Humanity is full of many emotions. One of the strongest is deep
remorse, when a person realizes that he has done wrong and can
no longer undo what has been done. Then the natural reaction is
bitter weeping, which is difficult to hold back. I have cried many
times myself, and there have been many reasons. In my previous
Shabat study, I promised now to consider some sins that directly
crush a person to the ground, and they do not release their hold
except through confession and repentance. Confession is needed.
How it must be done, please read from the end, just before songs.
How it must be done, please read from the end, just before songs.
There is no person on earth who does not also sin
Of course, there are great differences in sins, but even a small sin separates us from communion with our Creator, for He is perfectly Holy and hates all kinds of sin, because all sin corrupts man. Solomon, as a good observer of man and after his own personal falls into sin, taught this: Eccles. 7:20
>>For there is not a just man upon earth, that does good, and does not sin.<<
Because our Creator knows all of His creation intimately and that our greatest need is to have our sins forgiven, He has, in His great love, prepared for all descendants of Adam and Eve the perfect opportunity to receive Salvation as a gift through faith in the heart. That faith must be directed toward the redemptive work of our Savior, Adonai Yeshua. John 10:9-11
>>9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd: (Ps. 23) the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.<<
The essence of the Salvation message
The essence of the message of Salvation is that our heavenly Father still receives great sinners today, and his reception is located on Mount Moriah, Golgotha, to which we must direct our gaze with the eyes of faith and look at the bleeding sacrificial Lamb hanging on the cross. He bore all our sins when he suffered on the cross, took away the sin of the world, and shed his blood.
After suffering naked, mocked by his enemies, and in terrible pain for about six (6) long hours, he, Yeshua HaMashiach, finally said, "It is finished!" and he gave his spirit into the hands of his heavenly Father. Before being nailed to the cross, he taught his disciples, saying: John 6:37-39
>>37 All that the Father gives me shall come to me; and him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out. 38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39 And this is the Father’s will which has sent me, that of all which he has given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.<<
In this way you will surely be saved
Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, taught, in my opinion, exhaustively to both Gentiles and Jews how we can be saved. According to his teaching, our good works cannot save us, although they are welcome and beneficial to our neighbors and to ourselves. Only in the following way will we achieve eternal Salvation, if we trust in it: Romans 10:6-10
>>6 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring HaMashiach down from above:) 7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up HaMashiach again from the dead.) 8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Adonai Yeshua, and shall believe in thine heart that Elohim hath raised him from the dead, thou shall be saved. 10 For with the heart man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.<<
I will tell you briefly about three women
All of this happened back in the 1970s when I was working as a street evangelist in Helsinki. I won't mention their real names, so no reader can identify who they are. (At that time I did not yet know the proper Hebrew name of our Savior: Yeshua)
Late at night, as was my custom, I was in the center of city sharing the good news of Salvation with all who were interested, and I gladly began to talk to all who were interested. A woman to whom I handed a flyer accepted it and burst into tears. She was beautiful, black-haired, neatly dressed and belonged to the upper class of the city. I let her cry in peace, and after a while I said:
"I see that you have great sorrow in your heart. You can tell me about it in confidence, for I am a spiritual counselor and I know a loving Savior who can help you too."
She began to speak in a voice mixed with tears: "I'm pregnant by the man I love, but we're not even engaged yet. When I told him about it, he got really angry and said, 'Have an abortion or I'll leave you!' I don't want to murder the child I'm expecting, and I don't want to lose the man I love either."
I prayed for wisdom from above and believed I had received the right advice. I told her: "I understand your difficult situation very well, and it is the Lord's will for you to have a child. Even though you will be despised by people and even though the man you truly love will reject you, the most important thing is that the Lord loves you and will help you get through everything."
The woman nodded her agreement and I prayed for her for help from above in what was to come and we also prayed together for the man to change his mind and marry the woman. I don't know what the woman did because we never met again. I remembered them both in my prayers for a while and left the matter in the Lord's hands.
Case No. 2
I was again sharing the Good News of salvation in the city center where I was living at the time. Offering a flyer to a young woman. She accepted it and said through tears, "I am such a great sinner that I don't believe the Lord cares about me. However, I hope that I will be able to look at his merciful face, even from afar, beyond the boundary of time."
I felt great pity and love for her, for her heart was right before the Lord. I said to her, "You may come just like this to our Savior, for He came into the world to save us, sinners. I was also a great sinner, for He said to me, 'Truly, you are a great sinner!' and He had mercy on me and forgave my sins."
It seemed that the woman believed my assurance. She thanked me and went away thoughtfully. I prayed for her for a while, and then I also left her in the mercy of the Lord.
Case No. 3
I met this elderly woman right in the city center, sitting on the stone curb of the Railway Station. She was about 70 years old, gray-haired, and a poor homeless woman. She was an alcoholic. Judging by the smell, she hadn't been able to wash in months. I sat down next to her on that cool late autumn evening. I told her that our Heavenly Father loved her.
She burst into tears and whispered: "Yes, his love for us humans is immense, when he sacrificed his own beloved Son on the cross for us sinners. I am a homeless drunkard who is only waiting to die, because for years I have suffered from deprivation, homelessness and no one misses me." I urged her to tell about her youth. She told a wonderful story:
"When I was 15, I went to a party with my friends in Sipoo (about 30 km northeast of Helsinki). It was also late autumn then. After taking a sauna and drinking a few beers, I decided to go for a walk in the nearby forest and it was already dark. I was only wearing a nightgown and I realized that I was lost in that dense and foggy forest and I was terrified and started to freeze. I prayed to the Lord for help.
Then suddenly a light descended from above on a path and I heard a whisper: 'Take that path!' I started walking along it and it led to a log house with lights shining inside. I knocked softly on the front door and soon an elderly woman came to open it. She was astonished and said: 'Oh, you poor girl, freezing outside in just a nightgown. Come inside and be warm.'
I went inside and there was a woman and her elderly husband there. I told them where I had gone into the forest and that I had gotten lost there, but a light illuminated the path and I heard a whisper to follow it. That brought me to you. The woman listened in wonder and gave me something hot to drink. Then she laid me down on the bed. I went to rest on it and had a wonderful dream. The dream was as follows:
I was walking lost in the forest and suddenly two angels came to me and took me to Paradise with fabulously beautiful trees, flowers and bushes. As I walked along the golden street, one angel was on my right and the other on my left. All the time, a huge, magnificent golden crown with precious stones of different colors floated in front of me. The angel said it was the crown of life.
"I thought that as soon as the angels looked away, I would secretly take that crown. That's when I woke up and the old woman showed me where we were on the map and told me how to find my way back to the youth hostel I had left. She gave my outer clothes and shoes. I found my way back to my drinking buddies and they were amazed at my story."
I told the woman that the dream meant that if she fought in faith on earth until the end, she would soon reach her destination and receive the beautiful crown of life there. The woman asked me to sing her a heavenly song. I sang the song 'I sing of Jesus, only of Jesus...' from memory, because one of its verses contains the words: 'I will receive the crown once, in the Kingdom...'
While I was singing, a large group of men had gathered around us and one of them said: "That young man must be an angel, because his face is shining with a bright light." The men stared at me fearfully from a few meters away, wondering. I told them that I was just an ordinary Christian young man and urged them to give their lives to Jesus, the Lord.
The woman listened to my song and smiled with encouragement. I could not, being poor myself, help her financially, and I would not take her into my apartment, because I lived as a tenant and it was forbidden to accommodate others in my apartment. I left her with a Lord's blessing and prayed for those men also for the Lord's mercy.
Proverbs 28:13
>>The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will find mercy.<<
Acts 3:19
>>Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Adonai.<<
James 5:15-16
>>15 The prayer offered with trust will heal the one who is ill - the Adonai will restore his health; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, openly acknowledge your sins to another, and pray for each other, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.<< (From CJB)
When is confession needed?
The case of the three women shows that the attitude of their hearts was right, for they confessed that they were sinners. As such, they were ready to receive Salvation. However, there are such major sins (e.g. murder, rape, robbery...) that require disclosure and confession to a trustworthy believer, so that the confessor will have the strength to believe that his sin is forgiven.
The case of the three women shows that the attitude of their hearts was right, for they confessed that they were sinners. As such, they were ready to receive Salvation. However, there are such major sins (e.g. murder, rape, robbery...) that require disclosure and confession to a trustworthy believer, so that the confessor will have the strength to believe that his sin is forgiven.
The general rule is that a sinful woman confesses to a trustworthy believing woman, and a sinful man to a trustworthy believing man. This is because believing women understand women's sensitive sins best. Likewise, believing men understand men's major and sensitive sins best. The person giving the confession must be believer and a completely trustworthy person!
Proverbs 28:13
>>The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will find mercy.<<
Acts 3:19
>>Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Adonai.<<
James 5:15-16
>>15 The prayer offered with trust will heal the one who is ill - the Adonai will restore his health; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, openly acknowledge your sins to another, and pray for each other, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.<< (From CJB)
Songs suitable for the topic
P.S. You can check out the interesting stages of my life from the link below. My life has been a great adventure. There have been successes and setbacks. Adonai Yeshua has always helped me!
Please, note: Our Savior's original name in Hebrew is Yeshua HaMashiach HaNotzri
God please forgive me
Here I am, Lord
Through the Storm, I Stand
Heal Me Like You Healed Job
Unto Thee O Lord
P.S. You can check out the interesting stages of my life from the link below. My life has been a great adventure. There have been successes and setbacks. Adonai Yeshua has always helped me!
Ei kommentteja:
Lähetä kommentti