joyancejames

Tag: #apolegetics

  • Applause of heaven

    To please all men or to gain the applause of all men is impossible, if you voice your opinion you might offend someone who has a differing viewpoint, if you stay silent you might offend someone who is banking on you to support his/her stance. Whereas it is impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6); it is possible and feasible and logical to have faith.

    This makes the applause of God and heaven attainable as compared to the applause of men.

    Secondly, Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8), unlike the wavering adulation of our fellow men. Jesus never backs down on His word.
    God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
    Numbers 23:19 NLT

    Lastly, the Bible’s explicit stance on certain key ideas of culture and society leaves no room for ambiguity. The sanctity of life, including the life inside the womb, the intrinsic value of every human being created in the image of God, the sacredness of sex within the covenant of marriage, the creation of man and woman to complement each other in a hetero sexual  union through marriage.
    The Bible is unequivocally pro-life and God values every individual regardless of race, colour or ethnicity, since He created them in His image and likeness, making all as equals. 

    We are meant to show God’s love for all (no ifs and buts), but we’re also meant to preach the truth in love, even though the truth may not go down well with everyone. In the 1st century the gospel was a stumbling block to the Jews and the Greeks considered it foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:23). Speaking the truth may not help us win popularity contests, but it may cause someone to gain eternity. Popularity through compromise is detrimental to the kingdom of Heaven. Hence, the onus is upon the church to be Biblically correct before political or cultural correctness.

    What if you lose popularity so that someone can gain eternity?

    Applause of heaven >> applause of men.

    Trading the temporal for the eternal

  • Stuck in a Saturday!

    One Saturday in AD. 29, in the middle East,
    The world was silent
    It was a Sabbath
    Disciples were waiting
    Mary and the women were waiting
    Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were waiting
    The high priests were waiting
    The Romans were waiting
    The tomb was waiting
    Heaven was waiting
    Heaven was silent

    The prophets had foretold, Jesus had reminded that good Friday would not be the end. All was forgotten while waiting on Saturday.
    Mary and the women were waiting to embalm the dead body of the savior, Peter and others were waiting and pondering over alternative career options. The high priests and their folks had probably postponed their celebration to after Sabbath.

    Saturday is the day between good Friday and resurrection Sunday. It’s a day of waiting. Waiting for the unknown. As I write this, the world is stuck in a Saturday, the virus came, saw and conquered. We’re living in unprecedented times when the world has been brought to a standstill by an invisible enemy, living in the aftermath with no surety of the future.

    Sometime before Sunday morn, the tomb stone rattled, and there was no body to be embalmed. When Jesus met them again He reminded them again that He is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets; their fear gave way to awe and wonder.

    As we live, not knowing what tomorrow brings, how we live through this protracted Saturday of waiting period will have far repercussions in to our future.
    If we forget His promises then our waiting will be fearful just like that of Peter and his friends, so let us look back on His promises, reminisce the past victories God has led us into.

    Because He lives we can face tomorrow, choose faith over fear. There is hope for tomorrow and we shall come out stronger.