Are You a Contender?

Posted on January 28, 2023 by jesustrek

Jude, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote a message to the Christians in the first century. He had hoped to be able to celebrate the salvation that they shared. However, he felt compelled to urge them to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people (v.3).

What is this faith to which he refers? It is the belief in the gospel message that Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, had come to save all mankind. He made this possible by his atoning death on the cross, and Jesus rose from the dead on the third day so that anyone who would put their full trust in this crucified and resurrected Jesus would be saved from their sins and given the free gift of eternal life. Everyone who accepted this message repented of their sins, were baptized into Christ and God added them to the church.

Those who follow Jesus must hold fast to this belief. However, Jude was concerned that many people were not contending for the faith. So he wrote them this message of encouragement and exhortation.

Many Christians today need a reminder that they are supposed to be contending for the faith. So many professing believers look like anything but contenders. Can you really be serious about your faith if you miss church on Sunday morning for little or no reason? If you are not giving a significant amount of your income to the Lord’s work, can you really say that you are invested in the kingdom of God? Are you reading the Bible and praying daily? Are you using your spiritual gift to build up the church? Are you involved in the Lord’s work in some specific, tangible way? When is the last time you spoke of your faith or invited someone to church? It seems that there are many ways in which professing believers are showing themselves to be anything but contenders for the faith.

The concern that Jude had about Christians failing to contend for the faith was that they had allowed ungodly people to slip into the church and teach that Christianity gives you a license to be immoral. He says that by doing so these teachers were perverting the grace of God and denying Jesus Christ (v.4). He goes on to remind the readers about how Sodom and Gomorrah gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion and points out that they are an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire (v.7).

What was true in the first century is still true today—God does not permit sex outside of marriage. Indonesia’s parliament recently voted to ban sex outside of marriage. I wonder if they realized that God had already done that!? Satan has become quite adept at deceiving people with his lies about sexual conduct. Therefore, we have to speak the truth about the matter. Christians have only two options concerning sexual behavior. They must choose to be faithful in marriage, or to be abstinent outside of marriage. That’s it. There are no other options. Those who violate this moral law must repent or pay the penalty. The Bible clearly says that those who live a sexually immoral lifestyle are not a part of God’s kingdom (1 Cor.6:9-11) and will not be allowed to enter God’s heaven (Rev.22:15). Even those who serve as enablers to sexually immoral people run the risk of experiencing God’s wrath (Rom.1:32).

So, are you contending for the faith? Jude has some advice for us in the last part of his message. Remember what Jesus and his apostles said about those who live ungodly lives (v.17). Build yourselves up in your faith and pray (v.20). Keep yourself in God’s love with your obedience (v.21). Finally, try to save others who are engaged in ungodly behavior (vv.22-23).

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The Sanctity of Life

Posted on January 20, 2023 by jesustrek

I write this on Friday, January 20, the day of the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. Thousands of people will gather there to celebrate the sanctity of life. Some call them “foes of abortion”, “opponents of abortion rights”, “anti-abortion activists” and other negative terms to try to portray them being on the wrong side of this important moral issue. I call them heroes of the faith.

The Ten Commandments forbid taking an innocent human life (Exodus 20:13). Psalm 139:13 says, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” Jeremiah 1:5 teaches us that God not only forms us in the womb, but that he has plans for our lives even before we are born. There are other Scriptures that deal with the sanctity of life, but these are all we need in order to know God’s position on the issue.

This Sunday, January 22, 2023, marks the 50th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that essentially legalized abortion on demand in the United States. Since then, over 64 million babies have been aborted. What a tragedy! What a cruel and blatant disregard for the value of human life!

This Sunday has also been designated as “Sanctity of Life Sunday”. Christians and churches all across America will take time to celebrate the sanctity of life. Followers of Christ will be encouraged to pray and to act in ways that will promote the value of life.

We have seen what happens in a nation that devalues life. Child abuse happens frequently. Mass shootings become commonplace. The elderly are mistreated and neglected. Domestic violence happens more and more often. Violent crime escalates. Surely you have connected the dots by now! Vicious attacks on innocent people are directly related to the value—or lack thereof—that our society has placed on the life of a human being.

Science tells us that every baby that is aborted already has a heartbeat. Common sense should tell us that abortion stops a beating human heart. We have already looked at what God has said about the matter. When science, common sense and the Word of God come together, abortion becomes unthinkable!

Still the debate rages on, with people on both sides of the issue showing themselves to be zealous for their cause. The Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade last year, a decision that gives the states the right to set the laws concerning abortion. Hopefully this will set us on a path towards becoming a kinder and gentler nation.

How should we Christians proceed in our efforts to promote the sanctity of life? Here are a few suggestions.

First, we need to be familiar with what the Bible says on the issue. We have to know God’s truth in order to combat Satan’s lies. When you know the truth, the truth will set you free—free to understand what’s right and free to act in ways that will promote the cause of righteousness.

Second, we need to speak up for the unborn who cannot yet speak for themselves. Don’t avoid a conversation about abortion. Speak the truth with love.

Third, vote pro-life. Your vote does matter. We can make a difference at the polls. Those who accuse us of being political should be informed that this is a matter of righteousness. And those who claim to follow Christ, yet maintain that this is a political matter should be encouraged to take their “Jesus” out of the little box they keep him in and let him truly be the Lord of their lives.

Next, we need to offer grace to anyone who is truly repentant for any sin that they have committed concerning abortion. Whether they have had an abortion themselves, or have driven someone to an abortion clinic, or paid for someone else to have an abortion, or have spoken in favor of abortion or have unknowingly supported abortion with their uninformed vote, there is forgiveness available. The precious blood of Jesus is powerful enough to wipe away any sin.

Finally, let’s keep praying about the matter. Pray that God will change the hearts and minds of people so that abortion will be seen for the evil that it is, and that the sanctity of life will be understood for what it is—a wonderful gift from God!

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Questionable Speaker

Posted on January 16, 2023 by jesustrek

I have always wondered why some churches will invite politicians who have obviously not been called to preach to speak in their congregations during a Sunday worship service. You would think that the members of the church would deserve better. Perhaps it is the allure of having someone who is well-known to grace them with their presence and deliver a message, no matter how inadequate or inappropriate that message may be.

Yesterday, President Joe Biden delivered the Sunday morning sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once preached. With all due respect, I don’t think that President Biden is qualified to preach at a Bible-believing church. He has anger issues. The president has trouble telling the truth. He regularly uses the names of God and Jesus as swear words. Mr. Biden is a champion of abortion and celebrates same-sex “marriage”.  

These sins would prevent any discerning Bible-believing church from giving Mr. Biden a platform to speak. It seems that some churches are so star-struck that they don’t even consider the lack of character in the celebrity that they invite to come and speak for them.

We can do better than that. We should do better than that.

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”—2 Timothy 4:3.

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The Seven “Cs” of Human History

Posted on January 13, 2023 by jesustrek

(I got the outline for this article from an exhibit at the Creation Museum in northern Kentucky.)

The history recorded in the Bible is under attack by our society. As a result, many people now view the Bible as a book that contains many interesting stories and religious teachings, but has no relevance for us today. This is not true. The Bible gives us the truth about our existence. There are seven words that describe how God has engaged with mankind throughout human history. These words all begin with the letter “C”.

The first word is “Creation”. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” If you can believe the first verse of the Bible, then you can believe the rest of it. Attempts to explain the creation without a Creator have proven to be woefully inadequate. Molecules-to-man evolution is nothing more than a fairy tale for grownups. It all starts with God.

The second word is “Corruption”. God created everything good, but mankind succumbed to temptation and disobeyed God, thus bringing a curse on the earth. Sin ushered sickness, sorrow and death into God’s once perfect creation. We now live in a world filled with pain, strife and turmoil.

“Catastrophe” is the next word to consider. Mankind became so wicked that evil filled the earth. Only Noah and his family were found to be righteous. So God destroyed the rest of humanity with a great flood and started over with the few people who were saved on the ark that Noah built.

The fourth word among the seven “Cs” is “Confusion”. After the flood, God commanded humanity to spread out all over the earth. Instead, they chose to build a tower to the sky and make a name for themselves. So God confused their language, and they were forced to scatter in confusion.

The next word to examine is “Christ”. Because we have all disobeyed God, we are all sinners in need of a savior. And God did not leave his precious creation without hope! He sent his only Son Jesus to seek and to save the lost!

The sixth word goes along with the previous one—“Cross”. The way that Jesus would save us from our sins would be to pay the price for them by offering his own life as a ransom. Jesus willingly went to the cross to suffer and die so that we could be forgiven and accepted into the family of God; lost no more, but saved!

The seventh and final word in human history is “Consummation”. This is the only one that has not yet taken place. It refers to the Second Coming of Jesus, when God’s plan to save the world will finally come to fruition. Jesus will return to conquer evil and claim his own. God will usher in eternity, creating a new heaven and a new earth where there will be no more death, sorrow, crying or pain! I believe that the next great event on God’s calendar is the Second Coming of Jesus. It could happen any day now! Therefore, we must watch and pray as we wait for the final act of history to unfold—the triumphant return of the King of kings and the Lord of Lords—Jesus Christ!

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The Key to Being Brave

Posted on January 4, 2023 by jesustrek

In Mark 6 we read about the time when Jesus walked on water. His disciples were in a boat, straining at the oars, when they saw him walking on the lake. Thinking they saw a ghost, they were terrified and they cried out.

Verse 50 says, “…Immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’”

Jesus didn’t want them to continue to be terrified, so he spoke out immediately. In exhorting them to be brave, he made two short statements–one in the positive, the other in the negative—that basically said the same thing. First, they should take courage. Second, they shouldn’t be afraid. The Bible, Old Testament and New, often urges us to put aside our fears and act courageously.

How do we do this? I think the key is that short, but important, sentence in between the two statements on bravery—“It is I.”

When we realize that Jesus is in our midst, fear quickly dissipates and courage springs forth! Any time you feel scared, put your trust in Jesus. He is the key to being brave.

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One Life to Live

Posted on January 3, 2023 by jesustrek

The above photograph shows Buffalo Bills players kneeling to pray for an injured teammate. People all over the world are continuing to pray for Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who collapsed on the football field after making a tackle in last night’s NFL game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest, and his heartbeat was restored on the field by medical personnel at the game. Then he was taken by ambulance to UC Medical Center, where, at this writing, he is sedated and in critical condition.

The crowd fell silent as Hamlin was receiving treatment on the field. Players for both teams were visibly distraught, some of them openly weeping and many sharing hugs. The game, which all of a sudden didn’t seem so important, was postponed by the NFL.

We occasionally get these blunt reminders that life is precious, and that, for any of us, it could end at any moment. We are awakened to the fact that we all have an appointment with the hereafter.

Then, with the passing of time, the crisis passes and life gets back to normal, at least for most people. In this case, the prayers will eventually subside and the kickoffs will resume. Most people will go back to the way they had been living before, pretending that life will go on indefinitely.

However, for a select few, this tragic event will have a lasting impression. No more will they take life for granted. They will give careful consideration to the fact that their days are numbered, and they will live their lives with more passion and purpose. They will look ahead to the time when they will face the hereafter. And, if they are wise, they will be ready to stand before God.

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”—Psalm 90:12.

“Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”—Hebrews 9:27-28.

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”—John 14:6.

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Back to the Basics

Posted on December 29, 2022 by jesustrek

The arrival of a new year often leads people to examine their lives to see what changes they might like to see take place. Many people make resolutions about what they will do differently, whether it be eliminating a bad habit, adding something positive to their routine or accomplishing some worthwhile task. Some decisions may be relatively small, while others could bring major life-changes.

In Revelation 2, Jesus sent a message to the church in Ephesus, challenging them to make a change. He commended them for their hard work, their perseverance, their strong stand against wicked people and the fact that they had endured hardships for his name and had not grown weary.

However, the message Jesus had for the church was not entirely positive. In Rev.2:4-5 he says, “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first…”

Jesus was not specific in what he meant by the first love that they had forsaken. Was it their love for God? Their love for each other? Their love for the poor? Their love for lost people? The church at Ephesus probably knew exactly what Jesus was talking about, but the Bible does not give us that detail. Perhaps Jesus was being intentionally vague here so that we future readers would consider all the possibilities of how Christian love should be expressed.

Are you loving God as much as you once did? If so, it will show in your actions. Do you love God enough to attend his church, or to talk to him in prayer or to read his Word? Do you love God enough to obey his commands and work toward building his kingdom?

Are you loving people as much as you once did? Are you deeply involved in the fellowship of your local congregation? Are you generous with your time and money? Do you make it a point to put yourself in situations where you can be a blessing to others? Are you quick to share your testimony or offer a much-needed word of encouragement?

All of these are important questions to ask, because there is a danger that our love will start to wane, just as it did in the church at Ephesus in the first century. Jesus said that they needed to love like they had in earlier times. They needed to repent and do the things they had done at first.

There are some Christians today who need to do the same. In the words of Waylon Jennings, “Maybe it’s time we got back to the basics of love!”

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Nothing Easy about It!

Posted on December 24, 2022 by jesustrek

H. Cosman baptizes Grace Allen on December 25, 1898

Christmas is a time when many people who consider themselves Christians sing carols, exchange blessings with others and maybe even make a rare effort to attend a worship service. They seem to think that it’s an easy thing to follow Jesus. They couldn’t be more wrong!

Jesus certainly never said anything to make us think that following him would be easy. In Luke 9:23-24 we read—“Then he said to them all: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.’”

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White Christmas

Posted on December 24, 2022 by jesustrek

A friend of mine says that she is dreaming of a white Christmas. However, if they run out of white she will drink the red!

Sadly, a lot of people turn to alcohol or other drugs during the holidays. Too often we hear of one type of tragedy or another that is connected to someone’s drunkenness. Make a wise decision this Christmas and stay sober!

“Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.”—Proverbs 23:31-32.

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Receiving Jesus

Posted on December 22, 2022 by jesustrek

A cartoon showed two angels looking down at the earth from their position in heaven. One of them says, “I wonder why God pays so much attention to that particular planet?” The other angel answers, “I think it’s because he visited there once.”

John’s gospel begins with the account of God’s visit to earth. It says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (1:1).

The phrase “in the beginning” reminds us of how the Bible begins, with God creating the heavens and the earth. John connects the arrival of Jesus to God’s continuing creative work. Through Jesus God will bring spiritually dead people to life. Through Jesus God will create a family of believers. Through Jesus God will create a church where these believers can live in fellowship with each other and with God.

The “Word” obviously refers to Jesus. Jesus never had a beginning. He was always with God, and he indeed was God. Many cults, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons, try to deny the deity of Christ. Scripture, however, will not allow us to take that position. Jesus insisted that he and the Father were one. He said that if you have seen the Father, you have seen him. Verse 2 of this text says that Jesus made everything. If you made everything, that makes you God!

Verse 14 says, “The Word became flesh and made his swelling among us…” Jesus was to be called “Immanuel”, which means “God with us”. God chose to come to this earth so that he could identify with us. While he walked this earth, he got hot and cold, hungry and thirsty, tired and weary. He was tempted just as we are, but he never sinned. He willingly laid down his sinless life to pay the price for our sinful ones. Then he rose from the dead, proving that all his claims to divinity were true. And everyone who believes in the crucified and resurrected Jesus will not have to perish, but will have eternal life.

This passage from John 1 points out that we have a choice to make concerning Jesus. It says in vv.11-12, “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

Our choice is to either receive Jesus or not receive him. When Jesus first arrived on earth, some received him and some didn’t. The Jewish religious leaders, who should have been the first to receive Jesus, did not. King Herod certainly did not receive Jesus! But the shepherds who heard the good news did receive him. So did the wise men who travelled from far away to worship the newborn king.

The choice remains for us today to either receive Jesus or reject him. There is no third option. Those who receive him are allowed to become children of God. They enjoy the blessings of living in God’s family, not only in this life, but forever! Those who don’t receive him spend their entire lives, including eternity, outside of God’s family, and they suffer the awful consequences of their decision.

The most important decision you will ever make is to receive Jesus, God in the flesh, as your Lord and Savior. Believe in him! Confess that he is Lord! Turn from your sins! Be united with him in baptism! And continue to live for Jesus for the rest of your life! You will never regret your decision to receive Jesus!

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