The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
āThe Lord is my portion,ā says my soul, ātherefore I will hope in him.ā
The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
Lamentations 3:22-26
Keep in mind that you are no better than the former prostitute who has now been saved by Christ. In fact, if you are not a believer, you are worse than her, because you are an enemy of God and He holds you in contempt. She, no matter her past, has been covered by Jesusās blood and her slate has been wiped clean. She is a new creation and has been given Christās righteousness. While there may still be physical consequences of her sin, spiritually, she is perfectly pure.
And, if you are a believer, keep in mind that, as Ephesians 2 tells us, you were once equally dead in your sin, led by the prince of the power of the air, a child of disobedience. Your salvation is not your own; it was given to you by grace. This is the same grace, the same gospel, that has saved her. The same blood of Jesus that was shed for her adultery was shed for your pride, your deceit, or your hypocrisy.
Go back and read Jesusās interactions with prostitutes and ex-prostitutes. He is truthful yet gentle and loving. To the sinful woman who washed his feet with tears in the presence of the Pharisees, he praised her love and announced that her faith had saved her.
If you are stuck in sin, ignore this stupid red pill chatter online. You can be saved and forgiven just like anyone else. No one is too far off or far gone. God sent Jesus to die for you because he loves you. You donāt have to look for love and satisfaction and identity in all the wrong places. Christ can set you free from that. Get you an ESV Study Bible (or just download the Bible app) and start reading in the book of John. The truth will set you free, my friend.
The He Gets Us ad is intentionally provocative trying to counter message the conservative church and attract people they feel are turned off to Jesus. It's the classic seeker sensitive model which is usually half right and half wrong. Theyāre right that Jesus isnāt a "hater," but He does hate sin. Theyāre right that you are free to come as you are, with all your sin. But the Truth of the Gospel is much closer to āJesus loves you too much to leave you in your sorry state.ā Come as you are but donāt stay as you are. Jesus didnāt die on a cross because He gets us, but to save us. The impression the ad leaves is that Jesus loves you for you, and thatās it! But Jesus also commanded us to āgo now and sin no more.ā
Maybe thatās asking too much out of a :60 ad, but Iām reminded of a recent discussion I had on the Whatever Podcast. One of the other panelists was an OnlyFans girl who wears a big cross, even in her videos. She was asked if she believed God approves of her career choice. She eventually said āprobably notā but that Jesus accepts her anyway.
This is where this type of message leads in the minds and hearts of millions of everyday people, when in reality, the Gospel requires your whole life and it demands true repentance. The Gospel is so powerful that you can't help but be transformed when you encounter it.
Half truths are not the Truth, but a lie. Pray that those who were compelled by the ad would find themselves in a church that preaches the whole Gospel.
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The majority of professing Christians are Biblically illiterate. Ask them basic theological questions, and they canāt answer them correctly. They couldnāt tell you what the Bible has to say about some of the most pressing moral issues of our day. The Church simply does not have time for frivolous Toy Story-themed sermons that fail to explain Scripture and preach the gospel.
The main purpose of the church is to equip the saints for the work of ministry, not to make church services so distractingly entertaining that non-Christians will attend to see a free show. While outreach and evangelism matter, sensitivity to the seeker at the expense of Biblical exegesis is sinful and counterproductive.
Sermons can be dynamic. The music can be beautiful. The sanctuary can be aesthetically pleasing. Creativity can be used for the glory of God. But putting Christ in the background just to fill seats will never work.
His aroma is sweet enough. His gospel is powerful enough. His spirit is persuasive enough. The same cross that repelled the proud and compelled the humble 2,000 years ago still does so today.
āAnd he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, *to mature manhood,* to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that *we may no longer be children,* tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to *grow up in every way* into him who is the head, into Christ,ā Eph. 4:11-14
Girls are told as teens to go on birth control
They are told to go to college,
be career women,
and put off marriage and kids
They are told childbirth is horrific
And that having a baby is one of the worst things that can happen to you
Feminine desirability is basically presented in media as porn stars
Add in all the sexual abuse and social media addictions
Itās no wonder we have a generation of women who are confused, unhappy, angry and depressed
I am so excited to finish this project! Grad school is not for the weak, but seeing results being shared to producers in the cattle industry makes it totally worth it. #GoPokesš§”š¤ #agriculture#research
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