For who visit this blog who would also be interested in matters in the "Church of the Brethren", I invite you to visit this blog.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Living in the LIght
The prophet Isaiah wrote in Is. 5:20-21, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Who to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight."
Part of the struggle to live a life that is pleasing to Christ is to not let the world around us determine what is right for us. The culture we live in wants us to take a different view of many behaviors that are clearly outside of the life that God calls us to. Instead of dealing with the conviction we feel when committing sin, the culture would have us redefine sin, or excuse it altogether. This is nothing new. When a group of people loose their moral compass, when they rebel against the approved patterns of behavior, in an effort for them to feel better about themselves they call these rebellious patterns of behavior "alternative lifestyles".
I wonder if the emphasis on "high self esteem" has brought us to the place where we don't want to make anyone feel bad about themselves. Jesus has a different answer to the same problem--it's called forgiveness. The apostle Paul wrote in Romans, and is actually quoting from three different Old Testament passages, in 3:10-12, "As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one'."
When the Bible states that sin is punishable by death, it means all sin. A person doesn't have to be a murderer, a terrorist, or a drug dealer to be sent to hell, Paul writes later in this same 3rd chapter in Romans "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." He goes on to write, though, "and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ."
All of us have sinned, and were headed for eternity in hell, but through the finished work of Christ on the cross, the sacrifice He made for us there takes the guilt of our sin away from us, and puts it on himself. He died so that we can live in heaven with Him forever. We don't have to let our sins determine our future, they have become part of our past, but if we put our faith in Christ alone to save us from the punishment for our sins, our future is made bright and glorious.
For us to call sin what it really is, is just being honest. To call it something else, while it may give us a false sense of comfort now, it will mean eternal torment for eternity. If we are honest, and call it what it is, and seek the forgiveness of God as we turn away from it, we will find a huge weight lifted from our spiritual shoulders.
I'm glad that my sins have been dealt with through Christ. I hope that you too will come to trust in this rich gift of grace.
Part of the struggle to live a life that is pleasing to Christ is to not let the world around us determine what is right for us. The culture we live in wants us to take a different view of many behaviors that are clearly outside of the life that God calls us to. Instead of dealing with the conviction we feel when committing sin, the culture would have us redefine sin, or excuse it altogether. This is nothing new. When a group of people loose their moral compass, when they rebel against the approved patterns of behavior, in an effort for them to feel better about themselves they call these rebellious patterns of behavior "alternative lifestyles".
I wonder if the emphasis on "high self esteem" has brought us to the place where we don't want to make anyone feel bad about themselves. Jesus has a different answer to the same problem--it's called forgiveness. The apostle Paul wrote in Romans, and is actually quoting from three different Old Testament passages, in 3:10-12, "As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one'."
When the Bible states that sin is punishable by death, it means all sin. A person doesn't have to be a murderer, a terrorist, or a drug dealer to be sent to hell, Paul writes later in this same 3rd chapter in Romans "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." He goes on to write, though, "and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ."
All of us have sinned, and were headed for eternity in hell, but through the finished work of Christ on the cross, the sacrifice He made for us there takes the guilt of our sin away from us, and puts it on himself. He died so that we can live in heaven with Him forever. We don't have to let our sins determine our future, they have become part of our past, but if we put our faith in Christ alone to save us from the punishment for our sins, our future is made bright and glorious.
For us to call sin what it really is, is just being honest. To call it something else, while it may give us a false sense of comfort now, it will mean eternal torment for eternity. If we are honest, and call it what it is, and seek the forgiveness of God as we turn away from it, we will find a huge weight lifted from our spiritual shoulders.
I'm glad that my sins have been dealt with through Christ. I hope that you too will come to trust in this rich gift of grace.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Monday, September 21, 2009
Passion for Ministry
My passion for ministry, the thing that God used to call me to pastoral ministry has been helping people know why we believe what we believe. A favorite verse of mine that goes along with that call is 1Peter 3:15 "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." (NIV)
My hope for this blog is to engage those seeking to understand what it is they say they believe, and help them on that journey. In the church, there are a lot of things we say we believe. All too often, we really don't understand why, and that translates into a lack of putting that faith into action.
An example of that might be that we say we believe in evangelism, but we do little if anything to help share the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we truly believed that evangelism was important, that faith would lead to some kind of action, such as sharing our faith with those around us, or making some specific effort to share the gospel in some manner.
Paul uses the term "working out your salvation" (Phil. 2:12 NIV) He is not saying that we should work for our salvation. He makes that clear in Eph. 2:8-9. What he is saying is that our faith should be evident through the works that we do. Works are the fruit that hang on the tree called "Life in Christ". They are the evidence of life and vitality we have in Christ.
If you have questions about tenants of the faith that you would like to discuss, I'd love to have the opportunity to discuss that with you.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
My hope for this blog is to engage those seeking to understand what it is they say they believe, and help them on that journey. In the church, there are a lot of things we say we believe. All too often, we really don't understand why, and that translates into a lack of putting that faith into action.
An example of that might be that we say we believe in evangelism, but we do little if anything to help share the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we truly believed that evangelism was important, that faith would lead to some kind of action, such as sharing our faith with those around us, or making some specific effort to share the gospel in some manner.
Paul uses the term "working out your salvation" (Phil. 2:12 NIV) He is not saying that we should work for our salvation. He makes that clear in Eph. 2:8-9. What he is saying is that our faith should be evident through the works that we do. Works are the fruit that hang on the tree called "Life in Christ". They are the evidence of life and vitality we have in Christ.
If you have questions about tenants of the faith that you would like to discuss, I'd love to have the opportunity to discuss that with you.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Friday, April 17, 2009
Why I believe in Christ
I believe in Christ because He has made Himself known to me through His Word, the Bible, through the Holy Spirit, through the church and through what can be known about Him in what He has made (creation). As I have studied the Bible, I find the truths of Scripture resonate deeply within me as being absolutely true. When confronted with the truth that Christ died for my sins on the cross, and paid my penalty for sin (which is death) with His own life, I trusted in Him alone for that forgiveness and salvation through Him. Some time ago, He has put a call on my life to help others know about Him, about His saving grace, and His immense love for us, despite our sinful condition. Through my ministry as a pastor, and through other contacts and opportunities, I seek to help others know about Him, and to ultimately know Him personally as their Savior and Lord. I hope to use this blog as another opportunity to help shine the light of Christ to anyone interested in knowing Him better.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
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