Peace with the world or peace with God?

Matthew 10:32-39  Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.  33  But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.  34  Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.  35  For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.  36  And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.  37  He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  38  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.  39  He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

Mark 8:36-38  For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?  37  Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?  38  Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

 John 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

John 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

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As much as I would love to have world peace, I know that this isn't, at this present age, what the gospel is given to us for. It's not to have peace in the world or a trouble free life. It's to have peace with God.

James 4:4  Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

Every Christian will go through some form of tribulation, trouble or trials. Not all things will go smooth sailing, maybe for some of us, we'll have a life full of trouble but if we have peace with God, then He gives us the strength to go through every single one of them.

So if someone preaches to you and tells you God wants you to have your best life now or a purpose driven life or how to have good self-esteem in our faith... that's not what the Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches.

It teaches that we may have our worst life now, maybe as you walk with God those around you may believe you have no relevant purpose to society, self-denial.

2 Timothy 3:10-12  But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,  11  Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me.  12  Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

Holiness is what it's all about. Giving up on what we want to accomplish for us, and finding out what God wants to accomplish in us.

Some of us have tried so hard to follow God and maybe are discouraged. Maybe we feel like, "God why am I so sinful? Why did you save me? I'm not strong enough to endure... "

And the truth is not that we have gotten weaker, but in a sense we have come to realize just how weak we are without Jesus.
It shows a repentant heart. And from my experience feeling discouraged at times, it's better to have a heart that recognizes sins and weaknesses with a willingness to keep pushing, than to accept it as something we'll never get over and give in to it.

I encourage you, even if you have to fast and pray in the week, just get closer to God. We've all been so preoccupied with so many other things, so lets just run to Him, and unload the burdens we may have been to proud to admit even to ourselves. It may just be that God will have to break some of us to realize just how useless we are without Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 4:12-16  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:  13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.  14  If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.  15  But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters.  16  Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.

Jesus went through hardships, the apostles went through hardships, the first time believers went through it too, so we really shouldn't be surprised when it happens to us.

So in your tough times, make sure you have peace with God. It's not about world peace. The world is passing away one day, you know?

1 John 2:15-17  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Don't be afraid to encourage those around you, they very well may need it more than you know. Just like you may have need to read this. God bless!

Salvation Conversation

God is love you say? I totally agree with you! If we live a sinful lifestyle, God is love, most definitely. I can't, however, tell you that God is pleased with how you behave or carry yourself in public and in secret. He hates, yes He HATES it.

God loves righteousness and he hates iniquity, because He is HOLY! 

1Corinthians 13:6 "Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth" 

If I love that which is good then I must hate that which is evil, to have a pure love, yes?

Does He love the sinner, yes. So much so that He sent His only begotten Son to die for your sins and make a way of salvation for you. [John 3:16 - 21] 

That's a lot of love for a father to give the only child he has, much more with God who sees all our sin and disobedience every single day.

If I love babies, I must hate abortion.

If I take joy in marriage, then I must hate fornication, adultery and homosexuality.

If I love to see a hard working person earn their fair wages, then I must hate that which gains through dishonest means.

So now that He extends the only way to salvation, through Jesus Christ His Son, what will you do with His love.

Will you surrender and submit to His will and receive mercy or would you rather to pay for it yourself, pretending to love Him with words and end in destruction? [Matthew 7:13-27; 15:7-9]

You know that deep down in the heart you love Jesus, you say? [John 15:10; Exodus 20:1-17]

Fascinating...

Did you know that your heart has the amazing ability not only deceive you but justify your actions? [Jeremiah 17:9, 10]
The worse thing you can believe is that you are okay when you really aren't.
If you tell yourself that you can inherit what God has in store for the righteous, and you aren't righteous yourself you have a false hope in something you don't deserve, because you're trying to get in some other way. [Psalm 50:16-23; John 10:1]

But if you just come to Him, He will be a merciful Father to you. He will forgive your transgressions and remember them no more. [Isaiah 1:16-18; 55:1 - 11]

DO NOT try another method, don't pray to anyone else. Jesus alone is more than enough for you.
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If anyone says that to become a Christian is easy, it is not. It is not, it has never been and it will cost you EVERYTHING.

We don't go to God on our terms... oh no, we go to God on His terms, his way, according to His Word. The Bible (I trust the KJV more, since other versions seem to be a derivative of it, and I did some research).

We are not going to know God from reading a book about somebody, who knew somebody, who knew God, not from magazines or booklets, or best sellers. It is to just read the Bible. And if you may feel that you cannot understand the Bible without some help from other religious literature that profess that its interpretation is truth, read the scriptures and see for yourself.

Jeremiah 29:13  And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

If you are given some sort of justification why you do some things, and reject others, consider this; there are many scriptures that warn against doing that.

Matthew 5:17-20

17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

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A cathedral in Lubeck, Germany has these words inscribed on its walls:

You call Me master and obey Me not.
You call Me light and see Me not.
You call Me the way and walk Me not.
You call Me the life and live Me not.
You call Me wise and follow Me not.
You call Me fair and love Me not.
You call Me rich and ask Me not.
You call Me eternal and see Me not.

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Go through the scriptures. They will make you wise unto salvation.

Repent; turn from your sins.
Accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord and serve Him. He already is Lord.
Be baptized in His name.
Learn about Him and learn how to love him and how to worship Him.
Draw near to Him and He will draw near to you, and you will learn to be like Him and if you continue walking with Him then He that began a good work in you will finish it.