Was blind, but now, I see...

I feel the need to write this post in rebuke to my own actions, for the credit I have taken throughout my life for the things which I have done... These things which I have taken as my own doing have become sinful, not because the acts themself were sinful, but because they were either done for my own glory, or without giving proper credit to the Inspiration. I rebuke myself because I am the only one whom I may rightly judge. I know my own heart, as does God, and I know that it strays from him. 

Also, when I say things which are condemnatory towards others, although I strive not to and have not done so purposefully, this is amongst the greatest of sins, because it presumes that I know their hearts and their intentions, and also that I am to be the judge of sins. God alone is my judge and the judge of all peoples and nations. If I have ever said to any of you that the only way which we can judge men is by the word of the Scripture, that is true, but with a condition or two. Those conditions are that the person is in the process of repentance and reconizes their own sinful nature, and the second is that we ourselves understand the true nature and definition of sin. It is a thing which I struggle with more than any other problem, because I struggle with sin more than any other crisis in my life. In the end of my dwelling in this worldly body, it is not by the actions and pronunciations of others that I will be judged, I will be judged by my own actions, my own intentions, my own heart, and I will be found wanting, away from God by virtue of my sinful ways, but it matters not. I have a Saviour, bearing the marks of my sin for me, in His perfect sacrifice. All my sins are washed away by His blood, and I am free of the wages of sin, now and forever. Thank you for this gift Lord! We are free!

In this, I rejoice, and say to you all, hallelujah! All praise be to the Lord, for we are free, and we wll dwell in the house of the Lord forever and ever. To those who have seen oppression by those who claimed to follow God with their mouths even as they slaughtered His people with their hands and trampled them with their feet, I say to you that I am truly sorry. These people whom you have witnessed never knew my God, my God was distant from them as they did this, my God could not even look at those who killed others this way. The Crusades, fought in the name of our Father and the Son, were never meant to be. The Inquisitions were carried out by men who forgot His divine words. It matters not if a man can quote scripture left and right, all hours of the day. Watch his actions, and you will know truly what he believes, those who practice aggression certainly have never seen my God, or have turned away from him. 

In the same vain, those who condemn with their tongues also have never heard my God. My God said do not judge, lest by the same standard you will be judged. To those who stand on the Oval and yell condemnations and damnations at "freaks," "sinners," and "whores," I say to you that when you search your heart, you will find all the same temptations as they have, but what you will hopefully find, recessed in your soul, is the Word which you knew so long ago, which taught you to love unconditionally and with prior agenda or hope of personal reward. If you are so concerned about their sins, live amongst them always, making sure that the Word never leaves their presence. They wll not give up their sinful ways without being shown God's love first. We are the vessels by which God demonstrates his love to others.

I have a friend, who recently said something which disturbed me, that there were evangelists out there who would only preach the "lovey-dovey stuff," the grace, redemption by faith, love for all part of the message of God. I ask, what other message is there? He tells us to turn from our sinful ways, and we try, but we all fail. We have all fallen short of the glory of God, and without Him, we could continue to do so. I see no message of pain or punishment in the Bible, because he gives us a way out of all of that, by which we may all be saved and never fear anything of this world or punishment again. No one who actually understood the Word could ever turn away from God, it is not possible. I say that if you see a man who is struggling with sin, and does not understand it, take pity on him, and help him understand. We would all say that it is right to take pity on a man and help him physically, but if that man was struggling with the spirit and rebelled against God, it is all too tempting to rebuke him and say that he has made his choice, now let him live with it. I am myself extremely guilty of this, and I would like to ask for the same as I am asking for others. If you see me led astray, would you not do as a good shepherd should and stop me if you can? I do not usually resist or protest when others try to help, only when they scorn, which is generally true among men, and those who do resist when helped are in need of most help, for they are most lost, and need the kindest, calmest, most patient devotion which can be mustered.

I would like to leave you tonight with a message about my language. I put no value in the language that I use. If it inspires anyone to follow God, should they consider some of it beautiful, so be it. God has granted me my language and voice, and I give all credit to him. My words may seem outdated at times, too long at others, still other times my language may seem too simple, or too vulgar for the purpose. I speak in the tongue of those around me in everyday conversation, because it helps noone to speak differently and it makes understanding difficult at times to people of different levels of vocabulary. However, when I talk to God and myself, I use the purest language I can find. It is neither more delicate and elegant, nor more straightforward and simple than it is in my head. You can be assured that I do greatly enjoy using such flowery language, it is enjoyable and beautiful for me. I apologize if it comes off in a different way than it is intended to. 

Dear God, be with me. Reveal yourself to me in all of your creation, reveal the beauty of everything in your world to me. Let me follow you always, never straying even for a minute, to look back at the life I once lead amongst the things of this world. Let me never question your purpose in me, but rather never stop looking for things to do which glorify your name. Thank you, dear Lord, for everything you have given me. Thank you for hard-learned lessons, thank you for information which you easily revealed. Thank you for sending your Son, and thank you for your Servants who found me and told me how You had set me free. Thank you for all the blessings which your servants bestowed upon me in your name, and thank you that I may take part in your Great Commission. All praise that I have in this world to give is yours, now and forever. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.