Nothing here to fear

While those around us are becoming increasingly hostile and hateful, we brothers and sisters must become increasingly holy.

Some are fearful of the times we live in, but as a child of God, I do not fear for me, but for those who reject God's grace, and love. For perilous times are truly coming, what we face now is nothing more than birth pains, soon the world will know what the wrath of God is when He rejects them as they have rejected Him.

People may laugh and mock, they may kill followers of Christ, but in the end, they will feel the judgment of God and fear Him, and they to will bow before Christ and confess Him as Lord.

The good news is that if you're reading this, the invitation for you to come to Christ is still open and today you can receive Him into your life as LORD and Savior.

Without Him, there is no hope and it becomes your choice to receive the punishment of sin, death. Only with Christ is there no condemnation and eternal life.

Believe what you want, but don't waste another breath for it could be your last one!

The first step to salvation is acknowledging we are sinners, Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." We have all sinned. We have all done things that are displeasing to God.

There is no one who is innocent. Romans 6:23, teaches us about the consequences of sin - "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

The punishment that we deserve for our sins is death. Not just physical death, but eternal death!

The second part of Romans 6:23 tell us ”but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Only in Christ is life everlasting found.

Romans 5:8 tells us, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus Christ died for us! Jesus' death paid for the price of our sins. Jesus' resurrection proves that God accepted Jesus' death as the payment for our sins.

Now you know we are all sinners, the penalty for sin is death, but the gift of God eternal life comes through a relationship with Christ Jesus, who while we where His enemy took our punishment and died in our place for our sin, now look at Romans 10:9, "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Because of Jesus' death on our behalf, all we have to do is believe in Him, and confess Him as Lord and Savior trusting His death as the payment for our sins - and we will be saved!

Romans 10:13 says it again, "for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins and rescue us from eternal death. Salvation, the forgiveness of sins, is available to anyone who will trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

The final truth of believing in Christ as LORD and Savior are the results of salvation. Romans 5: 1, "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Through Jesus Christ, we can have a relationship of peace with God. Romans 8:1 teaches us, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Because of Jesus' death on our behalf, we will never be condemned for our sins.

Here is a simple prayer you can pray to God. Saying this prayer is a way to declare to God that you are relying on Jesus Christ for your salvation. The words themselves will not save you.

Only faith in Jesus Christ can provide salvation! "God, I know that I have sinned against you and am deserving of punishment. But Jesus Christ took the punishment that I deserve so that through faith in Him I could be forgiven. With your help, I place my trust in You for salvation. Thank You for Your wonderful grace and forgiveness - the gift of eternal life! Amen!"

God's word says this:

“Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word, so that you may grow up into your salvation if you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone — rejected by people but chosen and honored by God — you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture: See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and honored cornerstone, and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame. So honor will come to you who believe; but for the unbelieving, The stone that the builders rejected — this one has become the cornerstone, and A stone to stumble over, and a rock to trip over. They stumble because they disobey the word; they were destined for this. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 1 Peter 2:1-10 CSB

“Meanwhile, a crowd of many thousands came together, so that they were trampling on one another. He began to say to his disciples first, “Be on your guard against the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing covered that won’t be uncovered, nothing hidden that won’t be made known. Therefore, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in an ear in private rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops. “I say to you, my friends, don’t fear those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. But I will show you the one to fear: Fear him who has authority to throw people into hell after death. Yes, I say to you, this is the one to fear!

“And I say to you, anyone who acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God, but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Whenever they bring you before synagogues and rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how you should defend yourselves or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what must be said.” Luke 12:1-5, 8-12 CSB

“All these events are the beginning of labor pains. “Then they will hand you over to be persecuted, and they will kill you. You will be hated by all nations because of my name. Then many will fall away, betray one another, and hate one another. Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:8-14 CSB