Here are the definitions of Noun and Verb from the dictionary:
NOUN
A word used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things.
VERB
A word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence.
According to the same source the word Sin is both a noun and a verb. Here are the definitions for Sin:
SIN (Noun)
An immoral act considered to be a transgression against divine law.
SIN (Verb)
The act of committing a sin; to sin.
By definition Christianity is only a noun; a word which identifies a class of people. But God wants us to make it a verb - a word used to describe an action! Why should sin be an action word but not Christianity?
Do you ever feel like your sins are so great you can't be an effective tool for God?
Moses was a murderer (see Exodus 2:11-12) and so was King David (see 2 Samuel 12:9). David was also an adulterer (see 2 Samuel 11:3-5). In fact the man he murdered was the husband of a women he impregnated, which became David's motive to kill the man Uriah.
I've never killed anybody nor cheated on my wife, though in the past I have had sexual relations outside of marriage which the world may condone, but to God it is a major sin. Not just sexual sins, but if you were a mind-reader who could discern the twisted thoughts that have run through my head or had been witness to the numerous vile things I've been guilty of, you'd probably want nothing to do with me. I've done plenty of things I'm not proud of.
What about you? Do you ever feel like you're the worst sinner around? I do sometimes. And in order to feel better I sometimes tell myself other people did this or did that which is worse than anything I've ever done. But "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) so though I haven't murdered anybody I've still been guilty of dishonoring God by sinning against Him. I'm as much the reason Jesus was beaten beyond recognition and nailed to that cross as anybody else. He was tortured to death to pay the penalty for my sins, so I can have a chance for eternal life with my sins washed away. "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief " (1 Timothy 1:15).
Let me clarify something. I've never literally murdered anybody. But do you believe what Jesus said regarding the spirit of the law in Matthew chapter 5? He said "whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment" (Matthew 5:22). What judgment? Being guilty of breaking the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" that's what. So I've never literally murdered anybody but to my shame spiritually I've been a mass murderer for most of my life. In fact it's been so many people I'm practically guilty of genocide. I've been an extremely angry, hateful person in my past. Hate to say it, but I still battle with anger... and have lost that battle from time to time all too recently.
Getting back to Moses and David these men committed vile sins against the Lord. Yet through repentance and faith that God could cleanse them of sin, the Lord was able to use them and their stories to bless countless souls over the centuries.
I try not to let pride give me delusions of grandeur so I don't expect God to use me in as great a manner as them. How much of a blessing I ultimately prove to be and for how many people remains to be seen. Truth is a few years ago I thought I was going to be some kind of superstar for God, winning hearts and souls for Him wherever I went. Ha ha, I've certainly been humbled since then. Still I try to do what I can which is the main reason I do this blog. And it's not like the studies I've posted get a lot of views. In fact at the time I'm writing this I only know for sure of three people who have even read anything I've posted here.... and my wife and step-son are two of them! I've told other people about the blog and a few of them have said they'll check it out but none of them have ever commented to me about it, so I have no idea if they've read anything here or not.
I pray that over the course of time more people will read my studies and be blessed by them. In the meantime I'll keep doing them for a couple of reasons. Whether three, or fifty, or a hundred, or a hundred-thousand people get anything out of this, all of them are precious to God. It's Him I'm trying to serve so how many people I impact isn't my primary concern. For His glory not mine. Whoever I reach for His sake is a bonus of course but He is the reason I do this.
Still I really pray to impact many more people than I do now because when Jesus comes for us will He be denied the souls of His children because I neglected to do my part? Will pride tell me not enough people respond to me to make it worth my time to keep doing this? My time is a gift from God. My wife and step-son are gifts from God too. Ultimately if they are the only two who check out my posts on a regular basis that's more than good enough for me.
Another thing these studies do is help me be closer to God. Studying His word draws me closer to Him.
There's yet another reason I do this; I'm a sinner who still struggles against sin and still loses too often. When I'm doing bible studies I'm not committing the sins I used to commit all the time.
Do you have loved ones whom you can be a blessing to by setting a good example for them? Do you occupy your time indulging in things which are sin? Spend your time serving God and He will bless you for it. I'm not much of speaker so this is the route I take. When I witness to people in person I struggle with my words, my thoughts often get jumbled. But perhaps you have the gift of gab and a way about you that can be used for Jesus each and every day. There are many ways to reach people and none of us can do it all. You can witness for God with people face to face, make video's to post online, do studies on the web like me. Sometimes just a smile can be what somebody needs right now. I had a pastor who used to say that when you tell people you are a Christian, you'd better believe they will be watching you from then on out. Some might hate God and hope you do things to discredit Christianity, but other's might be silently seeking Him and want to see what kind of person He has molded you into. How you present yourself to the world matters. You could be the only "bible" those people read.
If you are like me, sometimes failing to present yourself as a good Christian, don't forget the sins of Moses and David didn't disqualify them from being used in mighty ways by the Lord.
I'll end today with one more example of a sinner whose story has brought hope to millions upon millions of people; the thief on the cross from Luke 23:39-43. You know the story; Jesus was crucified along with two criminals on either side of Him. We know they (not Jesus but the other two) were guilty of the crimes they were charged with because one of them admits it in verse 41 when he says "we indeed justly" are suffering condemnation. But that dying sinner was repentant and asked Jesus to remember Him. Jesus then promised the man he would go to heaven. It only took that man a few seconds to utter a few words but those words have given hope to countless people who may have otherwise felt hopeless. Hope that they too can be forgiven and the knowledge that Jesus loves them and died to atone for their sins. What an amazing blessing that man has proven to be throughout the past 2000 years. Think the sins of your past disqualify you from being used by God. Think again!
Christianity is an action word. Live it.
Amen.
NOUN
A word used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things.
VERB
A word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence.
According to the same source the word Sin is both a noun and a verb. Here are the definitions for Sin:
SIN (Noun)
An immoral act considered to be a transgression against divine law.
SIN (Verb)
The act of committing a sin; to sin.
By definition Christianity is only a noun; a word which identifies a class of people. But God wants us to make it a verb - a word used to describe an action! Why should sin be an action word but not Christianity?
Do you ever feel like your sins are so great you can't be an effective tool for God?
Moses was a murderer (see Exodus 2:11-12) and so was King David (see 2 Samuel 12:9). David was also an adulterer (see 2 Samuel 11:3-5). In fact the man he murdered was the husband of a women he impregnated, which became David's motive to kill the man Uriah.
I've never killed anybody nor cheated on my wife, though in the past I have had sexual relations outside of marriage which the world may condone, but to God it is a major sin. Not just sexual sins, but if you were a mind-reader who could discern the twisted thoughts that have run through my head or had been witness to the numerous vile things I've been guilty of, you'd probably want nothing to do with me. I've done plenty of things I'm not proud of.
What about you? Do you ever feel like you're the worst sinner around? I do sometimes. And in order to feel better I sometimes tell myself other people did this or did that which is worse than anything I've ever done. But "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) so though I haven't murdered anybody I've still been guilty of dishonoring God by sinning against Him. I'm as much the reason Jesus was beaten beyond recognition and nailed to that cross as anybody else. He was tortured to death to pay the penalty for my sins, so I can have a chance for eternal life with my sins washed away. "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief " (1 Timothy 1:15).
Let me clarify something. I've never literally murdered anybody. But do you believe what Jesus said regarding the spirit of the law in Matthew chapter 5? He said "whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment" (Matthew 5:22). What judgment? Being guilty of breaking the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" that's what. So I've never literally murdered anybody but to my shame spiritually I've been a mass murderer for most of my life. In fact it's been so many people I'm practically guilty of genocide. I've been an extremely angry, hateful person in my past. Hate to say it, but I still battle with anger... and have lost that battle from time to time all too recently.
Getting back to Moses and David these men committed vile sins against the Lord. Yet through repentance and faith that God could cleanse them of sin, the Lord was able to use them and their stories to bless countless souls over the centuries.
I try not to let pride give me delusions of grandeur so I don't expect God to use me in as great a manner as them. How much of a blessing I ultimately prove to be and for how many people remains to be seen. Truth is a few years ago I thought I was going to be some kind of superstar for God, winning hearts and souls for Him wherever I went. Ha ha, I've certainly been humbled since then. Still I try to do what I can which is the main reason I do this blog. And it's not like the studies I've posted get a lot of views. In fact at the time I'm writing this I only know for sure of three people who have even read anything I've posted here.... and my wife and step-son are two of them! I've told other people about the blog and a few of them have said they'll check it out but none of them have ever commented to me about it, so I have no idea if they've read anything here or not.
I pray that over the course of time more people will read my studies and be blessed by them. In the meantime I'll keep doing them for a couple of reasons. Whether three, or fifty, or a hundred, or a hundred-thousand people get anything out of this, all of them are precious to God. It's Him I'm trying to serve so how many people I impact isn't my primary concern. For His glory not mine. Whoever I reach for His sake is a bonus of course but He is the reason I do this.
Still I really pray to impact many more people than I do now because when Jesus comes for us will He be denied the souls of His children because I neglected to do my part? Will pride tell me not enough people respond to me to make it worth my time to keep doing this? My time is a gift from God. My wife and step-son are gifts from God too. Ultimately if they are the only two who check out my posts on a regular basis that's more than good enough for me.
Another thing these studies do is help me be closer to God. Studying His word draws me closer to Him.
There's yet another reason I do this; I'm a sinner who still struggles against sin and still loses too often. When I'm doing bible studies I'm not committing the sins I used to commit all the time.
Do you have loved ones whom you can be a blessing to by setting a good example for them? Do you occupy your time indulging in things which are sin? Spend your time serving God and He will bless you for it. I'm not much of speaker so this is the route I take. When I witness to people in person I struggle with my words, my thoughts often get jumbled. But perhaps you have the gift of gab and a way about you that can be used for Jesus each and every day. There are many ways to reach people and none of us can do it all. You can witness for God with people face to face, make video's to post online, do studies on the web like me. Sometimes just a smile can be what somebody needs right now. I had a pastor who used to say that when you tell people you are a Christian, you'd better believe they will be watching you from then on out. Some might hate God and hope you do things to discredit Christianity, but other's might be silently seeking Him and want to see what kind of person He has molded you into. How you present yourself to the world matters. You could be the only "bible" those people read.
If you are like me, sometimes failing to present yourself as a good Christian, don't forget the sins of Moses and David didn't disqualify them from being used in mighty ways by the Lord.
I'll end today with one more example of a sinner whose story has brought hope to millions upon millions of people; the thief on the cross from Luke 23:39-43. You know the story; Jesus was crucified along with two criminals on either side of Him. We know they (not Jesus but the other two) were guilty of the crimes they were charged with because one of them admits it in verse 41 when he says "we indeed justly" are suffering condemnation. But that dying sinner was repentant and asked Jesus to remember Him. Jesus then promised the man he would go to heaven. It only took that man a few seconds to utter a few words but those words have given hope to countless people who may have otherwise felt hopeless. Hope that they too can be forgiven and the knowledge that Jesus loves them and died to atone for their sins. What an amazing blessing that man has proven to be throughout the past 2000 years. Think the sins of your past disqualify you from being used by God. Think again!
Christianity is an action word. Live it.
Amen.
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