God and truth are inseparable. Francis Schaeffer calls this true truth the unchanged and unchanging expression of who God is: it is not our own personal and arbitrary interpretation of reality."

We can become angered by it, we can ignore it or bend it, but that will not change what it is.

"The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." John 6:63

To those who would doubt, He said: "If you do not believe that I AM He, you will die in your sins." John 8:24

Defending truth takes courage, commitment and a relentless determination to contend earnestly for the faith. Our LORD demands nothing less from His children. But, be aware ~

"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you. 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My Name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me." John 15:18-21

If one is interested in Christianity in any sort of serious way, it is not because it is easy, or trendy, or popular. Life is hard, and on man' scale many appear good, but being a 'true' follower of Jesus is the hardest thing you will ever do.

"Take care brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day as long as it is still Today so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance until the end. Today, if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts..." Hebrews 3:12-15

We are living in perilous times, surrounded by false religions, false doctrines and false teachers. The world we inhabit is harsh, cruel, narcissistic, image based and a people pleasing phony - but God.

"And Jesus said to them: 'Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.'" Mark 1:17

Cheap grace is a deadly enemy of the Church.

Grace without a price; grace without a cost. We suppose the account has been paid in advance and, because it has, everything can be had for nothing. The "Christian" today lives like the rest of the world, modeling himself on the world' standards - rebelling against the free and boundless grace of God, enjoying the consolations of grace without repenting of sin, departing from sin and allowing sin to depart from him.

Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, grace without His Word.

Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has, it is the pearl of great price, the kingly rule of Christ in our lives. The call of Jesus Christ to come - at which the disciple leaves all and follows Him.

Costly grace cost God the life of His Son, it will cost a man his life as well, yet it is grace that will return true life to that same man; condemning sin, justifying the sinner. Costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Him. It comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and contrite heart, compelling a man to submit to the yoke and come.

[The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer]

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house, and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell and great was it's fall." Matthew 7:24-28

If we are interested in Christianity in any sort of serious way, it is not because it is easy or trendy or popular. It is because we recognize our sinful nature, desire to change and recognize that we are powerless to do so apart from Jesus. It is His power, His love and His life alone that will set us free.

"Come unto Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I AM gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

Look on each and every sin committed as the one that nailed our Saviour to the tree. Then you will see sin as it truly is.

"Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him..." Romans 6:8

We are saved to rise up, not to sit down. Salvation is not the end, salvation is only the beginning - the beginning of our journey through a land that is not our own - a land foreign to the people of God.

Salvation is Jesus' gift to us [lest any man should boast] - our service, our life of commitment is our gift back to Him.

Many never allow salvation to grow, keeping it locked away for fear. Fear of rejection, fear of ridicule, fear of.... far too many hang on tightly to the familiar, fearing the uncertainty - forgetting our LORD assuredly spoke that He would never leave us or forsake us.

Salvation opens the door to a new life - a life in Christ, a door opening to light, hope, guidance, encouragement. Perhaps not your best life now [but throughout eternity] for our LORD told us to pick up our cross and follow Him?

Many are called; but few are chosen. Many receive the call to "Come" but few are willing to walk the narrow road Jesus walked - choosing instead to remain with the crowd, calling themselves 'Christians' while continuing to enjoy the pleasures of this foreign land.

Examine yourself fellow traveler - examine yourself.

Warm feelings or human conformity to a set of precepts is not Biblical Christianity. The essence of Christianity is not about religion at all, but about the Person of Christ. Religion is a dead, man-made ideology but at the heart of Christianity is something else entirely.

God Himself - Alive - Forevermore.!!. Clothed in Christ - we are sheltered in truth, through Him - we see things as they really are.

Complacency reigns where life is easy. We live what we believe - the rest is only religious talk.

"I believe if I live my life as well as I can, I will be rewarded. For me, sin is being out of alignment with my values. A great role model for me, someone who combined everything I wanted to do in my life, one who never slipped into tolerance or dogma was Gandhi." - Barack Hussein Obama.

"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness....Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!" Isaiah 5:20-21

Stephanie Meyer's popular Twilight series is cashing in to be sure. Her four books which have sold over 17 million copies, and two movies thus far, are setting new records. To those of us who object, they will tell you that the theme of vampirism is just folklore. They aren't in the Bible. Relax.

So the recent Christianity Today review of this phenomenon titles their article, "There's Power in the Blood."

In the article, University of Richmond English professor Elisabeth Rose Gruner notes that both Christianity and vampirism equate blood with life. She states, "Humans instinctively understand that blood is life-giving. But the blood-drinking aspect of vampirism is a 'ghastly parody of Christianity.' While the Christian believer attains eternal life by accepting the blood freely shed on his or her behalf, the vampire achieves immortality by sucking the life out of another.

"So, in spite of what should be obvious, one Christian publishing house after another is turning away solid manuscripts for corrupted ones on this demented topic.

What an example of Isaiah 5:20 with evil being called good and good evil. Vampire fascination makes a mockery of the pure, atoning nature of Christ's blood.

Allen Arnold of Thomas Nelson Publishers states:

"Since the story of Christianity is one of redemption, Christian fiction should depict that redemption regardless of the subject matter. Rather than flee from a genre (like vampirism), we prefer to dive in and try to redeem it through a wholly original take."

Translation - Let's follow the money trail.

Never in my lifetime have we had to contend for the faith 24/7. What was once blatantly evil is suddenly ok. Spiritual applications can be made from worldly scenarios. Up is down, down is up, right is wrong, wrong is right, and we're all drinking tea with the Mad Hatter!

This sounds like what might happen in the last days.

“An astonishing and horrible thing has been committed in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?" Jeremiah 5:30-31

Are you listening for the sound of the trumpet?