Our children's gospel tracts are printed, and thanks be to the Lord, the printing job was done very well by a printing house we found right here in our own neighborhood.  We got our first copy of the tract just an hour ago, and on our trip back we already saw evidence of how effective a witnessing tool for children this is going to be.  The comic-book style and the attractive photos of the tract cause children to see them in our hands and want them even before we take any proactive step to share the gospel.  We praise the Lord for this opportunity that the tract is presenting us to share the gospel.   

   Tomorrow, Lord-willing, Lili's mom is coming up to help us with the baby for a few days so that we can do a mass evangelism campaign of outreach to children and families, using these tracts with our balloon animal ministry in the parks Friday (kids out of school for Easter break still), and then again on Saturday and Sunday.  Lord-willing, Monday, we'll be going to one of the public schools for students up to 8th grade and distributing the tracts to students who want them as they enter or leave the school grounds at the end of their day. 

   Please pray for the fruitfulness of this outreach in young people's lives, as they are at an open-hearted stage of life, and pray also for open doors for parents and family members to hear the gospel through it.  Pray for open doors so that opposition to our work for the gospel will not prevail.  And pray for us to have boldness from the Holy Spirit to do this witnessing.  We need prayers for boldness even more than we did when we came here two years ago this month to begin the church-planting ministry, because now that we've been here a while, we are recognized by a large segment of the city's population, and it is well-known why we are here, so opposition to us is much more vocal and fears can rise up within us much more easily than ever before.  So pray for God to strengthen us and our resolve, to never be ashamed of the gospel and always be willing to share God's love and His message with others, even if there is a cost to us personally for doing so. 

   On one other note, if you'd like to have the gospel tract for use in your ministry in Romania, contact us about that, and if you want English or Spanish language versions for ministry in America, visit the tract's publishers at Evantell and look up the "Welcome to Heaven" tract. 

   The annual national conference for Calvary Chapel Romania is coming up in late May, and I've been given the opportunity to do a workshop for the men at the conference on the topic of "Being God's Man." 

   After spending time praying and thinking about how to approach that topic, I've arrived at the idea of doing the session as a study of John the Baptist, and finding from his life some spiritual principles that every man can learn from in his quest to be used of God for the glory of Jesus Christ on earth. 

   Lord-willing, as I develop the teaching over the next few weeks, I might post some brief notes on the topic from my study here on the blog.  Pray with me that God will guide and make the session one that is worthwhile for all the men who attend; and if you have thoughts about the life of John the Baptist and how his life teaches us to "be God's man," feel free to either post them here or send them in an email to me directly.

Christ is risen indeed!

                But have you ever thought about what that means for us?  Did you know that Christ's resurrection will affect your eternal destiny?  Have you read in the Bible how His crucifixion and resurrection can bring you forgiveness of all your sins and guarantee you eternal life with God in heaven as His free gift to you?

                Before raising Lazarus from the dead, the Lord Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies."  (Jn 11:25)  Jesus proved Himself the Son of God who has all power over life, death, and resurrection, by raising Himself from the dead, which we celebrate on Easter.  And as "the resurrection and the life," he raised Lazarus from the grave, proving that He also has power over our death and power to give us eternal life.  He promised that all who trust in Him will inherit eternal life by our faith. 

                So what do we need to believe in order to receive Christ's offer of eternal life?  1) First, we must believe that He is the only way.  As the only Son of God and the only one to conquer death, He said this is so.  He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me." (Jn. 14:6)  So, church, religious rituals, fasting, and doing good works are not the way to get to heaven.  Trusting in Jesus alone is the only way to heaven.  It is not because of who we are or what we do that we can go to heaven; it is only by trusting in Who He is and what He did that we can go there.  The Lord Jesus Christ said so, and we must believe Him if we want to go to heaven, no matter what others--even religious leaders--tell us about obtaining eternal life.

                2) Second, we must believe in what the Bible says Jesus did to purchase eternal life for us:  "that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." (1 Cor. 15:3-4)   Before Christ came, God promised in the Old Testament that He would come, that He would die for our sins, and that He would rise again to give us new life.  Then Jesus came and did all those things as promised.  What does it mean that "Christ died for our sins"?  It means that our sins deserve God's punishment.  We deserve death and eternal separation from God in hell.  But because of God's love for us, He allowed His Son to die in our place and absorb all of the punishment we deserve on the cross.

                Right this moment, if you believe these things, and make a decision to trust only in what Christ did by dying for you in your place on the cross, by that trust you will receive eternal life with Christ.  Not because you earned it, but because Jesus earned it for you, and offers it to you today.  Start by telling God that you believe you have sinned against Him and that you are unworthy of heaven, just as His word says.  Then tell Him you believe that Jesus died in your place and took all of the punishment for your sins, just like the Bible says.  Then tell Him you are trusting Him to give you eternal life in heaven, because you believe Jesus loves you and died for you and rose again.  God, who cannot lie, promised you this free gift.  He will keep His promise, hear your prayer, and give you life in heaven.

As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.
--Psalm 17:15

The Indescribable

He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
--Isaiah 53:9a-10b

          That we call this day "Good Friday" is likely the greatest understatement of all time.  But what are we to do?  Finding a way to adequately describe the gloriousness of the crucifixion is utterly beyond the realm of possibility.  Many a writer have been frustrated, having thought themselves highly skillful with words, only to approach the subject of God's redemption of humanity and find that their best efforts are hopelessly inept to do any justice to this great event.  The goodness of what Christ did for us on Calvary is infinite, and thus beyond description.
          The Psalmist just called what we call Good Friday "the Day."  As in "This is the Day that the Lord has made;  Let us rejoice, and be glad in it."  (We often quote that passage and apply it to each day, which is fine, because we should rejoice in every day God gives to us; but if you note the context of Psalm 118, you'll find that verse is referring to a specific day in human history:  the Day of the Messiah's atonement for our sins.  And while the crucifixion would come when the Messiah was rejected, it would ultimately be because it was God's sovereign plan all along.  It would be the day that the Lord had made, and a day for every man and woman of faith to rejoice in.)
          We can take indescribable joy in the results of Jesus' death on the cross, because it brings us eternal life, a relationship with God, and eventual deliverance from the sin nature.  But Isaiah tells us that we can also delight in Good Friday because God Himself has delighted in that blessed Day for all eternity.
          The book of Isaiah begins with the Lord expressing displeasure with the sacrifices of man.  Those sacrifices could not change a human heart.  They could not take a sinful person and turn him into a righteous one.  And in chapter 53, God shows us His solution to this dilemma.  There would be a sacrifice completely pleasing to Him.  A sacrifice that would not just cover our sins on the outside, but purge us from them on the inside.  A sacrifice that would restore us fully to the image and likeness of God we were created to reflect for His glory.  A sacrifice that would not just acquit the guilty, but truly make them innocent again.
          The only way to make us righteous, and to erase our sins, would be to let Jesus trade places with us for a day.  Despite the fact that He could do no violence and speak no deceit, He would take our sins as if they were His own.  He would absorb the punishment our sins earned, satisfying the justice of a Holy God.  Then, with that justice fully satisfied, He would rise from the grave, pardon us, clothe us in His righteousness, and give us the reward God can only bestow on the sinless.
          The Lord did take delight in this sacrifice.  "It pleased the Lord to bruise Him."  It pleased Him greatly.  This sacrifice, unlike the Isaiah 1 sacrifices that nauseated God, would be a sweet-smelling aroma in His nostrils.  Because He would have the best of both worlds as a result:  His infinite love and mercy could now be expressed for never-ending eternity, without compromising His perfection of holiness at all.  And, oh, what glory would be forever given His Name!
          Yes, it is indescribable.  It is beyond comprehension.   It is a plan beyond what the most imaginative and creative of human minds could ever fashion.  This Good Friday & Easter week, let your joy and awe at the glorious wonders of God's salvation overflow.  Love and worship Him with your whole heart and soul and mind and strength, and give Him matchless thanks for His "indescribable gift."

So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
--John 19:30

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth,
today you will be with Me in paradise."
--Luke 23:43

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.  Like one from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.  Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered Him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted.  But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.
--Isaiah 53:3-5

Here are the opening words to Pastor Chuck Smith's book, Why Grace Changes Everything: 

Have you ever pondered the significance of the simple phrase, "God loves you"? It may embody the most important truth anyone can grasp: that God has called us into a loving relationship with Himself. Our part is simply to trust and believe in the deep care and compassion God freely extends to us.

How beautiful it is to experience the freedom and joy of a love relationship with God! Yet how sad it is that there are so many who insist on relating to God in a legalistic way. Their righteousness is based on what they can do for the Lord instead of on what He has already done for them. They carry around a huge list of "do's and don'ts" to keep them bound to God.

I am no stranger to that depressing kind of negative righteousness. As I was growing up, I considered myself one of the most godly kids on the block because of what I didn't do. I didn't smoke. I didn't dance. I didn't go to shows. I was taught that such things were utterly sinful. So not only did I avoid those things, I also believed I was far more righteous than my weaker friends who indulged in them. I thought I was much more holy than the preacher's kid, who was known to pick up old cigarette butts and smoke them on the sly. I was above all that, and I was sure God noticed.

Still, I had a big problem. Although I didn't go to shows, I longed to see Snow White, so I felt condemned. I would get saved again every Sunday night and would promise God that next week was going to be different. I was lucky if my relationship with Him made it past breakfast Monday morning.

To read the rest of this book, available free online, go here.