REDEEMED

I grew up in an average, catholic family. church was boring growing up. in high school, i became depressed by the issues of life and i turned to music and friends for comfort in the midst of my sin and wickedness. finding underground bands, being suicidal, hanging out with friends, and the opposite sex were my main interests, basically. i became so depressed that i felt as if i was walking through life in a fog. i had never read a Bible before. how could i know the things of God without someone telling me the things of God? I was prideful and thought that just because i went to the catholic church on sunday and confession once a year that i was going to heaven. The only reason that I never got involved in drinking or drugs was because my mother had somewhat of a drinking problem when I was growing up. We got into physical fights a lot, and it was horrible. I am so ashamed of how I treated her before I was saved, and I also now forgive her for the years of turmoil that we had . It is only through Christ that I can forgive or love anyone. I was an extremely perverted and selfish person growing up, and i had a short temper. there is still nothing good in me, but the only difference is that Jesus snatched me from the fires of hell and from my formerly sinful lifestyle. the Lord constantly reminds me of where he took me from. The Bible says that there is no one that is good..even Jesus said that "There is no one good but God." i was not seeking after God because i was living for myself. my friend invited me on a charismatic catholic retreat my sophomore year of high school and it seemed interesting. i became very interested in Jesus and the Bible and became deceived by the false Gospel message presented on the charismatic catholic retreats. since i had no where else to turn, i fell for their lies, hook and sinker. i saw two Bible passages in the midst of the years of my false religious experience that were very convicting, and i saw that the Bible showed me how serious it was to follow Christ. The following are two passages that I first saw during my junior year of high school and they still continue to have an impact on me :
Matthew 18
18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. 19 Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go." 20 Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." 21 Another of the disciples said to Him, "Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father." 22 But Jesus said to him, " Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."
Revelation 3 15 "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot. 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of my mouth.
I was still catholic during high school, but later on after I applied to a catholic college, I began to see how the Scriptures from the Bible in the catholic faith are twisted to make catholics think that their church is the one true church, when indeed it is not. I feel that the catholic church is just as disgusting as the lukewarm protestant church.
I eventually left the catholic church and got into the protestant faith, but I had been so brainwashed from the catholic religion that I did not really know how to follow Jesus. I did not know that REPENTANCE was a requirement for salvation.
Thankfully, He sent a person into my life over this summer who prompted me to question my salvation. I had said prayers to accept Jesus that I had found in books before, but had never really cried out to the Lord in my own words for Him to save me from hell. It is more than saying some magic prayer to 'accept Christ' though; that "Jesus savior" prayer that some protestants teach that you have to 'recite' is found nowhere in the Bible. the Christian life is about a total denial of self, for Jesus says things in His Word like "Deny yourself," "pick up your cross," and "follow me." The interpretations that one sees of Christianity in most churches today and especially on television are false, and Jesus said in the end times in His Word that false teachers and false prophets would come to deceive people,and the Bible also says that people will turn away from sound doctrine and go after what their itching ears want to hear. Christianity is not just for those who want a fairy tale to believe in because they want to make themselves feel better about their life. if you study Christianity, you will see that either Jesus is the Absolute Truth, or that He is Absolutely insane. By the way, true Christianity does not promise you a better life. But, what you are promised is perseuction (being mocked/made fun of/etc. for your faith) and eternal life, a relationship with God for now and for all eternity, freedom from the bondage of sin, and salvation from hell.
Another time this past summer, I was reading someone's blog where they spoke of the righteousness of God, and how when we die, we will all have to give an account to Christ of ourselves. I had heard this type of preaching before, but it never really hit me until this past summer (2006). God is Holy, and His standard for Goodness is the 10 commandments. The Ten Commandments are like a mirror that show us our sinfulness and wickedness. Romans 3:19 is a passage in the Bible and it talks about how the law (10 commandments) stops every sinner's mouth so that the whole world may be guilty before God. it is so interesting, how everyone has just 'happened' to break the 10 commandments. I have lied, therefore I am a liar. It doesn't matter how many lies I've told or what kind of lie it is, if I've told even one lie, then I am still a liar. When I was younger, I stole something from our school's library. I've also downloaded music illegally over the internet. Time doesn't erase sin..whether I rob a bank, steal a candy cane, or cheat on my taxes, it is still theft. I have used God's name in vain in my past.. ever wonder why the name of "Jesus" is used as a curse word even amongst atheists? why is that? why isn't some other 'god' 's name like 'allah' used as a curse word? Could it be that the 'gods' of other religions are false and that as Jesus said in His Word he is the "One True God?" (John 17:3). Using God's name as a curse word (even saying "Oh my G-d") is blasphemy. It is taking the name of a Holy God who gave you life and bringing it down to the level of a four letter filth word. Jesus also said on the sermon on the mount that you should not commit adultery, but He brought the standard a little higher and 'raised the bar,' so to speak. He said that even if you LOOK upon someone with lust you've already committed adultery with them in your HEART. He knows our secret life..our thoughts are not hidden from Him, as His Word says. He said the same about murder, that if you are even angry with someone or hate them then you are guilty of murder in God's eyes.
I had realized this last year from a website that I saw which explains this better, but it wasn't until this summer that it really hit me personally and I was left to cry out to God , weeping for the opportunities that I had missed to tell others of the salvation that saves us from hell. Since then, the Lord convicted me and I cried out for salvation several times. I recently realized that He does have the power to save me from all of my sins if i will repent and follow Him! Salvation is a gift from God; no one can 'earn' it (Eph 2:8-9). My good works are as 'filthy rags' in his sight, the Bible says. I'm so grateful that He has me to be continually repentant for my sins. I hate sinning now, and it has no dominion over me! I was a slave of sin for most of my life, and now I'm a slave to Christ and His righteousness.
We are all guilty under God's law, and we are all hell deserving sinners. The Only Thing that could ever get me into heaven was the perfect, sinless, person of Jesus Christ , fully human and divine, who came to earth over 2,000 years ago and died as a criminal died back then, by crucifixion. The Book of Romans talks about how for a just or good person someone might die, but God proved His Love towards us in that while we were still SINNERS, Christ died for us. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that "He made Him who KNEW NO SIN to BE SIN for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." That means that since Jesus is God, and never committed a sin because He is Holy, He still took our punishment upon Himself..God's wrath was poured out upon His Son who took our punishment upon Himself for every time we've cursed his name, committed sexual sin, rebelled, etc... and He paved the way to heaven with His Blood. Then, He rose from His tomb three days later, defeating death ! He is the only 'founder' of 'his religion' that is still alive ! He's alive in heaven. Oh, and he's also the only 'founder' of 'his religion' whose body is still not where it was buried. That's 'cause He rose from the grave and is seated at the right hand of the Father, according to the Bible.
The Bible also says that "whosever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" and John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whosoever believes in Him shall never perish but have eternal life." but Jesus also warned "Unless you repent you will all likewise perish.." and John 3:36 says that God's wrath abides on those who do not believe in Jesus. But it's more than just believing in Him, because the Book of James says that even the demons believe and tremble. We must repent and trust in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. He does not love you in your sin, He does not want you to stay in it. Psalm 7:11 says that God is angry with the wicked everyday. Acts 17:30-31 talks about how "God calls all people everywhere to repent because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained." Verse 31 goes on to say "He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead." He's coming back to judge the world in righteousness.
You must confess your sin and REPENT which means to do a 180 degree turn AWAY from your sinful lifestyle..
1 John 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
If you become a true Christian, His Word says that he wants you to follow in the footsteps of Jesus..'picking up your cross to follow Him' as Jesus says to do..remembering that this world is not your true home.. living your life as a living sacrifice 'poured out' for the Lord who deserves all the Glory. For a Christian, reading the Bible everyday is extremely important, since it is God's Word, as well as praying and being in fellowship with other Christians. You can message me if you want more information, or if you want to be my friend on here. Some great information on becoming a Christian can also be found at this site. Much love.
Lamentations 3
22It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Ecclesiastes 1
17And I applied my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a chasing after wind. 18 For in much wisdom is much vexation, and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow.
My friends Nick and Joe preaching in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York City..at Christmas time. :)
My friend Tiffany preaching in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral; New York City. ( i started to open air witness after her..but it got cut off. mirror analogy from 'dj iason' on my top 16). =)