Who Wants to Obtain Immortality?
Another installment of my ongoing Biblical study series on the Social Gospel Blog, "Where truth, justice and the Bible meet"
How to Live Our Lives to the Maximum Extent Possible While Still Pleasing God
Yes Indeed, It Can Be Done
by Minister Paul J. Bern
(Romans chapter 10, verses 14-21)
You are about to read a brief excerpt from my Christian nonfiction book, “The Social Gospel Teaching Series Vol. 3: the Apostle Paul” by Rev. Paul J. Bern (c) copyright 2022 by Rev. Paul J. Bern, all rights reserved; available exclusively from this link
Last time when we concluded part one of this week’s lesson, I wrote about having an unshakable faith in Christ, and how such a faith can make one invincible. This faith can make us impervious to all kinds of evil. It is this same faith that causes believers everywhere to have eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Just as He rose from the grave on the morning of the third day after our Lord was crucified, so we who have placed our faith in Christ’s resurrection can live forever just as Jesus has. Otherwise, when we die, that’s it. At best, life would be over as we know it.
Our Eternal Life Is An Ongoing Process Until We Get There
At worst, eternal punishment awaits those who devoted their lives to living only for themselves, as well as those who devoted their lives to getting rich by any and all means. This will be particularly true for those who never believed in Jesus, rejected God, or both. So, we can either live once and die twice, or we can live twice and die only once, after which we will pass from death to eternal live in Christ and live with Him in heaven forever without end. The bottom line here is that eternal life in Christ is more than something that happens only once and then it's over. Eternal life in Christ by His resurrection from the dead is an ongoing process that is happening continuously within our hearts and minds, and it will remain that way until we have achieved our goal of eternal union with Christ.
Part One of This Week’s Bible Verses for Study and Memorization
The apostle Paul comments on this further down in this passage of Scripture when he says the following: “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?'” (Romans 10:14-15)
How Else Would We Get Instruction From the Lord?
As you can see, belief is an ongoing process. It is not something that happens only once and then it's over. You can't call upon the name of Jesus unless you believe in Him. And you can't believe in someone you have never heard of (how silly would that be?). By the same token, how can we hear the good news about Jesus without someone telling us, such as by reading this Bible study, or watching this video? How can this good news be preached and taught if no one is sent?
Why I Preach This Message
Make no mistake about it, God has empowered me to put up this blog and channel for the benefit of new believers who are without a doubt searching for some authentic, ultimate truth. This is particularly true for the multitudes who are on the Internet, but who don’t trust traditional churches. They still believe in Jesus who they learned about when they were kids. My mission in life is to tell all these people I am writing about that Jesus is for real after all, and that their belief has not been in vain. Jesus Christ is for real, he is alive, and he is immortal. He has charged me with this very mission, to spread the good news about Jesus, which I will continue to fulfill to the very best of my ability, so help me God. I am one who preaches outside the boundaries of organized religion, or “Church, Inc.”, (as I call it). How do we as new Christians come to this new set of core beliefs which exists apart from organized religion? Paul the apostle summarizes this very question further down in this same passage of Scripture when he quotes from the Old Testament prophets.
Part Two of This Week’s Study Verses
“But not all the Israelite's accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, 'who, Lord, has believed our message'? Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ. But I ask: 'did they not hear'? Of course they did: 'Their voice has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.' Again I ask: Did Israel not understand? First, Moses says, 'I will make you envious by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding.' And Isaiah boldly says, 'I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me' But concerning Israel he says, 'All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.'” (Romans 10, verses 16-21)
Sometimes We Don’t Find God; He Finds Us!
Paul's very words right here amounts to a summary judgment against his own people. Did Israel not hear the Gospel when Paul and others such as the apostle Peter preached it to them? Did they not understand me, he wrote? Back when I first became a Christian in 1992, this was my experience exactly. A Christian business associate had been talking to me about the Lord for months. At first I was very skeptical because I had had a strongly negative experience with the Catholic church when I was growing up. It was because of this that I had developed a deep mistrust of organized religion in general, and with God in particular.
But God pursued me through my friend all during that time. He used my friend as a conduit for His power because He was seeking me, knowing well in advance of myself that He had big plans for me and a solid pathway for my life. The main point here is that God loved me first, rather than the other way around. In the same way, Jesus wants to do the same for everyone whether they are reading this message today or not, whether they believe it or not. He is reaching out to you personally to reveal Himself to you. And He will be found by numerous individuals like ourselves, whether we were seeking Him or not.
Living Our Lives to the Fullest Extent Possible
This is the best news of all. God loves us so much that He has sent Jesus to each and every one of us. And Jesus has a plan, initiated by His heavenly Father to bring us all under his wing. This includes yourself. So let's rejoice and be happy about finding God whether we were searching for Him or not, because in so doing we will gain a righteousness that is by faith just as Isaiah and Moses did. We can be sure that He has already found us and has loved us first. He has thought about us long before we ever thought about Him.
Let's all start today to live our lives to the fullest extent possible just because we know that this is God's plan for our lives. We can maintain a better outlook on life and have a much-improved self-image by loving Jesus because He loved us first. I challenge all my readers to do this. Watch and see how much your outlook on life improves when we reciprocate God's love for us. It's the best thing we can do for ourselves at this moment. By doing so, the peace of Christ that surpasses all human understanding will be with us everywhere we go.
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