“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery. “You shall not steal. “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.” Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” (Exodus 20:2-20 ESV)
I’ve broken them all. Who shall keep them perfectly for me and allow me to claim His record while He claims mine?
Well Rick, that means that you know the truth about yourself. That’s a great deal more than what those who fall for the non-gospel of allowing Jesus to come into their life so they can have peace and joy. Yes, it is all fulfilled in our Lord.
In Christ
Mike Ratliff
I told people for years to come to Jesus for all that He would do for them…and to be fair, partly it was my shock and excitement at all that He did do for me when I came to Him…I didn’t expect the fear and the garbage I had been carrying without even realizing it to lift off of me (something I can’t put into words, but I believe it was the Holy Spirit coming to dwell in me.) But the REASON I came to Him was that I realized I had a choice to make – to live for self or to die to self and make Him my Savior once and for all, repentant for my sins. Had I not come for the right reason, I would never have been born again and experienced all that I was telling people they would experience. Talk about putting the cart before the horse…we need to tell people they are transgressors and be real with them so they come to the Savior FOR the Savior…and THEN they will be true converts and experience all the startling fruits!!!
Sharon,
Our salvation is His work and it is by His terms not ours. He drew you to come to Him the right way. Amen! I rejoice when I meet a genuinely Born Again believer. That lifting you described is the result of a regenerate Heart. You are a new creation. Amen! The Holy Spirit is with us and helps preserve us in our Lord. He is our marker of genuineness.
I posted The Ten Commandments after watching that video you sent me the link to yesterday. I had seen it before, but I needed to see it again. Thank you so much for sending it to me.
In Christ
Mike Ratliff
Wonderful and true. Law before grace. I love your testimonies.
Love in Christ,
Rachel
Yes there is something missing in our modern evangelism messages……. like the real gospel.
“Modern Evangelism”:
http://witnessingencouragement.wordpress.com/2007/05/04/modern-evangelism/
The message of God’s grace and mercy in the sacrifice of Christ makes no sense without knowing why we need a savior, and what we have done to rebel against God. The motivation for salvation is sometimes presented as a way to have “a better life now”, be happy and get felt needs met, when it is really about guilt (from being a law-breaker),God’s holiness and justice, our need to repent, God’s forgiveness, righteousness, and the eternal soul.
love,
Loretta
Mike,
I remember well the night I made the decision to give my life to Jesus. Are you of the opinion that the decision was made for me (I think it is called “irresistible grace”), or are you of the opinion that He called me and I said yes of my own will? (Loaded question, I know…if you want, you can direct me to an article that addresses the issue!)
Thanks Mike! And I’m glad the video blessed you again. Isn’t it awesome that we (His people) can “talk” to one another this way and never have even met? It really is like one big extended family!
Sharon,
No, the decision was not made for you, but the faith to believe and repent was a gift from God in your regeneration. We are justified by faith. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us:
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV)
How were we saved? It was not our own doing, it was a gift from God. It was not by our works or effort or idea or whatever. Why? It was done this way so that no one could take credit for their salvation. We are saved by GRACE through faith. Faith is the conduit through which God’s saving grace comes to us. We are regenerated so that we can believe then when we do, God justifies us by faith.
No, I don’t think we are robots nor do I think we can neglect the gospel. God uses it with the Law to bring people to faith. So, God is the one who does this, we must share the gospel.
Here is one of my posts on this.
In Christ
Mike Ratliff
Mike,
I think we are in agreement. When I lay there wrestling with the Ultimate Question, that was the Holy Spirit calling me. I had no idea the magnitude of what saying yes would do to me and my life, and I know that the whole event was His doing. I would still be lost had He not called me. I just wondered what you thought because I don’t go so far as to say that I couldn’t NOT say no that night.
I am going to read you post now. (Thank you!)
Sharon,
We must remember that our salvation is supernatural. It isn’t the result of some religious thing we do. Isn’t that wonderful? God saved us, it isn’t up to us, nor will He ever let us go. He will cause us to persevere. What a wonderful God and Saviour we have!
In Christ
Mike Ratliff
Amen!