The soul that sins shall bear his iniquity. How does a man bear his iniquity? The answer is quite simple: by suffering the consequences of those sins.
Sin and those who participate therein anger Lord. In the days of Noah, sin grieved the Lord so badly that it repented God that he had made man on the earth.
Throughout man’s sordid history, people have mocked, rejected, and forsaken the Lord. They have chosen to look to gods that cannot save or help.
Everything in the Christian life is dependent upon prayer. Thankfully, we serve a God who hears, answers, and has respect unto prayer.
Although there are times where God respects some while rejecting others, God’s acceptance of one and rejection of another is never a baseless respect.
Far too many people have forsaken the simplicity which is in Christ and have instead pursued the complexity and labour of religion (2 Corinthians 11:3).
The words that enter a man’s ears eventually fill his heart and mind with thoughts. It is, therefore, crucial that a man guard the words that enter into his ears.
Every true and honest Bible student readily confesses that the Bible identifies the Jewish people as the people of God. Unfortunately, the Jews repeatedly provoked the Lord to jealousy. In judgment for their indiscretions, the Lord promised to move the Jewish people to jealousy as He showed His favour unto a people “which are not a people.” According to the apostle Paul, this was fulfilled when the Lord turned to the Gentiles offering them salvation through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 10:19; Romans 11:11). This jealousy was not to be permanent. One day the Lord will again turn back to the Jewish people after the Rapture of the church.
The Bible consistently identifies the Lord as a jealous God. As the Creator, He deserves man’s undivided allegiance. As the most High God, He is worthy of man’s unadulterated worship. It is often in this vein that the Bible speaks of God’s jealousy. He warned Israel not to make or bow down to any graven images (Exodus 20:4-5; Deuteronomy 5:8-9; Psalm 78:58) because He was a jealous God and would have no choice but to judge such infidelity. The same was true of any false god (Deuteronomy 32:16) or sin (1 Kings 14:22) which man allowed to come between him and his Creator. God is perfectly just in His jealousy since man was created for God’s pleasure (Revelation 4:11).
There are two areas in which a man can be blameless. He can be blameless in his practice based upon his efforts to do right. Additionally, a believer can be blameless positionally, but this is completely based upon the finished work and righteousness of Christ. This second area of blamelessness is the subject of Ephesians 1:4 as is also the case in Colossians 1:22. In the context of that passage, it is clear this blamelessness comes only through the reconciliation of Christ (Colossians 1:21). This means that in Christ, believers bear no guilty responsibility for sins they have committed. Instead, believers are viewed and accepted in the righteousness of Christ (Ephesians 1:6).
