JESUS SPEAKING
“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles” (Mathew 30: 20 – 21.)
INSPIRED THOUGHTS
The gospel is a powerful force; like a raging torrent, it demands reverence and respect. Just as rivers gouge out valleys and rip apart mountains, the gospel transforms lives. Many, lacking foresight, eagerly receive God’s Holy Spirit without truly understanding the magnitude of changes that God intends to perform in their lives. Genuine faith is costly; the price of salvation is death; death to our old lives. In order to be remade in the image of Christ, we must willingly be destroyed. Those possessing stony hearts, experience a shallow relationship with God. They desperately cling to old familiar habits; willfully abandoning their faith whenever significant changes are required.
When a famous gangster named Mickey Cohen was released from prison in the 1950’s, a Pastor by the name of Bill Jones made it his personal mission to convert him to Christianity. Jones presented Mickey with the gospel; who in turn, said a prayer, receiving Jesus Christ in to his heart. Word of his conversion soon spread; as many were amazed to hear that this once villainous mobster had turned to the Lord. However, although Mickey enjoyed being called a ‘Christian,’ he refused to live like one. “Eventually he lost touch with Pastor Jones; and again began hanging around his old buddies from the criminal underworld. The disheartened Jones confronted Cohen; telling him that as a Christian, he needed to put some distance between himself and his old unlawful associates. A puzzled Cohen quickly responded; “Jones, you never told me that I had to give up my career. You never told me that I had to give up my friends. There are Christian movie stars, Christian athletes, and Christian businessmen. So what’s the matter with being a Christian gangster? If I have to give up all that – if that’s Christianity – then count me out.”
Sadly Mickey’s story is all too common; out of the four different types of soil Christ describes, the stony heart is often the most deadly; for within it, there exists the greatest propensity for self-deception. Believing a verbal profession of faith to be sufficient for salvation, many remain unchanged. With their lips they affirm Christ; but with their lives they deny him. By continuing to practice behaviors such as, watching pornography, fornication (sex before marriage), drunkenness, idolatry, and dishonesty, etc…many delusional souls are journeying toward an eternal precipice from which there is no return. If you can identify with this particular type of soil, then you have two choices; continue onward toward eternal punishment, or get honest with yourself and begin a new life with Jesus; a repentant life; a life free from serious acts of unrighteousness; a life lived as a disciple of Christ; a life fully committed to purity, church fellowship, prayer, evangelism, and bible study. May the Lord give you the courage, strength, and conviction to make the right choice.
“Lord Heavenly Father, transform us in to the image of Your Son. May we lay down our old lives and take up our new ones. May our relationships with You be deep and meaningful; that our lives might always affirm our verbal professions of faith. If we have not fully committed our lives to You, reveal to us the areas where we are refusing to change; and by the power of Your Holy Spirit, help us to overcome those shortcomings. We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.” God bless all of you.
Jesus Speaks 