Posts Tagged ‘cross’

15 Apr

THE LOVE OF JESUS

Posted by AgapeFocus in Love, THE LOVE OF JESUS. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

The love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: 2 Corinthians 5:14 Christ as our substitute and representative died in our stead. When Christ was flogged at the whipping post, he took my punishment; and my diseases and weaknesses were laid upon him. He took our sins and guilt and broke the grip and power of sin over us. He destroyed the power of sin. He destroyed the power of Satan and death over us. He stood in our stead as substitute.

When Jesus died on the cross, I died! So did all true believers in Christ. We died to sin and all its woes. We died to the works of the flesh. Sin shall have no more grip or hold upon me and you. He hung on the cross carrying the sin of all mankind, right from Adam and Eve, including that of Mary his mother, till the last baby ever to be born in human history. What a great feat! Thanks be to God.

We have been set free. Sin has no more dominion over us. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. It is relatively quite easy for a person to suffer or even to die for a well behaved and kind person in the community. It is difficult to do so for a wicked and hardened criminal. But God demonstrated his love to us all in that while we were yet sinners; in the most despeakable and repulsive state, he sent his Son Jesus Christ to die for us.

(Romans 5: 6-8).

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16).

God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that through him the world might be saved. (John 3:17).

Truly, Jesus Christ died over two thousand years ago for the sin of mankind. It was very necessary and inevitable that the anger of the Holy and just God be pacified. His eyes are too holy to behold sin. Therefore God took the bold initiative to effect reconciliation between himself, who was offended, and mankind, who are the offenders!

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that anyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

(John 3:14-15).

Jesus Christ offered himself as the sacrifice. He was arrested and he went through series of unjust trials before the religious leaders of his days, king Herod and Pilate, the governor. He was assaulted, slapped, flogged and spat upon.

That was to fulfil the prophecy: Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:4-6).

Jesus was crucified on a rugged cross, where his blood was shed by piercings through his hands, feet and ribcage. Earlier on, his brow was severely bruised with a crown of thorns! His entire look was marred beyond recognition! Such was the treatment meted out to the Saviour of the world. Despite all the cruel treatment, Jesus did not complain, neither did he resist the maltreatment. “As a sheep is dumb before her shearers, he did not open his mouth.”

So did Jesus go all the way to die on the cross for my sins and those of the rest of mankind. Thanks be to God.

The conclusion of the message is that: Jesus died on the cross. His shed blood washes us clean from sin. He was buried in a borrowed tomb. The third day he arose from the grave and remains alive for evermore. “The taste of the pudding is in the eating.” Jesus Christ, who never sinned, became sin; died for you and me in our stead.

If you shall confess Jesus as Lord with your mouth, and shall believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved.

For with your heart you believe and are made righteous. And with your mouth you confess and you are saved.

The LORD makes good his promises to all those who come to him, even those who call upon him. Whether young or old, whether Jew or gentile, whether rich or poor. There is no discrimination. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Romans 10:8-13).

Come to Jesus today. Call upon him now.

18 Dec

GOD LOVES YOU ABSOLUTELY:

Posted by AgapeFocus in THE LOVE OF GOD. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Imagine being asked to die for a condemned armed robber, a terrorist, or a morally corrupt person in your community; would you oblige or voluntarily rush out to do so? Certainly not; judging by general human standards. For a good man or woman in society, some people may agree reluctantly or hardly opt to die in their places or stead. 

However, that unpopular and unlikely line of action was what God took. Read how the Holy Bible tells us: 

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.  For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love towards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were  reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. Romans 5:6-10. 

Our first parents sinned by deliberate disobedience to God. Being our foundational and therefore representative parents, Adam and Eve. ushered sin into the world with the deception by Satan. The choice was theirs to obey God or Satan. Their choice had severe spiritual and physical implications. As forewarned by God, death was the result. Man died spiritually by being cut off and out of fellowship with God. This effect passed on to all mankind. 

However, the reconciliatory initiative made by God through the death of his Son Jesus Christ removed the curse and judgment of death from us all. We have been reconciled to God by the death of Jesus Christ. We are saved by his life because he died, was buried but arose from the grave on the third day according to prophecies of the Scriptures. We can rejoice in victorious celebration. The Bible states:

And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have  now received the atonement. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Romans 5:11-12. 

The whole of mankind was hopelessly under the grip of sin and death. Before the law came by way of the Ten Commandments given to Moses, no man could be legally accused of sin, even though all sinned through Adam and Eve. The partaking in the failure of Adam and Eve was the inheritance of death which passed on to all mankind. That death was pronounced upon us conditionally by God. We entered into it by the choice of our foreparents. We therefore inherited the death as well.

Jesus Christ came as the second Adam. He was perfect all the way. He obeyed God all the way. Greater still, Jesus Christ died for our sins in stead of us all. He became sin for us, took our sin away. He died our death. Arose from the grave and freely offers and gives his life to all who would receive him! That is Love that is indescribable! It is such a great and wondrous love. 

At this time of Christmas celebration, we remember that God sent his own begotten Son Jesus into the world. He was born in a manger in the little town of Bethlehem in Judeae. Jesus Christ came on a rescue mission. He came to rescue mankind from sin and death. That rescue mission has been completed. Jesus came, born as a baby. He grew up and became a carpenter in Nazareth. He ministered across Jerusalem, towns and villages in Judeae and Samaria in Palestine. He surrendered himself to be crucified after a torturing flogging with whips at the whipping post by fierce, cruel Roman soldiers. He died on the cross. He was buried and the tomb securely sealed. On the third day he arose from the grave and came out alive after a powerful earthquake broke through the sealed entrance to the tomb! By his life, Jesus Christ offers and gives new life to anyone who would listen, trust and obey him. Dear friend, you can be one of that great company as you read this message. 

Come to God through Jesus Christ today, so you read this message. If you shall confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord. And believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures. You shall be saved. With your heart you believe and you are made righteous. With your mouth you confess and you are saved. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.  Romans 10: 9-13.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16.

JESUS CHRIST IS THE REASON BEHIND THIS SEASON OF CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMAS. COME TO HIM WITHOUT ANY DELAY. HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR. SHALOM. 

24 Jul

AGAPE NUGGETS: DECLARATION

Posted by AgapeFocus in AGAPE NUGGETS. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

“I am a new creation in Christ Jesus. I have been delivered from the dominion of darkness and translated into the kingdom of light. This is the kingdom of God’s dear Son, Jesus Christ. I am completely pardoned by God. I have received the power to become the child of God through Jesus who died on the cross,shedding his own blood to wash me clean from my sins. He was buried and arose from the grave the third day according to the Scriptures. I have confessed Jesus as my Lord. He is the Lord of my life. He is the strength of my life. He is the source of my life. As a  new creation, I have the God-kind of life. Sin has no power over me. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. The old life of sin and darkness are passed away.  All things are become new. I have been made holy by God who is Holy. Thank you God my Father.” Amen.

30 May

AGAPE NUGGETS

Posted by AgapeFocus in AGAPE NUGGETS, Jesus Died For Everybody. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

As Christians we can glory and make boast in the LORD. This is not because we are good or better off than others but that God Almighty, through Jesus Christ, has chosen to rescue people who once were wretched because of sins; and transformed them into his own goodness and righteousness.
Truly, here is God, reconciling the world unto himself; not treating them as sinners but through Christ, making them new creatures. People who have been forgiven and given a new nature that overcomes sin and every resemblance of evil and  wickedness.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away and all things have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Having reconciled us to himself, God now encourages, empowers and emboldenes us to go all out to bring back people around the world to himself. God sends us out as ambassadors of reconciliation, urging people to become reconciled unto him. We are ambassadors for Christ.
Jesus Christ, the means of reconciliation, died on the cross for everyone who ever lived and who is yet to be born. As a result of his death, Jesus paid the price for human sin. He who never sinned, died as the worst of sinners. He took my place and  yours and died instead of me and you on the cross. His blood shed on the cross made peace between sinful mankind and our offended Creator; the Almighty God!
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16.
Therefore now, we urge you with great boldness, confidence and urgency: Be reconciled to God. Do so quickly. Do so consciously. Do so with your  whole heart, appreciatively. Do so today, even now.
Here is the Good news. Having judged and punished sin in the substitutional sacrifice for sin  (His only begotten Son Jesus Christ), God offers pardon to all of mankind. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world but that through his Son the world might be saved. John 3:17.
Practically you can experience the salvation from God now. If you shall confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures, you shall be saved. With your heart you believe and you are justified and with your mouth you confess and you are saved. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10: 9-13.
Call upon Jesus as you are. Call wherever you may be. God bless you.

1 Mar

GRACE UPON GRACE: ALL- SUFFICIENT GRACE

Posted by AgapeFocus in GRACE. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Greetings of the season to you all. Lent is the period from Ash Wednesday to Easter (40 week days) when adherents to the Christian faith observe a time of fasting and praying to remember Christ’s  fast in the wilderness. This has been a very old tradition. It is very good. More important however, is the fact that Christ expects more than that from us Christians, if we truly claim to love him. What did Christ do for us? He emptied himself of his glory and came down into this rotten world of ours. He became human, took the position of a servant, went about doing good, lived a sinless live, submitted himself to human insults and indignities, got arrested, tried, tortured, slapped, spat upon, tied to a whipping post and flogged to the point of exhaustion and virtual death, with his innocent blood splashed all over him and all over the ground. His looks became disgusting and his form irreconcilable to his watching mother, Mary and other faithful disciples, who were too stunned to believe what they saw! It was spectacular enough that the CREATOR of the whole world submitted himself to his creatures. Jesus Christ, the WORD of GOD, through whom the world was created, did this for the purpose of rescuing humankind from sin, the greatest calamity that ever plaqued the human race! GOD ALMIGHTY could not be appeased and satisfied by any other means than through the life sacrifice of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. No other blood was clean enough for a ransome!No human effort could match up with the life of Jesus Christ! The Holy Blood shed on the Cross, fully satisfied The Holy Almighty God! The life of Jesus was given as his blood was spilled on that cross in Jerusalem, outside the city walls, on Calvary, at the ‘Place of the Skull’. Jesus was killed like a criminal, on a dirty, old cross, with dirty nails through his hands and feet and a crown of thorns on his head. The film ‘Passion of Christ’, is very good, but I hereby say that it was yet a simpler version of the actual pain and suffering borne by Jesus Christ, over 2000 years ago! As Jesus hung on that dirty cross, in great pain, he had time to listen to the sincere heart-cry of a criminal, crucified beside him.  To the last-minute prayer  and cry of that repentant criminal, Jesus said: ”Today you shall be with me in Paradise”.  To that thief it was a narrow escape to Paradise! To every other person, it may not always be the same story. There is a time to respond to the love of God before it is too late. Jesus said: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). God gave his only begotten Son, when he was born as a human being(a baby boy) on the first Christmas. The giving was actually made complete when Jesus died on the cross! He gave his life by shedding his blood in my place and in your place. He did this even before we knew him. Jesus gave his life when we were so hopeless as a human race. He provided access to God through his atoning eternal sacrifice. Since then till NOW, there is hope for every person(WHOSOEVER). Jesus also said, by way of a simile: And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life(John3:14-15). He made reference to the children of Israel in the wilderness during their journey from Egypt to Canaan. The Israelites sinned by complaining against God and Moses. Snakes were sent to bite them to such a quick extent that many died! Being terrified, the Israelites quickly repented and pled for mercy. God then responded by insructing Moses: Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live (Numbers 21:8). Moses obeyed God and lifted up the brass statue of the snake upon a pole. He then called upon the people to look at the brass serpent. Indeed, as God said, so it was that ALL those who LOOKED at the serpent, lifted upon a pole, survived the poisonous venom of the fiery serpents and LIVED! More than any simile, JESUS CHRIST hung upon the cross for hours outside Jerusalem city wall 2000+ years ago, to pay the price that sin demanded (DEATH). Centuries before then, God spoke through Prophet Isaiah and said: Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else (Isaiah 45:22). Jesus himself has said to you and me to look unto him in order to be saved. Paul said: How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers  miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?(Hebrews 2:3-4). My friend, are you saved?Please, be saved today. NO REASON FOR ANYONE TO BE LOST AFTER GOD HAS MADE SURE THAT SALVATION IS AVAILABLE  THROUGH JESUS CHRIST! What more can and should we do for Jesus? TELL others what JESUS has done for you. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so. If you are saved, tell your family, friends and acquaintances. FIND them. TELL them. BRING them to JESUS. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. There is grace upon grace. There is all-sufficient grace! Please, take action now! God bless you.