This I Believe

In an age in which seemingly vast numbers of people are confused about their beliefs or experience an ongoing evolution in their belief system based upon public whims and political correctness, I see a need to make clear statements and acknowledge the beliefs that form the foundation of my character.  Therefore, I will take this opportunity to publicly state where I stand on the most important issues in history.

I believe God created the heavens and the earth.  In His unfathomable brilliance, He fashioned the stars and the planets, the moons and the space within which they move.

I believe since God created space and time, He is bound by neither.  This is the concept of omnipresence, omniscience, and omnipotence.  He is the beginning and the end, and sees all from where He stands.  Therefore, no circumstance or event is beyond His ability to control.  He is never surprised or caught off-guard.

I believe God is sovereign.  Though in many cases He has revealed His reasoning to us in His word, He is not obligated to do so.  He has chosen to order the universe the way He sees fit.  That is His right and His prerogative.  He does not need to condescend to explain Himself to me.  Likewise, mere mortal mankind is foolish in its attempts to refashion God in its own image, for He cannot be contained in human understanding or will.

I believe mankind chose selfishness and disobedience rather than honor and holiness.  Through this choice, sin entered the human race.  Because of that sin, mankind now struggles under the self-chosen curse of sinfulness.

I believe God poured out His righteous wrath on the earth in the form of a flood, nearly wiping out life on the earth.  This was a holy cleansing in which God not only showed His anger but also His mercy.

I believe God made a covenant with Israel when He chose to send His Son to dwell among them.  This covenant has often been broken by Israel, but has been upheld by the great Creator as He has protected, prospered and defended His chosen people throughout the ages.

I believe God sent His Son to dwell among men.  He was miraculously fully God and fully Man.  He was the perfect example of love in action, mercy exercised, and grace personified.  He was the only person to live a sinless life.  Because of the conflict between His sinlessness and the scourge of sin that clings to mankind like a plague, He was rejected by men, arrested, and murdered.

I believe Jesus, God's Son, arose from the grave victorious over death.  In this act, He demonstrated His transcendence of the laws of nature.  He is, once again, not bound by space or time.  He is all-powerful and undefeatable.

I believe Jesus ascended to heaven, where He now abides with the Father.

I believe God sent the Holy Spirit as a Comforter, to guide and direct those who have committed themselves to Him.  The Holy Spirit is the third member of the Trinity, the three facets of the Personhood of God.

I believe mankind can have a personal relationship with Almighty God, through Jesus Christ.  That relationship is the ultimate reason for man's creation.  For, God desires that His creation should seek Him in love and worship.

I believe that maintaining a relationship with God requires devotion and commitment, that faith without works is dead and useless, and that our loving Father is willing to embrace imperfect humans who seek to honor Him in all they do.  He has given us the pathway to His embrace in His revealed Word.  Our task is to follow hard after Him by seeking to live by the precepts He has given us.

I believe that, just as selfishness and disobedience introduced sin into mankind, so selfishness and disobedience are the foundation upon which all sin is built.  This is why God revealed His commands to His people, starting with "You will have no other gods before Me."

I believe that a time is coming when Jesus will return to earth to catch away those who have embraced Him in this life, and that others who have ignored the message of Christ will be left behind.  Not everyone who calls himself a follower of Christ will be counted among the true believers.

I believe that God has given man the choice of his eternal destination, a literal heaven or a literal hell.  Heaven, a place where those who know and love God will spend eternity with Him, and hell, a place where those who have rejected God in favor of selfish pursuits and disobedience will spend eternity in the torment of separation from God.

I believe these things to be true.  Therefore, I believe it is my duty to share this knowledge and reach as many as possible, not because I am important or special, but because I'm indebted to my Creator for His many blessings and am filled with love for my fellow man.  I wish that all mankind would embrace the Truth of the Savior and reap the reward of eternal life with Him.

This is what I believe.  This is the message I deliver.  This is the passion of my heart.