Salvation

THIS ADVENTURE CALLED LIFE

~ Tony Busquets ~ Leave a comment

Ever wonder what life is all about?  Ever think “Why am I here?” 

We have all had that thought. In an earlier post I stated that we are here to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ, that is to seek and save the lost. However, the basic meaning of life is to accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and to bring others to Jesus. We have to take that first step of accepting him. However, many people say “But my life is not where I want it to be?” or “How can Jesus love a person like me.”

To those who doubt that Jesus would want you, I have something to say – Jesus loves you and wants you with Him in Heaven. He will meet you where you are and will help you turn your life around. All you have to do is accept Him as your Lord and Savior, submit to His will, and repent of your sins.

Repent is an old military term from the Roman Legion days that means “To do an about-face, to turn 180 degrees”.

Jesus can for us. Luke 19:10 states that Jesus came to save us. Here is the verse from the English Standard Version “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

To understand this, we need to look at the most famous passage in the Bible – John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”. God wants a relationship with you. He sent Jesus as our Mercy giver, our healer, and our Spiritual Doctor.

The truth is that if we look at the next verses you will see how much love God has for us. And it is important to read and understand these two verses and not read anything into it. Verses 16 and 17 of the third chapter of the book of John says: “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” God does not want to be separated from you, He wants you to be with Him in Heaven for all eternity. You are His creation and He loves you.

God did not send Jesus into the world to condemn it but to save it. Others would have you think that we have an unmerciful God, or a Vengeful God. In fact, we have the opposite, we have a very loving and merciful God. God is not a god who wants to hurt you, punish you, condemn you, or destroy you. Our God is a god who wants to redeem you and have a relationship with you. He wants you for Himself because He loves you.

If you’re a parent, could you watch your child be tortured, humiliated, and ultimately killed for not committing any crimes except to bring you hope and a future? Would you be able to sit and watch your own child be flogged, whipped and have their entire body ripped to shreds, then spit on, and finally executed for not committing any crimes? That is the price God paid to have a relationship with you. He sacrificed His own Son for you because our Lord loves you.

Several times in Scripture God has written the following “Be holy, because I am holy.”  God cannot accept someone who is filled with sin into His Kingdom.  However He made a way for us thru Jesus – “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” John 14:6.  Many times in the New Testament Jesus states that only thru Him is the way to Heaven.  Only thru Jesus can we have fellowship with the Father. 

And yet, this is a major stumbling block to many. How can Jesus be the only way to God? The reason is because God designed it that way. After all, Jesus redeemed us thru His blood on the Cross. There are no other ways to Heaven or to God. There is only one way to Heaven.

There is no other way to God. There is no other way to Heaven. There is only one way and that is thru Jesus.

I want to ask you to take a moment and figure out where you are in life, where are you in your spiritual walk with Jesus? And I want to ask you to think about where do you want to spend eternity? Do you want to spend eternity in paradise with Jesus and God and the rest of the saints who have paved the path for us? Or do you want to continue in life with no hope and in the end, face judgment and eternal punishment?
If you want to spend life in Heaven and Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, or you feel you have backslidden and want to repent then please pray this prayer:

DEAR LORD, I KNOW I AM A SINNER.  I KNOW I HAVE HOPE IN JESUS.  I WANT TO REPENT OF MY SINS AND COME TO YOU TO ASK FORGIVENESS.  I WANT TO ASK YOU TO FORGIVE MY SINS, CLEANSE ME OF MY SINS, GIVE ME THE HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE WITH JESUS, AND I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE JESUS IS MY LORD AND SAVIOR AND HE GAVE HIS LIFE FOR ME.  I ASK THE HOLY SPIRIT TO COME INTO ME AS THE GUARANTEE OF MY SALVATION AND WANT TO REPENT OF MY SINS.  ALL THIS I ASK IN JESUS HOLY AND PRECIOUS NAME, AMEN

If you prayed that prayer then I want to say CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME TO THE FAMILY OF BELIEVERS. You are now one of the Saints of God! You are a Christian! The Angels, The Saints, The Lord Jesus, and all who have gone before us are having a party in Heaven because you chose Jesus. And I want to welcome you to the family. Find a good Bible-based church and continue to learn about Jesus. We are all on this Journey together. And in the end we will hear God say “Well Done my good and faithful servant!” And I hope to see you in Heaven with me!

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?

~ Tony Busquets ~ Leave a comment

What is the meaning of life?  What is my purpose on this earth?  These are probably the two most asked questions by anyone.  Philosophers have tried to define it.  Different people have tried to answer it.  According to the book “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” the meaning of life is 42.  I believe there is a true meaning of life that is right in front of us.

The meaning of life is to live for our Lord Jesus Christ.  This meaning of life gives us a purpose and a reason for living.

Too many people are living without hope.  Many think they know what the meaning of life is and end up empty.  Some never find their “purpose” and end their lives with disappointment. 

I believe we were given a primary mission, or purpose, in life.  That mission is to help people find Jesus.  It is to help our fellow humans know God and to point them to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Many will say “I don’t know if I can do that” or “I am not equipped to do that”.  To be honest I am also guilty of this.  In this fallen world, it is Jesus who gives us our hope.  God tells us in Jeremiah 29:11 that He knows all the plans for our lives.  And His plans for us are to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us hope and a future (Paraphrased).  He wants to guide us and give us His best. 

Luke 19:10 is from Jesus’ own words – “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”  In this journey we call life, it is nice to know we have a God who wants to help us feel we have purpose and that we are cared for. 

Jesus has said “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ (Luke 15:4-6). What better leader do we have?  He (Jesus) loves us all and wants to provide for us in unimaginable ways. 

Even if you feel you have backslidden in your relationship with Jesus, He does not hold it against you.  He will take you back.  Jesus is the ultimate forgiver and the great redeemer.  Think of the Prodigal son who took his inheritance from his father, squandered it, and returned to his father.  Instead of tossing his son out into the street, the Prodigal Son’s father accepted him back and threw him a party.  That is how our God is.  He welcomes those who are accepting His salvation for the first time or returning to Him after backsliding.  You are His creation, and He wants you back.

In His last appeal before ascending to Heaven in Matthew 28: 19 He (Jesus) left a final request for us: “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”  We can be the only person that may provide hope to a person who has none.  We might be the one helping hand that gives hope to a person who is on their last bit of strength and is barely holding onto their life or sanity.  God will provide that hope to them, and the strength and wisdom to you to share your faith with them.  Trust in the Holy Spirit.

As a kid, I use to build model spaceships and airplanes.  I would place the pieces together, place the decals, and glue them all together.  Then I would paint the model and spray on the coat to make the model glisten as if it was the plane I saw at an airshow or the spaceship I saw in the movie or on TV.  And I would admire it and sometimes play with it.  I believe that God created everyone with their own special beauty and their own special gifts.  And He breathed life into you for His pleasure because He loves you.  God wants you for Himself.  And He has great things in store for you and for everyone, if they will come to Him and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  But the message needs to get out to everyone.  All of us need to be the messenger that brings this good news to those without hope.

He knows there are those people who are lost and need to be found.  If you are a Christian you may be the only person to discuss Christianity with that person and help them back.  If you have backslidden all you need to do is ask forgiveness and recommit your life to God.  Please do not give up on yourself.  There are blessings waiting for you from God both in this life and in Eternity.  Give your life to God and find your meaning in Life.  You will find the meaning of life and you will discover your meaning and purpose in this life.

IS MAN GOOD?

~ Tony Busquets ~ Leave a comment

Is man good?  Do we all have good hearts?  Were we born good?  That is always the question that is pondered by philosophers and sociologists. 

The truth is a little more in-depth than that.  Many people don’t like the answer. 

Jeremiah 17:9 states that Man’s heart is deceitful and desperately sick.  Nobody can understand a person’s heart.  Romans 12:2 states not to let our minds conform us to this world, but to transform it to be like Jesus Christ.  These are paraphrases.  

What hope do we have?

There is hope in Jesus Christ.  You see, many people think that Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, is a vengeful or wrathful God.  This statement is very far from the truth.  Our God is a Loving God, a God who wants to have a personal relationship with you.  He does not want to condemn you.   He wants you to be with Him. 

John 3:16-17 tells us that Jesus said “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (MEV)

God does not want to condemn his creation, He wants to save it.  You are His creation and He loves you.  However, God cannot allow evil in His kingdom.  With that, Jesus paid for our sins with His sacrifice on the cross at Calvary.  He gave His life as a substitution for our sins.  We need to accept Him (Jesus) as our Savior.  That is all that He asks.  He asks for your to accept Him and allow Him into your heart.  That is the important part of the verse in John 3:16 “That whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”  He does not ask much. 

This is a free gift for you.  He does not expect anything else except that you accept Him as your Lord and Savior. 

Ephesians 2:8-9 states “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God,  not of works, so that no one should boast.”  This is important because God is giving us a free gift – the gift of salvation.  It is this gift that renews our hearts and turns us into Good.  We only need to accept this gift.  You do not have to do anything for His salvation except to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.  And acknowledge that without Him we are lost.  That is what this entire site is about, understanding Jesus and His plan for us, His salvation for us, His love for us, and that He wants us to live with Him in eternity. 

Jesus does not condemn us as stated eloquently in Romans 8:1 “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”  He never wants to condemn us, or for us to feel condemned.  The truth is He (Jesus) wants you to feel safe, loved, and secure in Him. 
Will you take the step to accept Him as your Lord and Savior Today?