What?

Yes.. It has been a while since I posted a blog.. I guess I must admit that I am "borderline psychotic" with all the events coming up in the next 3 weeks (gospel meeting in NC, Easter weekend)!! In addition to this, I've had to spend time with people in need of spiritual guidance and try, as much as I can, to give email replies which is fine. I know they need it. Of course, it does pull me away from the work I do for the Lord. Now, I am sitting at home, this morning, trying to unwind before another long day today. Besides Sundays, Wednesdays are a busy day!! All I ask for is your prayers that the Lord will guide me through these three weeks!! Thanks!

I would like to jot a few things (probably many) about "What?". Yes.. I am going to talk a little bit about "What?". I know I don't make sense right now but if you read this Gallup poll, you'll understand...

According to pollster, George Gallup Jr., "Americans revere the Bible, but - by and large - they don’t read it." As a result, many don’t know what it says.

It’s easy for Christians to forget how baffling a single Bible verse can be to someone who didn't grow up in the church. Our evangelistic efforts should leave others contemplative, not confused.
Here are nineteen terms* worth defining when talking with someone about Jesus Christ:

SEEK
God is not hiding or trying to elude us. In fact, the Bible says God actively pursues a relationship with each person.

So, how do we seek God? Compare how we seek wealth, prestige or romance: we read up, work hard, set priorities, and surround ourselves with others who will help us achieve our goal.
To seek God, we make Him our first priority in life; read the Bible, pray, trust Him, and learn from others. When we pay attention, His activity in our lives is unmistakable.

JESUS
Even when He was on earth, Jesus was much more than a great teacher. He was fully God and fully human. He created the universe and loves His human creations so much more than we deserve to be loved. Faith in Jesus keeps our earthly life on track and guarantees an eternal home in heaven.

BLAMELESS
No one is completely without fault. No one is "blameless.” Everyone has done something wrong. Yet, one perfect and blameless man exists: Jesus Christ. Because He took the blame we deserve, God sees us as blameless.

SIN
To sin is to defy God’s ways and act to please ourselves. It means "..to miss the mark; missing God's expectation for your life." But sin is not just behavior. It is also thoughts or attitudes that contradict God’s expectations. Sin can be dramatic or subtle, but it always separates us from God’s love and glory. God forgets our sin when we ask for forgiveness, believing that Jesus Christ already took our punishment.

GOSPEL
"Gospel” means "good news.” Because Jesus Christ died for our sins and returned to life, those who "continue" to believe in Him will never experience spiritual death or hell.

CROSS
The cross was a humiliating torture device used to execute Roman criminals sentenced to death. Christians do not delight in the cruelty Jesus Christ suffered on a cross, but rather in the amazing love that motivated him to die such a death on behalf of wretched humanity.
On the cross, Jesus Christ died to pay sinners’ way out of hell, which is eternal death. A cross reminds us of how God Himself experienced physical death, without which we could never obtain spiritual life.

REDEMPTION
Jesus Christ’s death redeemed - or paid the price for - our sins. We can take comfort in knowing that there is nothing we can do to nullify Christ’s work for us.

SALVATION
After sin entered the world, each human being became enslaved by corruption and death. God’s Son came to rescue humanity by paying the penalty for sin. The work necessary to obtain salvation has been completed. Jesus Christ now freely offers salvation - rescue from death to eternal life - to all who place their faith in him.

GIFT
A true gift isn’t earned, only accepted. Salvation is an unearned gift from God that is received by believing in him.

FAITH
Faith is placing your trust in what you can’t necessarily see or prove. Faith is essential to eternal life. When we have believed, repented of our sins (though we continue to repent from many of our sins), confessed that Jesus is Lord (though we continue to confess Jesus' Name everyday) and that we're sinners, baptized for the forgiveness of sins and continue to live the life of Christ, we are exercising faith that he is the way to heaven, the one who makes us God’s child. Because we cannot see God now, we live our lives by faith. Your faith is enough if your faith is in him.

BORN AGAIN
"Born again” describes an individual whose spirit has been brought to life by belief in Jesus Christ. First we are born physically, then we are born again spiritually. Our spirit lives on for eternity even when our physical life ends. It is suggested that you read Romans 6:1-4.

CONFESS
To confess can mean either to admit a wrong or to agree that something is right. In our relationship with God, both must happen. God has promised that if a person acknowledges the truth of Jesus Christ’s deity, then God will forgive his or her sin.

REPENTANCE
To repent is to stop doing wrong, turn the opposite direction of the sin, and move our heart, mind, or body in the direction that the Bible tells us is correct. It’s changing from self-rule to God-rule. Repentance is turning away from the sin that separates us from God and reaching out, instead, to receive God’s forgiveness and the new life he offers.

FORGIVENESS
If we admit to God that we have sinned, believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, baptized for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16; Romans 6:1-4; Colossians 2:11-12) and ask him to take control of our lives, God will forgive our sins. That means our sins are wiped out, gone forever. It is true that we will still sin in this life, but God will continue to forgive us if we are truly sorry for our sin and desire to change.

HOPE
In the Bible “hope” is not just wishful thinking. When we belong to Jesus Christ, our hope of eternal life is certain. It is an unseen reality.

CONVERT
People get converted all the time. That’s what soft-drink marketing wars are all about. But conversion to Christianity is a radical shift in spiritual understanding, placement of faith, and reorganization of life’s priorities.

We stop pursuing money, power, or pleasure to embrace the teachings of Jesus Christ, who calls us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

RELIGION
True religion is not a set of rules. It is a life lived to please God, overflowing and affecting everyone around us. God’s Word says that religion is worthless unless it is based on a relationship with Jesus Christ that compels us to reach out to help others.

CHURCH
The church isn’t a building, per se. The church consists of all the followers of Jesus Christ around the world.

CHOOSE
God demonstrates that He values choice because He created human beings with the capacity to choose. We may choose to accept or reject His gifts, commands, and promises. Scripture is filled with admonitions to choose wisely, to choose to obey, to choose to serve God. We are responsible for how we choose to live and accountable for the consequences.

Thanks to Brother Forshay for pointing this out to me last Sunday after class. We talked about various questions people may ask or that we may ask people. This Scripture, Colossians 4:5, which says, "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity." Forshay helped me see something that I never saw. The word, "make".. It does come in two-fold: one is that you keep an eye out for opportunities around you - at stores, malls, restaurants, gas stations, and wherever you roam, two is that you create opportunities by inviting them in your home, taking them out to eat, inviting them to church, inviting them to special events and other great opportunities.

So "what" are you doing? "What" have you been reading? "What" will you be doing in the next week, month or year (relating to God)? "What" have you been saying to your friends, spouse, co-workers, boss, and everyone you meet?

* 19 terms by Luis Palau (with some additions/changes mine)...