Posts
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it
Prone to Leave the God I love
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it
Seal it for thy courts above
Dear
Friends, Family, and possibly some strangers!
Thank you so much for coming to
my baptism! In addition to the day that I accepted that Christ, the Son of God
is my Savior, this is the most important day of my life. It is the day that I
am publically proclaiming to follow Christ. It is the day when I will be truly
made accountable for the rest of my life before God and all who witness this
sacred event.
If you are a believer, please hold me to the standard that Christ set for us. Pray that Christ will bless me to be a model and example of Himself in everything I do. Pray that He will strongly convict me when I’m not. Pray that I will have courage and confidence in sharing the good news, HE IS ALIVE! HE IS THE HEALER, REDEEMER, FRIEND, and LOVER of the human heart.
If you do not believe, than know this:
Christians are no different than you from perfection or “good livings” point of view. We make horrible mistakes that hurt ourselves and everyone around us. The difference between us is that we have been given faith to believe that Christ, who was perfect and without mistakes…without evil… came to save us. We believe that He was murdered in order to fulfill God’s requirement for justice. God required a price to be payed for all the mistakes every person makes, He required a worthy payment for what we call sin, or evil. Jesus was that unblemished, perfect, mistake-less sacrifice. He did not deserve to die… but He volunteered. In doing so, Jesus payed God for our sin.
I know this is a complicated concept. It would be as if you had committed a crime. You were brought into the court room and the Judge (or God in this case) said, “You have committed a crime. The only punishment I give out is death. Everyone who comes into this court room who has committed any offense receives this punishment.”
You know you’re guilty. Are you perfect? Have you ever told a lie? Even a white lie? Have you ever stolen anything… even as small as a pen or a piece of paper that did not belong to you? You’re not perfect… you’re guilty. You stand before the judge with your heart beating so fast, your hands sweating, your throat closing up… you can’t speak because you know the inevitable is coming.
Suddenly, a man you’ve never met storms into the courtroom! “Stop! I volunteer!!” (Can you tell I’m a Hunger Games fan?!) “I volunteer to take this criminal’s punishment! Look over my life’s record… you will find no fault in me. I don’t deserve this death penalty, But I’ll take it if you will allow the criminal to go free!”
The judge looks over the man’s record with a fine tuned eye for detail. “I find no guilt in your life. I will accept your offer. You will die in place of the criminal who has committed the crime. Because of your unselfish act of love, I will grant you power over my death penalty. If you defeat death, than I will grant every criminal who believes that your sacrifice was just life. I will give them a pardon if you defeat death.”
You stand speechless. How could it be?! You watch as tears well up in your eyes as the guards brutally handle the man who just volunteered to save you. They beat him with clubs and tazor him. They drag his weak, bruised body off to the execution site. You run after…
It’s too late. They have him restrained and are dripping the serum into his arm. As He breathed His last breath He sighs, “It is finished. They will be forgiven their crimes, they will be set free.” And he died.
You scream out! You can’t believe he’s gone!
They unplug Him. You walk into the room… and stand before the body… sobbing for relief… yet sobbing for guilt. You deserved the death you just witnessed. You were guilty. You fall on his chest crying, sobbing as your tears soak the stranger’s shirt.
A hand gently rests upon your back, and a whisper comforts you.
“It is finished, beloved one. You are free.”
It’s the stranger’s voice!! You jerk up, amazed! He gently smiles, “I said I would do it… see, it’s not just you that I defeated death for. It’s not just you that I desired to take the execution for… it’s all of the criminals. Go tell all of the criminals you know about me, so they will know who to go to when they stand before the judge. Tell them so they will know to tell the judge that they know me.” And you do… you tell everyone you possibly can! You will never be the same.
That is exactly what Jesus did for us…. And because I believe, He changed my heart. I am not who I was. I cannot help but share this news, because I have been rescued from death and I have been given a life worth living.
This offer is for you too.
John 3:16-22
New
International Version (NIV)
16 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. 17 For
God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save
the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him
is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already
because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This
is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness
instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone
who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that
their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives
by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what
they have done has been done in the sight of God.
If you have any questions, thoughts, or a story you’d like to share about anything you’ve seen, read, or experienced today please email me/facebook: Courtney Reed: cbreed2@ymail.com
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.
