The Strangest thing in the world...

 Is someone hearing and understanding the Gospel and not turning to the Lord, considering:

1. The Gospel is the sole gateway to God. Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; Nobody comes to the Father, except through Me." John 14:6. 

2. The Gospel is the ONE way of erasing our sins and gaining everlasting life: The Bible says, "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23.

3. The Gospel is simple. "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."  Romans 10:9. Also, Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13. "For God so loved the world, that he gave His only Begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

Because of the marvelous simplicity and power of the Gospel, I never can understand why anyone would reject Jesus Christ. I understand sin. I understand the attractions of living independently, without God. I get all that, but this is such an amazing deal that I do NOT understand rejecting Jesus Christ and His Gospel because you want something that at best is a hundred years long, much of it while you decline in old age, when you could have an eternal life, a perfect place to live it, and pure happiness forever? I just don't get it. I've heard people say, "I don't believe." Well, I don't believe THEM. You know why? because of what Jesus says in John 16:8: "And when He [the Holy Spirit] has come, He will convict the world..." in other words, there's always a persistent voice saying, "This is true," ringing in the hearts of all the people who hear the message. So why do people still reject Christ and His Salvation? The Bible gives many answers (yes it does), but the basic question remains: when you get "convicted by the Holy Spirit" that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true and that if you believe you will have eternal life, and if you don't you'll pay the price for your sin, how can you say NO? It was real to me. I know it's real to you when someone tells you the Gospel, and if you are a Christian, you KNOW it was real when God called to you and you responded. I still remember being faced with that awesome choice. I could see myself hanging over the pit of Hell (melodramatic, but yes I did), and Jesus waiting to rescue me if only I would invite Him in, so I did. I realized I could say "no," but Hell with its burning fire seemed rather unappealing, to say the least. 

What about you?? If it was that way for you, then you know if you tell the Gospel message to them that the same (or something similar as happened to you) happens to them when you present the Gospel to them. They are "convicted" by the Holy Spirit. It's not just you trying to convince your friend, acquaintance, etc., it's God doing the same, and at the same time, as you. 

Do not fear to teach the Gospel message. God is not only with you, He's with THEM as well, and every true word you speak is the subject of His conviction. 

God bless you all today. See you soon. 

Future Plans:

 I've been thinking for some time about how to get the most "reach" for my biblical teachings. When I had ONLY the blog, I reached quite a few folks, and I liked that, so I added in YouTube, which eventually became my sole effort. YouTube never has never really brought much of an audience, so I've decided to move to a writing/podcast format. Part of this, of course, is to gain a greater presence in the online community, but the main reason is to communicate the Gospel to more people. After all, how many people are there who don't understand what it means to be a Christian, and how that impacts your life. There are many, and lots of them read this blog in the past. However, the newest, latest and best thing seems to be podcasts.   :Here are my plans: 

1. Re-establish this blog as a writing blog, not as a channel for YouTube. I may later choose to MOVE the blog to its own platform, and offer teachings there. I will link to it for all of you who read this. 

2. Add in a podcast (I'm still exploring this), which will deal with both Bible teaching and (GASP) politics from a Christian perspective, because the Bible deals with politics quite a bit, mostly in the prophets. Differences abound, but principles are the same. There are lots of pitfalls in this, and I don't know how political it will be, except to say that politics is something that we deal with every day--we buy groceries. We go to the gas station. We experience the decisions of our representatives every day. Since I get no money from any political organization, and since I'm a maverick, expect to be surprised.  I have no dog in any fight, and I have a few axes to grind, but not many.  This life is important now, and the decisions we make today will impact our future destiny. Some of those will involve this life, such as "should we consider an unborn child as a person, and refuse to support any politician who supports "abortion on demand?" There are lots of strident voices regarding this, but if you want the Bible's perspective, start with Psalm 139. I will address things such as these, because your decision about these impacts your spiritual life. 

I will study passages of Scripture with you, and I will help you understand the teachings of the Bible. I am currently searching for equipment (microphone, recording device if I don't use my computer, etc.), and I plan to begin the podcast in April or May. I will offer systematic teachings as well as "occasional teaching," which means "thoughts on topics I know about"--or think I know. I will do my best to rely on facts and experience, rather than just opinion, but opinion can be based on observation, and typically makes up a great deal of our knowledge. 

As far as this blog: I haven't decided whether to keep this in its present format and location, or if I should move to a website and host that will not censor any of my views. Google has become famous for its censorship, whether through YouTube or elsewhere, and so far I have not hit any landmines, but I probably will in the future. 

I would appreciate comments from those who read this blog, and I pledge to tell you the truth, to the best of my ability.

Blessings,

Steve Bradley, 

GodsWordSmith.