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We all have many ways we chase God.. we are the same as Jacob in this sense. We wrestle with God as though Heâs in opposition to us. Heâs not. His loving-kindnesses are from everlasting to everlasting. His mercies are new each morning. He doesnât fail and our sins have been removed as far as the East is from the West. So whatâs our problem? (It has to be our problem, because itâs surely not Loveâs, or Perfectionâs.)
We listen intently, entreat daily, meditate, attempt change, seek help, strive for peace, and none of it brings us any closer to understanding or rest. Rest comes when we stop and just hear and believe. When we hear what God has already said and we believe Him faithful to at least those things, we find the peace we need so desperately.
âChrist is our life.â His life is ours. His death was ours, because He willingly laid His life down. His blood is precious, and it was spilt on the behalf of the world. His promises stand forever. His will is that none perish, but for all to come to repentance. He so loved/loves the world. His propitiation for the whole world.
With things so plain and clear on His end, we still find ourselves stuck in the mire. Itâs sin.. and it easily besets. It veils.. it lies, and men follow those lies. I donât mean that as they do so willingly⌠no, we choose Godâs ways willingly, and every time thereâs an exercise of the will to choose faith.. to choose belief.. to choose what God said, even when everything, everyone, even our body screams something else.
Itâs not ânothingâ.
Jesus cried âFather, forgive them. They know not what they do.â He wasnât crying out only for those who would come, nor those who were in His flock but didnât yet know. He was asking on behalf of the filthiest, most hardened person begging for His death. He was asking for Saul and for all of Greece and Rome. But, His heart is especially tender for those He already knew⌠for unrepentant Israel.
He never leaves nor forsakes. We blaspheme His perfect love every time we speak that He might. He sticks closer than a brother and goes after the 1. He carries us home, when weâve fallen into the pit.
Hear these words today O Israel:
âBut whoever drinks of the water I will give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.â
Never means exactly that. NEVER! The water is His Holy Spirit. Once one drinks, the Holy Spirit gives life, and it is eternal, or do we make God a liar?
My head does the careful checking of things too. Iâve wondered, thought, and probably even believed myself beyond salvation before. But, if I live there, Iâd necessarily have to believe Jesus did all these things, God thought this plan up, the Spirit makes Himself present and has displayed all these things, knowing that He could fail and His plan of salvation could fail at the whimsy of a human being.
I just canât ever believe that.
Todayâs topic for me @ biblequestions.com :
Am I correct to say blood wasnât required by God, but by sin itself?
10 minutes ago
The assistant said:
Iâd phrase it carefully: Scripture says forgiveness comes through the shedding of blood, but that doesnât mean God arbitrarily demanded violence. Sin brings death, and blood represents life given. Under the old covenant, God established sacrifices as a picture of the ultimate rescue he himself would provide. Jesus willingly gave himself, and his one sacrifice dealt with sin once for all.
So itâs fair to say the need for a sacrifice arises from sin and deathâbut not quite that blood was required by sin itself. Hebrews says âwithout shedding of blood there is no forgivenessâ (Hebrews 9:22); Leviticus explains that God gave the blood as an atonement because âthe life of the flesh is in the bloodâ (Leviticus 17:11). Sinâs wage is death (Romans 6:23), and Jesusâ one offering has perfected believers for all time (Hebrews 10:14). The cross shows both sinâs seriousness and Godâs love: God provided the answer himself.
Want free grace-based encouragement in your inbox? I can send you short reminders that you are deeply loved, fully forgiven, and complete in Christ.
9 minutes ago
You said:
I understand what Hebrews said, but offense requires payment where man is concerned, and if thatâs true, didnât it come from sin? Sin is in our bodies, not in God. I donât see that blood is Godâs demand, but man has no peace until some restitution is made by an offender. We can see this even in todayâs society. Itâs possible Iâm wrong, and Iâm happy to be corrected if so.
4 minutes ago
The assistant said:
Thatâs a thoughtful distinction, and youâre seeing something important: when someone harms another person, the harm has a cost. Even if the injured person forgives, the damage still has to be faced; restitution can be part of repairing what was broken. But that doesnât mean every offense must be âpaid backâ before forgiveness is possible. A person may forgive freely and still need boundaries, truth, or repair.
With God, the Bible does describe sin as bringing death and speaks of forgiveness through blood. So I wouldnât say blood was unrelated to Godâs provision or that God never required it: under the old covenant, God established sacrifices. But the point is not that God was reluctant to forgive until someone persuaded him with violence. God himself provided the sacrifice in Christ. The cross is God taking the cost of reconciliation upon himself, not humanity paying God off or changing his disposition.
The Bible connects blood with life given (Leviticus 17:11), says sinâs outcome is death (Romans 6:23), and says Jesusâ one offering perfected believers for all time (Hebrews 10:14). So your instinct that sin itself brings death and relational cost is sound; Iâd just add that Scripture presents God as the one who names and provides the remedy. In Christ, forgiveness is already accomplishedânot something you need to earn or repeatedly obtain (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 2:13â14).
By the way, if youâd like more encouragement like this, I can send you free grace-based reminders by emailâshort notes about Godâs love, forgiveness, and your completeness in Christ.
Submit
4 minutes ago
You said:
Iâm not disputing the crossâs significance at all. I just believe itâs all for our sake, not Godâs. He loved us enough to provide what is needed in every case.
1 minute ago
The assistant said:
YesâI think youâre naming an important distinction. The cross wasnât needed to make God loving or persuade him to forgive. Godâs love moved him to provide what we needed. âGod was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against themâ (2 Corinthians 5:19).
The cross was for our sake: it dealt with sin and death, brought us back to God, and revealed Godâs righteousness and love. Scripture says God âsent His Son to be the propitiation for our sinsâ (1 John 4:10), and that Christâs one offering perfected believers for all time (Hebrews 10:14). So the sacrifice matters profoundlyâbut not because God lacked love until blood changed his mind. God himself provided the gift, and through Jesus we receive forgiveness and life. (Romans 3:25â26)
Love to hear any thoughts, peeps. đĽ đ¤â¤ď¸
Follow up thoughts from me: The âassistantâ brought up a point I think interesting⌠itâs correct if we negate Calvary. It said:
âBut that doesnât mean every offense must be âpaid backâ before forgiveness is possible. A person may forgive freely and still need boundaries, truth, or repair.â
By Jesusâ once for all time sacrifice (Heb.), every offense was âpaid backâ and thereâs no more necessity for restitution where God is concerned.
Those things currently happening on Earth for restitutionâs sake has absolutely NOTHING to do with our standing before God. Donât couple whatâs happening in the temporary with our eternal state before God, except faith toward God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
Whatâs been your confession of faith?
Is the confession that âyes, Christ came and rose, but if you sin, youâll be condemned.. if you doubt, youâll be condemned.. if you get caught without correct doctrine, youâre a child of the devilâ?
How bout this?.. if you confess that Jesus âChrist came in the flesh, lived and died on the cross to destroy the works of the devil, and He rose again by The Spirit of Godâ, to usher in a ânew and living way; the way of the Spiritâ? Isnât this the Gospel?
The Gospel Truth has one requirement before salvation: âto believeâ.
It has one requirement and all the comfort and help from heaven thatâs needed post-salvation: âto love each other as Jesus loved you.â
These arenât hard to follow nor burdensome commands. And, confessing Him rises from The Joy of our salvation. Christ died to give us His life, The Holy Spirit to carry us into Godâs eternal kingdom.. itâs the Only Way to Him; we must believe Godâs account of His Son.
After weâve believed, He âNEVER leaves nor forsakes.â Heâs made us His children, and given us new life. Jesus did all that was needed. đđâ¤ď¸
The church has accepted a superstitious role of God: that He canât be bothered with our needs, let alone with our hopes and wishes. Weâve also accepted the tightrope walk of âliving for Godâ. If we walk the path and be forever obedient weâll walk that tightrope right into Heaven.
Both of these are completely unaligned with the Love of God that was so important to The Holy Spirit to speak through the apostles. If the Love of God isnât what stands out when understanding what God did in Jesus Christ, weâve misplaced the New Covenant somewhere.
God does care about our needs. He understands like no one else, bc He knows what makes us tick. But, like the Good Father Jesus proclaimed, He will not give us gifts that arenât good for us. He isnât a genie, though some portray Him as âtrickyâ. (Calvin described Him as concealing salvation, though this is only done to those spiritually opposed, and if they change their mind, the veil is removed).
The letter kills. There arenât these rules to live by in the New Covenant. The law is Holy, and it is impossible for man and weak, bc our flesh is our frailty. The whole point of the Gospel is that Christ Jesus did what we could not. He followed the law, and was obedient unto death that changed spiritual ancestry for those who believe. He changed our destiny, and ushered in the way of the Spirit⌠âChrist in you, the Hope of Gloryâ. Heâs IN you! You donât need a chase toward âthe things of Godâ when you have HIM. đđđđ¤â¤ď¸
This is my all-time favorite song, and believe me when I say Iâve spent my whole live listening to music.
I canât credit Third Day the lyrics, bc they were sung by King David in his love for God. That Third Day repurposed them and set them to music I can credit to them (I think it would be totally awesome of God, if when we see Him face to face, we find out David is also singing this to Third Dayâs tune), and Iâm so very thankful to My Savior that Heâs chosen to display Himself in the works of His hands! đđ¤â¤ď¸
Thanks @macpowell for choosing to share your talents with us and for Third Dayâs writing the music for my funeral. âşď¸ youtu.be/y6TJ8UdOsGM
ââŚmy yoke is easy and my burden is lightâ - Jesus
Iâve been thinking this morning about how we judge whatâs right by Godâs standards.
I just thought Iâd add a line that we should never cross in our minds about who we are and where we stand: Jesus Christ⌠He is Godâs standard of perfection here on earth. Barring you dying on behalf of the human race, and your absolute full obedience to Godâs law and the spirit of it, you cannot achieve this standard. That shouldnât be questionable. If youâre still treating righteousness as some installment plan (where you pay as youâre able) or believe yourself âgood enoughâ, or think your ladder climb to God is very impressive, itâs probably time to think again. Manâs âright judgementâ has altogether failed here.
There was never anything for you to do but believe. After you believe, thereâs nothing you can do to add. You may build and Godâs right judgement determines what will stand against that day. God put His Spirit inside to give us life and share it with us. If we donât stand in Him, we stand alone and will share in the curse thatâs the worldâs portion. In Him, we share His burden and itâs very light. đ¤â¤ď¸
Cdpmom retweeted
About being misled as the reason many of them are angry⌠many others feel the same coming out of Calvinism.
Being saved doesnât mean weâll automatically walk straight.. modern culture in Christianity views anger as sin, not sin as sin. Anger isnât sin. Being angry without cause is sin. For instance, i canât believe i was a part of that system, even from a child, and learning from the âChristianâ community (many of whom are âreformedâ in belief just fed it further. I have some anger, bc Calvinism doesnât lead from or toward Love. In the past, Iâve just assumed I never measured up, (now I donât need to) and those Calvinists around me fed that as well. But, whatever isnât from faith is what is sin. Lacking love speaks that we need more mind renewal to fully flower and bear good fruit, and to understand Godâs love toward us, so we clearly see His standards of what we ought give out.
Weâre never going to have a cookie cutter standard for Christians.. Jesus Christ forgave us all. Some think they didnât need it.. some think they still need it, but neither of those speak faith at all. We have it! We have forgiveness, no matter where we are and how we walk. So, we should not sin. Christ HAS made us free from the law of sin and death. That whole system? Demolished for the believer. He CHANGED the law! đđâ¤ď¸
Cdpmom retweeted
Am I the only one who sees Christian Nationalism and NAR have similar (if not identical goals)⌠Iâm just wondering if theyâve just gotten tired of waiting for The Lord to return, or something else. All of this feels eerily like weâve stepped into some wild party room where everyoneâs drunk on some strange absinthe type liquor. If that sounds like Iâve had it in the past, Iâve not. I just have read a bunch and have a vivid imagination. But, these things are very weird to me.
Assuming God wants men to usher in the Dominion of Christ by utilizing government isnât even a theme anywhere in the Bible.. except mb in Israelâs refusal of Godâs rule and their crying out for a king. World dominion is already His, (Jesus was victorious) and He hasnât chosen to set up a kingdom in this world. On the contrary, His kingdom is not even a visible thing in this world. Itâs His rule over the hearts of people who believe Him.
This world lies in the sway of the evil one. The earth will pass away. Its elements will burn fervently, and Jesus will once again appear, His âreward with Him to render to each according to what theyâve done.â This world is passing away, and one day soon our naked eyes will behold the King who gave His life in love for all men.
Am I the only one who sees Christian Nationalism and NAR have similar (if not identical goals)⌠Iâm just wondering if theyâve just gotten tired of waiting for The Lord to return, or something else. All of this feels eerily like weâve stepped into some wild party room where everyoneâs drunk on some strange absinthe type liquor. If that sounds like Iâve had it in the past, Iâve not. I just have read a bunch and have a vivid imagination. But, these things are very weird to me.
Assuming God wants men to usher in the Dominion of Christ by utilizing government isnât even a theme anywhere in the Bible.. except mb in Israelâs refusal of Godâs rule and their crying out for a king. World dominion is already His, (Jesus was victorious) and He hasnât chosen to set up a kingdom in this world. On the contrary, His kingdom is not even a visible thing in this world. Itâs His rule over the hearts of people who believe Him.
This world lies in the sway of the evil one. The earth will pass away. Its elements will burn fervently, and Jesus will once again appear, His âreward with Him to render to each according to what theyâve done.â This world is passing away, and one day soon our naked eyes will behold the King who gave His life in love for all men.
What is perseverance? This means billions of different things that number the amount of people on earth.
Perseverance for Godâs people though, marks a reliance on Jesus Christ. A reliance on what God spoke about His son, and living from that reality. Itâs not marked by how much someone does for God, nor by how much they live with the idea theyâll never measure up. Itâs living from the place of Truth in how He ransomed us. đ¤â¤ď¸
Cdpmom retweeted
Does it make up the difference for all the people replaced by every move youâve made thus far? Iâm guessing, âno.â So, you still have an outstanding debt. đ¸
Also, is there a support number to call in case you renege? Iâm guessing, âno, again.â
Did you know your funds donât buy love? Iâm guessing âno, a third time.â
Do you know Jesus Christ died to save you? You canât save yourself.
Does it make up the difference for all the people replaced by every move youâve made thus far? Iâm guessing, âno.â So, you still have an outstanding debt. đ¸
Also, is there a support number to call in case you renege? Iâm guessing, âno, again.â
Did you know your funds donât buy love? Iâm guessing âno, a third time.â
Do you know Jesus Christ died to save you? You canât save yourself.
Iâve been thinking this morning about how we judge whatâs right by Godâs standards.
I just thought Iâd add a line that we should never cross in our minds about who we are and where we stand: Jesus Christ⌠He is Godâs standard of perfection here on earth. Barring you dying on behalf of the human race, and your absolute full obedience to Godâs law and the spirit of it, you cannot achieve this standard. That shouldnât be questionable. If youâre still treating righteousness as some installment plan (where you pay as youâre able) or believe yourself âgood enoughâ, or think your ladder climb to God is very impressive, itâs probably time to think again. Manâs âright judgementâ has altogether failed here.
There was never anything for you to do but believe. After you believe, thereâs nothing you can do to add. You may build and Godâs right judgement determines what will stand against that day. God put His Spirit inside to give us life and share it with us. If we donât stand in Him, we stand alone and will share in the curse thatâs the worldâs portion. In Him, we share His burden and itâs very light. đ¤â¤ď¸
Hereâs a ponderance..
did God ever intend death for man in the beginning, or did that come about by the law, which was brought in because of transgression? (For the lawless) Think deeply, peeps.. đĽ
hoping to help you see Godâs intentions and heart toward you apart from the voices of sin and death. He loves and lives to give us life! đđđâ¤ď¸
