Post by JEM on Nov 5, 2007 23:51:57 GMT
4 facts about the man Christ Jesusyou need to know
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Motivated by grace - He left heaven 2 Cor 8: 9
Moved by love - he came to earth 1Tim1: 15
Mutilated by sinners - He forgave them Luke 23:34
Made sin by God - He died for sinners Romans 5:6,8
1. 2 Cor 8:9 'for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor'.
This verse is deeper in meaning than it appears. Yes He became poor in the sense that he left heaven for earth, but the key is THE GRACE of our Lord Jesus!
Knowing what was before Him, knowing every experience that He would face He still came! Why? He was motivated by grace! In other words, the great riches of God should be made available to men! Salvation, forgiveness, peace, eternal life, being justified and so much more! What motivates you in life? There is a reason behind every thing we do! What was the reason for Him leaving heaven? He was MOTIVATED BY GRACE!
2. But it was love that brought Him to earth! I Tim 1;15 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners'. Love for our never dying souls brought Him to earth. Moved by love for sinners He came to earth. The apostle says 'Of whom I am chief', now you may not be as bad as what Saul was before he was converted, but the fact is that if Christ saved the very worst sinner then He can save you!
But perhaps that's where we need to pause. Are you aware that you are a sinner? I could give examples of what sin is, but I take you back to the law, which is our schoolmaster to bring us to God, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
you shall not have any Gods beside me
you shall not make to yourself any graven image
you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain
celebrate the Lord's Day
honour your father and your mother
you shall not kill
you shall not have devient sex with anyone
you shall not steal
you shall not lie about other people
you shall not crave what does not belong to you.
Your own life's record condemns you! It proves how relevant Gods Word is, 'all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.' But out of love for you He came to earth! Does that not touch you?
3. What was the response of men when faced with the One who moved by love for them came into the world? Luke 22:63-64 23:11 33-34 He was mutilated by sinners! The intense hatred of men for the One who was motivated by grace, and moved by love to leave heaven and come into the world; their hatred is seen in what they did to Him!
'The ploughers ploughed upon my back, they made long their furrows' Psalm 129:3
'I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair, I hid not my face from shame and spitting' Is 50:6
Truly He was mutilated by sinners! His visage was so marred MORE than the sons of men!
4. But the greatest of all is that He was made sin by God and died for sinners! Romans 5:6-8'for when we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly' 'But God commends His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us'.
This, my friend is the heart of the Gospel! The Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal Son of God, Holy harmless undefiled and separate from sinners was made sin. He who knew no sin etc MADE SIN! This transcends what men did to Him when they mutilated Him.
When was He made sin? In 3 hrs of darkness, when it pleased the Lord to bruise Him and to put Him to grief, when He made His soul an offering for sin! When the judgement for the sinner's sins was laid upon Him!
Upon the cross the Lord Jesus said 'IT IS FINISHED!' Then and only then did He bow His head and die!
Friend, He who was motivated by grace to leave Heaven, moved by love for sinners to come to earth, who was mutilated by sinners and made sin by God to die for sinners, was buried, raised the third day, and ascended into heaven, will soon come again...
Motivated no longer by grace but Righteousness!
Moved no longer by love but Judgement!
It will be a day of the Lord's fierce anger, the prophet Zephaniah warns 'that the great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hastens greatly.' It will be a day of wrath, trouble and distress and strong men will cry bitterly!
He who was mutilated by sinners and made sin by God will be seen in all His awesome glory and wreak vengeance upon the unsaved!
And when He has finished His 1000 year reign He will cast the unsaved into the lake of fire, where there is deep darkness, constant horror, agonizing eternal life, eternal punishment and everlasting torment! My friend, divine justice will catch up with you!
To face the first death, (of your body) is sad but to face this the second death is terrible! It could be that tonight God says to you, you've had your opportunities, you fool tonight I require your soul!
Flee today to the only One who can save sinners! The man Christ Jesus.
What must you do to be saved?
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Repent of your sin, forsake it, give it up, turn away from it, stop doing it and confess it and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ by faith. Acts 16:31.
The same Jesus who came to tell us that God loves us and wants us to be reconciled with Him warned us to avoid Hell
We MUST take Jesus seriously
We DO NOT HAVE TO GO TO HELL. God has provided a way to escape
That way is a person. JESUS who said "I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE
nobody can come to the Father (GOD) except through me."
ONE BIRTH TWO DEATHS
TWO BIRTHS ONE DEATH
If you have only experienced one birth, natural birth into this world, as a human you face two deaths, first the death of your body and then the death of your soul, that is your personality that lives in your body and will survive physical death
If in addition to physical natural birth, you experience spiritual birth when your body dies your soul, or personality will not only survive physical death, but by being united with Jesus Christ by exercising faith in Him,you will enter Heaven to live for ever.
Physical birth brings us into this world on Earth
Spiritual birth brings us into the next world in Heaven.
You cannot earn this access to God. It is not the reward of doing good deeds, although out of the joy of it we will do good deeds, and will want to do so..
It is the gift of God to us, through Jesus Christ, to be accepted and trusted. For Jesus died, was buried, but rose again after death to live for evermore. As God the Father raised Jesus to live with him for ever, so God the Father, will raise you as the friends of his son Jesus Christ, to live with Him for ever.
No one is so bad that he or she cannot be changed by the power of God at work in them.
But you must be born again. You must make a new fresh start to living relying on God in Christ Jesus.
#################################
Motivated by grace - He left heaven 2 Cor 8: 9
Moved by love - he came to earth 1Tim1: 15
Mutilated by sinners - He forgave them Luke 23:34
Made sin by God - He died for sinners Romans 5:6,8
1. 2 Cor 8:9 'for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor'.
This verse is deeper in meaning than it appears. Yes He became poor in the sense that he left heaven for earth, but the key is THE GRACE of our Lord Jesus!
Knowing what was before Him, knowing every experience that He would face He still came! Why? He was motivated by grace! In other words, the great riches of God should be made available to men! Salvation, forgiveness, peace, eternal life, being justified and so much more! What motivates you in life? There is a reason behind every thing we do! What was the reason for Him leaving heaven? He was MOTIVATED BY GRACE!
2. But it was love that brought Him to earth! I Tim 1;15 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners'. Love for our never dying souls brought Him to earth. Moved by love for sinners He came to earth. The apostle says 'Of whom I am chief', now you may not be as bad as what Saul was before he was converted, but the fact is that if Christ saved the very worst sinner then He can save you!
But perhaps that's where we need to pause. Are you aware that you are a sinner? I could give examples of what sin is, but I take you back to the law, which is our schoolmaster to bring us to God, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
you shall not have any Gods beside me
you shall not make to yourself any graven image
you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain
celebrate the Lord's Day
honour your father and your mother
you shall not kill
you shall not have devient sex with anyone
you shall not steal
you shall not lie about other people
you shall not crave what does not belong to you.
Your own life's record condemns you! It proves how relevant Gods Word is, 'all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.' But out of love for you He came to earth! Does that not touch you?
3. What was the response of men when faced with the One who moved by love for them came into the world? Luke 22:63-64 23:11 33-34 He was mutilated by sinners! The intense hatred of men for the One who was motivated by grace, and moved by love to leave heaven and come into the world; their hatred is seen in what they did to Him!
'The ploughers ploughed upon my back, they made long their furrows' Psalm 129:3
'I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair, I hid not my face from shame and spitting' Is 50:6
Truly He was mutilated by sinners! His visage was so marred MORE than the sons of men!
4. But the greatest of all is that He was made sin by God and died for sinners! Romans 5:6-8'for when we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly' 'But God commends His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us'.
This, my friend is the heart of the Gospel! The Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal Son of God, Holy harmless undefiled and separate from sinners was made sin. He who knew no sin etc MADE SIN! This transcends what men did to Him when they mutilated Him.
When was He made sin? In 3 hrs of darkness, when it pleased the Lord to bruise Him and to put Him to grief, when He made His soul an offering for sin! When the judgement for the sinner's sins was laid upon Him!
Upon the cross the Lord Jesus said 'IT IS FINISHED!' Then and only then did He bow His head and die!
Friend, He who was motivated by grace to leave Heaven, moved by love for sinners to come to earth, who was mutilated by sinners and made sin by God to die for sinners, was buried, raised the third day, and ascended into heaven, will soon come again...
Motivated no longer by grace but Righteousness!
Moved no longer by love but Judgement!
It will be a day of the Lord's fierce anger, the prophet Zephaniah warns 'that the great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hastens greatly.' It will be a day of wrath, trouble and distress and strong men will cry bitterly!
He who was mutilated by sinners and made sin by God will be seen in all His awesome glory and wreak vengeance upon the unsaved!
And when He has finished His 1000 year reign He will cast the unsaved into the lake of fire, where there is deep darkness, constant horror, agonizing eternal life, eternal punishment and everlasting torment! My friend, divine justice will catch up with you!
To face the first death, (of your body) is sad but to face this the second death is terrible! It could be that tonight God says to you, you've had your opportunities, you fool tonight I require your soul!
Flee today to the only One who can save sinners! The man Christ Jesus.
What must you do to be saved?
####################
Repent of your sin, forsake it, give it up, turn away from it, stop doing it and confess it and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ by faith. Acts 16:31.
The same Jesus who came to tell us that God loves us and wants us to be reconciled with Him warned us to avoid Hell
We MUST take Jesus seriously
We DO NOT HAVE TO GO TO HELL. God has provided a way to escape
That way is a person. JESUS who said "I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE
nobody can come to the Father (GOD) except through me."
ONE BIRTH TWO DEATHS
TWO BIRTHS ONE DEATH
If you have only experienced one birth, natural birth into this world, as a human you face two deaths, first the death of your body and then the death of your soul, that is your personality that lives in your body and will survive physical death
If in addition to physical natural birth, you experience spiritual birth when your body dies your soul, or personality will not only survive physical death, but by being united with Jesus Christ by exercising faith in Him,you will enter Heaven to live for ever.
Physical birth brings us into this world on Earth
Spiritual birth brings us into the next world in Heaven.
You cannot earn this access to God. It is not the reward of doing good deeds, although out of the joy of it we will do good deeds, and will want to do so..
It is the gift of God to us, through Jesus Christ, to be accepted and trusted. For Jesus died, was buried, but rose again after death to live for evermore. As God the Father raised Jesus to live with him for ever, so God the Father, will raise you as the friends of his son Jesus Christ, to live with Him for ever.
No one is so bad that he or she cannot be changed by the power of God at work in them.
But you must be born again. You must make a new fresh start to living relying on God in Christ Jesus.