The link below is for “Our Daily Bread”…   http://odb.org/2012/06/15/lost-and-found-5/

The link below is for the Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie …              http://www.harvest.org/devotional/daily-devotions/home.ht

John 5:14… Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”  (NKJV)

We are all born with sin embedded with-in us, from the time that Adam first sinned (Romans 5:12-21)… And un-confessed and un-repented sins will have their consequences in final judgment by God after our death, if we don’t become Christian’s before we die… (Romans 2:1-6)… Here is the most important part of this scripture…Romans 2:5-6… But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, ⁶ who “will render to each one according to his deeds”:  (NKJV)

Praise the Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us a way to seek Him to have our sins forgiven, by understanding and obeying the gospel of Christ; and then being accepted by God into His kingdom, as Jesus Christ becomes our personal Lord, our Master, and our Savior…

A few days ago, I wrote about the Christian who is living in sin, by having sex with someone outside of marriage… And to make matters even worse, children are sometimes being conceived out of wedlock…  These are horrendous sins that God will judge… Hebrews 13:4… Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.  (NKJV).

Any joy or peace a Christian feels living under these sinful conditions, is a false peace that Satan has given the Christian…  Yes…our God is a merciful and longsuffering God… But when Christian’s put anything or anyone ahead of the Lord, they are grieving the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30)…  Whether it money, or a job, or family, or anything else that takes precedence over God…God will not stop trying to bring the sinning Christian back into a righteous, re-alignment with His will and His ways…  This is done by confessing and turning from any and every sin…and seeking the Lord again as the Master of our lives…

1 John 1:9…  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (NKJV)

But once a Christian has removed God from the top, most important spot in their lives…they are treading on thin ice, even though things seem to be going along smoothly…  God doesn’t seem to be upset with their sin; so it continues, and might even bring on more sin…Ecclesiastes 8:11…  Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.  (NKJV)

But when God’s patience and longsuffering wear thin, God will then chastise and/or scourge His sinning children, to try to bring them back under His wing…Hebrews 12:5b-6… “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; ⁶ For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.”  (NKJV)

When things start going wrong…when a job is lost…when it seems you are experiencing a run of bad luck with unexpected expenses…when your peace and your joy you once had as a Spirit filled Christian are gone…it just might be time to seek forgiveness for your un-repentant sins, and put Christ first again in your life…

Those sinning Christian’s, who have yet to experience this chastening by the Lord, might think things are going great, but there will eventually be pain…Hebrews 12:11…  Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.  (NKJV)

As a Christian, why not seek forgiveness from the Lord for your sinful ways by confessing and repenting of your sins now, before this chastening occurs… You will be ahead in this game of life; and will then be able to live in absolute joy and a supernatural peace that God will only give to His children who are living righteously in His sight…

Heavenly Father, Your Word is clear, that there will be eventual payment with chastising and/or scourging for those children who have turned their backs on You… Help us all Lord, to understand that living righteously in Your sight, will always produce blessings that You long to give Your children who live according to Your will and Your ways… I pray for this God given peace in all of our lives…in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…

written by bruce r mills