Nothing Greater Than Grace (song)

Afraid? Of What? (poem)

 Afraid? Of what?
To feel the spirit’s glad release?
To pass from pain to perfect peace,
The strife and strain of life to cease?
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
Afraid to see the Saviour’s face,
To hear His welcome, and to trace,
The glory gleam from wounds of grace,
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
A flash – a crash – a pierced heart;
Brief darkness – Light – O Heaven’s art!
A wound of His a counterpart!
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
To enter into Heaven’s rest,
And yet to serve the Master blessed?
From service good to service best?
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
To do by death what life could not –
Baptize with blood a stony plot,
Till souls shall blossom from the spot?
Afraid? Of that?

-E.H. Hamilton

Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Mug Cake recipe

 If you ever want to make a simple, one person, chocolate lava cake.

Ingredients:

• 2 TBS butter
• 2 TBS chocolate chips
• 2 TBS sugar
• 4 TBS flour
• 1 TBS dark cocoa powder
• 3 TBS milk
• pinch of salt
• 2 TBS peanut butter chips

Directions:

Use a large wide coffee mug, about 10 oz is a good size, and make certain that it is microwave safe.

Add butter and chocolate chips to your coffee mug and microwave for 15 seconds. Stir together with a fork until it is all liquid.

Mix in the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, and milk until it resembles a cake batter. You will want to scrape the sides to ensure there is nothing stuck there that didn't get mixed in.

Drop the peanut butter chips on top and press them down under the top of the dough. You don't have to push them all the way to the bottom of the cup.

Microwave for 60 to 70 seconds.

Remove from microwave and let cool for at least 5 minutes before eating. Since there's no eggs, you can use the same fork to eat it with as you did to mix it all together!

You can dust the top with powdered sugar if you like, but I prefer mine as is.

Distractions Of The Devil (video sermon)

Are You A Leader Or A Follower?

 Reading through the Bible, you might find yourself wondering how the Israelites were constantly falling into sin with idolatry. Even from the very beginning of their exodus to the Promised Land, they had trouble with going astray.

The Children of Israel watched Moses go into the mountain to talk with God. They saw the clouds descend and heard the trumpet of a voice. And yet, once Moses had been gone for a small amount of time, they wanted something they could see to worship.

Exodus 32:1- And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.

How is it that the people who saw the 10 plagues decimate Egypt, watched as the Red Sea parted and then engulfed their enemies, and observed the great I AM overshadow a mountain could so quickly turn and make a new god?

Hebrews 12:18-21- For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

The Lord's glory was still overshadowing the mountain that Moses went up and they were impatient and ready for Aaron to make them an idol. Why?

Perhaps it is because they were following Moses, not God. When the plagues were poured out on Egypt, they saw Moses contending with Pharaoh. They put the blood on the doorpost because Moses told them to, not because they believed what God had said would happen. When the Red Sea opened, they viewed it as something Moses with his staff made possible. The thundering on Mount Sinai didn't hold their awe because they weren't looking to God, but to a man.

I think this is why there are so many Christians out of the will of God. Perhaps they were genuine when they asked the Lord to save them. Maybe they were faithful to church attendance when they were under their parents. They possibly had standards, read their Bibles, and even took time to pray when another believer encouraged them to do so.

But in the end, they fell away because the person they were obeying was no longer in their lives. They hadn't built a relationship with God. They were following a human. 

Is it wrong to follow a godly person? No, not at first.

I Corinthians 11:1- Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

But eventually you have to be able to stand on your own two feet. 

Ephesians 5:1- Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

It's the difference between these two states of being (following a man or following Christ) that determines whether a person will remain faithful years down the road or will fall by the wayside when the going gets tough.

It's hard, as a parent, to know how to encourage a relationship between your child and the Lord. You can give them good books, take them to church, be an example, but ultimately it will be their decision as to whether or not they seek Him.

These Israelites had witnessed the greatest display of God’s power and yet they didn’t become believers in God. Instead, their eyes were on Moses and when he wasn’t around they wandered away from the right path. Witnessing miracles doesn’t guarantee faith.

Deuteronomy 4:9-14- Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children. And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.

It’s natural for most people to want a leader to follow. Our public school system has been training children for years to be good obedient followers. True leaders are very few and far between. And godly leaders are even more scarce.

Moses understood how these people were. He asked God to give them another leader before he died.

Numbers 27:15-17- And Moses spake unto the LORD, saying, Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.

God acknowledged Moses' prayer and put Joshua forth as the new leader to guide them into the Promised Land. But after their brilliant conquest, Joshua failed to pass the torch to another. It wasn't all his fault, the people had failed to become their own spiritual leaders.

Isn’t it interesting that people will willingly follow a flawed man and yet they have trouble obeying a perfect God? I am very thankful for the good leaders, pastors, and teachers that have been in my life, but eventually I had to step out on my own and decide for myself to be a disciple of Christ. I had to learn to study for myself.

II Timothy 2:15- Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Those who choose to follow a man will soon stumble when that person falls into sin or apostasy.

The Israelites tell Aaron to make them an idol because the man that led them out of Egypt was nowhere to be seen. They wanted another thing to follow, another person to lead, while the whole time they rejected the God who worked on their behalf. They disregarded God who had done so much for them while they gathered the manna He still provided and enjoyed the freedom His miracles afforded them.

Are we not the same? God has given us life, health, a family, food, jobs, freedoms, safety, and a Savior, still we often find ourselves searching for something else to satisfy our lusts.

Jesus ascended into heaven and told the Christians that He’d be back. Like Moses going up the mountain, He never gave a timeframe. Many have turned to the world because He’s taking longer than they anticipated. 

I Thessalonians 6:6-10- And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing. For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

Oh that God would grant us and our children a heart like those in Thessalonica! That they would become leaders who spread the Word of God to all those around as they wait for His return, and not just wishy washy followers who endure for a moment and then fall by the wayside.

I'm A Good Person

Satan is not opposed to good morals.

He’s opposed to Jesus Christ.

Read that again because most Christians miss this completely.

Satan doesn’t care if you’re a “good person.” He doesn’t care if you volunteer at the food bank, recycle your trash, and help old ladies cross the street. He doesn’t care if you’re kind, generous, and well-liked by everyone in your community.

He cares that you don’t bow the knee to Jesus.

Here’s the deception that’s damning millions:

Satan has convinced people that morality equals spirituality. That being a “good person” is the same as being a Christian. That if you just live right, treat people well, and avoid the “big sins,” you’re acceptable to God.

This is a lie straight from the pit of hell.

James 2:10- For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

The Pharisees had impeccable morals. They followed the law meticulously. They were respected, disciplined, and religiously devoted.

​

Jesus called them children of the devil.

John 8:44- Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Why? Not because their morals were bad, but because their morals replaced Christ.
Satan’s greatest trick isn’t making bad people worse. It’s making good people think they don’t need a Savior.

Think about it:

The atheist who feeds the homeless thinks he’s good enough without God.

The Buddhist who meditates and practices compassion thinks she’s enlightened without Christ.

The Muslim who prays five times daily thinks he’s righteous without Jesus.

The morally person who goes to church, pays his tithe, and avoids scandal thinks he’s saved without surrender.

All of them are headed to the same place: eternal separation from God.

Because morality doesn’t save. Jesus saves.

Ephesians 2:8-9- 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.

Satan loves moral people who reject Jesus. They’re his best advertisement for the lie that you can earn your way to heaven.

They’re living proof that you can:

• Be kind without Christ
• Be generous without God
• Be disciplined without the Holy Spirit
• Be religious without redemption

And still be LOST.

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.

The most disappointed people in hell won’t be the murderers and rapists. They’ll be the moral, upstanding citizens who thought their goodness was good enough.

Their morals became their idol. Their goodness became their god.

And Satan smiled because he’d accomplished his goal: Keep them from Jesus.

Titus 3:5a- Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us

Here’s what most Christians don’t understand:

Satan doesn’t need to make you do bad things. He just needs to keep you from doing the ONE thing that matters: surrendering to Christ.

If he can get you to:

• Trust your morals instead of Christ’s sacrifice
• Rely on YOUR goodness instead of GOD’s grace
• Believe in your works instead of Jesus’ finished work

He’s won.

You can live a moral life and still die lost. You can be a good person and still face judgment. You can avoid all the “big sins” and still end up separated from God forever. Because the ONLY SIN THAT DAMNS YOU ETERNALLY is rejecting Jesus Christ.

“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John 3:36

The murderer who repents and believes in Christ is NOT damned.

The thief who turns to Jesus on the cross is NOT damned.

The prostitute who washes Jesus’ feet with her tears is NOT damned.

The moral, religious person who rejects Christ IS damned.

That’s why Satan loves morality without Jesus. It sends people to hell with a smile on their face, convinced they were good enough.

Stop trusting your morals. Start trusting Jesus.

John 10:9- I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

Your goodness won’t save you. Your works won’t redeem you. Your morality won’t justify you.

Only the blood of Jesus Christ can wash away your sin and make you acceptable to a holy God.

Colossians 1:14- In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Everything else is just Satan’s distraction from the one thing that actually matters.

Luke 13:27- But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.

Romans 10:13- For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Lying In A Manger (song)