You Know The Story

                                When The Door Slams

 And this is the testimony: that God has given us                                                                           eternal life, and this life is in His Son.                                                                                                 He who has the Son has life;                                                                                                                 he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
                                                                                            1 John 5:11-12

       A Wall Street Journal article reported on a survey in which men and women were asked, "What is it that you fear the most?" The number three fear of all participants was the fear of death. The fear of failure ranked number one, and the fear of loneliness was number two.

       1 John 4:18 says that "perfect love casts out fear." Perfect love has only the good of the person being loved in mind. Perfect love was demonstrated when God sent His only Son Jesus Christ to die in our place.

       Fortunately that wasn't the end of the story. Jesus was the ultimate victim of my sin, but God wasn't going to leave Him a victim forever. Death had no power over Him. Resurrection was God's answer to the worst that human beings could dish out.

       If I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, repent and be obedient to His Word I have eternal life. That frees me from my fear of death. Then I am welcomed into a caring, supportive group of believers. Together we support each other as we discover what it means to follow Jesus. We no longer need to fear loneliness.

       The incredible power that raised Christ from the dead is also available to you today. That power can bring good out of even your most devastating failures. Therefore I don't have to fear failure.  You know the story. Because of Christ I do not fear failure, loneliness or death.

Ask the Spirit to Search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin.
       Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness. 

Jesus Christ is Light.

                                     When The Door Slams

He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and                                                                              transferred us into the Kingdom of this Son.                                                                                                                                                                                        Colossians 1:13

       Think about this, the kingdom of darkness. What picture do they form in your mind?  An impenetrable blackness all around that would keep you from seeing where to go? An enveloping darkness like a fog that would make you fear something will jump out and hurt you? A reeking swamp of despair that would keep you feeling terrified?

       The kingdom of darkness is Satan's domain. The main thing he does is keep people in the dark so they can't see the light that would lead them out of it to a place of hope, joy, and peace. How does Satan's kingdom work?

       Through dark lies, Satan keep people afraid, unable to move in any direction. Through accusations and guilt-inducing deception, through false leadership or authority in Cults where people become further immobilized. By keeping them chained to their sins, bad habits, lies, and addictions.

       Practically in today's churches has certain characteristics that can tell the careful observer that something is wrong. A unwillingness of the leaders to let the people grow up. A true shepherd will do everything he can to bring Christian people to maturity as quickly as he can. He will not seek to avoid necessary teaching, nor will he try to keep people from maturity. Many cults perpetuate spiritual dependence so that their followers lose the ability to make independent, rational decisions.

       But there is a way out. How? By the light of Christ's Kingdom. Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8:12), and when his light shines on you, He enables you to escape from this darkness. Do you ever feel guilt, fear, and despair? Look to the light of Christ. His promise is to lead you into his Kingdom.

       Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. 
Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.