A Crucified Life - - Is Accountable to Christ

 

2 Corinthians 5:10

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad. 

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5319

Appear: to make visible, make clear

From the Greek word 'phaneroó' (pronounced fan-er-o'-o): make known, make manifest, to become apparent.

    Everything we say and do has consequences. Whether we receive the results of our actions and words in this life or the next, we are accountable to Christ for our testimony and our witness. 

Job 34:11 

For according to a man's deeds He repays him; according to a man's ways He brings consequences.

Matthew 16:27

For the Son of Man will come in His Father's glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

Matthew 25:32

All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

    A crucified life lets go of the offense and embraces forgiveness. As Christ was dying on the cross, He still retained mercy and compassion, saying, "“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” - Luke 23:34. 

    Are we this forgiving? this merciful? this compassionate? He asked His Father to forgive them, to not hold this thing they had done to the Father's Son against them. 

    May our hearts be as full of love for those who sin against us, that our words towards them are words of love, mercy, forgiveness. That our actions towards they who desire to see us fail be actions of love. 

    May that which held Christ on the cross also hold us. It wasn't the nails; it was the Love of God for you and I.

LET IT BE JESUS  A Christy Nockels Album

    

Intelligent Worship -- Thank God -- Part 8

 Intelligent Worship brings us into the presence of God. Part 8.

While I am writing these at the rate of one a day, you who get these in an email will only receive one per week; so as not to overwhelm. Should you choose to read binge them, they're here.

Thanking God is something believers do every day throughout our day. It is not reserved for a set time nor a set day. We do not wait until the calendar rolls around to the third Thursday of November (here in the US of A). 

We are thankful when we wake up, even before our eyes open or we rise up to greet the new day given us. We have thankful hearts for the mercies of God in our everyday lives. But most of all, like many other born again Christians around this globe, we are thankful for God's neverending grace.

We are thankful that God has chosen us to be His, that we accepted His offer of grace through His Son Jesus Christ, and that now He sends us out to spread/share this same gospel of grace with other people who need to hear and receive it just like we needed to hear and receive it.

2 Corinthians 2:14

But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.

Romans 6:16-18

Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness? 

But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed.

You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

Being thankful to God is God's will for His people. It is impossible to be angry when we're thanking God. It's like biting one's own face. Impossible.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

The words we speak and the actions we take in any given situation, whether at home, at work, at school; in public, in private, unspoken are to be undertaken in the Name of the Lord Jesus, thanking God for one more opportunity to represent Him and share His grace with those around us.

Colossians 3:17

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. 

Is this easy? No. Can we do it? Yes. If we remember to not allow ourselves to be so easily frustrated with the world around us. Even if others cannot hear us, God can. Even if others do not see us, God can. We are accountable to God for how we think and how we behave. And while we are not accountable to the world, we are held accountable to each other for how we represent Christ to the world. 

Judgment Begins Here

 1 Peter 4:17 "For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God?" 

 Luke 12:47 "That servant who knows his master’s will but does not get ready or follow his instructions will be beaten with many blows." 

James 4:17 "Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." 

Stop gossiping about sin being judged in other churches and start praying about it,  about your own church, your own self. Seek forgiveness for our own sins against God. The time is coming and even now is here when we must prepare for the coming storm of fire and judgment against those who have heard the Word and done nothing with it: not believed it, not accepted Christ as Lord, not acted upon the hearing of the Word. Even in our churches. 

We, the believers, are responsible for what we believe. We are responsible for first living the gospel, then sharing the gospel with everyone we are led to. We are responsible for being faithful witnesses, ambassadors for Christ. 

We, the believers, are accountable for the words we speak. These words must be spoken in the love of Jesus Christ, with the power of the Holy Spirit leading us, guiding us. These words must be used to encourage and lift up those around us, even in rebuke, love must be present. Even in discipline, words of love must accompany the actions taken. 

We are accountable for the words we don't speak. There are times we must remain silent, even as our Lord and Savior remained silent before Pilate. He didn't bite his tongue, nor did He fight any urges to speak in His defense: He merely remained silent before him who was judging Him. 

We, the believers, will be judged by God for our lack and our sloth. Our lack of compassion for they who are lost in sin and dying without Christ when we could have spoken up but chose not to. Our sloth, our unwillingness to serve in the fields to which we have been sent to work, will be judged by God. 

We who believe had better fall to our knees and repent now before we are called to judgment and held accountable for our actions/inactions and words/silence. Even me. 

Godly Love - Accountability

The Christian has accountability to The Word of God. We must abide by God's rules in order to live a life filled with God's presence. There is no compromise in the pages of The Holy Bible, and there can be no compromise with sin.

"A little leaven, leavens the whole lump." Galatians 5:9

In fact this chapter reminds us that we must walk in love, the liberty of love; loving one another without sin in it. "Love one another" is a repeated phrase in our King James Bible. It stands to reason, therefore, that this Godly Love, this Agape Love, must be used to love each other wholly.

Love based on the color of one's skin, or on cultural unity, or on denominational status is not Agape Love. That love is compromised, for within its exclusivity there is no room for any other than themselves.

The love of God exceeds all man-made boundaries: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." John 3: 16,17.

God's Love is for THE WHOLE WORLD. And every one in it. We are to love each other with this love. This love is sacrificial and beneficial to both the one who loves and the one who is loved by the other. This love is in me because Jesus Christ lives in my heart. This love is active in my life because The Holy Spirit was sought after by me and given to me by God.

I am whosoever will because I believe that Jesus Christ is The Only Begotten Son of God. He died on the cross to pay the death penalty for my sins because He loves me. He fought death, hell and the grave and walked out of the tomb because He loves me. But before He ascended on clouds into His Father's presence, He reminded us that He would send The Comforter in His place.

This Comforter would reveal The Truth in God's Word: The whole Bible is The Word of God. And we now know through much study and prayer that Jesus Christ Is The Word of God. That Bible on your shelf isn't just a representation of God's Holy Word: IT IS GOD'S WORD. IT IS, in print, GOD'S SON.

That is not a relic of times past. To change The Bible is to condemn your soul to hell by your actions and your own wisdom, which is foolishness. Therefore, any Bible which has been modified to redact certain verses which make a person uncomfortable, is not a Holy Bible any more. It is just a book.

What makes The Holy Bible difficult to read for many is not the 'thees' and 'thous', but it is the declaration of what is sin and what is not sin. It is the Do's and Don'ts of living a righteous perfect life before God. It is the unwillingness to surrender one's heart and mind and life to God's Will, God's Heart, God's Salvation.

Without first surrendering your heart to God when you believe on The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation, you cannot understand The Written Word on your own. You and I both need this precious Holy Spirit of God which Christ sent into the world on they who believe and wait for It. Without The Holy Spirit revealing Truth and Wisdom in God's Word, I could not speak to you as such.

Without the love of God working in me, perfecting my soul, I could not boldly tell you of God's redeeming love. A love which is unconditional: there are no strings attached to Godly love. This love is defined in 1 Corinthians 13, using the word 'charity'.

Godly Love is longsuffering. Longsuffering means patiently enduring. Hebrews 12:1-4

Godly Love is kind. Mercy and Compassion are evident in action and speech. Psalm 23:6

Godly Love is un-envious. It does not want what someone else has. Philippians 4:11-13

Godly Love is not prideful. Proverbs 8:13, 16:6; Psalm 97:10

Godly Love is mindful of one's actions. Unseemly behavior, acting out and tantrums, are not a way of life with this love. Psalm 112:4; Romans 12:1,2

Godly Love seeks to please others before self. John 13:34, 35

Godly Love is not easily provoked. Every offense must not be reciprocated with vengeance. Remember Godly Love covers all sins and forgives all. John 3:16

Godly Love does not think evil thoughts. Philippians 4:8

Godly Love rejoices not in sin, but in truth. Hebrews 11:24-26

Godly Love bears all things. Psalm 91

Godly Love believes all things. Romans 8:38, 39

Godly Love hopes all things. Galatians 5:5, 6

Godly Love endures all things. 1 Timothy 6:11, 12; Ephesians 6:13, 14

Godly Love never fails. Endures everlastingly, for ever. Absolute. Without end. From everlasting to everlasting. Psalm 145:8, 9

The born again Christian chooses to allow Christ to live and breathe through him and her. We choose to live godly lifestyles. We choose to be perfected by The Holy Spirit, that we might become holy and then be allowed into God's eternal presence, after our bodies die. We choose to have Christ love through us to whomsoever we may encounter in our lives. We choose to love you even if you do not reciprocate that love to us. We cannot help ourselves. We are the love of God to the whole world.