“Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household” (Exodus 12:3).

“For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. ‘Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Exodus 12:12-13).

In today’s world, there are two spiritual subjects people don’t like to hear about or discuss; one is sin, and the other is the blood.

God says concerning sin:

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

“For the wages of sin is death; …” (Romans 6:23).

He goes on to say in Romans 6:23 concerning the remedy for sin, “but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

That brings us to the “blood” because without the blood of Christ being shed upon the cross for us, there would be no gift of eternal life. God says of the blood:

“And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).

“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

No, we’re too sophisticated to talk of such things. We would rather hear messages that stroke our ego, such as how to become a better you or about our purpose-driven life. Most “sermons” today stroke our ego, pat us on the head, and tuck us into bed with a nice warm glass of milk, never addressing the Truth of God’s Word.

Few there be who will accept the warning about the ravages of sin upon their eternal soul and the blood that was poured out for their justification, sanctification and glorification. Millions today are marching headlong toward hell because these two subjects are being avoided, and not just by the one in the pew, but sadly also by the one behind the pulpit.

People today don’t like to admit they are sinners. They take it as an insult. Well, guess what? We are all sinners, says the Word of God.

Everyone needs a Savior, and those who have cried out to Jesus are still sinners in this life, but their soul is in His hands, and a place is guaranteed for them in Heaven forever. Yes, we are all sinners, but there are saved sinners clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, and there are lost sinners clothed in their own righteousness.

Notice what God says about our righteousness.

“But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;
We all fade as a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind,
Have taken us away” (Isaiah 64:6).

“For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20).

If we think for a minute that our righteousness is all we need, that isn’t what God says.

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

“For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3).

“But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works” (Romans 4:5-6).

The Lord says through Peter, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

The Lord could not be any clearer when he says, “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me'” (John 14:6).

Folks, the social club in our churches needs to be disbanded, and we need to get back to the Truth of the Gospel, i.e., our sin and His blood. Many of us as Christians need to forsake our lackadaisical ways and get serious about serving our Lord. Many have done so, but many more have not.

God says through the apostle Paul, “For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:22-24).

When the Jews spread the blood on the sides and top of the doorposts (Exodus 12:7), God provided them with a sign … the sign of the cross. Wisdom begs that we today look at the cross of Golgotha and accept that same sign, but wisdom doesn’t stop there. Wisdom takes us to Christ’s resurrection via the empty tomb (Luke 24:5-8) and carries us onward to our Lord ascending to Heaven (Acts 1:11).

John the Baptist identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God (John 1:29). Jesus is the sacrifice, the Lamb that God provided for us. Those who call upon Him are eternally safe in His arms (John 10:25-30).

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html

 

“Then one of the crowd answered and said, ‘Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.’ He answered him and said, ‘O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me‘” (Mark 9:17-19, emphasis mine).

Four of the most comforting words ever heard are those spoken by Jesus in the above Scripture passage: “Bring him to Me.”

Here is a father at his wit’s end at finding help for his son who had “a mute spirit.” I’m sure he had already tried everything he could think of to bring relief to his afflicted child, but nothing worked. He had even taken him to Jesus’ disciples, but they were also helpless in healing the child and thereby providing a sense of relief to the parents.

Reading on past verse nineteen, we see that the son, in this case, was indwelt by a demon that prohibited him from speaking and would throw him in fire or water in an attempt to kill him. Obviously, his parents had to carefully watch over him 24/7 and no doubt were exhausted both physically, mentally and emotionally.

The child’s father asked Jesus, “but if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Notice that he asked for help not just for the son but also for himself and his wife. However, notice again what he says at the very beginning of this statement, “but if you can do anything.”

Jesus replied, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” The NIV actually provides greater clarity to Jesus’ reply. It says, “If you can? Everything is possible for one who believes.”

Can’t you just hear Jesus? “If I can! What do you mean, if I can? Of course, I can, and anything is possible if you will believe in Me.” At this point, the father tearfully cried out and said, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.”

When Jesus removed the demon spirit, the child appeared as dead, but Jesus took him by the hand and raised him up.

My point in this article is not about physical healing or removing demon spirits. The point is Satan wants our children. He knows those children will eventually grow out of their age of innocence and become responsible for their sins. Satan wants to steer everyone away from Jesus and follow him instead, but Jesus says, “Bring him to Me.” In other words, Jesus is saying, “All who will, come to Me.”

Satan and his demons are very intelligent and very strong. They want our souls. Only Jesus could remove the demon from this child we have read about, and only Jesus can save any of us from Satan’s clutches. Satan will use any means necessary to keep us from Jesus.

In these days we live in, the young and old alike face so many more temptations than my age group did. Today, homosexuality, transgenderism, satanic cults, water-downed sermons from spineless so-called pastors, pornography in every venue, fatherless homes, crime on every street corner, dishonesty, greed, and the list goes on, are consuming the hearts and minds of those who do not know God. Did these things exist before? Of course, they did, but nothing even close to the scale we are seeing today.

Jesus is on the threshold of coming for His bride, the Church, then pummeling this world with a judgment that comes from Heaven itself, commonly called the Tribulation. Jesus says in His Word, the Bible, that He will not turn anyone away who comes to Him to be saved.

“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John 6:37).

Many of you are alarmed at the wickedness in the world today and are very concerned about your loved ones, friends, co-workers, et al. Take them to Jesus in prayer. Prayer is a force between our Lord and His own that cannot be touched by Satan. Pray that they will see they are sinners in need of a Savior, and their only hope is in Jesus.

We all must come to Jesus on our own, but none will until they realize they are lost and bound for hell. They must repent (change their minds) and recognize they are a sinner in need of salvation, and that salvation can only come from Jesus Christ, the Son of God. They must believe He died for them, was buried and rose again that through Him, they can be saved. However, if they think they are “okay,” they will die in their sins.

• If one has cancer but refuses to believe it, he will die.
• If one wins the lottery but refuses to believe it, he will never see a dime.
• If one looks in the mirror and sees that he is a man but believes he is a woman, he will still die a man.

Until the lost see their need, and they need Jesus, they will die without Him and join Satan and all his followers in hell.

Again, Jesus said, “Bring him to Me.” We can and should do this by personal witness and also through prayer. Never underestimate God’s Word and the power of prayer. They still must decide on their own, but they will receive every opportunity to be saved.

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html