colossians 2:16-19)

In view of Christ’s victory over His enemies, we should not be controlled by those powers and practices over which Christ has already triumphed. The false teachers in Colosse were tempting the Colossians to bind themselves with the outward observances of Judaism, such as the Jewish dietary restrictions. These were merely a shadow of Christ. Judaism and its rites pointed to Christ. When Christ came, He dispelled the shadow. If we have Christ, we have what we need to know and please God. Paul warns the believers in Colosse not to let others bind them to regulations from which Christ has already freed them.

Jesus Saves Sinners

This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. (1 Timothy 1:15-16)

People can feel so guilt-ridden by their past that they think God could never forgive and accept them. But consider Paul's past. He had scoffed at the teachings of Jesus ("a blasphemer") and hunted down and murdered God's people ("a persecutor and a violent man") before coming to faith in Christ (Acts 9:1-9). God forgave Paul and used Paul mightily for His kingdom. No matter how shameful your past, God also can forgive and use you.

Do You Believe in the Resurrection?

Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. (1 Corinthians 15: 12-14)

Most Greeks did not believe that people's bodies would be resurrected after death. They saw the afterlife as something that happened only to the soul. According to Greek philosophers, the soul was the real person, imprisoned in a physical body, and at death the soul was released. There was no immortality for the body, but the soul entered an eternal state. Christianity, by contrast, affirms that the body and soul will be united after the resurrection. The church at Corinth was in the heart of Greek culture. Thus many believers had a difficult time believing in a bodily resurrection. Paul wrote this part of his letter to clear up this confusion about the resurrection.