Newsletter: September 20, 2003 GODISFORUS.COM NEWSLETTER September 20, 2003 Volume I, Issue 2 Greetings to all! I hope this newsletter finds everyone standing firm in the grace of God! This is the second issue of our bi-monthly newsletter designed to bring encouragement for the Christian walk and witness and to help others better understand the website and how and it be used to evangelize the lost. You can view previous issues of the newsletter at this URL: http://www.godisforus.com/Archives.htm. =================================================================== Our Walk and Witness: In our last newsletter the topic of Sanctification was introduced. We learned from scripture that it is God's will for us not only to be forgiven of our sins but to be set apart from the world and purified from sin. In this Newsletter I would like to explore the reason why every person needs to undergo the process of Sanctification. Perhaps we can begin by considering the words of Jesus: (Luke 5:31-32 NASB) And Jesus answered and said to them, "It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick. {32} "I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." Scripture clearly teaches that there are none righteous and that all have sinned (Romans 3). So Jesus' call of repentance is to each and every one of us. If we read between the lines so to speak we have to conclude that Jesus is letting us know that as sinners we are not altogether well but to some degree we all have a sin sick soul! With this conclusion the prophet Jeremiah is in agreement: (Jer 17:9 NASB) "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? Jesus own words again would confirm the prophets diagnosis: (Mark 7:20-23 NASB) And He was saying, "That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. {21} "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, {22} deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. {23} "All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man." So then, the need for sanctification begins to become apparent as we understand the true nature of the human heart. Sin is present in the heart of every person. Our thoughts, desires, and attitudes of heart have been corrupted to some degree with the result that we are defiled and have become unrighteous inside and out. Before we are too harsh on ourselves however let us remember that one of the greatest Christians who ever lived, the apostle Paul, came to the same conclusion regarding his own heart condition. Consider carefully the honest testimony of the Apostle Paul: (Rom 7:14-25 NASB) For we know that the Law is spiritual; but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. {15} For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. {16} But if I do the very thing I do not wish to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good. {17} So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which indwells me. {18} For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the wishing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. {19} For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish. {20} But if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. {21} I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wishes to do good. {22} For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, {23} but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. {24} Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? {25} Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Brothers and sisters in Christ this issue of our purification from sin is not one to be treated lightly. As we look around us in our world today we see the devastating results of sin in the lives of those where sin has gone unchecked. Individual lives, families and Nations are being ruined by the subtle but deadly progressive cancer of sin. God sent Jesus into this world to save us from both the penalty and corrupting power of sin. God wants to spare us the pain and misery that sin will bring and to bless us with life abundant, and He will do that if we will be obedient and faithful in following His will for our lives in the matter of sanctification. (Acts 3:26 NASB) "For you first, God raised up His Servant, and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways." THE WEBSITE: The first two pages of the site are intended to give the visitor an idea of what the site is all about and to set the atmosphere of a personal contact. I recently revised the home page with the hopes that the dialogue would be a little more inviting. If you get a chance take a look and let me know your thoughts! The second page provides a brief introduction regarding myself and lays out the purpose of the site. Let me quote, "...it's my purpose here to assist people in understanding and embracing God's love for us, His will for our lives and the truth about this life, which He has made known to us in the pages of the Bible and the person of His Son Jesus Christ." I really believe that we have to present the truth in a balanced way. We can't over-emphasize God's love and neglect the truth about God's wrath. We can't present an easily believism to the exclusion of God's will regarding repentance from sin. The remainder of the site seeks to present a clear and balanced presentation of the Gospel which embraces every facet of God's revelation to us in His Word and through His Son Jesus. Because God is For Us, Kevin McGill