Christian Salvation By Grace, The Sinners Prayer, Hypocrisy, Unconditional Love, And A Thanksgiving Prayer

As Christians we are to have faith and truly believe that Jesus was God in the flesh, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on the cross for the sins of the whole world, was resurrected by the Father to give us eternal life, and ascended to the right hand of the Father where He is our advocate and makes intercession for us.

How about some music.
 

You are born again by receiving the indwelling of the Holy Spirit upon faith in the gospel truths. My dad was raised German Catholic, as most Germans are and my mom was raised Church of England, as most Anglicans are. The question of salvation by grace, or grace and works is disputed between Protestant and Catholic churches. Although saved through grace, a Christians heart should strive to be like Christ and help those who need a blessing in their lives.
 

Ephesians 2:8-9 says

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

 

Many Christians receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit when churches present a salvation invitation or altar call to recite the sinners prayer, however, baptismal regeneration is not scripture in the Bible. 

 

Some biblical scholars have even labeled the sinner's prayer a "cataract of nonsense" and an "apostasy", although proponents of the Sinner's Prayer point to scriptures like Luke 18:10-14 to say it is in the bible.

 

Luke 18:10-14 says

¹⁰ Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

¹¹ The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

¹² I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

¹³ And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

 

Although I went to a Catholic convent during primary school, and a Catholic Liberal Arts college, my mom took us to the UM church which is a lot more progressive, but not as progressive as the Christian culture in America today.

 

How about some more music.

 

Since it's beginning in the 20th century, the sinner's prayer has been prayed by individuals within many Protestant churches. These individuals feel convicted of the presence of sin in their lives and desire to form or renew a personal relationship with God through his Son Jesus Christ. It is intended to be an act of initial conversion to Christianity, and the only way to receive salvation.

 

On a leading Pastoral magazine's page, Dr. Jay Bohd, PHD explains the implications on the Christian faith with Personal Relationships with Christ.

A “personal relationship with Jesus” leads to relativism. After all, implicit in the notion of a “personal relationship” with the Lord is the conclusion that one can define that relationship as one pleases.

Furthermore, the danger with encouraging a personalistic view of one’s relationship with the Lord also encourages a personalistic view of the doctrines of the faith; in other words, it may lead toward “cafeteria Christianity,” wherein individuals maintain that they are entitled to believe or disbelieve certain tenets.

So, do we need a “personal relationship with Jesus”? Yes, of course we do. However, a “personal relationship with Jesus” does not seem to indicate fidelity to the Church. Conversely, though, fidelity to the Church does certainly indicate a “personal relationship” with Jesus—in the context of the Church Jesus himself instituted, and in conformity with his will.

One of the biggest reasons individuals leave the church today is the hypocrisy, of those who claim to be Christians, yet use relativism to judge whether or not "they are good with God." When individuals look to Christians, they need to see us Walk the Walk, be a role model, an example, a purpose.

We're all imperfect, but acting as a hypocrite who talks the talk, yet acts more immoral than they do, leads individuals to wonder if we've truly repented our sins, and choose to live our lives for ourselves, and not for Christ.

In this age of reality TV and social media, many Christians profess themselves publically, so that everyone knows that they have a “personal relationship with Jesus.” Oftentimes these Christian seekers pray for themselves out of a personal agenda, and proclaim “a word” that they “felt” was given to them by the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 6:5-6 says

⁵ And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

⁶ But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

 

 

Non-believers may not believe in God, care for church, or some Christians behavior and would rather just accept death, and rest forevermore under the Earth. Perhaps if we all saw each other equally, and not as "special" or "chosen", for God is a universal symbol of unconditional love.

 

Ephesians 2:4-5 says

“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.”
 

1 John 4:9-10 says

"This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."

 

We all want to live our lives with purpose, and to know why we're here, and where we'll eventually go. We join a church family to hear the parables and the word of God from the pages of the Holy Bible for example, an encouragement, for fellowship, and support as we navigate this path called life.

Let's pray

by Vienna Cobb Anderson

 

God of all blessings,
source of all life,
giver of all grace:

 

We thank you for the gift of life:
for the breath
that sustains life,
for the food of this earth
that nurtures life,
for the love of family and friends
without which there would be no life.

We thank you for the mystery of creation:
for the beauty
that the eye can see,
for the joy
that the ear may hear,
for the unknown
that we cannot behold filling the universe with wonder,
for the expanse of space
that draws us beyond the definitions of ourselves.

We thank you for setting us in communities:
for families
who nurture our becoming,
for friends
who love us by choice,
for companions at work,
who share our burdens and daily tasks,
for strangers
who welcome us into their midst,
for people from other lands
who call us to grow in understanding,
for children
who lighten our moments with delight,
for the unborn,
who offer us hope for the future.

We thank you for this day:
for life
and one more day to love,
for opportunity
and one more day to work for justice and peace,
for neighbors
and one more person to love
and by whom be loved,
for your grace
and one more experience of your presence,
for your promise:
to be with us,
to be our God,
and to give salvation.

For these, and all blessings,
we give you thanks, eternal, loving God,
through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.



Michelle Duggar On Loving The Body God Gave You

I found this article on the Today Show website by Rebecca Dube and thought it was a good model for 'loving the body God gave you'.

   

Courtesy The Duggars

Michelle Duggar, mom of 19, says she sees her stretch marks as a blessing.

 

Michelle Duggar knows all about mom body issues.

 

The mother of 19 children, who with her family stars in TLC's reality series "19 Kids and Counting," says she gained a few pounds with each baby. Happens to a lot of women and it's no big deal if you have a couple kids. But when you hit double digits, those few pounds start to add up.

 

"It snuck up on me," Michelle Duggar told TODAY Moms in an exclusive interview for our Love Your Selfie body image series. "Before I knew it, I was 40 pounds overweight."

 

That was about 10 years ago; she lost the weight and kept it off with a combination of better eating and exercise. And she's happy with her body now. Of course, it's not the body she had pre-babies. But she's OK with that — and here are 19 reasons why.

 

1. God. The Duggars are Christian, and her faith in God helps Michelle avoid obsessing over her bodily imperfections. After all, God gave her this body, so who is she to complain? "I am not the center of my universe, Jesus is," Michelle says. 

 

[I thought that line was really thought provoking. We should have high enough esteem to realize that God made you that way.]

 

Her religious faith also helps motivate her to work out in the mornings when she'd rather stay in bed; she figures God wants her to take care of her body: "I don't want to get up at 6 in the morning and get on the elliptical, but I take myself off the throne and put Jesus on the throne."

 

2. Her daughters. Michelle says she's very mindful that her nine daughters, as well as her 10 sons, look to her for cues as to how they should feel about their own appearance. "A mama really sets the tone more than anyone else," she says.

 

3. She doesn't let the haters bring her down. As Michelle and husband Jim Bob's fecundity has sometimes become a topic of national discussion, Michelle is often the butt of jokes. Strangers speculate on the condition of her body. Does she care? Nope. See No. 1. "I don't want to reject my critics, there could be some truth" in criticism, she says gently. "But at the same time I'm not going to let it dictate who I am. Truly, my Lord is the one I want to please."

 

4. They're worth it. Michelle and Jim Bob decided early on in their marriage that they would not use any method of birth control and instead to "let God decide" how many children they would have. They believe children are blessings from God, and everything that comes along with those kids? Also a blessing. "The stretch marks and the little pudgy places, those are my marks of glory for my kids," Michelle says. "I look at Jordyn, I look at Jackson and I think, 'I remember that stretch mark. You were worth it. And I wouldn’t trade that stretch mark for anything.'"

 

Courtesy The Duggars

The Duggars... the early years. Jim Bob and Michelle with their four children, sometime in the early 1990s. With every pregnancy, Michelle says, she gained a little more weight.

 

5. No fat talk. Michelle says she pays attention to how she talks to herself about her appearance. Husband Jim Bob has noted that expectations can kill relationships. The same is true, Michelle says, with body image: she tries not to expect too much of herself. "It helps to talk to ourselves the right way," she says. "We are hard on ourselves. We believe lies. We’re constantly bombarded with 'oh, you’re so fat' — those are lies."

 

6. Jim Bob. Michelle credits her husband for always making her feel beautiful and never criticizing her appearance, even at her heaviest weight. "Jim Bob has NEVER put me down for my body. He has NEVER mocked me for my mommy tummy," she says. "He is one of my biggest encouragers."

 

7. She doesn't compare herself to others. This is another good example to set, especially when you have nine daughters. "We're always going to find somebody skinnier than we are, somebody bigger than we are," she says. "Every girl struggles with, 'Oh, I wish I looked like that or I wish my hair was like that.' We go back to the point of who you are and how God made you – you’re not your sister. It’s all about being who God wants YOU to be."

 

8. She forgives herself. No one is perfect, and when you have 19 kids there's plenty of opportunity to make mistakes. Michelle says she tries not to beat herself up, whether the slip-up is a forgotten appointment or a few extra pounds. "Forgiveness makes the home a more peaceful and harmonious place," she says. 

 

9. She got in shape! Loving your body doesn't mean accepting an unhealthy weight. When Michelle realized her weight gain was slowing her down and causing her pain, she made changes. "When I dropped that 40 pounds I felt physically so much better. I had more stamina," she says. Weight Watchers helped her lose the weight. "I had to write down everything I put in my mouth and oh, my word, you talk about accountability."

10. She made fitness fun for the family. Like everything Duggar, Michelle's quest to lose weight was a family project. When you can't escape for an hour at the gym, you make your family part of your fitness routine. "Every evening after dinner we'd all go out walking, I would push the baby and I would walk for an hour. Just enjoying that time outside with my kids."

 

11. She gives thanks. Especially after her pre-eclampsia health scare with her youngest, Josie, who was born prematurely and is now a healthy 4-year-old, Michelle tries to appreciate the fact that she and her family are generally healthy. "I praise God for the life I’ve had so far, the health I’ve had; I don’t take that for granted," she says.

 

12. Support from friends. Every morning she texts her friend Cindy; they motivate each other to work out and send each other uplifting messages. "It's good to have outside accountability," Michelle says.

 

13. She doesn't worry about trends. Hairstyle/clothes/makeup of the moment? Not for Michelle. When she got her hair cut and straightened for a "makeover" on the show, she smiled politely... and then went back to doing her hair the way she's always done it, trends notwithstanding. And when she learned that her favorite style was something derisively called a "mullet"? She laughed. (See No. 3.) 

 

14. No bikini body stress. Michelle and her children dress "modestly," meaning she and the girls cover up from neck to knee. Even while swimming. While the full-coverage swimsuits she favors don't look like the coolest things on the beach, at least she's spared any bathing suit angst.

 

15. She focuses on relationships. At the end of the day, Michelle says, her life is all about her relationships with God, with family and with others — not what she looks like. "The whole view of who I am is not about that physical body, but it's how I respond to the relationships in my life," she says.

 

16. She accepts what she can't change. Michelle says she always tells her children there are a list of things they won't be able to change in life, appearance and aging among them. "This is life, and it's about character," she says. 

 

17. Thou shalt not covet. Envying others just leads to bitterness, which makes for an unhappy life, Michelle says. "If you take out resentment and become envious and covetous – that includes coveting someone else’s metabolism," Michelle says. Sure, everyone has those feelings occasionally, she says, but when it happens "we humble ourselves before God and pray about it."

 

18. She's open to having more children. Michelle's last pregnancy ended in a miscarriage in 2011, but she and Jim Bob say more children are always possible. After being pregnant or nursing a baby almost constantly for the past 26 years, Michelle says it's a little odd NOT to be sharing her body with a baby. "Every month, I think, 'Well Lord, are you going to give us another baby?'" she says.

 

19. God. Again. Yes, religion is a big part of the Duggars' lives and Michelle's self-image, so we're counting Him twice. "One of the things that we have talked a lot about in our relationship and with our kids is the self-image that we have, looking at life from God’s point of view," she says. "It's about accepting yourself how God made you."

 

"It goes back to that relationship with our Lord, ultimately," Michelle says. "A child is a gift, and we don’t reject the fact that my body changes. We embrace that gift and we embrace the fact that there will be some changes, there will be some stretch marks."

Amen to that.