Can anyone work his way to heaven? No, that’s not possible. Does one have to work to maintain his salvation? No, that’s not possible either. Does a saving faith have works? Absolutely.

We have to understand the work started in the believer comes from God.

Philippians 2:12-13

 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

We need to understand we operate from our position in Christ.

James 2:14-17

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Give it some thought and go to work.

Gary

Back in the 1960s Diana Ross and the Supremes could really belt out the song, “Someday We’ll Be Together.” It was about a girl talking to her lover who was so far away. The song declared that, in spite of the past mistakes, the day would come when they would be together. Not a spiritual song, but it does remind me of the future for all believers.

Revelation 19:7-9 

Let us rejoice and exult and give Him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

Someday we’ll be there and we’ll say hello to all who are there because they embraced the finished work of Calvary.

Give it some thought.

Gary

What cigarette do doctors say causes less throat irritation? In the 1930s and 40s, tobacco companies would happily tell you it was theirs. In 1946, Reynolds launched an ad campaign with the slogan, “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette.”

Lies sell products. Politicians and preachers are experts in the field of lying. Does the Bible address this phenomenon? Glad you asked.

2 Timothy 4:3 

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,

Because there is a market for lies, there will be those who rise up for the occasion. The blind will lead the blind.

Give it some thought. Let’s smoke this thing.

Gary

There were ten of us in 1956. Mom, Dad, my three brothers and four sisters. Life was good and we were all under the same roof. I wish I had a recording of some of the events that took place in that old house. Time changes everything. Now there are six of us, and we’ve kissed seventy to eighty years good-by. The years remind us that life here on the planet is fleeting and the past can’t be replicated.  However, I have peace and hope, not given by life, but by the Scriptures.

Romans 15:13 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Isaiah 40:31 

But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Even if you didn’t have the kind of life that you could be grateful for, there is always hope for the life to come. Give it some thought.

Gary

Why read the book of Genesis? It is because it is the seed plot of the Bible. Every doctrine in the rest of scripture has a root in this book. Salvation is seen when God clothed Adam and Eve after the fall. The crucifixion is foreshadowed in the account of Abraham offering up Isaac, which is about the father offering up the son. God Himself is displayed when Melchizedek comes from nowhere, blesses Abraham and disappears off the pages of Genesis.

Why don’t you read the book of Genesis? It’s only fifty chapters which you could start and finish in two and a half hours.

Genesis 50:20-21

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. Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

Give it some careful consideration.

Gary

Any idiot can face a crisis–it’s this day-to-day living that wears you out.

                                                                                  – Anton Chekhov

So many can’t handle the same old same old. My mother-in-law did, and she had fifteen children that proved she could. Some people say an individual like that sure missed out on a lot of life’s pleasures. I would like to ask them what pleasures they are talking about. Scriptures make it clear.

Genesis 1:28 

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

When we practice the purpose for which God placed us here, life does not become a drudgery. Do His will and overcome difficulty.

Give it some thought.

Gary

Do you remember your first sin? I don’t either because it was too long ago. I do remember being expected to confess my sin. I had to think really hard. I said, when the door slid open, “I fought with my brother and stole cigarettes from my mother.” That seemed to satisfy the man behind the screen and I came out of that closet feeling good about myself.

You cannot live on this planet and not sin. The Scripture is clear that we have a natural bent towards sin.

Psalm 51:5

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

The good news is that Christ took the punishment for our transgressions on Calvary. Give it some thought and remember this: cigarette smoking can be hazardous in more ways than one.

Gary