Lu 2:30 ...my eyes have seen Your salvation
These are the words of Simeon when he saw and carried the baby Jesus in his arms. His words give us insight into the nature of salvation.
You see, the source of salvation is something that is external to us. You can't find it in you; it's found and accomplished by someone else, not you, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ. You need to look away from self to Him to find it.
When Simeon uttered these words, he was not looking at a mirror. No, he was looking straight into the face of Him who will die for his sins and rise from the dead sometime in the future. He looked in the right direction. In verse 25, Simeon is described as a "just and devout man" and yet, when it comes to the salvation of his soul, he did not look at who he was; he did not look selfward.
My friend, in order to find salvation, don't look inward. Rather, look outward onto Him, through faith in Him, who died for you at Calvary. There, see for yourself, the salvation of the Lord.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Monday, November 14, 2016
GOSPEL NUGGET #487
Ex 25:22 "There (at the mercy seat) I will meet with you;"
The mercy seat is the lid or the covering of the ark. It was there that the blood was sprinkled by the high priest once a year.
It is called the place of propitiation or the place of satisfaction. God’s holiness, justice and wrath against sinners demand satisfaction. And it could only be satisfied by the death of a sacrifice.
You see, His holiness, justice, and wrath demand the death penalty. When the high priest comes in to offer his sacrifice and sprinkle it on the mercy seat or the lid or the covering of the ark, there, at that point, God’s holiness, justice and wrath against sin was symbolically satisfied. And at that point, the place becomes a seat of mercy.
Man was separated from God because of sin. Many are attempting to connect with God through their sacrifices, good works, their man-made religion etc…all in vain.
The mercy seat or the place of propitiation was a symbol of Calvary and what the Savior did there when His blood was shed. The only appointed point of contact between God and Man is the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s mercy seat. It is the only place where God promised fallen and sinful man: “There I will meet with you. I will be patiently waiting for you there.”
My friend, come to Christ. Come to Calvary in faith, where He shed His blood for you, and be reconciled to God through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The mercy seat is the lid or the covering of the ark. It was there that the blood was sprinkled by the high priest once a year.
It is called the place of propitiation or the place of satisfaction. God’s holiness, justice and wrath against sinners demand satisfaction. And it could only be satisfied by the death of a sacrifice.
You see, His holiness, justice, and wrath demand the death penalty. When the high priest comes in to offer his sacrifice and sprinkle it on the mercy seat or the lid or the covering of the ark, there, at that point, God’s holiness, justice and wrath against sin was symbolically satisfied. And at that point, the place becomes a seat of mercy.
Man was separated from God because of sin. Many are attempting to connect with God through their sacrifices, good works, their man-made religion etc…all in vain.
The mercy seat or the place of propitiation was a symbol of Calvary and what the Savior did there when His blood was shed. The only appointed point of contact between God and Man is the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s mercy seat. It is the only place where God promised fallen and sinful man: “There I will meet with you. I will be patiently waiting for you there.”
My friend, come to Christ. Come to Calvary in faith, where He shed His blood for you, and be reconciled to God through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Friday, November 4, 2016
GOSPEL NUGGET #486
Martin Luther And His Reformation
He was a young man who was groomed to be a lawyer. A lightning strike that nearly hit him changed his course. The brevity of life, the fear of death and the awful reality of the insatiable fires of hell set him on a journey in search for the salvation of his soul.
He then became a monk, a priest and a professor of the Bible. He did everything to save his soul. He memorized large portions of the Bible. He prayed fervently for hours. He confessed his sins over and over again. He went on pilgrimages. He made himself suffer like fasting for days without drinking water, went for many nights without sleep, exposed himself to cold weather, worked like a horse and many other things. The experience brought him to the edge of death and damaged his health for the rest of his life.
He said: "If ever a monk got to heaven by monkery, I would have gotten there." Still, he found no peace and assurance in his heart. Then, he turned to the Scriptures and there discovered the truth that would change his life and millions of other people worldwide.
He realized that justification and salvation are free. God offers them as a gift, received only through faith in Christ alone. He then told others about it, risking life and limb for it, but was met with opposition from the established religious system of his day. But God was with him and the truth that he proclaimed, and he won!
My friend, if you are seeking peace with God, justification and salvation, you can only find it in Christ and what He did on the cross for you. What He did was good enough for God and it should be good enough for you. The only thing you have to do is to receive it by faith in Christ.
Ask Martin Luther!
He was a young man who was groomed to be a lawyer. A lightning strike that nearly hit him changed his course. The brevity of life, the fear of death and the awful reality of the insatiable fires of hell set him on a journey in search for the salvation of his soul.
He then became a monk, a priest and a professor of the Bible. He did everything to save his soul. He memorized large portions of the Bible. He prayed fervently for hours. He confessed his sins over and over again. He went on pilgrimages. He made himself suffer like fasting for days without drinking water, went for many nights without sleep, exposed himself to cold weather, worked like a horse and many other things. The experience brought him to the edge of death and damaged his health for the rest of his life.
He said: "If ever a monk got to heaven by monkery, I would have gotten there." Still, he found no peace and assurance in his heart. Then, he turned to the Scriptures and there discovered the truth that would change his life and millions of other people worldwide.
He realized that justification and salvation are free. God offers them as a gift, received only through faith in Christ alone. He then told others about it, risking life and limb for it, but was met with opposition from the established religious system of his day. But God was with him and the truth that he proclaimed, and he won!
My friend, if you are seeking peace with God, justification and salvation, you can only find it in Christ and what He did on the cross for you. What He did was good enough for God and it should be good enough for you. The only thing you have to do is to receive it by faith in Christ.
Ask Martin Luther!
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