Enjoying Life on the Way to Heaven!

                       Enjoying Life on the Way to Heaven!

#Heaven  #Christian Life  #Hope  #Joyous living

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What's the Christian life to be according to the Bible? Do Christians live according to the Bible, or fall far short of it? Admittedly, some persons claimed to be Christian, don't give a favorable impression. But, when we don't know what the Bible teaches, then we don't know all that Christian life should be. We can have misconceptions about ideal Christian living. Is it joyous or serious, loving or condemning, wise or foolish, frivolous or responsible, or what? Can we also confuse personality with spiritually? Let me try to picture what this enjoying life on the way to Heaven is like.

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Jesus compares God's people with honest humble needy sheep trusting God their great shepherd (John 10:1-10 NLT). Sheep are kept in a sheepfold or enclosure to protect them from thieves, bad weather, and wild animals. The shepherd leads his sheep in and out to pasture to provide and protect them. They know his voice, trust his leading, and can only enter the sheepfold through him standing as the gate. Jesus warns that thief's come to steal, kill, and destroy the sheep.  But He, the Lord Jesus, came  to meet our life needs and lead us who trust Him to a rich and satisfying life.  See also John 14:6, Luke 19:10, Psalm 23. (Christians are not of a goat nature that tries to butt down anything pertaining to God.)

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Jesus pictures our relationship with God as a grapevine giving life and fruit to its branches (John 15:1-17). Jesus is the life giving vine and his Father God is the vinedresser. Fruitless branches are cut away and burned--persons claiming to be believers that don't bear fruit aren't true believers as they never received the gospel message that purified them and without Christ can do nothing spiritual. But the Father prunes the true branches to bear fruit--a father who doesn't correct his children for their good doesn't really love them (Heb.12: 5-6). So, true believers produce fruit, more fruit, and much fruit. Answered prayer, joy, and love are the particular fruits mentioned here.. 

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The godly Christian focuses on the fruit of the Spirit, not the works of the flesh.  "The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things" (Gal. 5:22-23). The desires of our sinful nature are listed as: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these--anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God . . . You have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters, But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature, Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love." (Gal. 5:19-21, 13). 
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Unlike programmed machines or instinctual animals, persons who freely seek God find Him. Critics who claim we have no free will, defeat their own arguments by asking us to believe them. The Bible repeatedly promises true seekers of God, will be real finders (Deut. 29:14; Jer. 29:13; 2 Chron. 6:37: Matt. 7:7; Acts 17:26-28, 30-31). Behavior scientists tests show we can program out minds to believe and behave in good ways if we daily meditate and repeat  good concepts. Now isn't this the very thing the Bible tells us to do so many times and ways?  
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Yes! Consider these Scriptures. "All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right" (2 Tim. 3:16). I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." Repeat and meditate on verses in Psalm 119.asking and trusting God to make it your mindset and lifestyle.
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But wouldn't I have to give up so many things I love,  to live the Christ life? Honestly, yes! You will need to give us things supremely important from this limited temporarily world's perspective.. But the loss is nothing to compare with the gain from God's all knowing eternal perspective.  Jesus answered the question this way--"anyone who has given up house or wife or brothers or parents or children, or property for my sake will be paid a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life. But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then" (Matt.19:29-30).. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your hearts desires." (Ps. 37:4). That's because our desires then become His desires.
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Now think with me about this: Scientists tell us this material, space time universe came into being. If that's true, then what brought it into being would have to exist before the universe of matter, space, and time. It would have to be eternal, self-existing, and outside matter, space, and time. Further, we know life only comes from life. So, it's nonsense to claim undesigned mindless molecules arranged themselves into complex life forms in any amount of time. That would be like someone eternally throwing red, white, blue confetti from an airplane expecting it to form the American flag. Further, if we say murder and destruction is evil, that requires a moral standard which in turn requires a Moral Lawgiver who can know and enforce the moral law. In sum, all this requires an eternal, self-existent, all powerful, moral, life-giving Mind like what the Bible describes as God who acts in human history.
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Now this is the really hard thing. We're selfish, self-willed. We naturally want our way, and resent anyone telling us what to do, even when we know they're right and want the best for us. And according to the Bible, God will never force us to trust in Him. His love requires we make a free loving response.  As the Bible says, God works all things (both good & bad) for good to those who know and love Him (Rom. 8:28). But true relationship begins and continues with admitting our sin (wrong doing) and trusting Jesus dying on the cross to pay our sin debt. That's God's way.
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Now you are invited to admit your need of relationship with the one true God and trust Him now to same you from sin and Hell. If you don't want the one who died to save you, God will let you have your way. The alternative is self-inflicted torment forever alone in the darkness of Hell. Say, yes Jesus I trust YOU now as my Savior, Lord, and Guide. Thank you, Lord.
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Good News Messengers: God's A Cruel Tyrant and Killjoy!

Good News Messengers: God's A Cruel Tyrant and Killjoy!: God‘s A Cruel Tyrant And Killjoy! . People have their own idea of God and I don’t know who’s right. But I don’t like the Bible’s God....

Joyful People Focus on Wise Solutions to Real Problems

        Joyful People Focus on Wise Solutions to Real Problems

 Consider this Bible passage. Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again--rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 NLT

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Honest people neither deny nor ignore their problems but seek wise solutions. Yes, we have no control over many circumstances of life. But dwelling on the problems and not doing anything constructive about them only makes things worse. Worry not only doesn't solve anything, but depending on the problem can make us feel angry, depressed, guilty, condemned, shameful, anxious, hostile, jealous, destructive, paranoid, suicidal. Our greatest problem is relationship with our Maker and Judge for all eternity.
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Focusing on positive solutions gives hope, encouragement, meaning, energy,  peace, and avoids all the negative things just mentioned. God's Spirit in us can help us be winners, victors, accomplishers in Him. Are you one of God's true people? God's people have promises persons outside of faith in Christ Jesus don't have. God must be trusted as knowing what's best and having our best interests at heart.
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God's true people have assurance of eternal solutions and the ideal world--Heaven does exist. Consider Philippians 4:4-7 above, with all it's assurances. 1. We're told to always rejoice. We have a free will to either rejoice or not rejoice. Isn't rejoicing much better than any other choice? 2. Remember the Lord is coming. That means true justice will be satisfied and our every thought, word, deed will be good or evil--He knows and will justly reward. 3. Believing prayer in God's will gets answers. God is Creator, Lifegiver, Judge and can know and answer any prayer in any language. 4. Telling God our needs. and believing it will be answered in His time and way shows true faith. When doing the above we experience God's peace, but we still may not understand our circumstances, ourselves, or what God is doing. But it's learning to live by faith.
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People become God's true people experiencing His benefits only when they obey God's requirement to trust in His Son. The Lord Jesus Christ died in our place taking the just punishment of our wrong doings/sins. God is perfect and demands we be perfect. But we cannot be perfect, which is why Christ died to take our punishment and our sins. Our best efforts won't make us perfect and  all our sins count against us. God knew this and made His plan of salvation to save us.
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Friends, the bottom line is this: Say and mean, Lord God Almighty, I am a sinful person who can't be perfect. That's why Jesus, who is perfect, took my punishment by his death for me on the Cross. Lord, I give myself to You trusting in your forgiveness to make me a born again believer in Jesus now and forever. Thank you my Lord and Savior. I will live under your guidance and will depend everyday for your forgiveness, guidance, and glory. Read God's Word, pray in faith, and share your new faith with friends. 
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Broad Road, Narrow Road--Which Do You Travel?

         Broad Road, Narrow Road--Which Do You Travel? 

"According to a recent Barna Research report, nearly two out of three adults contend that the choice of one religious faith over another is irrelevant because all religions teach the same lessons about life. They also believe that it doesn't matter which god you pray to because every deity is ultimately the same deity veiled in a different name." Christ Among Other gods by Erwin W. Lutzer

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If that's true, then does it even matter what anyone believes, or how anyone behaves? No!! Not at all. Only gross ignorance, or fear of confrontation, or rebuke would cause persons to say or think that way. Any honest person studying world religions knows radical contradictions exist about God, man, life, and the afterlife.
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Jesus said, "You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate.The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide, for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it. Matthew 7:12-14. In this article, please let me explain the differences between the Christian biblical worldview and non Christian viewpoints.
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About God. People have varying conceptions of god. Atheists say, I see no God, so he doesn't exist. But if God is a Personal Spirit present everywhere we wouldn't see him. Don't we believe in many things we don't see directly, but experience their effects? People's claims to talk with God or an angle mean nothing--Mohammad, Joseph Smith Jr. and crazy men have claimed that. But evidence of God requires acts known impossible for man or nature to accomplish. If  Jesus walked on water, raised cold stiff corpses, predicted future detailed events impossible to guess, then we should rightfully say these are acts of God. His astonished skeptical Jewish disciples wrote that He did hundreds such things--and endured ridicule, persecution, and torturous deaths in evidence of its truth. Read my articles for further details and confirmation. 
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The Christian biblical God is a self-existent Creator who sustains the universe. He made us, loves us, wants an intimate and eternal relationship with us. He in unlimited in his power, knowledge, truth, justice and love. He has made himself known in our world in history and in human lives. He is a non contradictory Trinity of three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in one essence. See Gen. 1:2, Psalm 2:7-12; 110:1; Matt. 28::19 and my article on the mystery of God. Our peanut minds shouldn't assume we can know everything about the infinite God, but be should be open to his revelation.
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About Persons. We see all kinds of people's in the world of different colors, sizes, shapes, races, appearances, nationalities. They have different skills, intelligence levels, kinds of employment, interests, philosophies. But more important we are all part of a common human family. Our differences are not crucial, but being human beings with the same needs, desires, goals, hopes, and common ancestry So we should all be treated with respect and concern. In all honestly, we think of our self and our well-being above other persons--we're naturally self-centered. The way we act toward people, however is generally the way they react to us. But the Bible teaches we make a better world to show concern and help them no matter their behavior. Put downs destroy relationships and promote war. Look for the positive features in others. But even this requires a new nature and way of thinking, an enabling power greater than us..
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About Life. From birth to death, life's full of challenges--growing pains, learning skills, how to present ourselves, work, marriage, health, family, friends. Making mistakes and change is part of learning and growing.
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The Christian faith offers a greater fullness of life. Jesus said, "The thief's purpose (speaking of the devil) is to steal and kill and destroy (Gen. 3; John. 8:44). My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life."(John 10:10). Is Jesus saying we can have everything we want? No!! God, is like wiser loving parents who forbids some things we don't understand, but for our good. The policeman's son ignored his father's warning not to play with his pistol and shot himself.
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God, our Maker knows the right time, way, and our best interests. The principle is: "Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord and he will give you your heart's desires" (Psalm 37:4). When we delight in Him, our desires become like His good desires for us--we win every time and it saves us and others lots of unnecessary pains and sorrows. But we must trust in Him and His better way.
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About Right and Wrong. If we people are not created by God in his image, then we are evolving animals and soulless dirt that perishes. We have no great dignity and destiny. So we're responsible only to our own opinions and preference. Then there's no great wrong in lying, deceiving, abusing people, even abortion, robbery, rape, murder when they get in our way. It's just survival of the fittest in our animal world and since only the strong temporarily survive. We feel superior and prideful.
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But created in God's image, people are valued by God, responsible to him to care about each other, and will be judged, rewarded for good,or punished for bad behavior. We have God's law, and an ethical conscience that we will be judged. God's higher authority and true justice is the only basis for ethics. It trumps limited conflicting human opinions that lead to frustration, confusion, and warfare.
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God and Suffering. My loved one died. A natural disaster destroyed my home. A man raped and murdered my beautiful young daughter.The Bible teaches an eternal torturous hell. So how can there be a good and loving God to allow such things?
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Can we be logical and honest? Should we expect God to suspend His laws of nature every time a natural disaster threatens, or just in our case? Should God program our every thought and act making us robots, or is He wise and glorious to give us dignity, free will, and the possibility of loving  and eternal relationship with Him? Hell is our choice, self-inflicted, and in accord our earthly behavior . If there should be no punishment for human abuse, then aren't we wrong to have courts and jails? Shouldn't we let human abusers just do their thing? With no Hell and no punishment, how could there be a Heaven, or any kind of secure happy world? We hate these adversities of life, but stupid emotional arguments don't solve anything. An infinitely wise God knows how things have to be. We can see His love and goodness when we think honestly about it and not play God.  
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About Life's Purpose. If there no personal God who created us in His image, cares about us and acts in our world to help us, then we are no more than perishing animals and evolving dirt. Life is short, may end at any time, so practical sense seems to be to get all I can for myself while I can. Animal ethics and limited conflicting personal preferences is all we have--then lights out.
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Being born into God's kingdom its quite different. Jesus our Savior assures us His divine presence would be with us always with all power (Matthew 2:19) and He has sent the Holy Spirit to comfort, guide and give us the enabling power and incentive to live holy lives pleasing to God (John 16: Acts 2).  When we trust Christ as paying for our sin, we receive His divine life in us with a new outlook and desire to do His will. It's like being born anew or becoming a new creation (John 3:3: 2 Cor. 5:17-28). We progress in doing God's will as He works within us (Phil. 2:13).
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About Life After Death. Non Christians have no real assurance of life after death. Reincarnations claim there is the universal spirit that takes many different temporary material forms until we're absorbed. But human defects, revived life in the spring, world injustices, and dreams don't prove we have multiple lives after death. The only real evidence of it is the resurrection of a stiff lifeless corpse returning to life. Jesus arose from the dead as he said he would. 500 people saw the resurrected Lord (1 Cor. 15). It's changed hearts and lives to make a better world ever since.
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Which Road Will You Travel? The broad road is popular but leads to a dark hopeless eternal Hell. The narrow road is unpopular and difficult in ways, but is meaningful, fulfilling, and leads to Heaven. IT'S YOUR CHOICE. It will be what we all justly deserve before a perfectly loving, but just God. Won't you decide right now: Lord Jesus, I am a wrong doer, but I trust you died to take all MY SIN AWAY, and I ask You to be my Savior, Lord, and Guide the rest of my life. I further ask you to give me the courage to share this new faith in you with others. Thank you, Lord.
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Earth's Seven Year Coming Destruction!

                             Earth's Seven Year Coming Destruction! 

#great tribulation
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Persons of moral discernment see the world becoming more violent, corrupt, and evil like in the days of Noah (Genesis 6:5,11). Skeptics, secularists, socialists can party, laugh, and mock the Bible's promise of Jesus' return, not acknowledging God's love and  patience for their repentance (2 Peter 3:3-4, 15). These rebels, however, will be terrified when they see Jesus coming in the eastern sky knowing their judgment is sure (Rev. 6:15-17). We who know Him rejoice in His return and will reign with Him on earth a thousand years. Let me briefly survey the events of this time of tribulation (See Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24; Rev. 6-19). 

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This period begins when the Lord Jesus takes away His church (John 14:1-4; 1 Thess. 4:15-17), and there is a great falling away from the faith. A world leader, an Antichrist, will arise to make a seven year treaty with the Jews allowing them to rebuild the temple and offer sacrifices (Dan. 9:27). There will be great increase in wars, famines, natural disasters, and believers martyred. This is only the beginning of sorrows  (Matt. 24:5-15). It's the time of the Gentiles and of God's judgment of the earth (Luke 21:24).

Beginning the last half of this seven year period, this world leader or Antichrist will break his treaty with the Jews, deceive the world with deceptive signs, sit in the Jews temple, claim to be God, even demand worship as God (2 Thess. 2:2-4). He will demand everyone take his mark in their right hand or on the forehead. His number is 666 and he will be a highly esteemed government official promising peace. Thus, he will gain control of the world's shaky economic system (Rev. 13:16-18). Believers who won't take his mark will be martyred. He may be in the world even now. 
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During this time there will be a Satanic Trinity that will develop a global political system, a global economic system, and a global religious system. The world will make war against the Lamb. God's wrath will destroy ships at sea, cause world cities to fall into rubble, islands to disappear, mountains to be leveled, seventy-five pound hailstones to fall on the wicked and half of humanity will be slain. They will cry out in anguish and pain, but not turn from sin to God.
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Seeing the bickering and deception among political candidates today shows their desire for wealth, power, and position is greater than their concern for the well-being and safety of the people they swear to serve. Don't we see our world becoming more violent, corrupt and rebellious than ever?
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God will protect a remnant of Jewish believers making a way for them to escape into the wilderness the last half of the tribulation. Like Noah's family, they escape judgment to reproduce children in the 1,000 millennial kingdom of Christ's reign with us on earth. They are the sheep mentioned in Matthew 25:32-33.
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Near the end of this time of Jacob's trouble, two hundred million soldiers will come from the east along with other nations (Matt. 24:9; Rev. 9:13-21; 16:12-14). They will capture Jerusalem, but God will then intervene miraculously to save Israel from utter destruction, and restore the house of David as He promised (Zech. 12:1-8). Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives to deliver His people (Zech. 14:4).
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At last, the Jews will look on Him whom they pierced and accept their true Messiah (Romans 11:32-33). God's covenants with them will be fulfilled and the King of kings will reign over the world on David's thrown. Don't delay! don't get caught in this time of world devastation without hope!
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Friends, God's promises are always fulfilled, but in God's time, according to God's plan, which is always the best for everyone. Won't U too trust that the Lord has a wonderful plan for your life. It starts with you admitting your sin and trusting in the Lord Jesus to save you, guide you throughout life, and take you to be with Him. Just say, Lord, I'm an unworthy sinner who now trusts YOU to save me. Share this article with others who may be saved.
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