Carla brought up a bucket loaded with seedless blackberries and a bucket with the smaller tomatoes.  She also picked a couple of larger tomatoes, but they are a little greener that she first realized – But that I will be eating BACON, tomato, swiss cheese on Sour dough bread as a sandwich before the week is over!!!!

Getting warmer, to be expected; official readings say it was 87 today, however, we had 94 in Carla’s garden.  Supposed to be in mid-to low 80’s the rest of the week, we shall see.

Philippians 2:9-11 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

¹⁰ That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

¹¹ And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

One of the things that I am thankful for is those young people who took me into their hearts on behalf of Carla, prayed and helped me find the Lord.

Prior to their witnessing and showing of love, I had no idea who Jesus really is – Oh, I knew He was the Son of God, but I didn’t appreciate His sacrifice and His resurrection.

I knew of His life, I knew of His Apostles, I knew the Bible stories, I knew His mother and how He was born and how He died, but I never connected those facts with the most important fact of all, Jesus was the Christ.

Jesus was the Savior and His death was followed by His resurrection.  I knew He rose again, but I had no idea what the significance of that act was.

We meet people every single day that think they know Jesus.  But do not understand Him.  They think they have a means into heaven, but have never yielded their life to Him.

They may go to church every Sunday.  They may do ‘good works,’ they may read the Bible.  They may even pray to God.

But they haven’t understood that those actions are not sufficient for salvation.  Until they confess their sins before God, not just man, and then ask forgiveness through Christ they are not on the right path, it is a similar one.  In many ways it runs parallel, but it doesn’t end at the gateway to heaven.  It veers off to a bad end.

They haven’t bowed their knees before Him, they have not Confess(d) that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Many consider themselves Christians, but they are under a false label and even worse a false assumption.

We need to listen to them and guide them to listen to the Holy Spirit’s pleading in their hearts.  They need to understand that salvation doesn’t come from just knowing who Jesus is, but in having faith in Him, asking His forgiveness and accepting His blood to wash away their sins.

I attended a Church that the world considers Christian; however, I did not understand that I needed to be born again.  My allegiance was to the Church, not to Jesus the Christ.

Many people claim that the term ‘born again Christian’ is not necessary; a Christian by definition is a follower of Christ.  Many give that term in a derogatory manner, as if the people who say they are a ‘born again Christian’ are somehow tainted in the head and foolish.

I beg to differ, if I was asked if I was a Christian I would have said, ‘Yes.’  Because my church said by following their teachings and beliefs I would be allowed into heaven.

We know that is not the case.  No church can get us into heaven, only the ‘born again Christian’ the Christian that understands who Jesus is, and what His death and resurrection stands for AND accepts that death and resurrection as the only way they can be saved and be taken into heaven, is going to go through those ‘pearly gates.’

While the new term is an ‘Evangelical Christian’ it only states what we do, we tell others and encourage them to find Christ, but it doesn’t fully describe who we are in Christ, how we became that kind of Christian.

Me?  I am, a ‘Born again Christian.’

Later, Art :-)