Wednesday, December 15, 2010

"IT IS FINISHED!" OR WAS IT?

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Jesus, with his dying breath on the cross, exclaims, "It is finished!" What he and the Father and Holy Spirit had determined since before the foundation of the world was completed. Jesus did NOT say, "I am finished", as if there were other things left for man to do in order to effectuate the plan of salvation for mankind. In other words , "I did my part, now you humans do yours".

The Father sent Jesus to do a WORK. That work is found in Luke 19:10, Jesus said, "I came to seek and to save WHAT was lost." What was lost was the entire cosmos and humanity through sin. Did Jesus accomplish what the Father sent him to do? In John 4:34, Jesus said his "food" was to do the Father's will and to FINISH the work he was given to do. In John 17:4, Jesus said he had brought the Father Glory by finishing or completing the work the Father had given him to do.

As we look back on a couple of scriptures we see the impact of Jesus' work on this earth in the REMOVAL of Sin for the benefit of all mankind. In John 1:29, John proclaims this when he sees Jesus coming into the midst of the crowd, " Behold, the Lamb of God who takes AWAY the sin of the world!" Again in I John 2:12, John writes that our sins have been forgiven--even before we were BORN. Paul says the same thing in Ephesians 1:7, "...we have been forgiven." Notice the past tense of these writings.

What makes the New Covenant in the blood of Christ so tremendous is that it is a GIFT of God, from God to all of us-You included. It is a PROCLAMATION of God's love for us and what he has ALREADY done in Jesus for all of us.

There is NO remaining part of "finishing" anything to make our salvation secure in Jesus. We are not "Co-Saviours" with Christ by having to DO ANYTHING. Except-----Believe. Believe WHO we now are IN Jesus. We are the loved and ADOPTED children of God made true by Jesus Christ.

Notice Ephesians 1:3-14. This passage declares this eternal truth to all of us as being true from BEFORE THE CREATION OF THE WORLD. The Father simply loves us and wants us to live with him and IN the Trinity forever. He made it so in Jesus.

Can we believe this? Maybe, maybe not. It sounds too good to be true, but it still is true. Scripture attests to this fact. Believe it. "IT IS FINISHED."

God bless,

Paul

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Thursday, December 2, 2010

LIFE ON OTHER PLANETS

Life on other planets in other Solar Systems and Galaxies??? Maybe, Maybe not.
While no one can be totally demonstrative on this subject, we can make a few observations with some degree of intelligence.

Hebrews expressly tell us that Jesus is the complete atonement for ALL sin. He has reconciled the entire cosmos back to God. He is the complete Atonement for EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING. With this in mind let's discuss life on other planets.

It is possible that God created life , just like life we have here on this earth, on other planets in other galaxies in other solar systems. Possible.

( Aliens from outer Space is a totally different subject.)

IF, and this is a big if, God created life as we know it on this earth on other planets, I believe He did so AFTER Adam and Eve's creation on this earth.

After the "fall". After the "original" sin.. After the atonement. After the salvation of the entire cosmos.

If this is so, then these people would have no need for 'another' atonement since Jesus' life, death, resurrection and asension covered ALL things. Those people too.

They could be living out what God intended for Adam and Eve to accept originally.

The Tree of life. Life. Eternal life.

Again, if this is possibly true, then I believe it would have occurred AFTER Adams's sin and After Jesus life , death, and resurrection and ascension to the Father.

So, there are many philosophyical and Theological implications to this question and I do NOT pretend to know the answer.

What do you think. Post your comments. If you wish.

Paul