God Loves Like a Mother

 A young Christian woman was going for a walk when she felt a strong prompting from God. She must walk over to a crazy looking, possibly dangerous young man. She must tell him that Jesus loves him.

 She ignored the prompting and walked on, but she could not shake off the conviction that God wanted her to speak to this wild looking man. 

She finally obeyed. When she told him that Jesus loves him, he was overwhelmed with emotion and hugged her warmly. She was more than uncomfortable, but she didn't resist. Then he told her he had come to this place to kill himself, but now he had changed his mind. She had saved his life.

She then sat down with him and explained the Gospel of Jesus. Jesus is the Son of God and he died on the cross to pay the penalty for his sins. If he put his faith in Jesus, and put his whole life in God’s hands, he would be forgiven and have eternal life with God.

He believed and he had a whole new life.

Years later the young woman died of COVID. When she was in heaven, Jesus showed her a crowd of people who had believed and gone to heaven because of the ministry of the young man she had talked to. He had become an evangelist and many people were in heaven because of his preaching. 

Although the woman was happily married, she did not want to leave heaven and go back to her life on earth. But then Jesus reminded her of her 15 year old daughter. Jesus sent her back to earth and healed her. 

She was willing to leave heaven because her daughter needed a mother’s love.

Jesus was in Heaven with the Father, but he was willing to leave the happiness of heaven because you and I needed to know the love of God.

There is no greater earthly love than the love of a mother for her child. This is a picture of how God loves you and me.

God tells us about this in the Bible.

But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” 
Can a woman forget her nursing child or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these might forget, yet I will not forget you. 
See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me. Is 49:14–16 NRSVue

In the Old Testament, God told the Jews he loved them with the love of a mother. In the New Testament, we see that God loves the world with the same intense love. That includes you and me.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NRSVue

Recently I read news report of a mother whose house was on fire. She rushed into the blazing inferno and rescued her six children. She was terribly burned on most of her body. She was in a coma for two weeks but she survived.

This is how God loves you and me. Jesus not only left heaven to suffer on earth, but he suffered the most painful possible execution to pay the penalty for our sins.
Jesus is reaching out to you and me now. He wants to give you a new life.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NRSVue

You can talk to Jesus now. He is waiting for your call for help.

Love in Heaven

‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Rev 21:4–5 NIV

There is a new world coming. It will not be ruled by men. It will not be governed by the rich or the powerful. It will not be ruled by the Americans, the Europeans or the Chinese.

It will not be governed by business or socialism. There will be no politics, no dominant classes or races. There will be no national borders and no armies, no weapons, no locked doors, no police.

There will be no celebrities, no different religions, no church leaders.

It will be God’s world, governed by God alone. God will not be our president. He will be our loving father.

We will have no need for doctors, nurses, psychologists or lawyers.

Men will not rule over women. Priests and pastors will not rule over other believers. We will be brothers and sisters.

There will be no evangelism.

We will all be one loving family. We will know and see and love God for ever. It will not be difficult to believe, because we will all be bathed, washed and overwhelmed by the tender love of our loving creator.

There is one problem. We have all offended against the love of God. We need to be forgiven before we can be received into the family of Father God. This new world is only for those who love the Father. It is a choice.

But there is another problem. God is just. Sin must be punished. God hates sin but he loves you and me in spite of our sin.

God sent His only Son into this world to live as a man. He did not sin but he suffered brutal execution to suffer the punishment we deserved. He was punished on your behalf and my behalf. He paid our penalty.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Jn 3:16–17 NIV

Are you ready to believe and receive forgiveness from God?

If you receive God’s forgiveness and commit your life to living in the love and goodness of God. You will be one of the billions of blessed ones in God’s new world.

So why will God need to wipe away our tears in Heaven?

If we get to heaven but we miss some loved ones who did not turn to God, it will be heartbreaking. God shares our grief. He will comfort us in our grief and wipe away our tears.

While we are here on earth, we must not judge and reject our children who make bad choices in life. We must not stop loving and forgiving them as our heavenly Father loves us and them.

The Real Meaning of Spiritual Covering

 The concept of covering is very important in the Bible. The first example is when God provided Adam and Eve with clothing made of animal skins.

The symbolic meaning is clear. God was willing to forgive their sin by the shedding of the blood of the animals.

God’s penalty for sin is death. In the Old Testament, Jews could expect God to forgive their sins if they sacrificed an animal on the altar.

In the New Testament, God sent his son to die, to take the penalty for our sins on himself.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Jn 3:16–17 NIV

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Co 5:21 NIV

For God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins. Then, in exchange, he poured God’s goodness into us! 2 Co 5:21 The Living Bible, Paraphrased

In Genesis, God covered the sins of Adam and Eve with the skins of sacrificial animals. In the New Testament, God covers our sins with the sacrificed blood of the Son of God.

Isaiah prophetically foreshadows the complete covering of sin by the death of Jesus.

I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Is 61:10 NIV

The blood of Jesus not only covers sin. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, we are made right in God’s sight, not only forgiven but actually righteous.

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Rom 5:1 NLT

The concept of covering is central to the doctrine of salvation.

On the other hand, a new and different application of the idea of covering has become prominent in the Evangelical and Pentecostal movements. Wives are supposed to be “covered” by submitting to the authority of their husbands. Church members are said to be “covered” by submitting to the authority of pastors. Pastors are said to be “covered” by submitting to a more senior church leader or a denominational executive.

In fact, this novel concept is often emphasised more than the essential doctrine of the covering of our sin by the righteousness of Christ. In this way, ordained church leadership becomes the focus of faith and obedience more than the personal relationship of each believer with Jesus.

This twisting of scripture has done untold damage to so many Christians.

So many Christians are told they should not transfer from one church to another without being “blessed out.” So you are not allowed to transfer from one church to another without the permission of your pastor.

I once endured a sermon from a preacher who said Christians must not criticise their pastor, because the pastor was accountable only to God. The pastor supposedly sits on the throne of Moses. No wonder so many pastors are not called to account for all kinds of offences against church members, especially women and children.

For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, 1 Ti 2:5 NRSV

There is one church, comprising all believers in Jesus. There is one High Priest, one Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am covered by the blood of one Lamb of God and no other. I am obliged to unconditionally submit to only one man, Jesus Christ.

My wife is obliged to submit unconditionally to only one man, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pastors are appointed to lead churches, but their authority is limited and they have no right to control my life or rule over my family.

Human leaders must lead, but not rule. There is a difference.

Women Redeemed from the Curse

 When Jesus died on the cross, the totally innocent Son of God had to suffer the ultimate injustice. Through his unjust death, Jesus took upon himself the punishment we deserved for our sins.

The only completely innocent man of all time died an agonising death so that all guilty men and women could be freed from God's judgement.

With his voluntary death, Jesus began to free people from all the curses and injustices that began with original sin.  

The first injustice was foretold by God himself.

To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labour you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” Gen 3:16 NIV

It was not God's command that men should rule over women. After the original sin, the character of men was corrupted. Men's greater physical strength was used to dominate women, which was never God's intention.

But millions of men have harshly dominated their wives. For thousands of years, women have been treated as second-class human beings.

In the Bible, Jewish women were also victims of harsh discrimination, but in Christian history and also in our time, we see that many Christians still do not understand that God created us for partnership and not for the subordination of women.

In the Bible, new beginnings are of particular importance. As his first act after his resurrection, Jesus restored the equality of women.

Mary Magdalene was chosen by Jesus as the first person to proclaim his resurrection, not Peter or John, and not even Mary, his mother.

Mary Magdalene thought Jesus was the gardener. The first gardener was Adam, and Paul teaches us that Jesus is the last Adam. This means that Jesus is the beginning of the new humanity.

So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 1 Cor 15:45 NIV

For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 1 Cor 15:22 NIV

Adam was the first man and the father of all men. He was without sin until he succumbed to temptation.

Jesus came as the second man without sin and he resisted all temptations.

Jesus came to give all of us men, women and children the innocence and glory of the original creation. He came to create a wonderful new humanity, a humanity where men and women can fulfil their potential in equality, freedom and partnership.

When Mary Magdalene announced to the apostles that Jesus had risen, they did not believe.

Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. Mk 16:14 NIV

What did Jesus want to teach us? From now on, pastors and apostles must also take women seriously. The curse of male domination is over as far as God is concerned. Many Christians are slow to understand this.

Never forget who Jesus is

We must never forget who we believe in.

Jesus is the eternal Creator, who was in eternal fellowship with the heavenly Father before the beginning of the world.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. Jn 1:1–3 NIV

What Jesus was, he is also today, with boundless power and creative force.

“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. Rev 2:8 NIV

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” Rev 1:8 NIV

He is the holy Son of God, without sin and without blemish.

and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” Lk 3:22 NIV

Jesus heals all our diseases because he is full of mercy and love.

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Mk 1:40–41 NIV

When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.

This was to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Mt 8:16–17 NIV

Jesus is the good shepherd who cares for and protects us.

He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young. Is 40:11 NLT

Not only does he care for your life, he sacrificed his life to save your life.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. Jn 10:11 NIV

The holy Son of God sacrificed his life to take the punishment for our sins.

For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Rom 5:10 NIV

Through his death, he took our sins upon himself and passed on his righteousness to us.

For God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins. Then, in exchange, he poured God’s goodness into us! 2 Co 5:21 The Living Bible, Paraphrased

He gives eternal life to those who believe in him and trust him with all their heart.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live.
Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” Jn 11:25–26 CSB

God Allows Sickness but Jesus Healed

Nothing happens without God's permission. God is simply God. He is sovereign.

God allows genocide, rape and human trafficking. Everything that is evil is permitted by God. This also includes cancer, depression, psychosis, blindness and coronavirus.

Should we passively accept something because God has allowed it?

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. Jn 10:10 NKJV

God allows everything, but how should we respond to evil?

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. Especially sin.

But not only sin is evil. Sickness is also evil. In the beginning there was no sin and no sickness. It was only as a result of Adam and Eve's first sin that illness and death came into the world.

Jesus always treated illness as an enemy. He came to conquer sin and also to abolish the consequences of sin. A clear sign that he also wanted to abolish illness was the many healings he performed with authority.

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Acts 10:38 NLT

God sovereignly allows sickness, genocide, domestic violence, bullying and human trafficking, but Jesus as a man aggressively resisted all kinds of sickness, cruelty and hypocrisy.

Why this contradiction?

Jesus is simply God's eternal Son.

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!” Jn 14:6–7 NLT

Jesus is the perfect representation of God's character.

God is sovereign, but he has given people the task of ruling this world.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Gen 1:28 NIV

But then people went wrong and handed their authority over to the devil.
That is why the devil is called “the god of this world”.
Jesus came as a man to take back this dominion from the devil.

Adam handed over his authority to the devil.
Jesus was the last Adam who lived without sin and took back this authority.

Then Jesus said to his disciples and to us.

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Mt 28:18 NIV

Authority implies not only power, but also legitimate authority.

Then he commissioned his disciples to exercise this authority as his representatives in the world.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Mt 28:19–20 NIV

Some people only want this assignment to apply to the apostles, but the apostles died in the first century.

Jesus said: “I am with you always, to the end of the age." Then this commission is for us.
The end of the age has not yet come.

Why did Jesus Die?

 Why did Jesus die 2000 years ago?
He did not have to die. Because he was God's eternal Son, he was immortal.

The first people were immortal before the Fall. God warned them not to eat the forbidden fruit. If they did, they would lose their immortality.

And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Gen 2:16–17 NIV

The first Adam was created without sin and was therefore immortal, but when he sinned he became corrupt and mortal. Since then we have all been born with a corrupt and mortal nature.

Jesus was born without our corrupt nature. Paul wrote that Jesus is the last Adam, the heavenly seed for a new humanity.

For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.
For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 1 Cor 15:21–22 NIV

Jesus willingly gave up his physical immortality to suffer the punishment for my sin and yours.

His last word on the cross was the voluntary sacrifice of his earthly life.

Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” Having said this, he breathed his last. Lk 23:46 NRSV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Hiding from God

 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Gen 3:8 NIV

Adam and Eve had believed the enemy's lies and betrayed God. They were ashamed and afraid of God, but they still believed in God.

We are all in the same position, whether we believe in God or not. We hide and look at God as if from a distance. We can be so far removed from God that we deny God completely. We can become atheists, witches or Nazis, but Adam and Eve were not that far away.

Eve ate the forbidden fruit first, but Adam was no better. He was by her side and said nothing.

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Gen 3:6 NIV

If your husband or wife makes a terrible decision and you go along with it in silence, you are equally guilty. A husband should restrain his wife from sin and a wife should restrain her husband from sin.

Adam and Eve immediately recognised their guilt and were ashamed.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realised they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Gen 3:7 NIV

Shame is a direct consequence of sin and sinful human nature. We no longer see our sexual nature as innocent and beautiful.

Many religious people believe that a celibate life is better and holier than a Christian marriage. Some theologians have invented the idea that sexual procreation only came after the fall of man, that sex was somehow God's plan B and was only meant to produce children.

Such absurd theological ideas are just symptoms of the shame that resulted from the Fall. These theological traditions are just fig leaves that do not help us find reconciliation with God.

When God walked around in the garden, He of course knew what Adam and Eve had done. Nevertheless, He came to restore the broken loving fellowship with the first couple.

• No matter where you hide, God still loves you.

• Are you hiding in your job, or in your busy domestic routine?

• Are you hiding in drugs or alcohol or occultism?

Are you perhaps hiding in religious traditions or theological studies?

No matter where you have chosen to seek refuge, God is seeking you out. He already knows where you are and He is looking for you right where you are.

He understands your heart and your wayward ways, but he does not want to punish you. He is looking for your trust so that you can have heart-to-heart companionship with him.

God knows that we are intimidated by his greatness, his holiness and his omnipotence.
He knows that we are afraid of his judgement.

That is why he has made himself small. He sent his eternal, almighty Son to earth as a human being in order to live and suffer with us as a human being.

Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for our unfaithfulness upon himself.

On the cross we see God's broken heart, not only because we have gone wrong, but because he had lost loving fellowship with us, and also because you and I had lost this fellowship with him.

God wants this tender friendship with us as his children back. It is the longing of his heart to have our fellowship back and to give us the blessing of his friendship.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Friendship with Jesus

 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. Jn 15:15 NIV

Those who see God as a harsh judge will see themselves as unworthy servants. We are certainly unworthy servants. We are flawed and we must always acknowledge our sins and failings and receive God's forgiveness.

Our sin is not insignificant to God. Jesus had to take a terrible punishment for our sins, but Jesus has taken away all our guilt. Now he wants to look at you and me very differently, as his beloved children.

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, Rom 5:1 NIV

Anyone who still sees God as a harsh judge has never grasped this wonderful truth of grace.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— Jn 1:12 NIV

If you see God as a judge watching you from heaven, you have either never entrusted your life to Jesus or you have never really understood God's love since your conversion.

God is not far away. He dwells lovingly with his children.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NASB95

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. Jn 15:7 NRSV

How can you live in this close personal relationship with Jesus if you fear him as a harsh judge? You can't.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Rom 8:1 NRSV

The Gospel of Jesus Christ Explained

 The Lord Jesus was with the heavenly Father in infinite eternity before the creation of the universe. Jesus, God the Son, no less divine than the Father, looked down the centuries and saw that you need forgiveness and restoration.

He knew that his Father was righteous.

He knew you would go wrong in your life.

He knew you deserved judgement, but he wanted to save you.

Before the first angel saw the face of God, before the first star shone in the sky, Jesus decided to be born as a baby, just like us. He decided that he would submit to a cruel execution on the cross.  

And why? So that He would be punished in your place. So you could be forgiven and fully reconciled with God.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom 6:23 NIV

We cannot earn God's favour.

We have all ruined our lives in different ways.

None of us can claim to be as good as Jesus.

Our sin has separated us from the presence of God, but God gave his only Son to give us back our lives.

This is a free gift, and you must accept God's loving favour as a free gift or not at all.

Jesus paid the full price to redeem us from death, hell and eternal despair. We cannot add an extra payment. He has done everything.

But you must do something to gain his favour.

Suppose you were to inherit a fortune from your rich father. He gave you a mansion and a huge bank balance.

How can you claim your inheritance?

You need to see a lawyer and take possession of the title deeds.
Jesus is your lawyer who speaks for you before the throne of the heavenly Father.
You can find in God's promises in the Bible that speak of your inheritance.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die;
and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” Jn 11:25–26 NIV

You must enter the house.

“I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. Jn 10:9 NASB95

You invest your inherited money to be a blessing. You invest your life in the kingdom of God.

Jesus taught the parable of the talents.

The master gave his servants wealth to invest and went away. Two servants invested wisely and doubled their money, but a third servant buried his money and gave it back to the master when he returned.

He was like the passive believer who tried to use his faith as a ticket to heaven but could do nothing with the gifts of God.

Jesus sternly warned people who passively use salvation as fire insurance.

‘Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’

“For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.

“Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Mt 25:28–30 NASB95

Jesus and Paul also taught:

Turn around and just believe ....

You can totally rely on Jesus. If you hand your life over into His hands, you can experience His love in an amazing way. You can then pass on this love.

He died for you, but also for all those around you.

Overcoming Bad Thoughts and Feelings

 You try to focus your thoughts on God, to pray with reverence and love, but you are constantly distracted by negative thoughts. You want to love God, but in your own eyes you are a failure.

You force yourself to praise God, to read the Bible more, perhaps to fast, but it often doesn't help.

What is wrong? What is holding you back?

• Financial worries?

• Unworthy sexual thoughts?

• Anger at difficult neighbours or relatives?

• Ashamed of your many shortcomings and misdemeanours?

• Anger about abuse?

Perhaps you're building on the wrong foundation.

You are not saved because your repentance and reverence are deep.

The foundation of your salvation is your redemption through the death of God's Son on the cross for you.
God redeemed you from sin and shame through the sacrifice of His Son.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Jn 3:16–17 NIV

When we feel shaky, we need to look to our foundation, God's saving love.

Because Jesus died for you, you can come to Jesus as a broken person who needs understanding, like a troubled soul sharing your feelings with a good therapist who is not judging you.

You can tell God how you feel and ask him to help you to untie the knots in your life.

‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ Jer 33:3 NIV

Near Death Experience. Revived in the Morgue

 Ian McCormack had a loving Christian mother. As a child in New Zealand, he was brought up as a Christian, but as a young man he had no desire for God. He sought pleasure and adventure in the wide world. He travelled first to Australia and then to Indonesia.

He became an avid surfer and was always looking for the best wave and a new adventure.
His life revolved around sex, drugs and rock'n'roll.

``In my own way, I was on my way to finding the ‘meaning of life’. At certain times I would have labelled myself an atheist, at others a ‘free thinker’.

I wanted to experience everything that life had to offer. My philosophy back then was to just throw myself fully into life.‘’

His mum prayed for him every day.

He found adventure in the ocean, sweet young women and fun mates everywhere. His thirst for adventure was so extreme that his life was often in danger.

It was a stormy night in Mauritius. He went fishing and dived at midnight in the Indian Ocean. He was stung five times by huge poisonous jellyfish. Once would have been a death sentence.

When he collapsed on the beach, he was staring at his death.

``The image of my mother was clear before my eyes. It was as if she was saying again the words she had spoken so long ago: ``Ian, no matter how far you have strayed from God, no matter what you have done wrong: If you cry out to God with all your heart, he will hear you and forgive you.‘’

Mortal fear gripped him. Is there perhaps a God? But who is God?

He had no money and nobody wanted to drive him to the hospital, but then he somehow found help.

``The image of my mother was clearly before my eyes. It was as if she was saying again the words she had spoken so long ago: ‘Ian, no matter how far you have strayed from God, no matter what you have done wrong: If you cry out to God with all your heart, he will hear you and forgive you.‘’

Mortal fear gripped him. Is there perhaps a God? But who is God?

``Could it be the Christian God? But if it is the God of the Christians, then I have a big problem.’ I thought: ‘If it's about Jesus ... I had cursed that name. I was ridiculing the Christians! My life was all about sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll...’‘’

``Suddenly words appeared before my eyes like an advertising neon sign: FORGIVE US OUR SINS. I asked myself: ‘Where should I start? I have committed so many sins. I don't have time to list them all now.‘’

He began to pray the words.

It was an uphill struggle to stay awake, humble himself in prayer, forgive the sins of others, and somehow reach the hospital before his death.

Finally, he reached a dirty old hospital. He was dying.

A nurse tried to give him an injection of antidote, but his circulation was no longer working. It was hopeless.

Then he died. His invisible soul was in terrible darkness. Then he reached an even more terrible place, on the threshold of hell.

Then he cried out in despair.

``Now I wept and cried out to God: ‘Why am I here? I asked you for forgiveness! Why am I here? I have turned my heart to you. Why am I here?’ Then a dazzling light shone down on me and literally pulled me out of the darkness.‘’

Ian was pulled out of hell and found himself in the glorious, loving presence of Jesus himself.

He had prayed for forgiveness and God forgave him.

Ian McCormack was dead. A doctor prepared his body to be transferred to the morgue. 

Then Ian returned to his body. Without a miracle cure, Ian would never have returned to normal, but now Ian is a healthy man with a wife and children.

McCormack, Ian. I was dead: a glimpse into the afterlife - a true story (Living with Hope) (German Edition) . Agency PJI UG. Kindle Edition.

How to Get Close to God

 If you are in any kind of need, you need to know that God loves you.
Because God loves you, He wants to help you. His love comes from His heart, but His help is also totally practical.
 
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Is 41:10 NIV
 
This text is for all those who know God personally. He always stands by his children, for he is the faithful Father in heaven. He never abandons his sons and daughters.
 
But if you don't know God personally, then you need his help all the more. God Himself has made a way for you to find Him if you are spiritually blind and have no relationship with your Creator.

Listen! The LORD’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.

It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore. Is 59:1–2 NLT

 But despite our estrangement from Him, whereby we have become spiritually blind and like orphans, God still loves us and wants to reconcile us to Himself.
 
The word ‘reconcile’ means that He wants to receive us as His sons (or daughters).
 
Many of us have a longing for God's love. The poet Schiller summarised this longing beautifully.
‘Brothers above the stars there surely must be a dear Father.

Perhaps you are one who believes that you must be a child of the universe.

But God loves you personally. God wants to give you something much better.
God loves you and understands you. He wants you to know Him, to know God as a person;

that you can know that you have a heavenly home, belong to a heavenly family and have a heavenly home.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Jesus is the Son of God.

Although he was truly human, he was also God in heaven, who chose to be born as a human being, to live among us humans as a human being and to sacrifice himself to death as a human being.
Why?

He was executed on the cross in order to bear the punishment we deserve for our sins as a totally innocent human being. Our debt is paid!

Now you can get to know God.

You no longer need to be separated from your heavenly Father because of your guilt. Everything is forgiven if you want to receive God's wonderful grace and boundless love.

You can never earn God's love and grace.

You can never pay your debt.

You can’t earn God’s acceptance. He wants to receive you as his child.
 
Jesus said 2000 years ago and he is still saying to you today:
 
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NLT

Put your life in His hands today. He will not let you down.

He is waiting at this moment to hear your voice.

He is the all-knowing God.

He reads your thoughts like a book that is well known to Him. But He doesn't want to be a threatening policeman, He wants to be like your father or your mother or your best friend.

It is not important to speak fine words or say a beautiful pious prayer.
     
Just tell him the thoughts that are in your heart. He understands your heart and your language.

Miraculous Death Bed Conversion

 Has your life never gone wrong? I've often messed up and often had bad experiences. You probably have too. When we seem like innocent angels as babies, we don't stay that way for long.

Before my conversion, I was in a fix with no way out.
Many people come to faith in a crisis.

But after we discover Jesus, are the crises finally gone for good? Unfortunately not.
But we have to learn to trust God even in crises. Yes, we can learn to thank Jesus for the hard times. Why?

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;

perseverance, character; and character, hope.

And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Ro 5:1–5 NIV

I came to Jesus at a traumatic time and I have also come closer to Jesus through suffering.
Jesus is very familiar with crises and trials and he knows very well how to lead us through the darkness.

Jesus was rejected, despised, lonely, tortured and unjustly executed. He understands all our difficulties and disappointments.

My father was 70 years old and his lungs were dangerously damaged. He had been smoking 40 cigarettes a day for years and he had been suffering from emphysema, where you slowly and irresistibly lose your breath.

The lungs no longer work and you are suffocated by the disease. My father had two older brothers who had the same disease. One died at the age of 59 and the other at 65.

He was not yet a believer and had no hope in heaven. I begged God to save my father. Finally, I began to ask God that mine would not die until he believed.

He retired at the age of 79. At 85, he had to be cared for in a nursing home. At 88, he believed and made peace with God.

When he was 90 years old, I asked God to finally let my father die because he was partially blind and demented and his life was full of suffering and pain.

When he turned 91, I thought of Psalm 91:16.

‘I will satisfy him with long life and let him see my salvation.’ 

Then I said to God, ‘What if you could take my father to heaven exactly 16 days after his 91st birthday.’

And that is exactly what happened.

God Transforms your Past

 “Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. Is 54:4 NIV

God remembers everything in your life, the good, the bad and the ugly.
But doesn't the Bible say that God forgets your sins when he forgives you?

God chooses not to consider your forgiven sin as sin. But God keeps a record of everything in your history for a different purpose.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Ro 8:28 NIV

God keeps a record of your whole life to heal the wounds in your soul.

Better yet, God uses the wrong and traumatic experiences in your life to bless you and others.

When Moses died, Joshua took over the leadership of Israel.
Before the Israelites miraculously crossed the Jordan, Joshua sent spies to Jericho.

They narrowly escaped capture when they fled to a brothel. The prostitute Rahab protected them because she believed in the God of Israel.

When the city of Jericho fell, Rahab's house was preserved and she was welcomed in Israel as a convert to the true God.

She became the grandmother of King David's grandfather.
Rahab is one of only four women listed in Jesus' family tree in the Gospel of Matthew.

Jesus said to the self-righteous Jewish religious leaders:

... “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. Mt 21:31 NIV

How many prostitutes have been encouraged by the story of Rahab to respond to God's love?

God uses the records of our past lives to bless us and others.

I once heard a very interesting preacher. He told the story of a church made up mostly of converted former prostitutes. They were wonderful street evangelists.

    As prostitutes, they had pursued men with shameless boldness. God used that same shameless boldness to make them marvellous evangelists.

God forgets the sinfulness of your sin, but He uses your sinful past to bring about amazing miracles.

Love is a Choice

 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

God sent His only Son into this world to rescue us from our self-destruction. God’s original purpose for us all, is that we know him as our creator, who loves us and cares for every aspect of our lives.

Why didn't God just make us perfectly good and leave it at that?

Then none of us would turn bad. None of us would kill or steal. We would never mess up our lives with useless addictions.

In fact, God did make the first man and woman perfect and good.

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Ge 1:27 NIV

God is perfectly kind, loving and good. So the first man and woman were created fully formed with the same character as their loving creator: kind, loving and good.

Even today, we can see imperfect manifestations of God’s goodness in many people.

We see faithful couples, loving mothers, skilful doctors who care for their patients, judges who do their best to be fair. Not all politicians and rulers are corrupt.

So why did people go wrong?

God created men and women with his own nature.

One essential aspect of God’s nature is his freedom to make decisions. God did not have to create anything or anybody. He freely chose to create everything, and everybody, including you and me.

If we are created in the image of God, we must also have this essential attribute of God, the ability to make decisions, to marry or stay single, to love or hate, to obey or disobey.

When God created the first man and woman, he put them in a garden full of fruit trees. They could choose to eat any fruit except one, the fruit of the forbidden tree. They had to make a choice, whether to trust and obey God or to disobey.

True love is always a choice. A newborn baby feels the love of its mother and returns that love, but as boys and girls grow up, they must choose to love their parents, or they can rebel and make bad choices. 

We must also choose to forgive our parents, which can be a serious problem.

God did not make us as perfect computers, infallibly programmed to do what we were programmed to do. God made you and me to be unique individuals who mature by making good choices.

When we love as God wants us to love, it is always a choice.

What will you choose today?

We have all inherited a degree of corruption from our parents, and we have all been exposed to bad influences by the world we live in. 

We don’t live in a perfect relationship with God because the first man and woman ate the forbidden fruit and passed on a corrupted nature to all generations.

But God knows all things. He saw that we would misuse our free will. Free will involves rewards for good choices and bad consequences for bad choices. By distancing ourselves from the only source of love and goodness, we are all doomed to die and continue in the next life without any hope or goodness.

God is the God of justice. He did not want to punish us. He sent His own eternal son into this world to pay the penalty for our sin. If we turn to Jesus, we will be forgiven and given a new life, life in the image of our creator.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.  Jn 3:16 NIV

Loving and trusting are choices. Believing in Jesus is a choice. How will you choose today?

Freedom from Real and False Guilt

 Psychologists warn us about the toxic effects of guilt. But many preachers condemn psychologists because they want to explain away feelings of guilt as neuroses, instead of recognising our guilt in God's eyes.

In reality, all people are guilty because we disrespect God and treat our fellow human beings unjustly.
 
When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they immediately became guilty because they disobeyed God.

But their feelings of guilt were also partly neurotic and false. They were ashamed to be naked, even though it was not a sin to be naked together as man and wife.

The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.

And the LORD God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;

but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.” Ge 2:15–17 NRSV

Then Eve was deceived by the devil's lies.

But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not die;

for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Ge 3:4–5 NRSV

That was a lie. Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, and immediately they became unable to properly discern good from evil, because it was not a sin to be naked.

We still see this confusion. There are women in Africa who walk around with bare breasts without feeling guilty, and there are women in the Middle East who feel guilty if they don't wear a headscarf.

Jesus died on the cross to free us from our sin and guilt.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Is 53:6 NRSV

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 Jn 1:8–9 NRSV

But many Christians confess their sins and still remain burdened by feelings of guilt. They still feel guilty, even though God promises that their sins are forgiven.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Ro 8:1 NRSV

They are plagued by shame, unworthiness and self-loathing.

A woman sins or is raped and has an unwanted child. The child always feels unwanted and rejected. Children like this often feel responsible for their mother's suffering

The child feels guilty about his or her own existence. If the child then really does sin, there is never any forgiveness in his own eyes.

It is well known that women who have been abused or raped are often rejected and judged by others. They then feel guilty, even though they were actually victims.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they broke off their close relationship with God. Without a loving relationship with God, they could not clearly distinguish between good and evil.

Are you burdened by guilt and shame? Jesus wants to invite you to come to him so that he can forgive you completely and heal your deeply wounded soul.

“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NRSV