A Solid Foundation

For Yourself

Do you know people like this? Were you a person like this? You have to go with the flow. Whatever shoes are popular, you better buy. Whatever style is in, you have to wear. Whatever the number one song is, that is what you sing. Whatever the "in" thing, that is what you do?

I know people that basically become totally different people. I remember a Jehovah Witness friend of mine. I worked with him. He would carry around this Tote, that weighed more than I did, filled with books and things from his religion. We would debate for HOURS, sometimes into the early morning hours. He moved on, and I saw him some time later. Now forgive me, but I am going to use the phrase he used when I first saw him again. "Hows it hanging?" I said "Uh?" Then he started talking and every other word was F this and F that. I was thinking, who are you and where'd my friend go?

I knew another, Christian fiend of mine. She really meant well. But she had a habit of changing Churches. One day she tells me I have to stop eating everything but Fruit, Berries, and Nuts. It's in the Bible. The next time I saw her, she tells me I should not ever listen to music with drums in it because drums are made of Snake Skin. Then She wore makeup, then makeup was evil. Then you could eat seafood only. ETC. I got dizzy sometimes trying to figure out what she was trying to tell me.

The thing is, if you do not have a solid foundation, you will do these things. You will sway in the breeze. You will be knocked down easily. Used and abused. You will even be lead away from God Himself if you are not careful. Sometimes by those that tell you they know what God wants you to do.

Have you noticed the Moral Decline in this Country? Have you noticed that people today are growing farther and farther away from God? Cause and effect. I hear people all the time today, say that I cannot say this or that. I can no longer call Sin Sin. In this area, we now have to say, it's OK. We have "evolved." It is no longer frowned upon. It's compassion. Divorce for example. Gay Marriage as an example. Abortion, as an example. Saying whatever Religion you chose is right, as an example. We must be all inclusive and love everyone equally and accept all for who they are and the choices they make.

We have even started having compassion on Murders and Rapists. The Trials are glorified and "Expert" after "Expert," comes on and tells us WHY we should have compassion for the offender. They weren't hugged as a child. They are down trodden. They are poor. It wasn't their fault. No not really. It is because Government is not in charge of Healthcare, or spend enough on Mental Health. It's everyone, including the Victim, fault. Not the offender.

We live in a Country where we say it's OK to Murder your Child, but you better not Pray at School. It's OK to march naked down the street and tell people they BETTER accept Homosexuality, but you better never mention God. Keep that stuff home. More and more people are being lead away. I know some "religious folks" that are starting to make statements like "Well, I guess it's OK for Susie to have two Mommies." "It's OK if Jenny chooses to have an Abortion. It's legal after all."  And "I think maybe it is better if the Government takes care of us."

How does this happen? The lack of a solid foundation. Remember when Jesus was talking about being the Sower of the Seed?

Matthew 13:

1 The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?

11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;

21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

As a Child of God, you are a Sower of the Seed. However, what were you before? You see, you will meet all these types. Of course, the Way Side people are those that don't have any time or desire to even hear what you have to say. Theses are the mockers, and theses are those that want you to just keep your "Religion" to yourself. These are those that fight to keep God out of public life. The sad truth is, they cannot hear God's Word because they are not of God.

John 8:

42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.

43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.

44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.

46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?

47 He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

It does not matter who these people in your life might be. They may be your family members. They may be your best friends. They are in all our lives. Remember, when you first become a Child of God, those nearest you, remember who you were before. You Sinned right there with them. You used to do all the things they are still doing. Now you are a New Creature, but they are the same as they have always been. Some of them WILL come to hate you, because now they think, you think, you are better than they. They have no time for that "God nonsense." Jesus literally tells us that the devil himself comes and steals the Word away from them.

Then you have those that are the Stony Places, and the Thorns. Truth is, this describes many Christians and may even describe the way you were in the beginning. Many hear the Word and receive it with great joy. They get on fire for God. They want to go out there and tell everyone about Him and Jesus, and Salvation. But they know little. They have not set for themselves a solid foundation. They are like a Soldier that just becomes a Soldier and wants to go out into battle. So they put on their Helmet, and run into the battle. Problem is, beside that Helmet, they are naked. The do not have any other armor. No protection. No weapons. No back up. Nothing.

These are those that will go out and attempt to tell others about God, but when the others confront them, and ask them questions, they have no answers and they themselves may become confused. Then, when they see this not workings, or they start questioning the "contradictions" and the concept that the Bible was simply "written by man." they fall away. Or, the cares of the world, the love of money and stuff, come in and the little they had receive dies. If you are not well founded in the Word, in God, in Faith, you are not being filled. Replenished. 

It's like you buy a little planet and hope to grow it into a mighty Tree, yet you never water it. Soon it will die. You will have nothing. Only with a solid foundation and Faith in God, can you be filled and grow in Faith. Only then, can you understand that there are NO Contractions in the Bible. There are however many misunderstandings by some that read it. I could read a book on quantum physics, but I will not understand much of it. I have no foundation in that area. Get the point?

When you are a Child of God, there will be those around you who will test you. You know what another sad truth is? Some of them TRULY want to "free you" from this "nonsensical" belief in God. They love you and do not want you to be "foolish." Jesus tells us that along with the Good Seed, there will be Tares...

24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:

25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.

27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?

28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?

29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

Have you ever wondered why God allows Evil people to be in the world? He does so because of His promise to Noah. He promised that He would not wholly destroy His Creation again. He will not totally wipe out everything because of His Love for His Children. Whenever you see a Rainbow, you are seeing a sign of that Convent. Why? Because if He did, He would be destroying the Good with the bad. Jesus even clarifies this a bit latter..

37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

The importance of the knowledge of Truth. If you do not know the Truth, if you do not have a solid foundation, you will believe a lie. Truth is this, as long as something sounds right? A whole lot of people will believe it. You want to know one of the biggest lies straight from the evil one? "We are all God's Children." Sounds right? Sounds just? Sounds fair? "We are all God's Children. So who are you to judge? Let them alone. What is right for them, might not be right for you, but we are all God's Children. So just accept all, and love all." There is no compassion in the acceptance of Sin. 

The only way you are a Child of God is through the adoption of the Holy Spirit. The only way to be adopted is if God calls you to accept Christ. As a Child of God, the only way you can be Righteous, is by doing the Will of God. "We are all God's Children?" "but the tares are the children of the wicked one;" "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." "He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God."

In......

Matthew 7:

21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:

27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

How do you do the sayings of Jesus? How do you do the Will of the Father? How do you tell the difference between the Truth and a lie? You must learn the Word. You must Pray. Spend time with God. "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." {Matthew 6:33} Build for yourself, that is something else you need to fully understand. Look at this again. "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:" YOU build for yourself, a solid foundation. YOU do. God is not going to do it for you. YOU build yourself a solid foundation by reading the Word, and doing the Will of the Father. YOU build your house either on the Sand or on the Rock. Depending on what YOU do, decides what happens when the storms of life come.

Ephesians 2:

1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;

2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

11 Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;

12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;

16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

It is only by The Word, and spending time with God, allowing the Holy Spirit to commune with your Spirit, that you may build a solid foundation for yourself. The Word gives you peace. The Word answers all your questions. The Word gives you Hope.

Romans 15:

4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Do you want to be that "Good Ground" that Jesus tells us will bring forth a mighty harvest? Do you want to be at peace with whatever may come into your life? Do you want to be sure, that you can over come all things, and all your needs will be met? Do not run into battle wearing nothing more than a Helmet. Put on the WHOLE Armour of God. How do you do that? Build yourself a solid foundation.

Do you know Jesus as your Savior? Have you been adopted into the Family of God? If not, say this Prayer. Right now. Wherever you may be. Say it in your own words, and do not doubt in your heart. God will hear you. He will send the Spirit of Life to you. Let us Pray..

"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"

That's it. It really is that simple. Now go tell someone what you have just done. "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." {Romans 10:9} You need to find a Church that God leads you to, and be Baptized the way Jesus said to be. You are now a Child of God. A new Creature. You "have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him." {Colossians 3:10}

If you want to tell me, or comment, question, give testimonials, or just say "Hi," the Email is opntalk@gmail.com

Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus IS Lord of all!