PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, REDEEMING THE GOSPEL: JESUS WEEPS
PASTOR JOHN COLLINS WRITES:
“It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be
taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who
has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.” John 6:45 (NKJV).
The teachings of Jesus were insightful and revealed the heart of the law. He came with miracles
and truth and compassion and mercy. He
came with clarity and sadness for the people.
It is sad to see people refuse to get right with God, to see people
rebel in their hearts and choose their own will over God’s will.
It is sad to watch people choose to be sinners and choose to
harm others to lift themselves up.
Believe me, there is still plenty today for Jesus to weep over.
Believe me, there is still plenty today for Jesus to weep over.
Our world is filled with people choosing to self-govern and
claim rational thought for themselves and believing that there is no God, that
their own moral code will sustain them and see them through this life and that
there is no cause to concern themselves with an eternal life. There are people on the pulpits sharing the
good news without teaching the requirements of being a follower of Christ. There are stubborn people who choose to
believe that there is not a right or a wrong way to worship God and that we get
to self-determine our God and how we navigate our faith in our life and have
concluded that by doing so we will enjoy the outcome that we have decided
upon. It doesn’t work that way! God came and gave instructions on how to
worship Him. Jesus came and gave insight
into the law and gave instructions on how to worship Him. Nothing has changed.
Grace is given and faith is free but obedience is required
to claim them. You cannot claim to be a
person of faith and have fellowship with God when you are living a life of
selfishness and unfaithfulness. If you
are a greedy, lying, cheating, vain, malicious, gossiper and drunk then you are
not obeying God. If you are full of
bitterness and resentment and refuse to forgive those who you believe have done
you wrong then you are not in obedience with God. If you are consumed with materialism and are
obsessed with your looks and your appearance then you are not in obedience with
God. If you are abusing drugs and your
body and are not a believer then you are not in obedience with God. If you are not in obedience with God then you
will not see the kingdom of heaven when you die. It really is that simple.
You must obey God to claim the gifts of God. Salvation is claimed by those who believe
because those who believe will submit to the will of God and will obey
God. I am not talking about casual
belief but the belief that produces results in a life, belief that produces
change and purity in a life and belief that transforms a life of darkness into
one of light. There is always an
opportunity to truly claim Jesus as your savior, not in word only but in
truth. You know whether your life is
truly a life that would have God’s stamp of approval and there is just no
reason to live in denial. There is not
any time to waste on self-indulgence and sin.
It is time to examine your existence and if you are not right with God
then it is time to get right with Him.
Believe in the Son and claim salvation.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much
fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is
cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into
the fire, and they are burned.” John
15:5-6 (NKJV).