sinless

A Tree For Each Of The Three

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on Him, saying, “If Thou be Christ, save Thyself and us.”  But the other answering rebuked him, saying, “Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?  And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this Man hath done nothing amiss.”  And he said unto Jesus, “Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom.”  And Jesus said unto him, “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with Me in paradise.”
Luke 23:39-43

Each of these three were hanging on their own cross, and each cross was made from the wood of a tree.  The man on the right of Jesus was guilty. The on the left of Jesus was guilty, but Jesus the Man in the middle not only innocent of the charges brought against Him, He was innocent in all His living. He never sinned.

It is evident that the Man in the middle was an innocent Man. How?  You may ask. He never, while being nailed to the tree cursed those who had accused Him, neither did He speak vile words to those who nailed His hands and feet to that tree.  Instead He said, “Father forgive them they know not what they do” Luke 23:34.  Another example is in our text for the day. One of the condemned men, who had previously mocked Jesus on the cross, had realized that He [Jesus] was not a sinner, but the Savior.  Now, he is calling on Him to save Him; not from the cross but for the kingdom’s sake, he said, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom,.” How do you suppose he expected Jesus to do this since He was hanging on a tree? He recognized Jesus as the Messiah.

The response of the Man on the middle cross was given, and it was one of forgiveness. You could call the mans salvation, “A death bed confession and faith” because that is what it is.  Was that guilty man saved? Will he be in glory with the Lord Jesus Christ?  Most definitely He will. How do I know that?  Because of the  words of Jesus, the Man on the middle cross said to him, “Truly I say unto you, Today, you will be with Me in paradise.” That very day Jesus and that man went to paradise together.

One guilty man wanted Jesus to deliver them from the cross, one asked to be remembered in the kingdom that is coming, and one Man gave salvation to the who asked. It should have been me dying on that old cross, not Jesus the innocent One, who knew no sin. It should have been you who was hanged there, but just as Jesus took murderer, and insurrection leader’s place He took my place and yours.

Two men hanging on a tree on opposite sides of Jesus; one died in peace, knowing his eternal destination, the other died with darkness, and empty expectations, and is in eternal darkness, and burning flames. What made the difference?  The One on the tree in the middle.  His name is Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God. Yes He died on that tree for our sins. He was buried. He rose again and He lives eternally in a new body of flesh and bone (Luke 24:39).

Remember Jesus Is

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

Christmas day. That means a whole lot to many people. It is a holiday and you can get off from work. It is a time of families gathering together, and enjoying one another’s laughs, jokes, and hearing of some different life situations from each other.

Christmas is about the birth of a King.  His name is Jesus. He is called Immanuel or Emmanuel meaning “God with us”.

This day each year is a reminder each year that God came down, in the Person of His Son, was born as a baby, and laid in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. We also need to remember why He came down to us.

He came to redeem us to Himself. He did that by living a sinless life; without spot or blemish He obeyed God the Father in all things; went to the cross, shedding His own blood to give us a relationship with the Creator of all that is – the Heavenly Father.

I sometimes hear people speak of Jesus in the past tense. I have a few times caught myself doing the same, and I speak to myself, and or others and say, “He is”. He was there with the disciples, and He was in the manger. He died, was buried, and He rose again. Because He rose from the dead we can rest assured that He not only was; but Jesus is, as well.

Have a very Merry Christmas and I hope you remember each day that Jesus is.

The Confirmation

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; that in every thing ye are enriched by Him, in all utterance, and all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: so that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall also confirm you unto the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 1:4-8  (KJB)

The apostle was writing to the Corinthian Church, saints, and was about to deal with some very difficult problems within that congregation.  He was troubled by their popularity competitions about who was the greatest preacher, teacher.  They had a problem with mystical revelations by emotional out burst, which caused trouble through confusion.

If you read the whole first chapter you will see that Paul does recognize them as “Saints” (v. 2), and in verse 2 you will see in the KJB that the words “to be” is in italics which means that was added into the text, supposedly for clarity and understanding.  However, the words “to be saints”; at least to me; seems to be that some day in the future they will be saints.  “Called saints” is the way it should read.  Not by Paul, not by a pope or a religious hierarchy.  Called saints by heavenly declaration, by God Himself.

The saint of God is an individual who is not perfect, neither without sin; but is daily being sanctified, set apart by God to honor and glorify Him. The saint of God never reaches a state of sinless perfection.  The saint of God realizes that as we get closer to the Lord God just how sinful, and awful we really are, thus depending, relying, trusting the only One who can bring us to completion.

The apostle Paul notes to confirmations for the saint of God:

  1. That the testimony of Jesus Christ is in their waiting for the coming of the Lord;
  2. That because of their faith in Jesus Christ they are blameless at the day of the Lord Jesus.

Blameless does not mean sinless; but because of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus there is no condemnation (Romans 8:1).

Who are you in Christ Jesus?  Has your faith in Him been confirmed by the Spirit of God, the awaiting of the coming of the Lord? He will complete His work in you, and find you blameless.