Dear K,
It is evident that your eyes are open and that you desire light. It also seems evident that although you are getting a glimmer of light, the light does not yet make sense to you.
I am going to quote a few Bible verses on light.
“I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” (Acts 26:17-18)
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4)
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'” (John 8:12)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” (John 3:16-21)
The purpose of this letter is to open your eyes wider and to give you more light with the end of getting you to turn from the power of Satan to God.
You are a college student. Suppose you have a required class which you do not understand and you do not like. Because of these two things, you do not study for the class. The professor sees that you are not studying and calls you into his office. He tells you kindly that he has some good advice for you: “Study.”
You go back to your room and do not study. The professor calls you in again the following week to give very good advice: “Study hard.” This continues all semester. You study, but not enough. You do not understand the subject.
Suddenly it is time for the final exam, and you are not ready. The professor sees you staring at your blank sheet of paper. He comes over to your desk and says, “Get up. I am going to take the final exam for you.”
You reply, “Professor, you have been giving me good advice all semester, but this is the first good news I've heard!”
All the religions of the world give what they think is good advice. “Be good and follow our specific distinctives.” The distinctives are things like making a pilgrimage to Mecca or taking a bath in the Ganges river.
Some people try to be good, but they do not succeed, so instead they work on the distinctives. This does not work.
Jesus came to this world and said, “I have some good news. I have taken the final exam for you. I died and rose again for you. I have done it all. You have a free 4.0. Quit trying!”
“But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many.” (Heb. 9:26-29)
“And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Heb. 10:10)
“But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Heb. 10:12-14)
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20)
“And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” (Rom. 11:6)
With love in Christ,
Jim Wilson
It is evident that your eyes are open and that you desire light. It also seems evident that although you are getting a glimmer of light, the light does not yet make sense to you.
I am going to quote a few Bible verses on light.
“I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” (Acts 26:17-18)
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4)
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'” (John 8:12)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” (John 3:16-21)
The purpose of this letter is to open your eyes wider and to give you more light with the end of getting you to turn from the power of Satan to God.
You are a college student. Suppose you have a required class which you do not understand and you do not like. Because of these two things, you do not study for the class. The professor sees that you are not studying and calls you into his office. He tells you kindly that he has some good advice for you: “Study.”
You go back to your room and do not study. The professor calls you in again the following week to give very good advice: “Study hard.” This continues all semester. You study, but not enough. You do not understand the subject.
Suddenly it is time for the final exam, and you are not ready. The professor sees you staring at your blank sheet of paper. He comes over to your desk and says, “Get up. I am going to take the final exam for you.”
You reply, “Professor, you have been giving me good advice all semester, but this is the first good news I've heard!”
All the religions of the world give what they think is good advice. “Be good and follow our specific distinctives.” The distinctives are things like making a pilgrimage to Mecca or taking a bath in the Ganges river.
Some people try to be good, but they do not succeed, so instead they work on the distinctives. This does not work.
Jesus came to this world and said, “I have some good news. I have taken the final exam for you. I died and rose again for you. I have done it all. You have a free 4.0. Quit trying!”
“But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many.” (Heb. 9:26-29)
“And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Heb. 10:10)
“But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Heb. 10:12-14)
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20)
“And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” (Rom. 11:6)
With love in Christ,
Jim Wilson
Comments