SCRIP-BITS

Oh Friends, a good Sunday morning to all you beautiful followers of Christ! Or as 3 Canal would say in the vernacular: ‘Mornin’ Neighbuh, Mornin’!’ (smile) But sadly that sort of camaraderie or community spirit has all but disappeared. Now, neighbours pass each other without a word. If you’re lucky you might get a grimace that passes for a smile. We’re no longer true neighbours, where we mix and mingle and support each other. Now we just reside beside each other. And that surely lessens the neighbourly spirit. How many of you know your neighbours’ names? I don’t know any of mine. And how many of you have been inside your neighbours’ houses? I haven’t been in any of mine for over ten years, neither have any of them been in mine. Now that’s not a very healthy situation. But if you ask any of us, we’ll all say we’re neighbours. How sad it is that so many meaningful words have lost their true meaning in our society today! But Friends, that’s what we followers of Christ ought to be about; building close knit, neighbourly communities, with the gospel of Christ as the strong foundation upon which they’re built. That’s what Bruh Paul did when he went around Asia and the other outposts preaching the gospel. And he gives us a great reason for doing so: ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth Friends! The gospel of Christ is the most powerful entity on earth! And once Bruh Paul discovered that, he was forever hooked on it, with no shame or apologies for his addictive state. Yesterday we mentioned that some us were ashamed and fearful of acknowledging the gospel of Christ and the very important part it plays in our lives, but my people, having read Bruh Paul’s apt description we shouldn’t be: ‘for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.’ And all God’s people sang a mighty ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ And Friends, if you don’t believe that the Lord had all this planned, listen to the story of Simeon, as told by the Good Book: ‘And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten (bring revelation to) the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him. And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set (destined) for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against.’ (Luke 2:25-34) Oh my people you see how the Lord’s plans dovetail so nicely together. Simeon was promised that he wouldn’t die until he saw Jesus. Then the Spirit led him to the temple when they brought Jesus to dedicate him to God, as per custom. He was in the right place at the right time and had his promise fulfilled. He also noted that Jesus would bring enlightenment to both Jews and Gentiles, obviously startling His parents with the prophecy that Jesus’ significance would also extend to the Gentiles, then subsequently informing poor Mary that Jesus’ coming would bring deliverance, but also division and anguish. Can you imagine a stranger telling you all that stuff about your newborn Son? It would just boggle and baffle you no end! But that wasn’t all: ‘And there was one Anna, a prophetess… And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.’(Luke 2:36-38)  So you see Friends, bit-by-bit, the Lord was exposing His people to Jesus, His long promised salvation. That means it wasn’t a fly by night operation, but as all God’s doings, a well thought out and executed plan. And according to the scholars, the words ‘dynamo’ and dynamite’ come from the word ‘power.’ And they further claim that if Bruh Paul were writing today, instead of talking about mere power, he would probably liken the strength of the gospel to ‘atomic power.’ And he’d be right too, because the gospel of Christ is that powerful! It’s so powerful it can take us all the way from an earthly sinful state that calls for death, to heaven and eternal life, through its outreach of salvation. Wow! However my people, there are two undeniable and unavoidable conditions in the pathway to heaven and salvation. The first condition is acknowledging that salvation is a gift of God. Only through His LOVING grace and mercy was it made available through the sacrificial offering of His Son Jesus. That means it’s not something we can earn through our deeds, which brings us to the second essential condition; to get or receive salvation, we must BELIEVE. Yes Friends, believe in the gospel of Christ; that His death paid for our sins, and His resurrection and ascension assures us of salvation and eternal life. So unless we believe in the gospel of Christ, have faith in all it declares, then we cannot appropriate the gift of salvation. Hence Jesus’ admonition to the disciples: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.’ (Matt.28:19-20) And with that definitive word from Jesus, we’ll stop there for today Friends. You have enough stuff to read, and inwardly digest for today. (smile) So tomorrow, God willing, we’ll continue with this very important Bit. ‘Chuh ole fella!’ the Spirit just cut in. ‘All the Bits are very important!’ (smile) Till then, please walk safely with God. Much LOVE!…to receive salvation…only believe…