A Taste Of Sin

Many of us understand what sin is and have come to know the sins stated in the Bible, yet how come we still try to compensate and desire for a taste of sin? How far will a taste of sin cause to our lives? Can we truly live a life pleasing to God while bypassing his laws? 

It can be easy to underestimate the consequences of sin, and there have been times in my life when I thought that I could justify my actions despite what the Bible says. I thought that I could still please God as long I acknowledge him, loved him, and served him. But I have found that there is only 1 fact that we should all know about sin: 

Sin separates us from God. 

No matter how big or small your sin is, it all separates you from the grace and blessings of God. When Eve sinned through eating the fruit from the Tree of Life that God had forbid her from eating, God banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. They were separated from God, and if we continue to keep sin in our lives, just like Adam and Eve, we will be separated from God in our lives. 

Sin does not take away God's love for us, but it does put us outside of the blessings that God had originally planned for us. Isaiah 59:2 says, "But your inequities have separated you from you God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear."

Like Eve, if we take a taste of that "forbidden fruit" in our lives, we will find God's consequences soon enough. Sin always seems good and harmless - like the forbidden fruit that Eve was tempted to eat. Genesis 3:6 says Eve saw the fruit as "good for food and pleasing to the eye." Sin will never seem bad to us; it will always be desiring and bring a benefit for us - but only a temporary one. 

You may think that sinning once, or just having a taste of sin is no harm, but looking to what happened to Eve, just one bite of the forbidden fruit brought curse to all generations to come. There will always be a consequence to sin, and it will definitely be greater than the instant gratification it brings. Ask yourself this: What good will a taste of sin have in your life? Why would you even want a taste of sin that God warns us to stay away from? What good would sin really bring to your life?

Don't let a taste of sin get in the way of God's blessing for you. 

We are all still dealing with the same Satan that tempted Eve. Don't fall for the doubts and lies that he will plant in your mind. We all face temptation the same way like Eve. It all starts from doubting God's law, and then justifying that sin is no longer sin nor harmful to us. Many of us face sin saying to ourselves, "What can possibly be bad from doing this sin?" 

Satan is good at telling you the benefits of sin, but he certainly will not tell you the consequences of it. He told Eve that the benefit of eating the fruit would bring her wisdom and make her like God. He was right, but he surely did not tell her that sin would separate Adam and her from God. 

Satan knows that sin separates us from God, and he will do everything he can to deceive us into compensating for sin. Don't use your own reasoning to justify if you should sin or not. Trust that God loves you and that he knows what is best for you. 

John 14:6 says, "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life." Only God's way will bring you life to the fullest. God wants to be one with you and he has planned blessings and a prosperous plans for you. So remember, don't try a taste of sin. 

Chasing The Right Trophy

We all have dreams, goals, and aspirations that we work hard on everyday to achieve, but have you ever wondered if you are chasing the right trophy? If all your hard work was what God had planned for you to do? How can we know if we are under God's and will and not our own?

All these questions and worries continued to fill up my mind as I prayed to God and asked him to help me decide what I should do with my future. I was in a battle of pursing a great business career, or choosing to answer to the call and purpose that God has prepared for me. 

There will come a time in our lives when we will have to make the choice -- the path of which to direct our lives to. It will require us to let go of even the good things in our lives that just were not the best things for us. So how do we know if we are chasing the right goals and dreams? There is only one criteria we need to determine if we are under God's will:

To glorify his kingdom and spread his good news. 

Money should not be the driving force of the choices you make in life. Nothing else should stand against putting Jesus first in your life. Make Jesus be the reason for everything you do. God did not ask us to choose the path of life that seeks for the most money, but to choose the life that shares Jesus to the most people. 

He asked us to seek his kingdom first, then everything else will be provided. Matthew 6:31-33 says, "So do not worry, saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'...But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Satan will plant in your mind all the worries of life, hoping to distract you from worrying about the most important thing in life - you call and purpose from God. He will make you worry about your financial stability because he wants you to make choices based off of the lies and worries of this world. But I encourage you to see past those worries and make choices based off of the trust in your calling from God. 

I used to think that missionaries, pastors, or even my friends who dedicated 40 hours a week to serve God were crazy. I felt that they were missing out in life and could have done other jobs and gained more money. But little did I know that it was actually me who was missing out in life. I learned that there is greater joy in pursuing your special calling and purpose in Christ. It is a unspeakable joy that nothing in the world can compare to. 

Matthew 7:14 says, "But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Only a few people in this world find the beauty of that narrow path of sacrificing their life to Jesus, and only a few people live out their calling in Christ. 

Don't compare yourself to the majority of the people you will find in this world. It is true that there are more people on this earth pursuing their own desires and ambitions, but look to the few because it is only the few who truly find the right trophy of life - Jesus. 

Ask yourself this: What is the main thing you are chasing in life? What is the trophy of your life? Is it money? Pride? Respect? Or is it God? The lust of money and the ambitions of this world may seem to be attractive, but they are all lies and distractions from Satan. Satan knows the great plans that God has for you, and he will do everything he can to make you think less about God. 

My pastor always tells us, "Don't let Satan repurpose you from the purpose that God has for you." Live your life chasing God and nothing else. Look to the few and not the many, because it is the few who have truly found the beauty of life. So remember, make Jesus the trophy of your life. 

You Have the Power

Have you ever felt helpless and cornered out with no more clever solutions to your problems? Given hopeless prayers to God in desperation? When life gets tough, it can seem impossible to believe that you have the power to fix your problems. It can even be hard to believe that God himself has the solutions. But today I am here to tell you that you do have the power to save yourself. 

So how do we gain the power of God in our lives? It requires 3 things: 

1) Prayer

2) Living Word (Bible)

3) Claim and Believe

Maybe you have done all these things and have seen nothing happen in your life, but have you tried doing all these 3 things together? You need to do all 3 things together to experience God's power in your life. You need to pray, speak the living word of God against the problems you face, and claim and believe that God will give you the power to overcome anything. You will gain nothing from just praying but not having any faith to back it up. At the same time, there is no power in claiming and believing in empty promises. 

Romans 16:20 says, "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet." You have the power to cast Satan away. It is through God, but by you that you can defeat satan. 

The verse does not say will crush Satan under God's feet, it says under "your" feet. God wants you to realize that you have the power to conquer Satan. It's not enough to be scared and helpless and wait for God to defeat Satan. God can defeat Satan anytime, but he needs you to step up in faith and fight Satan yourself with God's power. 

Don't let the lies of Satan make you believe that your job is to give helpless prayers to God. You are not weak because you have an almighty God as your source of power and strength. Don't fight Satan with a hopeless prayer, fight him with a powerful prayer that is fueled with faith. 

God has also given you the Bible as another source to fight your problems. Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is alive and active." This Bible isn't just any regular history book, it is a book that is alive to help you, and active to fight for you. Claim the living word of God and you will see it start to act upon your life. 

Satan can't stop God's power, but he can stop your faith in God's power. Don't lose hope in God's ability to save you in any situation you face. Satan will try to bring doubts into your heart because he knows that it is your faith that fuels the power of God. 

Jesus said it himself in Mark 11:24, "..whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." Never doubt the ability of your faith, because that is a key factor in receiving the power of God in your life. Claim and believe in the living word of God and in your prayers and you will start to see God's peace resting in your problems. Let God fill you up with his ever interceding power. So remember, you do have the power. 

Why Is Jesus So Far Away?

Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to leave? Why did Jesus have to go back to heaven while leaving us alone to struggle in this sinful world? There have been times in my life where I imagined how good life would be if Jesus were living right here with us. We could ask him for advice and receive direct answers whenever we faced issues, hold onto him tightly when going through difficult situations, receive healing when experiencing sickness, and the list goes on and on. 

But why did Jesus choose to leave us when it is clear that life with him would be good? In fact Jesus says that is is to our advantage that he goes away. John 16:7 says, "But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away." So why did Jesus believe that his leaving was good for us? 

Because Jesus wants us to have an intimate relationship with him. 

The only way we could experience Jesus in the most intimate way was for him to leave us - to be physically apart from him. Because Jesus is far away from us, it forces us to be more sensitive in discerning his voice to know him. It forces us to have to work hard and seek him with all our hearts to find him. 

If Jesus was living in this earth and was only a mile walk away from you, you would not need to form an intimate relationship to be sensitive in hearing his voice. You could simply walk up to Jesus and ask him what you needed. But because Jesus is not here, the only way to know him and hear what he has to say is through a deep intimate relationship with Jesus. 

Being able to know and hear from Jesus without actually meeting him in person is not comparable to any relationship we could find on this earth - and that is exactly what Jesus wanted. He wants to have an intimate relationship with you that surpasses all the other relationships you have with your family, friends, and spouse. 

Just like in any long distance relationship, it takes greater effort from both parties to grow their love and intimacy. God wants us to put our best efforts in our relationship with Christ. He wants you to put your relationship with him above any other relationship that exists on this earth. He wants a relationship with you that only you could have with him. Jesus is already putting his best effort with you, but are you giving your best effort for him? Are you putting enough effort to make your relationship with Jesus work? 

Jesus never intended to leave us, but to stay in our hearts. He also did not leave us alone on this earth, he sent someone important to help us. That someone is the holy spirit. The second part of John 16:7 says, "Unless I go away, the advocate will not come to you; but if i go I will send him to you."

Jesus knew that the holy spirit would do a better job than him in teaching us what it means to depend on God and be one in him. The holy spirit is there to help guide us to knowing God and to reveal to us the things that God wants to reveal in us. If Jesus never left, the holy spirit could never come, and we would never experience Jesus the same way we could now. 

Embrace Jesus in your heart and trust that the holy spirit is enough to cultivate your intimate relationship with him. Jesus is always with you and he will never leave you no matter where you go. He may be physically far, but through this he can exist deep in your heart. Matthew 28:20 says, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." So remember, Jesus is not far, he is closer to you than ever before.