Today's Memory Verse

I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:7

Has heaven rejoiced over you yet? Today can be the day...

Today's Memory Verse

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. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. ~ John 3:16-18

"I don't need to be saved..."

Jesus is not a good luck charm. He is not a prescription for life enhancement. He is the Savior. But often I hear people say, "I don't need to be 'saved'..."

Part of the problem is that most of these people think that being "saved" means being rescued from their current miserable life. If things are going fine now (or even just moderately well) and they think Jesus is all about life enhancement, then this statement makes sense. However, that is not what Jesus "saves" people from.

Quite bluntly, Jesus saves people from Hell. In many cases, salvation from Hell produces radical life changes in this present life. But you need not be addicted to heroin to need to be "saved". In order to need to be "saved", you must be a Law breaker. If you've never broken the Law, then you need not fear Hell.

God's moral law can be easily summed up in the 10 Commandments (found in Exodus 20). Here's the short version:

1. No other gods but YHWH
2. No idols
3. No misuse of the name of YHWH (blasphemy)
4. Keep the Sabbath holy
5. Honor mom and dad
6. Do not murder
7. Do not commit adultery
8. Do not steal
9. Do not lie
10. Do not covet

Keep in mind that these are God's commandments. They are not suggestions. They are not the "10 it would be nice if you got around to it's". They are commands from the Creator of the universe. Our human notions of justice demand that law breakers receive punishment. God's Law is no different.

Have you ever used "Jesus" or "God" in any way other than what brings honor to them? Ever used these names as a cuss word? Jesus said, But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken (Matthew 12:36).

Perhaps you've never blasphemed ... have you ever misled another person? You may call it a "white lie" or a "half-truth" or "fib" ... but God's Word calls it lying. In fact, if I walked up to you and told you a "half-truth" and you caught me in it, what would you call me? If you can see that I'd be a liar, what makes it any different for you?

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)

This is bad news. The sexually immoral are on this list too. You may say, "I've never committed adultery, and that's the only sexual commandment listed!" Jesus said, You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:27-28). Ouch. Apparently, God's standard holds us accountable in word, thought, and deed ... not just deed like our human authorities.

That's only three of the commandments (blasphemy, lying, and adultery), there are seven more. Maybe you've broken these three ... but you may say, "I haven't broken all of them ... at least I'm not a murderer!" Jesus said, You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment (Matthew 5:21-22). Jesus is putting anger on the same par with murder. The bible tells us in 1 John 3:15a, Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer.... Remember, our thoughts and attitudes are judged too. What's the verdict of having hatred towards our brother? The verse continues, ...and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him (3:15b).

So how'd you do according to these commandments? Perhaps you've done better than me (I've broken each commandment, if not in deed then in word or thought), but God's Word doesn't give much hope for anyone who's broken even one commandment: For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it (James 2:10). If we've broken one commandment, according to God's judgment we're guilty of all of it.

But what if you've done a bunch of good stuff ... won't that outweigh the bad? Would a human judge allow a murderer off the hook, simply because he gave a bunch of money to charity or served food at a soup kitchen twice a week? Of course not! Do you get credit for not robbing a bank every time you go? No! You just get punished if you do rob it.

Jesus said, Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty (Luke 17:9-10). We don't get credit for being kind to one another or abstaining from overt acts of sin ... we're commanded to do those things!

Our attempts to persuade God with our "good deeds" so that he'll overlook our transgressions will never work. A parent guilty of neglect of their children couldn't bribe the judge by saying, "Come on judge, I fed my kids every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday ... surely that's good enough for you to overlook my crimes!" We don't get credit for doing what we're supposed to do.

Salvation isn't about happiness, it's about righteousness. Every one of us will die some day, and when we die we will face judgment (see Hebrews 9:27 and Proverbs 11:4).

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).

Be reconciled to God. Today can be the day of your salvation. Jesus is alive today, and if you've trusted in Him for you salvation you can be confident that you will be saved on the Day of Judgment (see Romans 10:9-13). Read your bible everyday and get involved in a local church.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness (2 Peter 3:10-13).

Hallelujah.

The Marriage Feast

In Luke 22:1-14 Jesus tells the chief priests and the pharisees the parable of the Marriage Feast. This parable is both difficult and informative, telling the reader/hearer much about the kingdom of heaven.

We know that Jesus is speaking about the kingdom of heaven in this parable because He explicitly says so in v. 2: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son." In keeping with the nature of parables, it is critical to keep in mind the original audience in order to best understand the points of reference in the parable. Although the story being told is fictional, it communicates truth about the kingdom of heaven and should evoke a response in the hearers (much like a joke elicits a laugh ... at least a good one does!). So far, we have two characters in view: The King and his son. These characters can be identified as God the Father and God the Son (Jesus).

Jesus continues: And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. Again he sent out other slaves saying, "Tell those who have been invited, 'Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.'" But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them (vv. 3-6).

We see that the king (God the Father) sends his slaves (prophets) to invite guests (the Jews, God's chosen people) to the wedding feast (the kingdom of heaven). However, instead of accepting the invitation these invitees are "unwilling to come." The king sends more messengers declaring that everything is ready for them (the Jews), yet they pay "no attention" and go "their own way." Some even mistreat and kill the messengers who were sent to them (e.g. Jeremiah and Jesus). We must remember that Jesus is telling this parable to the chief priests and pharisees ... the religious leaders of the Jews at the time. This is surely a pointed statement!

Notice the reaction of the king to his invitation being declined/dishonored and his slaves/messengers being mistreated and killed: But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire (v. 7).

Jesus continues: Then he [the king] said to his slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast' (vv.8-9). We see here a clear shift in the invitation to the marriage feast/kingdom of heaven. We see that this is a common thread running through the biblical witness: salvation comes first to the Jews, then to the Gentiles (see Acts 18:6; and Romans 1:16, 2:9-10). Because those who were first invited to the feast have declined the invitation, the king has opened the doors to others. The feast will go on ... someone will partake of the goodness of the king! We see this coming true in v. 10: Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.

This verse contains an interesting statement from Jesus, in that the slaves gathered all the people they could find, "both evil and good." For those who are willing to come, God's grace and mercy extends to them all. There is no one, no one, who is beyond forgivable to God. There are two major requirements to being allowed to come to the feast, and we see the first here: we must accept the invitation and come willingly. God does not compel our worship, even though He could. His desire is for the kingdom of heaven to be filled with willing guests, not forced slaves. The second requirement will become apparent in the next few verses.

Jesus continues: But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?' And the man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' (vv. 11-13). Not only must the guests come willingly, but they must also come in the proper way. Even though God/the king invited everyone to the marriage feast, the expectation was that those who are willing come in the proper fashion. In these chilling verses we see that one guest decided to come however he pleased, not taking the time to put on the appropriate clothing for the occasion. This guest was invited prior to having the proper clothing on, but was required to change his clothes after accepting the invitation. Instead, he came as he saw fit, ignoring the king's protocol.

Being a parable, this "clothing" should not be understood as God cares about our literal clothing and will cast us "into the outer darkness," where there will be "weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Hell) simply based on our everyday attire! However, this is still communicating a very important truth about entry into the kingdom of heaven. Since the original audience of this parable were Jews who were familiar with the Hebrew Scriptures (our Old Testament), it is not too much of a stretch to imagine that they would understand the clothing necessary to enter heaven is not made of linen, but of righteousness (see Job 29:14; Psalm 132:9; and Isaiah 61:10). This is consistent with Jesus' teaching earlier in this gospel of Matthew:

Matthew 5:20 ~ For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 21:32 ~ For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.

The way of coming to God (the Father) is made very clear elsewhere in the New Testament. In John's Gospel, one of Jesus' disciples asks Him how to get to Heaven. Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6). The Apostle Paul also makes it clear in 2 Corinthians 5:21: He [God the Father] made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him [Jesus]. It is only through faith in Jesus and His completed work on the cross that we may be properly clothed (in righteousness) for entry into the kingdom of heaven.

The parable ends with this statement: For many are called, but few are chosen (v. 14). The invitation is broad, but only a few accept it. Among those who do accept the invitation, there are still some who refuse to "attend" in the proper fashion. Both improper responses to God's invitation are met with disastrous results.

What about you? Have you accepted God's invitation? If you believe in "God," do you also believe that there are many paths that lead to Him, or do you acknowledge that there is only one way to God ... through the Savior, Jesus the Christ? This parable of Jesus is equally clear that both ignoring God and also attempting to enter His kingdom in an improper way both lead to destruction and being cast out into outer darkness. If you've never done so before, today can be the day of your salvation.

He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him (John 3:36).

About the "Death Ticker"

**The "Death Ticker" on this blog has changed since this was first posted. The new ticker is aimed at non-believers. Most of the below response is still applicable, however, since the criticism to which I was responding was very poorly constructed.**

I know that not everyone appreciates the so-called "Death Ticker" at the bottom of this blog, which reminds people of the reality that (*gasp*) people die. I also know that not everyone thinks that Christianity is True, or relevant, or even sane.

Recently, I read this criticism about the "Death Ticker" from an atheist who thinks the concept of Hell is silly.

Yes! You're all going to hell- unless you believe exactly what I do! I know the secret, and the rest of you will burn! Only I know the answer- follow me without thinking or suffer for all eternity

Unfortunately, this individual has missed the point of the ticker completely. This is not uncommon for those who criticize Christianity ... most criticisms that I encounter are based on faulty understanding of the Bible or Jesus (not all, but most). In this particular case, the errors are many.

First, the "Death Ticker" is not for non-believers, but for believers. It is a motivator for Christians to go out and share their faith. Regardless of whether you believe Christianity or not, the Bible does clearly states that without having our sins forgiven through repentance and faith in Jesus that our final destination will be in Hell. If you don't believe that, that's fine. But since I believe that, I ought to be telling everyone I can about it. Therefore, the ticker exists as a stark reminder for Christians to put their beliefs into practice, to follow the commandment of our Risen Lord and Savior, and to "go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I [Jesus] have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20a). In fact, at the bottom of the ticker the question is asked, "Who have you shared with today?" Notice that the question is not, "What are you gonna do about it, sinner?" The ticker is aimed at professing Christians who are being negligent in their first and foremost duty: the proclamation of the gospel.

Secondly, the encouragement for Christians to go out and share has nothing to do with telling people, "You're all going to hell- unless you believe exactly what I do!" as is erroneously asserted. In fact, you need not believe many of the things that I do. Quite frankly, my beliefs are unimportant to a large degree. There is one central belief that is critical however, and that is concerning the identity of Jesus of Nazareth. Many people believe many different things about him. Some think he is coming soon. Others think he has already returned. Some think they are him. Some think he was a myth. Some think he was a good teacher whose followers made him into something he never claimed to be.

Jesus said, "I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins" (John 8:24). We can make up our own version of Jesus if we want to. Meek and mild. Baby Jesus. Just a man. It doesn't matter if you believe everything that I believe about Jesus ... what matters (according to Jesus) was that you believe what He said about himself. The core content of Christian faith that is necessary for salvation is simple:

"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve" (1 Corinthians 15:3-5).

That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved (Romans 10:9-10).

According to the Apostle Paul and Holy Scripture, these are the basic content of belief that are necessary for salvation. We aren't saved by knowing facts about God, but by putting our trust in this fact that Jesus will save us if we ask him to.

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him (John 3:36).

Third, this doosy: "I know the secret, and the rest of you will burn! Only I know the answer ...". This is plainly a false statement. The point of the ticker is that it's not a secret. Many people know and aren't telling people about it. I knew about Jesus before I knew Jesus. The difference is life and death. Secrets are meant to be kept, the gospel is meant to be shared. Christianity is one of the three major monotheistic religions ... clearly, I'm not the only one who knows/believes it.

Fourth, the last statement: "follow me without thinking or suffer for all eternity". Following Christ is not about not thinking (yes, that was a double negative). Following Christ is about being reasonable.

Nearly 2000 years ago a man named Jesus lived, he had followers, he was crucified under Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius Caesar, and his earliest followers believed (and were willing to endure torturous deaths for their belief) that they witnessed him alive after his scandalous execution as a criminal. This belief of the earliest followers and the inability of the Romans or Jews to provide proof that these claims were false, which would have been easy if they simply produced the corpse, exploded despite the severest persecution into a worldwide phenomenon. These facts are virtually undisputed by historians, although some like Earl Doherty have attempted to make case that Jesus never lived (not a tenable hypothesis, but it does sell books!).

In order to convince the churches of Galatia, Paul writes 18 years after the supposed crucifixion and resurrection: You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. How could Paul try and convince people 18 years after the supposed events happened, that they had seen something that was mythical? How convinced would you be if I said, "You fool! Who has bewitched you, who yourselves rode upon a unicorn just 18 years ago!" I'm guessing not very .... Similarly, to the Corinthians Paul writes: After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. If you were trying to convince someone that Jesus was raised from the dead, would you tell them that there were hundreds of people still living who could vouch for it if you knew it was a lie? He was providing a way for his claims to be falsified (very scientific method ... go Paul). Yet, belief flourished.

In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead. (Acts 17:30-31, emphasis added)

God gave evidence that Jesus was who he claimed to be. The Apostles pointed to this evidence. I talk to people about this evidence. Yet the same peope who believe without a shadow of a doubt that the universe began 15 billion years ago without the help of a god or outside intelligence (a unscientific thought in itself, since nothing doesn't make something, no matter how much time it has), and are thoroughly convinced that non-living material produced life, that consciousness sprung out of non-consciousness ... these same people don't believe that we can know with certainty that Jesus was raised from the dead, or even if he ever existed when we have historical documentation from intelligent beings, both friendly to the movement and against it (e.g. Jewish and Roman historians). And yet, it is the Christian who is accused of asking people to "follow them without thinking" ... give me a break.

Finally, this criticism completely misses the central tenet of Christianity (thus demonstrating the complete misunderstanding of this particular critic): follow me without thinking.... Following me will get you nowhere. Following Christ is all that matters. He is alive, follow Him.

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him. (John 14:6-7)