“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.” (1 John 5:13)
John doesn’t tell people they have eternal life just because they identify as Christian. He is not giving his assurance to people who might not have assurance (As is so common today. Many are trying to reassure those who have no assurance).
What he does do, however, is give them the tools, the right questions to ask themselves, so each person can determine, themselves, whether they have eternal life.
There’s a set of questions we are to ask ourselves – a test.
Only if those questions are truthfully answered in the affirmative can we be sure we have eternal life.
For example:
“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.” (1 John 3:14)
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Sometimes we comment on topical issues simply because we have a sense of justice, and that sense comes from God.
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What is eternal life like?
“And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” (Rev. 21:3-5)
In Christ’s eternal Kingdom there will be no crying, sorrow, pain or death because the CAUSE of these things will no longer exist – sin will no longer exist.
Scripture describes the ultimate utopian society, in the Kingdom of Christ.
It will be a society just as real as the present one, in a physical landscape, with real houses, real jobs to do, real friends.. life goes on.. FOREVER.
And yet everyone you meet in this society knows you and loves you. And you will know and love them.
An unkind word is never again heard, for all eternity.
For all eternity you will not encounter even one prideful or selfish person.
Such things will be ancient history.
Their memory only existing because the memory of Calvary will never be erased, for all eternity.
Christ Jesus, the King, will bear the scars for eternity, and this reminder will forever be before our eyes.
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Heaven is as hi-tech as you can get.
But YOU will be the hi-tech, you won’t need any devices.
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Self glory is the pathway to a meaningless life.
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Call and Response
A disciple is a responder to the call of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He calls, they respond to His call.
This is how they live their life, answering and responding to the call of God.
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Selective outrage is one of the inequities of this world.
It’s closely allied to selective morality.
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Do we understand how the Holy Spirit worked in the ministry of the Lord Jesus?
There was no program.
It was relational.
The Holy Spirit’s ministry was according to real encounters with people.
Jesus didn’t come and just deliver a stage-managed sermon to Israel and then go.
The ministry was fluid, based on whom He was meeting, encountering and dialoging with at the time.
But it wasn’t confusion. The Holy Spirit orchestrated everything, even though nothing was planned like a human program.
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A journey is one thing.
And a journey with God is another thing altogether.
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Read something about Governments suppressing effective treatments, fearing they will interrupt the vaccine rollout. That is, if people know they can treat themselves cheaply and effectively at home, then they will be less willing to get jabbed.
It’s a special kind of stupid.
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There is no “spiritual” apart from true faith in Jesus Christ.
Unless you count communing with evil spirits as “spiritual”?
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No one (except Jesus) chose to be born. Our existence was not our idea. But here we are, and we had nothing to do with it.
For me, it’s a profound thought to ponder, that only a few short years back I did not exist.
(But an even more profound thought is that I will live forever in Christ Jesus.)
Now, since we had nothing to do with our existence in the first place, doesn’t it seem fair and reasonable to cheerfully acknowledge and yield to God’s claim on your life?
In this light, how could His claim be unreasonable?
Christians believe their existence is God’s idea, before and above it being the idea of their parents.
The fact that Jesus Christ promised eternal life for His disciples should settle any questions one has about their existence.
You’re here, and you can have eternal life.
Life, itself, is a miracle and a profound mystery, and eternal life an even greater truth.
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The greatest thing the world has taught me is that it is nothing.
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Mandates are a step closer to a totalitarian state.
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After six thousand years of war it’s not realistic to think that wars will cease, considering human nature has not changed. It will be more of the same.
But Jesus Christ will return and put an end to war.
Until then, they are here to stay.
The people who start wars laugh at pacifists. If only they would cooperate, eh?
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“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
Our bodies belong to God and not to us. We are stewards or caretakers of His property.
Everything of which our life consists was bought at a price: the redeeming death of God’s Son on the Cross.
Our mind, our tongue, our desires, thoughts, our strength and abilities: they all belong to God.
For us, it’s a glorious truth, but for the world, it’s an affront to man’s arrogance.
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Shine the light! ??
Shine the light of His word.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”
“The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”
(Psalm 119:105, 130)
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“God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
God so loved the world.
The world has not loved Him back.
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“You’re not forcing ME to take it!” That is, the jab.
Ian Vincent 
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