The Lost World

                                                               The Lost World

In 1997 Steven Sperlberg released his dinosaur flick "The Lost World." Good film, some of my favorite dinosaurs, loud roars, chomping teeth, and a mother T-Rex's  love and protection of her own. The film  still holds up today. 

But the real Lost World is all around us. They are the living dead.

They walk the earth and appear to be alive, holding jobs, driving cars, going shopping, raising famlies  but they are really the walking dead. That is dead spiritually. And these are so called people who believe  or at least profess to believe in an afterlife. Their afterlife scenario goes like this: 

When someone dies they proclaim, "Oh they have their wings now." or "God needed another angel in heaven." People do not become angels. Angels are incorporeal beings.  They have not flesh, blood and bones as do we humans. Though they may appear human at various times,  they are not. 

Another popular preception enumerated by a vast number is , "Oh, they are looking down and watching over us and know what's going on."  Or they're at the big ballgame in the sky. That even became a top rated film. And the term that makes me very nervous when someone says it in regards to God, "the man upstairs". 

First off God is not a man that He should lie. In fact the father of lies is Satan himself. Not the God of the Bible.  I hate to say this but the world presents a notion of a God, as more like a man than the all powerful omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent God which Scripture says "Spoke everything into being. That the worlds were framed by the Word of God,  so that the things that are seen were not made of the things which are visible. (Heb. 11:3) Before there was anything their was nothing. Nothing. Nada. No universe, no matter, no atoms, no protons, no neutons, no quarks, no nothing. Just the blackness of darkness. A darkness unimaginable.  

The Bible of Christian belief (and Jewish belief) says, "The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”(Genesis 1:2-3). 

God spoke it out. The Gospel of John  says, that One who spoke it out was the One who humbled Himself, took on a body of flesh, blood and bones, was conceived by God the Holy Spirit in the womb of a young virgin, that Word who was in the beginning with God and was God, became flesh and dwelt  (tabernacled) among us. "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." (Phil. 2:8)

We have a Christmas because Jesus did God the Father's will. He obeyed the Father without exception. Fully man and fully God. Scripture says when you honor the Son you honor the Father who sent Him.  For "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:10-11) 

His is "The Way, the Truth and the Life..." there is no other name under heaven by which anyone can be saved... "NO ONE comes to the Father except through Christ Jesus." (John 14:6;Acts 4:12)  

The problem is US. Our problem is SIN. We were born that way. Inherited by the federal head of the human race, who believed a lie rather than believe God. And everything, all creation was subjected to futility or vanity. We are tainted through and through. And good works won't cut it with a Holy and Righteous God. Good works can't save because all our righteous acts are as filthy rags. (Is. 64:6)  

As Jesus the Christ said, "without me, you can do nothing." That is nothing of eternal value outside of Christ Jesus. That's why he was sent. That is why He came. That is why he was born, lived a perfect life, fullfilled the law and the prophets, died on a cross, was buried and then raised up from the dead,  to save His people from their sins. 

Without Jesus Christ we can do nothing that can earn our way to heaven. Because as Jesus said, you must be PERFECT as the Father in heaven is perfect. Only one flesh and blood human being accomplished that. He who has the Son,  by grace  through faith, has life. That is life eternal. A citizenship in heaven. And as a child of God good works prepared for you to do, before God calls us into eternity not because of  what we have done or will ever do. But because God sent His only Son down from heaven "That He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works." (Titus 2:14)

That is the good news. the Gospel....BUT the bad news is this. Those  who do not have the Son, by grace through faith, those who have  not repented and  confessed Jesus Christ is Lord. For those  awaits  a certain fearful expectation of judgement and fiery indignation. For those who do not have  the Son DO NOT have life, but the wrath of God abides on  them. (John 3:36; Rev. 21:8; 2 Thess. 1:7-10) 

We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain.  For He says:“In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.”

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. (2 Cor. 6:1-2)

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

What Is The Gospel?

What Is The Gospel??

To begin with you must understand that the problem is us. SIN in us. We are not sinners because we sin. We sin because we are sinners. We are born that way. 

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me. (Ps. 51:5) 

both Jews and Gentiles (anyone not born Jewish)  are all under sin.

As it is written:

“There is none righteous, no, not one;

There is none who understands;

There is none who seeks after God.

They have all turned aside;

They have together become worthless;

There is none who does good, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10-12; Paul quoting the Old Testament)

Nothing you do can commend you to God. Good works  CANNOT SAVE YOU.....For as Jesus said, "without me you can do nothing." And he told the people "You must be PERFECT  as your Father in heaven is PERFECT. 

That is the dilemma all human beings face. The only way to solving this dilemma of perfection is through God's One and Only Son. The Word who was in the beginning with God and was God. The Word who became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:1-3;14)

He is the only mediator between God and mankind...(1 Tim 2:5)

Because He is the God-man

Jesus the Christ Himself said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through me."(John 14:6) 

His is the only name under heaven by which we can be saved. (Act 4:12) 

Saved from God's wrath and the damnation of the unregenerate.

Jesus said so much in the Gospel of  John  "You must be born again" (which literally ,means "born from above") 

Born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13)

Jesus said,  “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matt. 7:13-14)

 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt. 10:28)

Christ came to save his people from their sins and went to prepare a place for them and promised "I am with you always." 

The love of God is to have prepared a pathway out of our predictment of that separation from God not only in this life but in our life to come in eternity. You will spend that in either one of two places. Heaven, the Kingdom of God or hell, separation from the presence of God and the glory of His power. (2 Thess 1:7-10) 

Jesus the Christ said it over 2000 years ago and it resounds with that same authority today, let these words sink down into your ears. 

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28-30)

Does this mean when Jesus Christ is your Savior and Lord, by grace through faith and not of yourselves but a gift of God, You can continue in a life of debauchery, unbridled immorality, lust and perversion? 

Paul uttered "God forbid!"  How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. In fact Jesus Himself said," “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." Paul continues in Romans 6, What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!  But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:20-23)

Therefore if anyone be in Christ, they are  a new creation: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2 Cor 5:17)

Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,  that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.  For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles (pagans) —when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries.  In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.  They will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. (1 Peter 4:1-5)

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.  They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.  Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more. (Eph 4:17-19)

Sin births more sin. It is a perpetual hungry beast that plagues the heart of mankind. When fed, it brings forth a waste land of corruption the engulfs the entire being to crave more and act on those vile impulses that drag us  further from the purpose of God for His people. To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

God wants all of us. He must be the preeminent one in our lives. Second best doesn't do it. He wants all of us. And for those whom He has brought from death to life and from darkness to light it is a challenge that we face everyday. But it should be the desire of our hearts.

O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for You;

My flesh longs for You

In a dry and thirsty land

Where there is no water.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You.

Thus I will bless You while I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your name. (Ps. 63 King David's joy in the fellowship of God)

Think about this for a moment. The God of all creation wants to fellowship with you. Yes you ! Why? Because you are of intrinic value to Him.

In this is love. Not that we loved God... Because the carnal (fleshly) mind is at enmity (hatred) aganist God, it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.  So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.(Romans 8:7-8)...

Yes it's not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be an atoning sacrifice for sin. (1 John 4:10) 

Why? Because sin is that egregious to a Holy and Righteous creator God. And no one tainted, surrounded with perishable flesh, can inhabit the kingdom of God. You must be a new creation in Christ Jesus. 

God can not change His nature. The cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars will not have a place in the Kingdom of God.(Rev 21:8)  He has set the standard. 

He chose the Nation Israel to receive His law for mankind, and to be a light to the gentiles. To them He gave the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the service of God, and the promises; and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen. (Romans 9:4) 

And God gave them the sacrificial system that pointed to the one true acceptable sacrifice that was to come. The One spoken of in the Psalms and by Isaiah the prophet... 

He was oppressed and He was afflicted,

Yet He opened not His mouth;

He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,

And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

So He opened not His mouth.

He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;

He has put Him to grief.

For All we like sheep have gone astray;

We have turned, every one, to his own way;

And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53 750 years before the birth of Jesus)

He is the One  to whom we hear John the Baptist proclaim when He saw Jesus coming toward him, "Behold the lamb of God, that takes away the sin of the world."(John 1:29)

Referring back to  the time when God spared His people Israel, when they obeyed and the death angel passed over the people when he saw the blood of the lamb on the door frames and spared their first born. (Exodus 12)

Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. (Heb. 9:22)

So, God made Him who had no sin--the Word who was in the beginning with God and was God--the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us--to be a sin offering for us, so that in Him we might become the righteous of God. (2 Cor 5:21; John 1:1;14) 

That is why faith in Jesus the Christ , the object of true faith, is absolutely necessary for entrance into God's kingdom. By trusting in Him for your salvation and obeying His commands (John 14:21) Of course you won't have perfect obedience, but  God the Father sees you as perfect through the offering of His son, in whom you have confessed and repented. And the desire of your heart will be to please Him.

As Paul the Apostle through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, in His attempt to  grasp the enormity of God's precious gift uttered, "No eye has seen, No ear has heard, No mind has concieved what God has prepared for those who love Him." (1 Cor 2:9)  

If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Ro. 10:9) 

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,  by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures...(1 Cor 15:1-4)