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Touching lives with the truth of God's Word.

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Location: Birmingham, Alabama, United States

Monday, December 25, 2006

God's Sovereignty & Salvation

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me....... Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father....." (John 14:6; 9b)
God's sovereignty extends over all things. He is omnipotent---all powerful, no plan of His can be stopped. He is omniscient---all knowing, so nothing is hidden from His sight. And He is omnipresent---which means that all things exist in His presence. Everything in both the natural and spiritual realms, including our salvation are under His complete control.
Scripture describes mankind as having hearts that are deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9), minds that suppress the truth (Romans 1:18-19), and wills that have turned away from God. (Isaiah 53:6) The Lord however, is continually seeking us. He has issued a universal call inviting everyone to freely come to Him. (John 3:16) He has said, "it isn't His will that any should perish (2Peter 3:9), nor does He take pleasure in the death of the wicked. (Ezekiel 33:11) And the Lord desires that all come to a knowledge of the truth, meaning, that there is only one God manifested in three persons, that sin separates us from Him, and only faith in Jesus Christ reconciles us to Him. (1Timothy 2:4-6)
Scripture teaches also, that none of us seek after God (Romans 3:11); so there is no way we can take credit for our salvation. The desire to know Him comes from the Holy Spirit's work of convicting hearts of sinfulness and providing the faith to believe in Jesus as Savior and Lord. (Ephesians 2:8) May I say, salvation is all of God from start to finish. Before the foundations of the world, God chose a people for Himself from among the ungodly. (Ephesians 1:11; Romans 4:5) Friend ask the Holy Spirit to help you grasp the awesomeness and immensity of divine grace, love, and mercy. May God bless you.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

An Astronomer's Model

I read a story not long ago about a man named Johannes Kepler, who was a German astronomer living in the 16th century. Kepler had a friend who did not believe in God, his friend believed that the universe came into existence by itself. So, Kepler made a model of the sun with the planets revolving around it to prove his point. His friend thought the model was just beautiful, and wanted to know if Kepler had made it or if not, then who did? Kepler answered, "No one made it, it made itself." His friend replied, "Nonsense. Tell me who made it." Kepler then said, "Friend, you say this model could not make itself. It is but a weak imitation of this great universe, which you believe did make itself.
May I say, no rational person would have believed that Kepler's model could have made itself. Yet today we find many scientists believe exactly that... that the universe and mankind came into existence by accident. Dear friend the universe was not an accident and neither are you or your life. Your life has meaning. You are here because God created you, and therefore, your life has great reason and purpose behind it, and ahead of it. For the King of the Universe said, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11) You think about that.