Sep 2 2008

Christianity is Christ


Christianity is Christ.

Christianity is not:
   . Going to church
   . Living by the Golden Rule
   . Doing acts of kindness
   . Being a member of a certain church
   . Being right about certain Bible doctrines
   . Doing certain things on Sunday
   . Living a life of piety and self denial

Christianity is Christ.

When a person becomes a Christian:
   1. His sins are forgiven
   2. He is given eternal life
   3. He becomes God’s child both by birth and adoption
   4. He becomes an heir of God’s bounty
   5. He is declared not guilty of sin
   6. He is declared just
   7. He is declared righteous
   8. He is indwelt by God the Holy Spirit
   9. He is sealed by the Holy Spirit
 10. He is gifted by the Holy Spirit
 11. He is promised resurrection
 12. He will never perish
 13. He will never die
 14. He is in Christ
 15. Christ is in Him
 16. He is hidden with Christ in God
 17. He is held in God’s hand
 18. Christ will never leave him or forsake him
 19. He has access to God in prayer
 20. He is a priest
 21. He is a partaker of God’s nature
 22. He is seated with Christ in the heavens
 23. He has been chosen by God
 24. He has been elected
 25. He has been predestined to be a son
 26. He has been called
 27. He has been glorified
 28. He has been washed
 29. He has been cleansed
 30. He has redeemed
 31. He has been added to the body of Christ
 32. He has overcome the evil one
 33. He has been counted worthy
 34. His eyes have been opened
 35. He has a new ability to love unconditionally
 36. He can say no to sin
 37. He is at rest
 38. The ordinances of the law are no longer against him
 39. He is free
 40. He is not condemned
 41. He will never be condemned
 42. He is not appointed to wrath
 43. He will be rewarded
 44. He has treasure reserved in heaven
 45. He is kept by the power of God
 46. He cannot be separated from God
 47. He has the Son of God
 48. He has the Father
 49. He has joy
 50. He has peace with God
 51. He has the peace of God
 52. He is one with God
 53. He is loved by the Father just as He loves Jesus.
 54. He has been born again
 55. He is a new creation
 56. He has God’s law written on his heart
 57. He died with Christ
 58. He was raised with Christ
 59. Christ is his life
 60. He is in the kingdom of light
 61. He has been granted repentance
 62. He has been given faith
 63. He has been given precious promises
 64. He is an ambassador of Christ
 65. He is an alien on eath
 66. He is a citizen of heaven
 67. He is a lover of good
 68. He hates sin
 69. He loves his brother
 70. He hears the apostolic teaching
 71. He abides in Christ
 72. He stands in grace
 73. The Holy Spirit assures him he is safe
 74. Christ is his life
 75. He does sin as a lifestyle
 76. He has Christ as an advocate for him in heaven when he does sin
 77. He walks in the light
 78. He knows the voice of Jesus
 79. He follows Him
 80. He will not follow another.
 81. He has victory over death, hell, and the grave 
 82. He is being made like Jesus
 83. He is created for good works
 84. His greatest good is to glorify God

There is more but these quickly come to mind. Not one of them is man’s own doing. Everyone of them is true and relevant and experiential because of the person, work, and resurrection life of Jesus Christ. The only basis, the only ground upon which our salvation rests is Christ.

When a sinner changes his mind about the course of his life and puts his whole trust in Jesus He does not give that person anything apart from Himself. You see, what a lost sinner needs is life, he is spiritually dead. He needs righteousness for he is unrighteous. He needs redemption, for he is a slave to sin. He needs light because he is in darkness. He needs bread from heaven because he is starving. He needs the water of life for he is thirsty. He needs to be set free because he is under control of the evil one.

Christ can give nothing more than Himself. He Himself supplies every need. He is life, He is the light of the world, He is righteousness, He is our peace, He is our assurance, He is our joy, He is our glory, He is our hope, He is the author of our faith, He is the rock upon which we stand.

“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and NO MAN COMES TO THE FATHER BUT BY ME.” Religion will leave you wanting. Church membership and attendance will leave you lacking. Acts of kindness, giving to the poor, and even martyrdom will leave you dead in your sins. Only our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ is able and willing to give you life, forgiveness, righteousness, and peace.

We are only accepted by God “in the beloved“, we are only chosen “in Him“. The mystery of God that was hidden in ages past is this, “Christ in you, the hope of glory“. That’s it, Christianity is Christ and can be nothing less, and nothing more is possible.

“Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life”(1 John 5:10-12 ESV)

It is hard to imagine how anyone could misunderstand this clear message from God’s word. Sadly, many just don’t seem to get it. Like the legalists Paul addressed long ago in his letter to the churches of Galatia who insisted that Christians be circumcised, many today insist on adding to what Christ accomplished over 2000 years ago and what God planned in eternity past.

Many preach a salvation that is “God’s part and your part”. Your part is to repent (change your mind) and believe on Jesus Christ. If you have Him (A very big “IF”) what more can you possibly imagine you need? There is nothing on earth or in heaven that is a substitute or a supplement for what Christ has accomplished on behalf of sinners. Trust Him alone, He will not always wait.

By grace are you saved.

His peace,
Royce

 

Sep 1 2008

White’s Ferry Road Relief


It doesn’t seem that long ago that that we were gearing up for what would be WFR Relief’s greatest domestic challenge, Hurricane Katrina. It’s time again. As I type this post Gustav is due to make landfall just west of New Orleans as a catagory 3 hurricane with winds of 115 mph. I am very thankful that state and local governments, FEMA, and the residents of the gulf coast are much better prepared because of lessons learned well from Katrina and Rita.

It is very likely that Gustav will not be nearly as bad as Katrina but it will still leave thousands of homes and business flooded from the expected 15′ storm surge. Thankfully about 90% of the residents of the hard hit areas have evacuated. But when they return they will need lots of help mucking out buildings, hauling debris, cutting downed trees, etc. WFR Relief is ready to help.

For over 35 years WFR Relief has been the clearing house for information, the distribution of volunteers, materials, food, water, and money. I have alwys been amazed at the generosity of church of Christ people who open their check books to assist those who are hurting after a natural catastrophe. I know many of my readers will want to give what you can to help. Please consider going to our website to make your contribution. It is easy and simple. Click CONTRIBUTE to give.

If you have questions, have volunteers who want to help, or need to talk to us for any reason please call 318-396-6000 beginning Tuesday morning. Until then you can contact my wife Carol Ogle, the Relief Coordinator for WFR Relief at 318-348-2291. My hope is that the storm will diminish somewhat before it makes landfall. It looks as if it will hit the most suitable area of the gulf coast where there is fewer residents than any other stretch of shoreline.

There is another storm gaining strength and predictions, although early, have it going to Florida or further up the Atlantic coast. There is much to do. We need people and funds but more than that we need your prayer support. Thanks for your concern and consideration.

His peace,
Royce Ogle

Aug 30 2008

The Palen pick, risky or brilliant?


Right away the expected criticism came from every corner, “She doesn’t have enough experience to be a heart beat away from the presidency!” Interesting observation in view of the fact she has more as a VP candidate than the presidential candidate on the Democratic ticket.

Here are the pros and con’s as I see them:

  • Executive experience. Governor of Alaska, Mayor of her hometown.
  • Pro Life. Gave birth to the last of her 5 children knowing he had down’s syndrome
  • Pro 2nd Amendment. Lifetime member of the NRA
  • Proven tax cutter
  • Experienced at using the veto pen to reign in wasteful spending
  • Roots out corruption even in her own party
  • Attractive. Was runner up in an Alaska beauty pageant
  • Smart. Able to speak several coherent sentences in a row without reading them. Only Joe (the mouth) Biden can do that better.
  • Hunter and angler
  • Rides snowmobiles
  • Likes the United States Military. Her son will deploy to Iraq on Sept 11th.
  • Respects her husband of 20 years even in public!

Con’s:

  • She is not at the top of the ticket.
  • Uhhh……….hmmmm….can’t think of any more

This is very bad news for the Obama ticket. Woman will really like her and since ladies by the millions were left swinging after the demise of Hillary, she will undoubtedly bring many of them to the Republican column in November. McCain’s choice of this talented lady is a gut punch to Sen. Obama and his team. Expert were predicting a 10 point lead for him by next week, it an’t gonna happen. The spread is 8 points at this moment but wait until this time next week. This will be a repeat of what happened in 2000 when Gore’s lead went to about 10 points after he announced Joseph Leiberman as his running mate but in only a few days the reace was a dead heat and he lost in the end.

McCain has been a huge disappointment for me and millions of other conservatives and in view of that I believe this was the smartest thing he has done thus far. Palen disagrees with him on global warming and I expect her to also disagree on immigration reform. She is a nice balance to the GOP ticket and I really believe she may prove to be the key to a victory in November.

If McCain-Palen looses in November we haven’t seen the last of this special lady. I would love to see a Hillary vs. Palen battle for the white house. On one side a career politician who will do or say whatever the polls require to win and on the other a lady who is not in the least politically correct. One one side someone who pretends to be pro second amendment and on the other a lady who kills animals and eats them. One who is married to a liar and womanizer….oh whats the point of going there, there is no contest.

This is my favorite time of the year! Hand to hand combat in the political arena. I can’t wait ’til Monday.

On a different and somber note. I hope the storm calms and causes no major damage. Louisiana and the Gulf coast is just getting on their collective feet, we don’t need another hit now.

Royce

Royce

Aug 29 2008

The Big O


Obama knocked it out of the park! I have been a political junkie since before Nixon and tonight was one of the best speeches I can remember. Few of Obama’s contemporaries can equal his oratorical skills. I know of no politician today who could come close to amassing some 75,000 eager listeners, with many standing for the whole speech, some moved to tears, perhaps all full of hope. Congratulations to Senator Obama for a historic moment for African Americans and a job well done.

The sad news is that for Democrat faithfuls who for eight years have longed to regain the White House, tonight’s speech, when sifted through the screen of rational thought and common sense, is sorely lacking. Yes, he promised to give specifics, but did he? He promised a great education for every child, the same level of health care as those in the congress for every American, to regain global respect for America, to cut taxes on most American families, etc., etc., but how? He didn’t say how and he will not because there is no answer to this sort of upside-down logic. Democrats have been saying the same things for decades, just not as well as Obama. It is not unlike the little boy standing in the open door of a barn loft with a bath towel around his shoulders summoning the courage to leap out expecting to fly. He is full of hope, expecting change, until he leaps into the air only to have the ground below jolt him to reality.

Obama and O’biden and the Democrats are ready to give a tax break to the worker while at the same time financially raping the employers of the workers. Here is a short lesson in economics. When the cost of doing business goes up there can only be one of two results. Goods and or services must be decreased in amount or quality, and or prices to the consumer must be increased. It makes no difference if the cost of doing business (overhead) is increased because of an increase in materials, labor, fringe benefits, or higher taxation, the end result is the same. A government policy that punishes success in business is folly. Higher corporate taxes means less spending for research and development, less funding for business expansion to more markets and manufacturing locations, less money for higher salaries, and less incentive to go into business in the first place.

The opposite view, and the logical one, is to allow business to flourish, encourage expansion, research and development, and the creation of millions of good jobs that will never exist unless the bottom line is in the black. For many years I worked for a family owned business in the DFW area. They started with one small auto dealership. Today they own about 16 and one of the most solid banks in Dallas. Had they been taxed the way Democrats envision they would never have gone past one tiny location with meager profits if any at all. Instead of employing about 25 people, today they employ perhaps well over one thousand. Just in our location there were 190 employees about 30 of which were under my supervision. They earned up to $85,000 each year. They bought houses, cars, boats, paid college tuition, bought insurance, groceries, and clothing, went on vacations, and paid lots of taxes to state and federal coffers. All of this is due to the free market, the American dream that expects business to earn profits and provide jobs. Democrats do not understand this concept.

Another reality that many of our liberal friends don’t seem to understand is this. Government does not have any money, doesn’t earn any money, and doesn’t create any jobs. Every dollar Obama or McCain promises to spend comes out of our collective pockets. It is taxpayers who foot the bill. It is easy for a candidate to promise a billion here, a billion and half there, it is quite another for men and women to sweat out the 40 plus hour weeks to earn the money and pay their taxes. Even an accounting student in a community college should be able to understand that it is not possible to give every one in America everything they want and balance the books without major tax hikes across the board. Obama clams he will go over the federal budget line by line and cut out the fat. Which programs will you cut Sen. Obama? What policies will you change to save the taxpayers money? The answers are not coming I promise you.

The promises offered in our founding documents are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The federal government is charged to defend our borders and leave us alone. There are no “rights” to health care, education, cars with great fuel economy, and HD TV.

It is one thing to give a rousing speech, it is quite another to deliver the goods. All of the smoke and mirrors will not make me and millions of others forget that Sen. Obama has little experience, questionable wisdom, and a faulty world view to lead the free world. Perhaps he will be the next president of the United States. If so he will be my president and I’ll hope for his success. I tend to think that in the end common sense will prevail. I can’t conceive that there are enough people in America who make critical decisions like the O.J. jurors, “Don’t confuse me with the facts!”

I am proud that we have matured so that a woman and a black man can rise to the loftiest places of our society. We still have a long way to go. My hope is that in another forty five years we will still be the proud republic called the United States of America. Sadly, the chances are not very good in my view.

For liberty,
Royce Ogle