My Reflection

Over the past few weeks I have been blasted by many for speaking God's Word and telling the truth. Today I was cleaning my old apartment, and I was just listening to worship music and praying. I don't want to estrange people, so I was just praying "Lord I will follow you anywhere, and I will speak whatever you want me to speak, just let me know that it is you."

I was examining the things I say, and the things I have been saying. Have I been judgmental? Am I inappropriately dividing the Word? What am I doing, and why? I asked that God would just show me. Show me what He wants me to be saying.

Towards the end of the cleaning I had peace in these things. The Word of God, and His Law, is to make EVERYONE guilty before Him. The Word should bring conviction. The Truth should offend. There is no difference between me and another as far as our "deeds" are conerned. We ALL stand guilty. A person has no hope in and of himself, and we must all have our conviction.

We are to use the Word to shine the light into the darkness, exposing the truth in hopes that people will realize that they are sinners under condemnation. Only then, in that place of humility, can one accept that they need a Savior. ONLY FAITH IN JESUS saves. PERIOD. Trust God. Is that not the Gospel?! Is that not how we are made righteous?

Maybe it is that I am failing to offer the solution after revealing the darkness, which would be a greivious error on my part. God forgive me. There is NO HOPE outside of Jesus.

What I Teach is...

It appears to me that I haven't taken the time to properly convey things to some, so I am going to attempt a concise and pointed narrative.

For some reason some of you think I judge others by comparing them to me. Well... If I did that, that wouldn't be a bad thing because comparing anyone to me would ALWAYS make the other person look good. I know who I am, and I am a wretched sinner.

Here is what I teach in a nutshell (if I can be so precise).

We are ALL born into sin, and deserving of God’s holy wrath. We are born SLAVES to sin. That means sin owns us. We cannot do ANY good and our hearts are deceitful and wicked.

Psalms 51:5 NKJV

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.

Jesus came as God in the flesh around 2000 years ago and was born of a virgin mother. He lived a sinless life and was crucified for the sins of those whose names were written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, and was raised from the dead all according to Scripture. In this act Jesus became the sin of the believing ones and suffered the wrath of God in our place, and HIS righteousness is imputed to those that He died for.

2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV

For He made Him who knew no sin to  be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

When a person turns to God with ALL of their heart through the regenerative power of the Holy Spirit, such a person is born again (filled with the Holy Spirit) and made new. We are given remission of sins through faith in Jesus Christ, and sanctified through the Word of God by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Ezekiel 36:25-27 NKJV

Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

The spiritual state of a person produces FRUIT, which is the by product of what is going on in our heart. If a person is filled with the Holy Spirit, they produce like fruit in their lives. If a person is not filled with the Holy Spirit, still a slave to sin, they produce like fruit in their lives.

Galatians 5:19-21 NKJV

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who  are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

These things are manifest as a RESULT of the God/god in a person's life. If Jesus is our God, then we are in right standing before. If Jesus is not God to a person, they are guilty of idolatry and abide under the wrath of God.

The RESULT of Jesus being God to a person is that the person is free from sin, and is being sanctified (made like Christ) to the glory of the Father. The  RESULT of Jesus not being God to a person is that the person is a slave to sin, and GOD GIVES THEM OVER to the destructive behaviors of the flesh.

This is a HEART issue, NOT a "do it yourself" project. ONLY Jesus can save you and make you free. I NEVER speak about me, but ALWAYS about God, for a person must fully turn to Him with ALL of their heart. If the fruit of the flesh is evident in a person's life, they must be made aware of their idolatry that they might return to God and be healed.

Teaching Moment

Becca and I took Hayden to Bodies in Motion for his birthday, and we did a cosmic rope course together. The first thing they do is put on a harness that has two "lobster claw" hooks securely attached to catch you if you fall.

Once we got to the top and secured our "lobster claws" to the cables above the rope course we started out on the first obstacle, and Hayden was freaking out. He asked us if we were scared, because he was.

Becca showed him how the cable and "lobster claws" were 100% dependable as she hung in the air with no hands as the harness, "lobster claws", and cable easily supported her full weight.

We went on from the demonstration by explaining to Hayden that it was a great illustration of faith. We KNOW that the "lobster claws" will hold us, and so it is with genuine faith. With that same confidence we KNOW that we are 100% secure in Jesus.

Do you have your "lobster claws" in? Are you secure enough to let go?

Great Questions

I was asked this question, and I thought it appropriate to share it here also.

"Hey Osa, I don't wanna argue or upset you, just curious about your opinion.

"If God is all powerful, is he also all loving? And if he is all powerful and all loving then how do you explain the problem of evil, such as terrorist attacks or natural disasters. If he is truly all powerful then why do bad things happen to good people? Why doesn't God stop it? If he is all powerful then He should be able to interfere. We have been talking about this in theology and just curious of your view on the topic. Don't get me wrong I am not doubting God just trying to grow my faith."

Before we jump into this, we must also address the erroneous assumption that there are "good people". We are ALL sinners, and only God is good. Bad things happened to a good person only once, and that was when Jesus willingly went to the cross.

Mark 10:18 NKJV

So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is,  God."

Those are GREAT questions. The answer lies at the core of creation and why we are here. The Bible says that EVERYTHING that was created, which is ANYTHING that is not God, was created by Jesus, for Jesus, and through Jesus.

Colossians 1:16 NKJV

For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.

John 1:1-3 NKJV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

Romans 11:36 NKJV

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

These things create the foundation. All of creation is focused on Jesus, not us. The cross is God’s chosen focal point. Before the foundation of the world it was determined, and then everything was created to revolve around the cross to the glory of God the Father, through God the Son, by the power of God the Holy Spirit.

I Peter 1:20-21 NKJV

He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Revelation 13:8 NKJV

All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have NOT been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Even the vessels of mercy, whose names were written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, and the vessels of wrath, whose names were NOT written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, were created for the glory of God.

Revelation 17:8 NKJV

The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Ephesians 1:4-6 NKJV

just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

Romans 9:11, 13, 22-24 NKJV

(for the  children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.” What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

I Peter 2:9-10 NKJV

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Everything that Jesus created that was given the ability to choose themselves or Him rebelled, and decided they would rather be God. This was not by accident, but by design. God knew what they would choose. This includes every man and woman, and the angels. The only ones that stayed loyal to their Maker were the elect angels and the elect men, and by God’s own power and will.

I Timothy 5:21 NKJV

I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality.

Matthew 24:24 NKJV

For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

God did not create sin, but God created beings that would sin. He allowed Satan into the garden. He allowed Adam and Eve to be deceived. These things had to come to pass so that there could be a cross. God uses the evil of men and the demons for His purposes.

Acts 4:27-28 NKJV

“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.

Genesis 50:20 NKJV

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but  God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it  is this day, to save many people alive.

Isaiah 10:5-7, 12-13, 15 NKJV

“Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hand is My indignation. I will send him against an ungodly nation, And against the people of My wrath I will give him charge, To seize the spoil, to take the prey, And to tread them down like the mire of the streets. Yet he does not mean so, Nor does his heart think so; But it  is in his heart to destroy, And cut off not a few nations. Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that  He  will  say,  “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks.” For he says: “By the strength of my hand I have done it, And by my wisdom, for I am prudent; Also I have removed the boundaries of the people, And have robbed their treasuries; So I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man. Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up, Or as if a staff could lift up, as  if  it  were not wood!

God is in COMPLETE CONTROL my friend, and He brings all things to pass to fulfill His purposes. He allows evil to have it's place so as to beautifully contrast His love, grace, mercy, forgiveness and power.

Psalms 33:8-12 NKJV

Let all the earth fear the Lord ; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord , The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.