prayer warriors (following Jesus Christ, everyone welcome)

[tastyacres]

Just ONE reason?.... If I had to filter my "opinion" down to just ONE reason, the first verse that pops into my head is John 3:17...


For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
John 3:17 NASB
http://bible.com/100/jhn.3.17.NASB

Omg, that is the same verse that came to my mind.

Me and dad were talking about this today.

 

[ocap]

What seems to be the common theme that runs through these verses?


1 Peter 3:15 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;





Matthew 13:15

For the heart of this people has become dull, With their ears they scarcely hear, And they have closed their eyes, Otherwise they would see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, And understand with their heart and return, And I would heal them.’

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations





Deuteronomy 4:29

But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations



Revelation 3:20

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

 

[ocap]

@shortgrass mentioned fires several months ago, I found this youtube yesterday, the first intern interviewed mentioned the fires, I have not had time to watch anything past the first intern

 

[kikiruru]

i am nothing without you Jesus

 

[shortgrass]

What seems to be the common theme that runs through these verses?


1 Peter 3:15 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;





Matthew 13:15

For the heart of this people has become dull, With their ears they scarcely hear, And they have closed their eyes, Otherwise they would see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, And understand with their heart and return, And I would heal them.’

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations





Deuteronomy 4:29

But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations



Revelation 3:20

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

Our hearts; the condition of our hearts.

You had asked a question a while back, about who or how we are "chosen" to be followers of Christ... I was confused a little by it, and I had figured it meant that just us Christ followers were deemed "worthy" of God's grace. But i was wrong. ALL humans have the same underlying issue with our hearts. ALL humans are God's creation, and ALL humans deserve at least a chance to know what that longing in our soul, or heart, is.

It's Love. Whether we feel we deserve it, or even if we've closed our ears and heart to that call, we ALL want to love and be loved. And some may feel they have to earn it and it's too much work; some may feel that they're so far gone that God could never love them anyway.

They're just still waiting for someone to show them how God's love is unconditional, unending, unfathomable, compared to what we consider a meager "human" love.

Bad things happen to good people, good things happen to bad people, etc. Bad things happen because we are here to love one another, to comfort one another, to SHOW each other what God's kind of love can do. It can have complete strangers travel for miles to help another stranger. It's like a ripple that affects others and gives them hope that there is something or someone that can be loving and forgiving and help us change our hearts and ways.


I had one of the most horrible days of my life just a few months back. I had literally been exiled from my home, refused by my own family, mocked by my loved ones, and abandoned to survive on my own. I was pretty down. But that day, through 4 strangers showing me love and kindness, going out of their way to see to it that I was safe, warm, fed, and got where I needed to go, I knew it was God showing me how to truly love others.

I know, in my HEART, when I've turned my back on someone who needs help or just a kind word. I feel an urge to comfort others, as I have been comforted. My heart was transformed by the gift of love shown to me by Christ dying for our sins, and now I can't deny others of that.

Maybe, through all the fires, and hurricanes, and shootings, etc..we can still manage to show love, and people that never knew that kind of love can finally open their hearts to the greatest love of all, the love of Christ.

 

[lazy gardener]

The common thread to those verses, Ocap is that God pursues us. He does not want any to perish, and has made a way for us to be reconciled to Him. The reason for the hope that lies in me, the one single verse (of many that I could quote) is John 3:16.

Follow up question: As a Christian, what is the most important thing that we should be doing in this life? BACK IT UP WITH SCRIPTURE.

 

[ocap]

The common thread to those verses, Ocap is that God pursues us. He does not want any to perish, and has made a way for us to be reconciled to Him. The reason for the hope that lies in me, the one single verse (of many that I could quote) is John 3:16.

Follow up question: As a Christian, what is the most important thing that we should be doing in this life? BACK IT UP WITH SCRIPTURE.

Here is the scripture:

John 15:12-15New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Disciples’ Relation to Each Other

12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.

 

[ocap]

There is a problem with application of the verses I mentioned in the post above.

"Forgiveness"

In order to love I must forgive ... I even have trouble forgiving myself.

so ... is forgiveness more important than love??????

 

[shortgrass]

There is a problem with application of the verses I mentioned in the post above.

"Forgiveness"

In order to love I must forgive ... I even have trouble forgiving myself.

so ... is forgiveness more important than love??????

I believe they go hand in hand. God showed us his love through sending Christ to suffer in our place, to forgive us....


I can't actually say I love others if I won't forgive them. And forgiving thrm is how that love is manifested...


That's a tricky catch 22, like they're the same thing but not quite lol


This is where I'm trying g to go with that thought..

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
Ephesians 2:4‭-‬5 NASB
http://bible.com/100/eph.2.4-5.NASB

 

[ShrekDawg]

Please pray for my cousin. She had emergency surgery today cause she had internal bleeding from another surgery Wednesday. She was in surgery a really long time but I'm glad she finally got out cause it was scary a while but yeah. Don't really want to go into the specifics here but if anyone wants to do know more or exactly what happened, you can message me. But yeah, please pray and keep praying for her to recover. She also doesn't have any leave left from work. And he 3 young kids and a husband