Bold for Christ 3

Consider the cost of losing loved ones

People lose loved ones daily. There are many reasons for this. Death. Of course. Arguments over the family dynamics. Money, sadly often. Arguments and hateful feelings about the choice of spouse. Many reasons. However, the one that may hurt the most is losing a loved one for no other reason than you have chosen to accept Christ. Another sad fact about this topic is this. It is pretty much guaranteed to happen.

If you have your Bible, turn to Matthew 10:34

“Do not think I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.” Matthew 10:34-36

Yeshua, or Jesus as translated tells us plainly

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26

To be a disciple of Christ, we must be willing to give up everything for Yeshua. Following Yeshua requires commitment and faithfulness, even if our parents choose not to follow Christ. If and when faced with the painful choice of loyalty to family versus loyalty to Yeshua, we must choose Yeshua. Even if our family members disown us for no other reason than being “Christians,” we must follow Christ. It is in this sense that we are “hating” our family rather than choosing to put God and our faith in Christ over them.

Count the cost. This will happen, says our Lord and His Word. We read this in Matthew 10

“And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22

Read that again. “And you will be” what? “Hated for my sake.” Who’s sake? Yeshua, or as translated in your Bible Jesus. It is not an “if.” It is not a “maybe.” It is pretty much a guarantee. Remember, it is not just our families and loved ones, it is the whole world.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.” Matthew 24:9

Are you ready for this? Are you sure? Are you ready to truly put this {Holding up the Bible} at the head of your thoughts, in your heart, and in your Spirit? What it says we are, we are. Who we are, we are. What is sin and what is good is spelled out clearly. It no longer matters what your friends, or yes, loved ones, have to say about anything. It is all about following Jesus. Remember what Jesus said to people who wanted to follow Him however, they were not ready to let go of the past? He said this.

“To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." And Jesus said to him, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Yet another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." Luke 9:59-62

There is a cost to following Him. He is clearly telling us this. We can and will lose loved ones. Are you ready for this? Aunt June: A beautiful lady, kind, and always doing for others. Since her husband died, Aunt June has nothing to do with God, faith, or anything else.

Now you accept Christ. You receive the Spirit of Adoption where you can cry “Abba Father.” You are now growing in faith and you start to try to share it with those you love most. Aunt June comes for a visit and you tell her that you have become a child of God. Aunt June immediately changes her whole demeanor and says something to the effect, “That is stupid. You are smarter than that. God is not there. If He is there, He is a hateful, spiteful, egotistical tyrant who should never be worshiped. Keep away from me with that stuff.”

You try to not offend her, but her visits and calls become less frequent. She starts talking to other family members about how it is a shame and how odd you are becoming. She thought you were smarter than all that, etc. Are you ready to choose God and His Word over Aunt June?

What if it is not Aunt June? What if it is Mom? Dad? Sister or brother? Jesus was talking about this when He said we need to be ready to hate our family. Not that we will hate them to follow Him, but rather, when, not if, when they hate you because you are following Him, you have to be ready to let go of them.

“From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Think about that for a second. You are no longer you. Let me say that again. You are no longer you. You are no longer the little Petey that Aunt June knew and loved. You are now a new creation. A new person. You are changing and becoming someone she hates. Why? You are no longer of this world. You are now a child of God.

“All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”

The world says there is no God. In many cases, God has given them up to their sins, lusts, and foolishness. Read Romans Chapter 1 However, this is not you. No. As a child of God?

“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, to be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5

Turn to Romans 1 Start at verse16

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."

This is now you. You are now a child of God and you should be doing the best you can to live by faith. Aunt June? Anyone else that is still in the world? Especially if they are living in sin by choice and refusing to hear the truth. Even God will not force you to accept the Truth.

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. His invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

Sadly, some of our churches have started doing this. God is patient only to a point. Read on.

“Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.”

What is God’s response?

“For this reason, God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.”

Look at America today. Homosexuality and Transgenderism, 20 + pronouns, and time off of work if they are “misgendered.” Read on.

“And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, and malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, and ruthless. Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. Romans 1:16-32

“Pride Month.” You get the point. This is the world in which we live. However, you are no longer of this world. You are now a new creation and that new creature is HATED by the world. Why? Because you now point out the sins of the world and tell them there is another way, a better way. One they reject wholeheartedly.

Paul wrote this to Timothy in his second letter. He might as well be talking to us.

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearance and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”

Again, look at social media, look at TV ministries. Look at America again.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

Calling sin good and good sin. Justifying sin with compassion and “love.” It is NOT love to sit back and watch someone, especially someone you claim to love, live in a way that you KNOW will lead to death and destruction. No. True compassion and true love are demonstrated by attempting to stop them and show them there is a better way that save their very Soul.

“As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry.” 2 Timothy 4:1-5

Remember, it was not just Paul. It was not just Peter. “The Great Commission” was given to all of us as children of God.

“ And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

That is for you. That is for me. Our Father, through Christ’s sacrifice, gave us the keys to Hell and Heaven. Our Father, through Christ’s sacrifice, gave us the ability to close up the gate of Hell and to open up the gate of Heaven. Look here then I will close.

“Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 18:18

You have the Keys. You have the obligation. You are Blessed with the ability. However, never forget this most important fact. They have free will, just like you. They can accept or reject the truth. They can repent or continue to freely sin.

Will you lose loved ones? I hope not. But is it possible? Of course. This is why we are warned about it. Part of the cost of discipleship. If you have not already done so, and if you truly want to have Yeshua come into your life and set you free from Hell, death, and the grave, having the ability to be bold, then 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 Yeshua's sacrifice for me. I believed He rose from the dead. 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 Yeshua, Amen!"

That's it. It is that simple. Now tell someone what you have just done. "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead, You shall 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

The email, if you wish to contact me, is truthbygod1@gmail.com

May the comfort of the Holy Ghost, and the peace of our Lord Yeshua, be with you all. May God bless and be with you, always.

Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Yeshua is Lord!