The POWER of Jesus Christ

For centuries governments have tried to control the people in their countries. Some have been so bold as to try to conquer other countries and add to the people under their control.

Let's observe two things.
1. No government has been able to conquer, stop, overpower or control the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, His Church.

2. Every government that has ever become a great power eventually self-destructed. The grown of greed and corruption eventually got to the point that the people rebelled, the leader was overthrown and/or the country destroyed.

The point I wish to make is that there is no leader, power, kingdom or government that is as life-changing or as powerful and long lasting as the Church of Jesus Christ.

For over 2,000 years, there have been those who have tried to suppress, torture, even kill Christians in an attempt to silence and destroy the Church. These governments are now defunct or miniscule compared to their one time glory.

Jesus Christ still reigns. His Church still exists and no government will ever stop it.

Getting To Know Jesus will help you discover the power of Jesus Christ in your life and see how you can become more like Him.

Jesus gives us real POWER

Everybody Wants POWER,
but they don’t know where to find it.

There is that nature in us that often feels powerless and out of control. We can’t control our spouse, parents or children. We can’t control our health. We can’t control the weather. We can’t even control our future and we often find ourselves experiencing the consequences of failing to exercise power over temptations that come our way. We will do wrong things and not know why. We don’t know not to stop doing these wrong things. We especially hurt when someone comes and exercises a power or authority that we cannot resist because we did something wrong or they simply have a power advantage over us.

We have to have a bigger car, house, television, etc. because we want to have more power! We want a position in my job or in the community so we can control others. We demand recognition as a person of power or influence. When we don’t get it, we feel that we have no control and powerless.

Problem

In reaction to that feeling of powerlessness, we do all sorts of things trying to find some power. Often times, we will seek power in the wrong ways. Instead of accepting that maybe we don’t need that power or it is not good for us to have or could even pose a greater harm than good, we will push ahead in determination that we are going to have power over that person or situation.

People frequently seek the wrong kind of power. People don’t know what the real POWER is that they seek and need and whether the power we seek is appropriate for us. We have a faulty definition of power that thinks it is in having control over individuals or groups or some situation. In the process of trying to address that need for some sort of power in our life, we will engage in behavior that is self-destructive or harmful to others. Most people define having power as being in government, having lots of money or being famous as an entertainer or athlete. Our thoughts about power seem to escape the most serious issue of where we are most powerless.

Power is not about controlling other people or persuading them to follow you. Power is not in having lots of money or fancy possessions. Power is not in being stronger or able to fight and prevail over someone else. Power is not being able to beat someone else in a competition. Power is not even being able to get a lot of people to worship you as you entertain them.

The area where we need more power, but have no clue how to get it, is the power to control our own life and do what is right and not do what is wrong. We constantly find ourselves in situation after situation where we have done something we realize (after we did it) that we should not have done or did not really want to do in the first place, but didn’t exercise the restraint to keep us from doing it.

The real problem is the problem of sin. We are all guilty of it and can’t seem to get any control over its influence in our lives.

Proof of the failure in Man’s definition and pursuit of power

Government fails! There has never been a government on the face of this earth that has not failed sooner or later. Even the Israelites, God’s chosen people, were frequently taken captive because they turned their backs on God. Christianity has lasted over 2,000 years and thrived in governments that tried to suppress or silence Christians from that country. Every government that has opposed Christ has self-destructed. No one has had more power or influence than Christ. His Kingdom spans over the entire world and through every culture.

Even the United States government owes its very existence and success to the influence of Christianity in the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights. All of our Presidents have had a high respect for the power of God in the guidance and direction of our nation. All of our court houses and many of our government offices include the Ten Commandments in their artwork. If our government ever abandons its Christian values, it will also self-destruct.

Finances fail!

Riches can disappear faster than the World Trade Center can fall to the ground. Many a person has gained vast fortunes only to die penniless and broke. Movie stars, business owners, investors, sports personalities, the list goes on and on of those who gained lots of wealth, spent it like it would last forever or saw their wealth that they had trusted in evaporate. Stocks have dropped without warning. Business have failed and fortunes been lost. Income has run out and those who relied on it found themselves penniless.

Fame fails!

Famous people are flawed. How many stars, professional athletes, political figures whom have or had some measure of fame and fortune were brought down because they didn’t have the power to do whatever they wanted. Famous people have little if any power. Any movie or television star is directed and told where to stand, what to do, what to say and how to say it. They are simply famous because they are the one you see. Athletes may be powerful in their sport, but they do not have any power beyond self-control. Politicians, if they are wise, realize that they represent the people. They don’t control them. Governments that try to control only open themselves to the rebellion and overthrow.

People fail!

The reason government, finances and fame fail to give people power is because of the sin that rules over the lives of those who have not tapped into the real POWER – Jesus Christ. Even many Christians still sin because they do not exercise the power of Christ in them to restrain themselves from sinning. When they are caught in some sin, they pass it off as though it is nothing different than everybody else in the hopes that they will escape the pain and embarrassment that comes with exposure.

Proposition

Jesus Christ gives us a POWER that surpasses every other power on this earth.

Let me give you some reasons to justify my claim.

1. Government fails. There is no power on earth that has lasted as long, made many lives better or ever been able to conquer the Church that Jesus Christ established over 2,000 years ago.

2. Money cannot buy what Jesus gives away freely.

3. Fame is fleeting. Consider how many famous people have gotten in to trouble and become discredited.

4. Death cannot conquer Jesus Christ. For those who believe in Jesus, they will die physically, but no one can take their eternal life away from them.

Jesus Christ gives us the POWER to recognize the temptations before we give in to them and the POWER to say “NO” to those temptations before they become sin.

Jesus Christ gives us the power to be more productive in our jobs.

Jesus Christ gives us the power to love our families in a better way. That builds healthier families, stronger marriages and better citizens in the community.

Jesus Christ gives us the POWER to live eternally with Him and God, the Father, in Heaven.

There is no real POWER outside of Jesus Christ and building your relationship with Him builds His POWER in you.

Christmas is about Jesus Christ

Merry Christmas!

I am frustrated and disappointed as I see the ACLU getting away with taking Christ out of Christmas and intimidating Christians into silence. It is time for all who respect the freedom that we have in the United States to tell the ACLU to cease and desist!

From the very beginning, Christmas has been designated to celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ. Although we do not know the exact day on which He was born, we set aside December 25th as a day for rememberance that God sent His Son to be born of a woman, live as a human and die on the cross for our sins. He was born to die for the sins of you and I (lyrics from "He Was Born to Die" by Glen Copple, 1982).

Today, the ACLU and other anti-Christian organizations are trying to eliminate the word "Christmas" by using "happy holidays" or "season's greetings". They are afraid of offending someone who isn't a Christian. We never worried or had a problem before. Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists in the United States have not been offended with "Christmas" for over 200 years of our nations history. Now someone tells us that we must not offend them. Well I'm offended when they tell me that I do not have the right to say, "Merry Christmas" or sing Christmas songs that talk about the events surrounding the birth of our Lord and Savior.

I, for one of many, am doing more to speak up and challenge those who tell me that the freedom of religion and freedom of speech do not appy to Christians. We have as much, if not more right to not "be offended" than any other religious or non-religious (if there really is such a thing) group in the world.

The United States was founded on Christian principles. The Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights reference God as our ultimate ruler. Indeed, without a Christian based moral system, our government (or any other for that matter) will not work. This nation owes everything it has to the influence that Christians have brought into our government and culture.

Christians are the reason the United States is the nation with the most freedom on earth. People from all over the world seek to immigrate and become citizens because they want our freedom.

Christians are the reason our nation, a Christian nation, allows people from other religous beliefs to come and worship freely. Christians are not afforded those same freedoms in any other nation to the extent they are here, especially in Muslim dominated countries. Try being a Chrsitian in Indonesia, Somalia, Iran, Iraq and other countries that declare all out hatred and condone the murder of Christians. We don't do that to those in the United States of their religious persuasion.

Christians brough a work ethic into our nation and culture that has made us the most technologically advanced and prosperous nation on earth. Others have borrowed and benefited from our technology and generosity. No other nation has produced so much, given so much and helped the world as much as the United States and Christians are the foundation of all of that kindness.

Christian principles of generosity have made us the most giving nation on earth. We poor out more money to countries recovering from natural disasters than any other nation on earth. Our foreign aid far surpasses any other nation on earth. We even send foreign aid to countries that hate us, our freedoms and values.

All of this is because of the influence of Christian teachings in the people of the United States.

Today is the day for Christians to stand up and speak up. It is time for us to reengage the world and let them see that Christianity is a religion of love and kindness, not hatred and murder. It is also time for us to realize that we are not to tolerate being silenced, persecuted or restricted in the free exercise of our religious beliefs by someone who's agenda is against the loving creator God who wants to have a love relationship with His creation.

MERRY CHRISTMAS and may GOD BLESS YOUR NEW YEAR.

Who are you Thanking?

I have been observing all of the activity and planning that surrounds Thanksgiving. Families are working on getting together, planning who is preparing what and if travel arrangements are an issue, who is picking up at the airport and what time. Busy, busy, busy and them more busy.

Thanksgiving is one of the happiest holidays of the year as families get together to enjoy some family time together. If distance is a factor, this may be the only time some families even get together to reconnect and find out what has been happening over the year. It is definitely a time of excitement.

There are those exceptions. More people die on Thanksgiving day from heart attack than any other day of the year. They eat too much, put too great a load on their heart and it attacks them. I have two grandparents that died around this time of year.

Let's get back to more pleasant things. Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time to be thankful. I saw a question on the Internet about what are you thankful for. While that is a very good and important question to ask, I would like to submit that we also need to remember who it is we are thanking. Today, many people have forgotten the original history and purpose of Thanksgiving. Today, many people don't even think of thanking anyone, but just want to get together with family, eat too much and watch a football game. They have lost total sight as to what Thanksgiving is about.

A lot of people will think of being thankful to and for family and friends and special things that have happened to them over the past year, especially the past few weeks and days. However, way to many people don't consider (or care) about the real purpose behind Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving has always been a day to thank God for all of His blessings. Our harvest, family, health, freedom and much more are because God has been working in our lives to provide for us.

This is over simplified and warrants further research, but here is a sketch to the history of Thanksgiving.

When the Pilgrims first came to what is now the United States of America, their life was very hard. Many had died on the ship on the way over, only to be buried at sea. After they arrived, they had to clear land, build homes and plant crops before they could have food to sustain them. Cold, lack of food and other hardships took many more lives. Those who did survive were eventually able to build a colony that would sustain them. They made friendships with the local indian tribes and learned from each other about how to live together in harmony in this new settlement.

When the fall came, some of the early settlers realized the importance of thanking God for blessing them with an abundant harvest. The natives and the settlers got together to thank God for helping them.

Years later, our government established Thanksgiving to be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November every year to thank God for His blessings.

So back to my question - Who are you going to thank? Hopefully, you will choose to say "Thank You God for..."

God bless you and have a thankful Thanksgiving!

Vladimir Putin needs Getting To Know Jesus

I just saw a headline on World Net Daily about Vladimir Putin soon having access to read "Shocked by the Bible" as it is being tranlated into the Russian language.

I remember when it was illegal to own a Bible in Russia and Christians would smuggle them across the border so Christians in Russia could read and learn about Jesus Christ and what He did for them. As Communism collapsed, resistance to the Bible and Christianity dissolved as well. Today Bibles are being printed in Russia and the church is being encouraged instead of suppressed. What a wonderful change.

I would like to see how Vladimir Putin's life would be changed if he went through the entire Getting To Know Jesus Bible study series. As we have already seen, Christianity and the Church has overpowered and outlasted one of the more hostille governments we have seen in modern times. From the beginning of the Church in 33 AD, there has been no government, kingdom, power or organization that has been able to stop or effectively suppress the Christian Church.

Jesus Christ is a King forever. His Kingdom, the Church (including all of the denominations that believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, our Lord and Savior) will never be destroyed by any other government, religion or group.

I'm glad to be a Christian. I've read the end of the book and I know that Jesus wins and if we believe in Him, we will be winners along side. Vladimir Putin can be a part of that winning team if he learns about Jesus and chooses to follow Him with his life.

You can also be a follower of Christ and a part of the most powerful Kingdom in the world. Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Study the Getting To Know Jesus Bible study series to learn about what Jesus taught and how you can become more like Him. It will change your life!

Is Hasan a Terrorist?

It is interesting to observe that the news media, and even the President, are not calling Hasan a terrorist for his act of murdering 13 and wounding another 28 people at Fort Hood Texas. Are they thinking that by not calling Hasan a terrorist he will not be one? Are they afraid that if they call him a terrorist that we'll be attacked again somewhere else?

Maybe they are tying to soft pedal sin. If they don't call him a terrorist, then they can justify not condemning him to death. By trying him in a Federal Court instead of a milatary tribunal as our laws say should be done, he is likely to get off on some technicality instead of receiving the punishment he would certainly get from the military.

What Would Jesus Do?
Jesus Christ never tried to appease. He called sin what it was and told sinners to repent. Jesus would judge Hasan for the murders of those people. If Jesus saw any spark of redemption, He might have words that would bring Hasan to repentance, but if He saw a man determined to hate God and reject His salvation, He would condemn Hasan just as He did all who rejected Him.

Remember that Jesus stopped a crowd from stoning Him, but later assisted a mob in crucifying Him. Jesus forgave a woman who had been caught in adultery and instructed her to stop her sinning. He also condemned the religious leaders who were opposing Him. He forgave the one thief on the cross, but didn't say anything to change the mind or attitude of the unrepentant thief on the cross.

Jesus reached out to those who were open to the Gospel, but He never forced it on anyone. At the same time, Jesus never went soft on speaking out against sin, but told all of us that we should repent or pay a painful price. Jesus never tried to appease anyone.

The Church today needs to stand up and speak up. The United States government needs to stop denying what happened and stand up against those who do evil and prosecute them according to our Constitution and laws.

God will bless America only as long as America blesses God.

Michael Jackson Vs. Jesus Christ

So much attention is being devoted to Michael Jackson that you would think he died on the cross for man's sin. Michael was a very good and popular song and dance entertainer. But that is all he could do - entertain. He did try to give something to the children to make up for the childhood that he didn't really get to have. Beyond that, he was just as messed up as you and I are.


Why are we giving so much worship and adulation to a man who took our money for a song and dance, but never gave us anything but a song and dance?

Jesus Christ never made you pay for what He gave. What He gave was far more than what Michael could ever conceive. Jesus showed us how God wants us to live. Jesus cared for people and healed them (without payment). Jesus stood up against corruption, defended the innocent and gave the guilty a chance to repent. Jesus orchestrated His own death because He knew that was the only way our sins could be attoned for and we could have an eternal loving relationship with God.


What do you think Jesus would have said to Michael while he was still alive?


What would Jesus say to all of the people who are worshippng Michael Jackson today?