For My English-Speaking Visitors

How are you going to get to heaven, Friend?

Are you working for your salvation? The Apostle Paul states:

16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. Galatians chapter 2.

How about trusting just plain good works?

In Ephesians chapter 2, the Apostle Paul states: 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Are you trusting in your church membership or in somebody else other than Christ Jesus?

Jesus said in John 14:6: Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

If you don’t get there the Way the LORD has stated you must go, you will end up in the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:8 says: But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

So, how DO you get to heaven?

Repent - have a change of heart and mind - of your sinfulness. What is sin? Sin is everything that we do that is against the Word of God.

Recognize that Jesus, God Himself, paid for your sins when He shed His blood for you and me on the cross of Calvary.

Ask the Lord Jesus Christ to save you.

What role do works play in salvation?

Let's read some verses from the word of God.

Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. - John 6:29

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Not of works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

Finally, the Apostle John states in the Gospel of John chapter 1:

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name,

Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

THANK THE LORD YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORK FOR OR EARN SALVATION. IT IS A GIFT!!

A Well-rounded Christian

Are you a well-rounded Christian? Or, are you Biblical in one area but lax in other areas of your life?  This is definitely a very unpopular subject and has always been unpopular.  Nevertheless, a Biblical Christian is not in a popularity contest.

Do you think that you are a conservative and that you are contending for the faith and are a Biblicist, but don’t give that same attention to other matters of your life?  Then, are you really a well-rounded Christian? 

Let’s examine some areas that you might not realize are affecting your testimony to your friends, family, and the world.

Are you Biblically sound?

You might say or think, “Of course, Ambar, I am quite sound.”

Are you reading the Word of God every day?  This is our spiritual food, and God’s Word should be our priority.

Col 3:16  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Are you doing everything in the Name of the Lord Jesus?  The test of our actions, of the very motive of our hearts will be, Can I do this in the Name of Jesus?  Would I do it if He were here?

Col 3:17  And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

How about your words?  What is coming out of your mouth?  Is your speech seasoned with salt?  Are you building up brothers and sisters in Christ with Biblical principles, admonishing them in love and firmness, giving the Gospel of salvation to the lost?  Are you kind and considerate?  The Bible clearly states that foolishness should not be coming out of our mouths.  Don’t even use vulgar language even if it is not “dirty.”

You might think, Times have changed…We live in modern times, and cultures are different, and what is acceptable in one might not be acceptable in another.

Do you think you could say that to the Lord Jesus Christ?  I think not.

What about your standards with regard to the way you dress? Are you dressing in a modest way which is a reflection of what God wants us to be as Christian women and as Christian men? Or are you showing parts of your body that are sacred and not to be shown to the public?  I’ll explain this in a plain way.  Is your skirt long enough, is your blouse high enough, without showing cleavage, and are your clothes loose enough – not showing your body outline? If you are a Christian woman, you should not be causing your brothers in Christ or any other man to have any ungodly thoughts towards you.  Don’t think in your mind, Well, that’s a man’s problem if he is looking at me with lust in his heart.  He’s the one with the problem.  Actually, we are all sinful, but are you dressing in a way that Jesus would approve of?  Would He approve of your showing part of your breasts in public?  Would He want you to show your thighs in public?

This applies to men, too. What are your standards of dress? Are your clothes loose enough and thick enough and are you buttoning your shirts close to your neck, too, or are you showing your chest or part of your chest so that women will think you are sexy?  Then, you, too, are guilty of provoking ungodly thoughts.

Do not let changing fashions dictate your outer appearance.  Your outer appearance is dictated by what is in your heart.  What is in your heart, by the way?

What about your diet? Are you taking care of the temple of the Holy Spirit? Do you eat too much and are sorry about it later?  Are you eating a balanced diet so that you will feel and do your best for your Lord and Savior?  What about drinking?  Do you allow yourself to drink alcoholic beverages thinking that it is supposedly allowed in the Holy Scriptures? Have you forgotten that the Bible says that cursed is the man that gives his neighbor to drink? Wait a minute!  Don't give me Bible verses to justify your drinking alcoholic beverages. I have watched the news practically every day and seen the heartache of mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers who have lost loved ones because somebody took a drink and then another one. Who ever woke up in the morning, saying, “I think I will kill somebody today by driving drunk!”?  Or, “I think that today I will begin drinking and ruin my family and my reputation and lose my job!”  When you chose to take that first drink you knew what the possible consequences could be.  You just choose to think those things will not happen to you, that you are in full control of the situation.

Now, are there things that you need to change?  Read Colossians chapter 3 in a prayerful way.  By the way, I have memorized the first few verses because I want to be a well-rounded Christian!  I am going to work on the rest of the chapter, too!  I want to please my Lord and Savior Who has done so much for me! 

5 Mortify (make to die) therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection (lust), evil concupiscence (an intense desire), and covetousness (including greed), which is idolatry:

6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:

7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy (speaking evil against the Lord), filthy communication (dirty, vile, insulting speech) out of your mouth.

9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies (tender mercy), kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness (humility), longsuffering (patience);

13 Forbearing (having patience with) one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

14 And above all these things put on charity (love), which is the bond of perfectness.

15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, and let us set our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of the Faith.  Keeping our eyes on Him and setting our goal to be like Him will make all the difference!

Anxiety or Thankfulness?

In which state are you?  Maybe you think I’m referring to your day by day emotional state.  Not really.  I am referring to your position before the Lord.  When you acknowledge Who Jesus Christ is and what your relationship is with Him, you will know what your standing is before Christ, whether you were saved or not.  Are you anxious about standing before God?  What if you died today and had to give an account of your life to the Creator of the Universe?  In the first place, God is holy, and since He will not allow sinners to come into His kingdom, by our own efforts, we cannot obtain salvation.

So, what can you do to be sure that if you died today, you will be with the Lord Jesus Christ throughout eternity?  Listen! The Lord already has a plan for salvation!  Everything depends upon Jesus Christ.  He already bought salvation for you!  In the book of Colossians chapter one, the Apostle Paul explains what happened to some members of the church in that city.

12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:

13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Remember, that salvation is possible because of Who Jesus Christ is.  He is the image of God, God in human form.  Jesus created everything and everything depends upon Him.  There is nothing you can do nor anybody that you can go to for your eternal salvation.  Notice in the following verses that the Lord has given Jesus Christ preeminence, in other words that He is the Preferred One, the only one who can give you the salvation that you want so much!

15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

16 For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him:

17 And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

18 And He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence.

Now, why are you feeling anxious about your position before God?  It could be because you are trusting yourself and not trusting the Lord for your salvation.  You are trusting what you can do or in whom you are, trusting what you have done in the past or thinking that the Lord knows your heart and will let you be with Him throughout eternity.  Nevertheless, the Bible does not say that you can receive salvation for those reasons.  The Word of God is the authority, and that authority says that Jesus Christ already paid the penalty for our sins, and that we, that you, need to recognize that you cannot save yourself, that you are incapable of deserving eternal life, and that you need to ask God to forgive you and accept Jesus Christ as your ONLY SAVIOR.  Verse 20 says:

20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

Did you notice that this says that Jesus Christ made peace through his blood, the blood that he shed on the cross?  In the book Ephesians chapter two verses eight and nine, we read:

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Did you notice that salvation is a gift?  Do you want to receive the gift of salvation that God is offering you? Salvation is by the grace of God, in other words, even though you don’t deserve it, God loves you and is offering you the gift of salvation.  Will you accept this gift of salvation?  Don’t think you can depend upon yourself or your church with its laws and customs no matter how traditional they might be, in order for you to earn eteranal life.  Eternal life is a gift.

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

                                                                                                 Ephesians 2: 4 and 5

The Mediator -Who is interceding for you?

Sin separates man from God. Paul notes in the book of Romans chapter 3:23,

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Man needs help. You need help!

Who will intercede for you? Who will reconcile you to God? He is holy and His holiness demands justice. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 1 Timothy 2:5

Only Jesus Christ.

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Acts 4:12

DO YOU BELIEVE THIS? IT’S STRAIGHT FROM GOD’S WORD!!

So, who are you trusting to save you from your sinfulness? You need to trust the Lord Jesus Christ only.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

COBBLING FOR THE GLORY OF GOD

 by H. A. Ironside

“Do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17).

When I was a boy, I felt it was both a duty and a privilege to help my widowed mother make ends meet by finding employment in vacation time, on Saturdays and other times when I did not have to be in school.

For quite a while I worked for a Scottish shoemaker, or “cobbler,” as he preferred to be called, an Orkney man, named Dan Mackay. He was a forthright Christian and his little shop was a real testimony for Christ in the neighborhood. The walls were literally covered with Bible texts and pictures, generally taken from old-fashioned Scripture Sheet Almanacs, so that look where one would, he found the Word of God staring him in the face. There was John 3:16 and John 5:24, Romans 10:9, and many more.

On the little counter in front of the bench on which the owner of the shop sat was a Bible, generally open, and a pile of gospel tracts. No package went out of that shop without a printed message wrapped inside. And whenever opportunity offered, the customers were spoken to kindly and tactfully about the importance of being born again and the blessedness of knowing that the soul is saved through faith in Christ.

Many came back to ask for more literature or to inquire more particularly as to how they might find peace with God, with the blessed results that men and women were saved, frequently right in the shoe-shop.

It was my chief responsibility to pound leather for shoe soles. A piece of cowhide would be cut to suit, then soaked in water. I had a flat piece of iron over my knees and, with a flat-headed hammer, I pounded these soles until they were hard and dry. It seemed an endless operation to me, and I wearied of it many times.

What made my task worse was the fact that, a block away, there was another shop that I passed going and coming to or from my home, and in it sat a jolly, godless cobbler who gathered the boys of the neighborhood about him and regaled them with lewd tales that made him dreaded by respectable parents as a menace to the community. Yet, somehow, he seemed to thrive and that perhaps to a greater extent than my employer, Mackay. As I looked in his window, I often noticed that he never pounded the soles at all, but took them from the water, nailed them on, damp as they were, and with the water splashing from them as he drove each nail in.

One day I ventured inside, something I had been warned never to do. Timidly, I said, “I notice you put the soles on while still wet. Are they just as good as if they were pounded?” He gave me a wicked leer as he answered, “They come back all the quicker this way, my boy!”

Feeling I had learned something, I related the instance to my boss and suggest that I was perhaps wasting time in drying out the leather so carefully. Mr. Mackay stopped his work and opened his Bible to the passage that reads, “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

“Harry,” he said, “I do not cobble shoes just for the four bits or six bits (50 cents or 75 cents) that I get from my customers. I am doing this for the glory of God. I expect to see every shoe I have ever repaired in a big pile at the judgment seat of Christ, and I do not want the Lord to say to me in that day, 'Dan, this was a poor job. You did not do your best here.' I want Him to be able to say, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.’”

Then he went on to explain that just as some men are called to preach, so he was called to fix shoes, and that only as he did this well would his testimony count for God.

It was a lesson I have never been able to forget. Often when I have been tempted to carelessness, or to slipshod effort, I have thought of dear, devoted Dan Mackay, and it has stirred me up to seek to do all as for Him who died to redeem me.

ILLUSTRATIONS OF BIBLE TRUTH by Harry A. Ironside

Colportage Library #230 Copyright @ 1945 CHAPTER TWO