Articles Community blogs Appeasing God! | Appeasing God! |
|
| Written by Khimani A. Williams | ||||||||||||||
| Thursday, 06 December 2007 | ||||||||||||||
Ever wonder if God is mad at us? Ever wonder what will it take to appease Him? And if He is angry with us, ever wonder why He would be? What have we done to upset Him? Doesn’t He still love us? After all, even Jonah lamented, “I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity” [Jonah 4:2], so why should we always try to make amends with Him? What will it take for Him to accept us? Every human being is religious, whether they are Christians, Hindus, Rastas, or are just Secular Humanists! Everybody live by their beliefs; if they believe in a supernatural, they live like it; if they believe they are self-sufficient, they live like it. Everyone lives for someone and who we live for we will try to appease, whether God, idols, or ourselves. Throughout history people have tried to appease their gods. In some cultures they sacrifice their firstborn child or young virgins to turn away the wrath of their god. Others burn their babies or bury prisoners alive. They lived by their faith, or should I say by fear. As a Christian I stand in condemnation of no man, for Christ saved me when I deserved it not. I believe, according to scripture, that there is only one God and worshipping any other established idol will result in God’s sore condemnation. Romans 3: 29 – 30 states, “Is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.” There is only one God and He justifies and condemns the dead and the living. [Acts 10:42]. And it is this God who can kill both body and soul that we should try and seek forgiveness from. But is there a way? Sometimes God seems so distant from us, but salvation is near us. Read Romans 10: 1 - 13 and discover that salvation is not earned nor achieved; it is given by God to those who believe in Jesus Christ. Faith is what it takes to appease God. Without faith it is impossible to ever please God. [Hebrews 11: 6]. Having faith in Jesus Christ says, “I accept that no other can save me; not gods, idols or myself!” God requires obedience to His Word. As I said before, we will live in accordance to what we believe. If we say we are Christ’s then we must bear good fruits and shine so that men might see and know that we are His. All that will cost us is our selfishness and pride (which could never save us). There is no act or sacrifice we could ever give to ‘make it up’ with God. He’s God, what does He need?! Listen to Isaiah 66: 1 – 2, “This is what the LORD says: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?" declares the LORD. "This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my Word.” It is only those who obey God’s Word who will be saved. Sin is why God is mad at us, but He is patient and is waiting for us to repent of our sins and live for Him. God wants relationship, not lip service. Faith is what it takes. Have faith in God! Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them." But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 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. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in Him will never be put to shame." For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on Him, for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
Romans 10: 1 – 13
Powered by !JoomlaComment 3.26
3.26 Copyright (C) 2008 Compojoom.com / Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved." |
||||||||||||||
i am a frequent reader. I enjoy and share several of you points i in the
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
