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The Complete Savior

crosschristAs we near the close of this earth’s history, we find ourselves in need of a complete savior. Too often we fall into the trap of only wanting a partial savior. You know the savior who drapes us with a superficial sappy “love”, but never disciplines us.

However, the Jesus who came to this earth is both a savior and a from the penalty of sin and from the power of sin in our lives. We need to stop being happy with the “Jesus-lite” that forever promises us money and fame and success, but never changes us. We need to stop being happy with a Gospel that forgives but never empowers. We need to stop being happy with an incomplete savior.

Yes, Jesus is able to keep us from falling (Jude 1:24). Yes Jesus will forgive us, but also cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). Yes! Let us stop being happy with the “beginning things” and move on to the other things that God wants us to understand and live (Hebrews 6:1-3).

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Hope That Transcends Death

graveyardMany of us live our lives with little thought for the future.  We assume that we will never have to walk that lonely road that leads into forever.   We see people dying everyday.  We see sickness, accidents, and nature taking away even friends and family, but we never come face to the face with the reality that one day we will not be here.

How can we look at the inevitable demise of our earthly existence?   I am glad that the Apostle reminds us that when we look at death, whether others or our own, we do not have to fear as others fear and have no hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13).   For there is another kingdom that we will have on the other side.   The Apostle reminds us that death itself shall be swallowed up in victory (1 Corinthians 15:54).

And if death “shall be” swallowed up in victory, then we need not fear death even today.  We need not allow death and the fear of it to keep us from living the lives that God has given us to live.  We should not allow fear, which will be totally defeated, to beat us.  If we simply beieve what God has said, then all of our todays can be lived in light of this reality.  We can seek to love when loving hurts, for our greatest foe, death, has already been defeated.  If we simply believe this truth, then we can work when working is dangerous, for our greatest foe has been vanquished.  If we would belive this, then we can hope again even when it doesn’t look like we have anything to hope for, becuase if death has been defeated, then why can’twe assume that God will work in God’s own time to take care of the other lessor entities.

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Who Authorized This Ministry?

The other day someone called the phone line for Sabbath Pulpit Ministries with an interesting question. It was a Seventh-day Adventist woman who wanted to know who authorized the website. She wanted to know if I had had proper permission to publish to the web from some denominational or ecclesial body. When I told her that my authorization comes solely from Jesus Christ’s command to “go ye therefore,” I could tell that the ministry had lost credibility in her eyes.

Still-Born Ministries – No Authorization

Initially, I saw this as simply one person’s indictment of this ministry. However, as I thought about this, the gravity of the situation hit me. This individual has a mindset that would preclude her from pushing forth her own God-given dreams of ministry because it was not “authorized properly.” And more, she would discourage anyone from pursuing their own ministry, if not “properly authorized.” Could it be that part of the long delay is that all of the God inspired ministries of our members are waiting for “proper authorization?”

Your ministry may not qualify you to be a member of ASI, but your is still a God given ministry. You may not have the right to call your ministry “Adventist,” but it is still a ministry. You may have people call you on your line and question your authorization, but yours is a ministry.

God’s Ministry Plan

The organized structure can’t contain the variety of the work that is to be done. When Joel 2:28 is fulfilled and God’s spirit is poured out on all flesh and our sons and daughters prophesy let us not be a hindreance to the work that God is doing. Whether authorized by the brethren or not…

So I encourage you to find the ministry that God has tailored you to. If that ministry is a department in the church, praise God and work in that. If that ministry is a new work that your church or conference wishes to support and promote, Go on ahead, in God’s grace and do that ministry. If you have been baptized, you are authorized for baptism is your ordination to the ministry God has called you to. If you are experienced in a field, find a way to use it for ministry. And if, yours is a ministry that the church cannot support due to financial or personnel reasons, go on ahead and do it. Just make sure that when someone asks you “who authorized this ministry” you can say with conviction, “our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”