One Kingdom, One Sheepfold

The Lord is reminding me this morning that He will always make a distinction between those who know Him and those who don't. It's not a grey area for God -- we are either sheep or goats. 

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But, man has made it into a grey area...

Many churches/organizations have redefined what it means to be a Christian. They have put man-made rules in place. They have excused compromising lifestyles. They have ignored God's Word (or completely rewritten it!) and placed their own ideas above His. It's just absolute foolishness from top to bottom. 

God's word is supreme and at the end of the day, when we die, we will be judged by His rule of law and definitions, not man's. He will make a distinction between those who are His and those who aren't, and only those who are truly His will come into heaven.

If that doesn't put the fear of God in you, I'm not sure what will. But the sad thing is, many people have no idea that they are not really in His sheepfold because they are being told by religious leaders they trust that their salvation is secure -- not based on the blood of Jesus but by their own righteousness and works or their membership to the church/organization. I mean, I never questioned it. I grew up Catholic. I was taught that my salvation was sure because I belonged to the Catholic church. But, God made it very clear to me that this is not true. I'm sorry, no. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that our salvation is secure through our membership of an organization. But, if you've never been taught the Bible properly, you would have no idea that this is true. And too many leaders lead their sheep right off a cliff by not telling them the truth. Honestly, it infuriates me right down to my core when I think about it... when I think about how innocent people who would love to know the truth and would love to follow Jesus are instead told lies and oppressed by man's own religion. AHH! Even the fact that we have so many denominations is crazy. I mean, we have ONE GOD who has ONE VOICE, ONE OPINION, ONE LAW. Why do we think He would advance His Kingdom on earth with different rules, different laws and contradicting opinions?? (I'm on my soapbox now! haha!)

I mean, think about it though... If there is one God and one Heavenly Kingdom that is run by His order, why would He have churches all around the world with different rules and a different definition of who He is, salvation and the after life? Even logically speaking from an earthly point of view, if someone was the CEO of a company, would he change the rules of his company a million different ways? No. Every good business, every good kingdom has ONE 'handbook'. And God has ONE voice. ONE. He will not tell one church that salvation is based on faith and grace and tell another church that they have to work their way to heaven through being a good person or being a member of an organization. NO. Seriously. It's not even logical.

I know. When you think about it like that you might look at yourself and your beliefs and start questioning everything. It could send you into a bit of a crisis even. I'm so sorry. But listen, God's word is clear. God's word is light and truth. And He has given us His precious Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth. He does not leave us as orphans. He gathers us in and to anyone who really wants to know Him and be saved, He will save them! 

What does this mean in practical terms for us? It simply means we acknowledge that Jesus really is the Son of God who came and died on a cross for us, dying for our sins. Our sin was nailed to Him and whoever believes in Him will be saved. We ask God to forgive us. We thank Jesus for taking that sin. And we invite Jesus into our lives to be our friend. We come under His leadership, we are brought into His sheepfold by faith. We have reconciliation with our heavenly Father and we have all the benefits of the Kingdom. And when we die, we will be with Him forever. That's it. No signing church documents or paying a church fee. No working for your own salvation. Your commitment is between you, your Heavenly Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. 

To help you out, here is a basic prayer that you can pray that covers these points. But, listen, God is not looking for a prayer that you say with your lips but don't mean with your heart. Say it to Him directly. Mean it. And He will meet you where you are at. He promises it.

Pray:

"Lord Jesus, Thank you that you are the Son of God. You really did come to earth and die on a cross, taking all my sin upon you. You died for me. Father, forgive me of my sins. Forgive me for things I have done that I'm aware of and the things I'm unaware of. Wash me clean. And come into My life now, Lord. I ask for your Holy Spirit to come and dwell inside me. Fill me with life and joy and peace. I want to follow you, Jesus. Be the master, the boss, of My life. I know I am saved not by my own righteousness. And one day I will be with you in heaven. Thank you God! Amen!"

If you said this prayer, YAAAYY!! You're in for such an adventure with God. He loves you so much and has so much to teach you and show you. This is what He has always wanted for your life -- for you to just know Him and walk with Him, just as Adam and Eve walked with God in the Garden of Eden. He wants to be your very best friend.

I encourage you to find a Bible that you can understand and that is not twisted by a religious organization. These versions I have enjoyed: NIV, NLT, Amplified version, NKJV.

Find a tribe. Find people/church that follows the Bible, not a man made system. 

God loves ya and He's smiling and cheering the loudest for you right now. :)

***

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.”

‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/116/jhn.3.16-17.NLT

“If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””

‭‭Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭9‬-‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/116/rom.10.9-13.NLT