Message from Scripture: 10/01/2021

 

Our message from Scripture today comes from 2 Tim. 3:13; “Evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”

 

When people turn away from the power of the gospel to transform lives, what Paul warned Timothy will almost always take place. All kinds of evil conduct can supersede righteousness. There are always those who ask where God is in such times, where the people of God are, and why they don’t prevent personal tragedies that happen in life. Invariably, one could ask people who blame God for the evil in the world, or Christians not doing what they should, what they do to prevent such. To try and enforce some external solution is no real solution, as the heart is the place where evil resides, and it is with the heart one can find a way out.

 

The gospel can transform lives, from reflecting the image of sin to reflecting the image of God. It can take away hate and replace it with the love of God. It can take away the desire of sin and replace it with the desire for righteousness. While the gospel can make radical changes in people for good, it cannot overrule a person’s free will. Only those who will yield their lives to the gospel can know and reflect the love of Christ. With free will and sin in the world, people will make bad choices and do bad things. The solution isn’t to blame God or Christians for evil, but for those outside of Christ, who reject the influence of the gospel, to examine their motives and decide to make positive changes in how they think and live.

 

May we let the light of the gospel shine in our lives, and may we speak the truth of the gospel to the world around us, that the condemnation of sin can be transformed into the freedom of truth (John 8:31-36). Let’s go out to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that others can see the power of the gospel at work in the arena of everyday living. Let’s be authentic New Testament Christians today. God bless. 

 

Robert