The Way: A Highway of Salvation enhanced study

Introduction:

It is my desire in this compilation of Scriptures to provide a clear road map to salvation devoid of church tradition which is full of the false teachings of men. 

2 Timothy 3:16

16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 

Hebrews 11:6
New King James Version (NKJV)

6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. 

Our Condition

Romans 5:8⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 3:23²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 3:10¹⁰ As it is written:“There is no one righteous, not even one;

 

Consequences of Being Lost:

 

Revelation 20:11-15 

The Judgment of the Dead 

¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. ¹² And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. ¹³ The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. ¹⁴ Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. ¹⁵ Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Romans 6:23²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in^[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Christ’s Compassion for the Lost

 

Luke 24:44-49⁴⁴ He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”⁴⁵ Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. ⁴⁶ He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, ⁴⁷ and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

Romans 5:8⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

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

1 John 3:15-17¹⁵ Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.¹⁶ This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?

2 Corinthians 5:21²¹ God made him who had no sin to be sin^[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1. Or be a sin offering

The Word (Bible) = God = Jesus

John 1:1-14 

The Word Became Flesh 

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning.³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome^[a] it.⁶ There was a man sent from God whose name was John. ⁷ He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. ⁸ He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.⁹ The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. ¹¹ He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.¹² Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— ¹³ children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.¹⁴ The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Be Born Again

John 3:3-8 

Jesus Teaches Nicodemus 

3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. ² He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”³ Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.^[a]” no one can have spiritual vision (insight) without a revelation from God.
⁴ “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”⁵ Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. ⁶ Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit^[b] gives birth to spirit. ⁷ You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You^[c] must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”^[d]

Sound in v. 8 also means language (Fulfillment at the day of Pentecost)

I used red and blue colors for water and spirit because traditional doctrine indicates that this section is a comparison - water to natural birth, spirit in contrast to birth from above or by the spirit (as in regeneration).  We will get to that in a moment.  

Barnes' Notes on the Bible:

Be born of water - By "water," here, is evidently signified "baptism." Thus the word is used in Ephesians 5:26; Titus 3:5. Baptism was practiced by the Jews in receiving a Gentile as a proselyte. It was practiced by John among the Jews; and Jesus here says that it is an ordinance of his religion, and the sign and seal of the renewing influences of his Spirit. So he said Mark 16:16, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." It is clear from these places, and from the example of the apostles Act 2:38, Acts 2:41; Acts 8:12-13, Acts 8:36, Acts 8:38; Acts 9:18; Acts 10:47-48; Acts 16:15, Acts 16:33; Acts 18:8; Acts 22:16; Galatians 3:27, that they considered this ordinance as binding on all who professed to love the Lord Jesus. And though it cannot be said that none who are not baptized can be saved, yet Jesus meant, undoubtedly, to be understood as affirming that this was to be the regular and uniform way of entering into his church; that it was the appropriate mode of making a profession of religion; and that a man who neglected this, when the duty was made known to him, neglected a plain command of God. It is clear, also, that any other command of God might as well be neglected or violated as this, and that it is the duty of everyone not only to love the Saviour, but to make an acknowledgment of that love by being baptized, and by devoting himself thus to his service.

But, lest Nicodemus should suppose that this was all that was meant, he added that it was necessary that he should "be born of the Spirit" also. This was predicted of the Saviour, that he should "baptize with the Holy Ghost and with fire," Matthew 3:11. By this is clearly intended that the heart must be changed by the agency of the Holy Spirit; that the love of sin must be abandoned; that man must repent of crime and turn to God; that he must renounce all his evil propensities, and give himself to a life of prayer and holiness, of meekness, purity, and benevolence. This great change is in the Scripture ascribed uniformly to the Holy Spirit, Titus 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; Romans 5:5; 1 Peter 1:22.

Cannot enter into - This is the way, the appropriate way, of entering into the kingdom of the Messiah here and hereafter. He cannot enter into the true church here, or into heaven in the world to come, except in connection with a change of heart, and by the proper expression of that change in the ordinances appointed by the Saviour.

source:  http://bible.cc/john/3-5.htm

 ... of the Spirit

Acts 2 

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost 

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues^[a] as the Spirit enabled them.

…and of water

 

Mark 16:15-17 

¹⁵ He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ¹⁶ Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

To believe in the Greek implies action.  It is not a passive agreement with the information given, but produces an action on the part of the believer.  Faith and deeds go hand-in-hand!

Faith without works is Dead

James 2:18-20 

¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.²⁰ You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless^[a]? ²¹ Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³ And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”^[e] and he was called God’s friend. ²⁴ You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.²⁵ In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? ²⁶ As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

You are a New Creation

2 Corinthians 5:17¹⁷ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:^[a] The old has gone, the new is here! (regenerated)

Peter is given the keys to the kingdom of Heaven

Matthew 16:17-19Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter,^[a] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades^[b] will not overcome it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be^[c] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be^[d] loosed in heaven.”

The promise of the Holy Spirit is given just prior to Jesus’ ascension

Acts 1:3-5
³ After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. ⁴ On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with^[a] water, but in a few days you will be baptized with^[b] the Holy Spirit.”

You will receive power

Acts 1:8⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:¹⁷ “‘In the last days, God says,    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.Your sons and daughters will prophesy,    your young men will see visions,    your old men will dream dreams.

Peter preaches the gospel and the keys he’s been given are now
shared with everyone starting in Jerusalem:

Acts 2:37-39
³⁷ When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”³⁸ Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

Which is the fulfillment of Jesus’ command, the Great Commission, given to (all) disciples:

Matthew 28:19¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

In examining the grammatical structure of this sentence, it is worth noting that 1) name is singular and 2) ‘of the’ is a prepositional phrase each pointing back to this one name.  That name is given above in Peter’s command to the crowd.  3,000 believers (who are shown faithful by their works) were baptized that day.

Acts 4:8-12

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 Jesus is

“‘the stone you builders rejected, 
    which has become the cornerstone.’[a]12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”  

Next, we may read about the Apostles’ administration of the plan of salvation in the early church:  until the church age ends, this plan is still in effect, in other words, relevant for you today no matter what you may have learned up until now.  It was called ‘the Way.’  From this we know that there is truly only one way to eternal life, not multiple ways leading to the same glorious end as the world would have you understand!

Acts 8:12-17 

¹² But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. ¹³ Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.¹⁴ When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria.¹⁵ When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, ¹⁶ because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

Acts 10:44-48 

⁴⁴ While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. ⁴⁵ The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. ⁴⁶ For they heard them speaking in tongues^[a] and praising God. Then Peter said, ⁴⁷ “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” ⁴⁸ So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.

Acts 19:1-7 

Paul in Ephesus19 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples ² and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when^[a] you believed?”They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”  

³ So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?”“John’s baptism,” they replied. 

⁴ Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” ⁵ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues^[b] and prophesied. ⁷ There were about twelve men in all.

Titus 3:3-7

 ³ At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. ⁴ But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, ⁵ he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, ⁶ whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷ so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

We see in that passage that we are heirs of grace and mercy.  Remember the Lord's compassion on the lost?

Romans 6:3-4

³Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

Yes, you can have a new life!

Romans 8:1-5

Life Through the Spirit8 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ² because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you^[a] free from the law of sin and death. ³ For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,^[b] God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.^[c] And so he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.⁵ Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

The hope of eternal life!

Romans 8:9-11 

 ⁹ You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. ¹⁰ But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life^[a] because of righteousness. ¹¹ And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of^[b]his Spirit who lives in you.

Know that God loves you and nothing can separate you from his love!

Romans 8:35-39

³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:“For your sake we face death all day long;    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”^[a]37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Is it important to attend church if I proclaim to be a believer?  Yes.  Now you also know the difference between a church of ‘the Way’ and one that is not.  A church led by the Spirit will also help you mature as you ought.  Read all of Ephesians for more information.

Ephesians 4:1-13

1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. ² Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. ³ Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. ⁴ There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism; ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.⁷ But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. ⁸ This is why it^[a] says:“When he ascended on high,    he took many captives    and gave gifts to his people.”^[b]9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions^[c]? ¹⁰ He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) ¹¹ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, ¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Colossians 2:8-9 

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces^[a] of this world rather than on Christ.⁹ For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,

(Jesus was crucified for his claims of deity – he was God robed in human flesh)

For those who know the Lord, there is no mystery! 

1 Timothy 3:16

¹⁶ Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great:He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit,^[a]was seen by angels, was preached among the nations,was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.

Jesus is patient and he loves you!

Revelation 3:20

 ²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

If you believe and are ready to demonstrate your faith (that you believe), this invitation is for you:

Acts 22:14-16

¹⁴ “Then he said: ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. ¹⁵ You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard. ¹⁶ And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’

What failure teaches about leadership

Failure is a funny thing... one has to examine - did I fail to meet expectations, did I not understand the objective, have I failed to communicate and mitigate outcomes appropriately or am I really just incapable of the task at hand?

I can tell you that I had a tough experience with failure several years ago, but it did launch me on the road to understanding real leadership.  I had basically come to a spiritual crossroads (unbeknownst to me) but was faced with an opportunity to cave or submit.  A professor in college once told me that without submission, there can be no learning.  The first step to learning is doing what you are told (the way you are told to do it).  Then when you achieve success at that level, you can take your experience to develop your own theories. 

So, my tale of going from failure to leadership is one where submission was the key to unlocking a breakthrough.  I went from Corporate loser to the owner telling me, after I resigned to take another job, that they could not do without me!  The first 18 months of my employment with this company were a disaster.  As I was learning to apply my technology education and experience toward the field of e-commerce marketing, I was marked a failure by my employers and colleagues.  Complaints ranged from not working fast enough, my efforts weren't producing the sales figures they felt we should be garnering (results they expected from items selling less than $20 ea., and a good portion of those under $5 ea.) and there was just a general pressure to do more, better. 

I knew that I was doing my job correctly and effectively and that the company needed to make investments if they wanted to produce better results, but they would not listen so I was forced to do what I could without any resources.  At the end of this road I only found probation and the threat of being fired.  I was forced to produce weekly reports of all my work, justifying why I was doing particular activities and keep a running project list of them all.  It was tedious and humiliating.   There were days when I'd drive in to work and have to wipe away tears from stress and frustration because we could not afford for me to quit this job either. 

So, I turned to leaders in my church.  They were well aware of my struggles and I told them I just could not understand why I was going through such extreme punishment.  In love, these people told me point blank I was experiencing a spiritual test.  I was never taught about such things.  They explained to me that I should not worry and that what I was going through was most likely unfair for what needed to take place, but submission (to the Lord) was what was needed to turn the situation around.  They explained to me that the Bible says we are to submit to our leaders, pray for them and do everything they ask me to do, unless it was sinful, of course.  So, I did everything I was asked.  I was able to work more closely with my Supervisor as a result of his 'weekly report' requirement.  I began to not only pray for my Supervisor, but I asked the Lord to open his eyes - to see my real intentions as an employee, that I really was working in a manner that represented the long-term, best interests on behalf of the Company.  Not long after this prayer, my Supervisor admitted to me those very words!  He said 'Catherine, I now see that really you do work for the best interests of the Company.'  Don't you know you could have knocked me over with a feather! 

It took about three months to turn this situation around.  Even the owner held me in high esteem, probably thanks to the reports he was getting from my Supervisor.  Still, I did not feel my position was really maximizing my capabilities as an employee and I wished to move elsewhere for higher pay and more opportunities.  With much prayer and some fasting, I did secure another job in the county and within a one year period between raises I got from my old employer to changing to a new employer, my salary nearly doubled! 

I had learned one of the key ingredients for leadership - submission!  The Bible teaches us that Jesus is the ultimate example of leadership.  He is what we call a servant-leader.  This type of person (some circles would call this type of communication style or personality a shepherd or feeler) leads by example, their demeanor is full of understanding and love, yet when it's time to draw they line, they can with all due reason and fairness. 

Yes, Jesus is my savior, my teacher and my example of true leadership - even as a woman in the Corporate world!

When you are weak

I stand amazed at how the Body of Christ works!  Truly if you are connected to a body of believers who are submitted to the Word of God, prayer and faith can move mountains!  Recent news upset me so much that I have been too shocked emotionally speaking to think too much on the problem.  I turned to my friends in the church for help and submitted to several believers a call to prayer.  The Lord is answering that prayer and the person receiving the benefit of the Lord's work credits prayer with the reason for the turnaround of events.  Yes, professionals are stumped as to why this person's condition is improving, but we are not shocked at what God is able to do!

Sometimes in life you are just hit sideways with a situation and you are just shocked to your core - at least I have experienced this in my life.  Intellectually you know that prayer and fasting are in order, but you just cannot bring yourself to do it.  Perhaps it's a lack of discipline, lack of vision or obedience or perhaps it is so awful one needs to just cry out to the Lord but in this particular situation - I was just left numb and spiritually speechless.

I stood in for anointing, I offered up prayers and I shed some tears, but not like I have for other similar situations and I cannot say why, really, other than I am just in utter shock not knowing what God's will is for the outcome.

So, I am grateful for others who have been strong for me.  I am grateful that the person directly affected has at least faith enough to believe in a Big God who still does miracles and I am grateful for our God who is loyal and faithful no matter what!

Each time someone asks you to pray for a situation they are dealing with, take a moment.  It may be that they are too shocked to do it for themselves and they have put their trust in you to put a spiritual arm of support around them as part of the Body of Christ!  God bless the compassionate!

A Useless Mousetrap?

I really enjoy listening to Christian Radio as a regular, if not daily practice.  I find the sermons and teaching to be uplifting and helpful in maintaining my walk with the Lord.  Not all of it is inclusive of the gospel teachings, but careful study of the Word generally weeds out the good from the 'distracted.'

One of my favorite programs is 'Revive Our Hearts' with author and teacher Nancy Leigh DeMoss.  I really enjoy her teaching and have gained much insight regarding Godly womanhood.  I find her style to be thoughtful and to reflect a meditative style that inspires me.

On today's program (December 27th, 2011),  she provided some thoughts about the importance of the Christmas season and its relation to our Salvation - the true meaning (for celebration) during this season.

Many embrace the traditions of Christmas:  the exchange of gifts, feasting with family and friends, celebration of our family traditions amidst caroling, sending cards and well wishes to all we know.  So, it is not surprising to me that many of us have lost the meaning behind these traditions.  If Christmas either holds little spiritual meaning or impact, if any, for you today, you have lost on what used to be a commonly understood truth:  that our human condition is fallen and is in need of a savior.  With the arrival of the Christ child, all humanity had reason to celebrate!  Here was the Messiah born to save us from our sins!

With that, we traditionally celebrate 12 days of Christmas up to the King's Day or the day believed to mark the discovery of the child by the Magi, who, following a star, presented the Holy Child with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  Many considered this meeting highly significant because a group of Gentile men recognized God in the flesh as our Lord.  As a side note, however, if you study the lineage of Jesus, Gentile blood was already part of his earthly heritage - but God is gracious to make sure without a doubt that His message is for the World and not any one particular group of people.

Yes, salvation through Him is a freely given gift to all humanity!  But as I posted in my last blog entry, salvation is for many an unopened gift.  In today's message by Nancy, she quotes another writer who spoke of a 'useless mousetrap.'  There were several illustrations of gifts given to serve a particular purpose for which the recipient had no use - a ride to the emergency room, safety from thieves in a police car and a mousetrap.  If you have no threatening illness, you don't need a ride to the emergency room, however, if you are writhing with pain, such an offer would be a Godsend!  If you are unaware that around the corner from you awaits a gang of thugs looking to mug someone, refuge in a police car seems unnecessary.  Likewise, if you have no mice in your house, a mousetrap is completely useless to you.

As a Christian, this illustration reminds me (and humbles me) that as well-intentioned as my witnessing may be, if the hearer's life is going fine, they may view a relationship with God as a 'useless mousetrap.'  Thus, without a visible need (aka brokenness) and without that person's awareness of his true human condition; salvation, the gospel message and even the Bible are all useless mousetraps.  It is prudent, therefore, to prayerfully ask the Lord to put people on my path who understand their fallen state so that I might use the right words in providing comfort and truth into the lives of those who are ripe to know Him.

Friend, if you are one who thinks the gospel is a 'useless mousetrap' then what I have to offer here may seem just as useless.  But nevertheless, I encourage you to consider times when you may have ever admitted 'I am not perfect' either in jest or in justification of your behavior.  If you have, start there.

You are not perfect, and the reality is that even if you know Christ, you are not perfect either!  The difference between these two individuals, however, is that the one who has a full relationship with Christ, as His child, has the only perfect one standing in his place so that they are not judged for all their imperfect ways!  In this way, His perfect life can be substituted for yours and make right all your wrongs and shortcomings.

And while I do not encourage any 'formulaic' method for coming to Christ, an understanding of why you need a savior and how you may become a Child of the risen Lord is in order.  Knowing your lineage, your family history is important.  Knowing your spiritual heritage and spiritual lineage is as well.

If you are willing to trust in Him and wish to become one of His children, please read Jesus' own words in John, Chapter 3, particularly versus 3-5 and then Acts 2, particularly verses 37-39 which you can find at http://www.biblegateway.com/ to know how the Apostles' answered the crowd when they, too, wanted to know - what must we do!

May God draw upon your heart, dear reader!