Life

Each step of life is a journey that you choose to walk.

Each moment of life is another line, sentence, paragraph and chapter of the book called your life.

Enjoy all that life has to offer, good friends, good food, good coffee and as always wisdom and a good laugh.

~Jen





17 July 2016

To Serve God

What does it mean to serve God? I suppose it takes many different forms, depending on your culture, religion or society in which you live in.

Romans 14:17-19(NIV)17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.

There has been so much harm done in the name of serving God. Mass murders, "terrorist" attacks, and suicide bombings just to name a few. This is nothing new. In the Bible's Old Testament God had ordered His people to go and destroy those tribes that did not follow Him.

Deuteronomy 20:16-18(NIV)16 However, in the cities of the nations the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes. 17 Completely destroy[a] them—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—as the Lord your God has commanded you. 18 Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the Lord your God.

There are those today who do the same. We take it on faith that what the stories of old say to us and find it beyond understanding as to those who kill in this way today. We question them on if they are really hearing from God or not. I question this too, don't get me wrong. I believe in the New Covenant of Christ Jesus that of which the New Testament talks of in the Bible. This does not mean though, that Christians do not have blood on their hands, they do...we do. From the Crusades, to "conversion" in the "New World", so much killing done in the name of God.

2 Corinthians 3:5-6(NIV)Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Is this how we are suppose to serve the One True God? Honestly, if this is how one sees their service to God, I begin to wonder if we are knowing the same God, knowing of His TRUE character. Even those who hate in the name of Jesus...I wonder if we know the same Jesus. So again I ask, what does it mean to serve God?

Galatians 5:19-26(NIV)19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited,provoking and envying each other.

I know that we are not all going to agree. I understand that. I know that we do not all share the same point of view. I get that too. What I don't get is how one can read the same Spirit filled scriptures as I do and still hate, destroy, and want to harm those who do know God the same way. To me this is contradictory to the teachings of Jesus.

Matthew 5:43-45(NIV)Love for Enemies43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[a] and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

~Peace & Blessings~
 Jen