Hello HHLL Readers!
Remember that our lives are just a mist? Eventually everyone you know dies, including all plants and animals in the world. We do not create ourselves. Every single person in all nations, birds of the sky, animals on land, and creatures of the sea have been created. Each individual strand of hair on our heads have been counted; right down to a single blade of grass that covers dirt on the ground… even so down to one itty-bitty grain of sand on a beach’s seashore that is washed away. But the only beings that inhabit the earth that are fighting against each other are us – the people. Why just the people?
People are important and created specially by God. We are spiritual but have abandoned our abilities and have misused our spiritual power. We have forgotten the source of our lives because the world is against us; it seeks to make us forget and at the same time have animosity towards God.
In the last blog I wrote that our origin came from God. God gave us his word and promise of eternal life with Him by our side. Our lives are short in the grand scheme of things- like an inevitable evaporating mist, but there are daily opportunities to make our lives about remembering God and His love for us through the persecution and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I mentioned we should humble ourselves in any situation first to God and focus on worries after having had a conversation with God. By bringing your fears and concerns to God, even though there are many, your connection to God is the main thing that is important in order to tackle the problems in the first place.
In part one of this message, remembering God started with the 10 commandments that He gave us in the Law under Moses in the Old Testament. However, due to this being part two, we now look at Jesus and the New Testament. Jesus sacrificed his life for our sinful nature and was resurrected from death on our behalf. He is alive, and therefore we say he is a living God. Due to this, we now apply our belief of God through Jesus and the faith we’ve gained through God’s mercy and grace. Believers are in the faith through works phase (age/era) and claim Jesus as their Savior and therefore are not held under the Mosaic Law. Now, the old commandments don’t really seem to apply, do they? Well, what did Jesus say is the greatest commandment?
Mark 12:29-31 (NIV) – 29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Aren’t you excited about Jesus’ answer? He gave us an upgrade- the Commandments 2.0 version! There are only two commandments we need to follow. These are the ones that all people should pay attention to as the other decrees seem defunct. However, I do believe we should acknowledge the old commandments. They are our roots. They were necessary to the Israelites and served their purpose according to God’s timing, before He sent Jesus to us to teach us the new commandments.
Although as Christians, we face so much hardship, it is very hard to accept our situations and love all our neighbors. This in turn makes it harder to love God. But the fact is Christians are going to be persecuted via trials and tribulations. It also does not matter if your neighbor is a blood relative, spouse, co-worker or friend, for example: your troubles will come from any source. These “troubles”, scoffing and hate from others were foretold in the bible. So, even though these events will be shocking and may catch you unaware, just know that you are very loved (beloved) by God as his chosen people.
Only you, as a true Christian, can withstand the pain and struggles. No one suffers as you can. But as far as the ones who are causing troubles in the world and doing wrong in their lives, just know that they really don’t know Jesus. Your job is to focus on God through your suffering in which he will bring you out and give you peace. Your faith will be tested…but it will only make you stronger.
My best advice is to be clear minded about the commandments of love as Jesus taught. There is also no right or wrong way to build a relationship with God. Think of God as a person. He did in fact manifest himself in human form as Jesus, so when you are seeking to reach out to him, plan on speaking to Jesus as if he is a person next to you.
I do believe Jesus seeks a face-to-face relationship with us. Tell Jesus you love him with all your heart. Thank him from the bottom of your soul. Tell him what’s going on in your mind as well as talk to him about your life, fears and desires. Finally, trust in him with all strength that abounds in your body. Go ahead and develop your faith and resistance. In this way, you can stand firm until His return.
***If you or someone you know does not know Jesus, it is not too late. You can come to know him right now. Do not worry, because He will welcome you with open arms. And, forgiveness covers a multitude of sins. This means whoever forgives you also loves you. The main thing is that you know you have been forgiven and recognize what love is... and love comes from God, so you will also be loved by him.
We are in a spiritual battle which makes life and some biblical concepts hard to understand. But you must know what the battle is about as well as our history as a people on this earth. Please do come to know Jesus as your Savior. He is waiting for you to come to Him, just like a child innately wants to go to his parent and be loved and protected by him.***