Entries by Steven Sheasby

This site has been created to give you an understanding of the Person who created us, served us, saved us, loves us, and is returning soon for us. The categories on the right will give you a good understanding of who He is.

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What is the good news? Well, before I can give you good news, I need to tell you the bad news. The good news just doesn't seem as good if I don't give you the bad news first. Ok...so what's the bad news then?

The Bad News

To understand the bad news, we need to go back to the beginning of man. When God created man, there was a relationship between man and God. The Bible says that they walked together in the Garden. They were friends. Adam would spend time in fellowship with God every day along with his wife Eve. Most people know the story, but just in case you don't, here is what happened. Eve, the first woman, was enticed by the devil to disobey God's only rule. God had told Adam and Eve not to eat one fruit in the Garden. The fruit was placed their by God so that man would have the choice to be able to obey him or not. Unfortunately both Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the fruit.

What did their disobedience cause? When they ate the fruit, they suddenly knew what sin was. They suddenly did not feel right walking with God in the Garden. They lost their relationship with God, because they had disobeyed Him. Since this time, man has had a separation from God. Sin entered into the world and all men have since then lived in disobedience to God. That is our problem, that is the bad news. We have been born in a world as a sinner. We have been born with a tendency to disobey God. This is seen in a person from the time they are born. Children disobey their parents, and parents must discipline their children for them to learn not to disobey. We see this in every walk of life. People are naturally disobedient. It is our nature. Some people are less sinful than other people in the worlds standards, but we have all sinned and fall short of the perfection of God.

Two Responses

At this point you may be saying to yourself one of two things. 1) "I'm not that bad. I'm better than most" or 2) "How can God expect us to be perfect? I don't like a God that demands perfection." These are good responses to this dilemma, however, let me explain a few more things before you come to these conclusions.

In answer to the response that you're not as bad as the rest, let me ask you this. Have you ever lied? Even just a "white" lie. Have you ever taken anything that's not yours? Even a pen from work or school. Have you ever looked at someone with lust. Jesus said that you're an adulterer. Have you ever felt hate towards someone? Jesus says that you're a murderer. I'm not saying that in the world's courts, you would go to jail for these things, but in God's court, He would find you guilty. Even one sin makes you a sinner and there is no way to make up for the bad things you do by doing more good things. There is no way for you to have a relationship with God on your own merit now that you have sinned. So what do you do? I'll tell you in a second.

In answer to the second response that you don't like a God that expects us to be perfect, let me ask you this. Would you expect a court in our country to let you go just because you've done some good things too? I wouldn't expect that. Let me ask you this also. Would you want to live in a heaven that wasn't perfect? I wouldn't. I can't even imagine myself in heaven. I would just make it worse for everyone there. I know I have problems just like every other person in the world. So what do we do? How can someone go to heaven? How can someone have a relationship with God?

The Good News

The Good News is that God has made a way. It's not by being better people, it's not by gaining more knowledge, although these are good things. It is by believing in God that we can have a relationship with Him once more. God came as the man, Jesus, and lived a perfect life. In a sacrifice for us, Jesus gave His own body over to be crucified. He showed His love toward us by dieing in our place. He took our sins upon Him. By believing in God's covering of our sins in Jesus, we can have a relationship with Him. God has asked us not to continue trusting in our own good works or knowledge, but to trust in Him. To trust in His provision for our sin. This is the gospel. This is the good news. God has made right what man made wrong in the beginning. We just need to believe in His sacrifice for us on the cross. It's that easy.

Once we trust in Jesus, He begins to change our lives. It doesn't go the other way around. Changed lives follow a belief in Jesus. Isn't that exciting. The problems in our lives from sin can be cured just by trusting in God. He directs us to start reading His word, the Bible. God directs us to start building our fellowship with Him by prayer.

There is coming soon a day when this world will end. It is coming very soon. The Bible teaches this also. We don't know the day or hour, but we know it is coming soon. At the end, God will judge the world of sin. Those who put their trust in Jesus will be saved from this judgment since Christ already took the penalty or judgment of their sin upon Him. Those who have not put their trust in Jesus will receive the due penalty of their sin, which is spiritual death also known as separation from God forever.

A Real Relationship with God

If you want to have a relationship with God forever, it's as easy as asking. God will help you in each step you take. Just tell Him that you need His forgiveness for sin, that you need Jesus. God will forgive your sins and bring you back into a relationship with Him. It may be a while until you walk with God in heaven, but He will be close to you even now. The Bible says that God's spirit endwells the heart of every believer. Trust in Him today. Beware of false doctrine. Verify any supposed doctrine by checking the related biblical verses and ensuring that you are not reading something into the message. Look for the return of our Savior, and spend time reading the Bible. Join a bible study that is focused on teaching God's word and start praying. He is amazing and does answer prayers. God Bless.

The best way to know Jesus is by reading the Bible. The best way to read the Bible is in context. The best way to get the context of a part of the Bible is to read the entire chapter and book that the verse is located in. This is where many cults will get false teachings, by taking a sentence or two out of its context. This area will have overviews of different books to help you in your study of the Bible.

Ezra
Haggai
Zechariah

For about 2 months I had been praying that I would wake up in the morning and spend some time with the Lord. Read his word, sing praises to him, and come to him in prayer. All I asked for was 15 minutes to spend with him. Although I would pray this every night and set my alarm fifteen minutes early, I would wake up every morning, hit the snooze, and go right back to bed for 15 minutes. I tried every trick in the book to keep myself up once the alarm went off. For 2 months I put my alarm clock far from my bed so that I would have to get up, and I would leave things on top of my snooze button to remind me that I want to spend time with the Lord. I would leave tea bags, my Bible, and even my devotional book. None of this worked. As soon as the alarm went off, I would jump out of bed and hit the snooze and be right back in bed for that extra 15 minutes of sleep. This morning was different though.

I was dreaming a peaceful dream. I can’t remember what happened during this dream except that I began to pray The Lord’s Prayer. “Our Father which art in heaven, Hollowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts and we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory for ever. Amen.” Ring. My alarm went off, and I woke up as I was finishing the prayer in my dream. With the Lord on my mind as I went to hit the snooze button instead I decided to hit the off button. I recited The Lord’s Prayer a few more times and went directly to the shower to get ready for the day. When I returned to the room I wanted to read a chapter from God’s Word. I said a short prayer asking God to give me understanding in what I was about to read and I flipped the bible open to Judges. I knew I wasn’t awake enough to read Judges so I made one more flip and arrived at David’s Psalms. Psalm 138 to be exact. I read the heading to the chapter, “Praise for Answered Prayer,” and knew at that moment that this was not all coincidence. God had planned this all out that I would come to a deeper dependence in him and recognition of his work in my life.

Psalm 138:1-3,7 – “I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee. I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. In the day when I cried out thou answeredest me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul…Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.”

Does God have a plan which includes the earth and the human race? If so, can man know it? The answer is an emphatic, Yes! God does have a plan, and that plan is clearly outlined in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Man can know God’s plan clearly if only he will come to the Bible and submit his mind and heart to the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

A very striking and strange condition exists at present, namely, the deliberate refusal on the part of religious and political leaders to consult carefully the prophetic Scriptures. True, there have been cranks, blind fanatics, hobby-riders and unwise date-setters posing as prophetic teachers, but all of these unscholarly obscurantists put together do not afford any man a legitimate excuse for not studying the divine plan as it is plainly set forth in the Bible.

Bible Prophecy Overview

For an awesome look at fulfilled prophecies in the Bible visit 100 Fulfilled Prophecies.

The following sites have useful information for you to grow in your walk with Jesus the Christ.

Christian Clothes

SonTeez - SonTeez was established in 1987 out of the home of owners, Sanford (Sandy) and Joyce Shapiro, while traveling with their oldest son Steve, who was a gospel singer.

Kerusso T-Shirts - Over the last 18 years Kerusso has become the premier and dominant producer of apparel within the Christian retail industry.

C28 - Not of This World - C28 Christian stores offer an alternative to mainstream mall stores. The products reflect a clean and positive Christian lifestyle. C28 stands for Colossians 2:8

Ministries

According to Prophecy - A ministry of Donald Perkins. Proclaiming God's Prophetic Truth.

Always Be Ready - Always Be Ready (ABR) is a Christian apologetics ministry dedicated to equipping Christians with well-researched information on issues that seek to undermine or challenge the Christian faith. Our desire is that the body of Christ might stand strong in the faith and “always be ready” (1 Peter 3:15 ) to give an intelligent, Biblically accurate and gracious defense of the Christian faith.

Apologetics Index - The Apologetics Index "family of web sites" provides 25,000+ pages of research resources on religious cults, sects, new religious movements, alternative religions, apologetics-, anticult-, and countercult organizations, doctrines, religious practices and world views. These resources reflect a variety of theological and/or sociological perspectives.

Answers in Genesis - Answers in Genesis is an apologetics (i.e., Christianity-defending) ministry, dedicated to enabling Christians to defend their faith and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ effectively. We focus particularly on providing answers to questions surrounding the book of Genesis, as it is the most-attacked book of the Bible.

Bible.org - Simply stated, the Vision & Mission of Bible.org is to leverage the power of the Internet to deliver trustworthy Bible study resources to people, churches and ministries around the world... for free access by all. We are helping to equip the front lines of ministry in the 21st Century for eternally significant purposes.

Blue Letter Bible - Our mission is to facilitate in-depth study of God's Word through an on-line interactive reference library continuously updated from the teachings and commentaries of selected pastors and teachers who hold to the conservative, historical Christian faith.

Calvary Chapel - Calvary Chapel is a non-denominational Christian church which began in 1965 in Costa Mesa, California. Calvary Chapel's pastor, Chuck Smith became a leading figure in what has become known as the "Jesus Movement."

ChristianAnswers.net - CHRISTIAN ANSWERS is a worldwide evangelism, education and discipleship ministry of Films for Christ (also known as Eden Communications). Our primary goal is to provide accurate, biblical answers on a wide variety of questions asked by Christians and non-Christians. Questions can be submitted on-line. We also provide a great deal of other valuable information and resources related to Christianity, Christian education, discipleship, media, and more.

ChristNotes.org - Christ Notes offers an online Bible search in many translations plus Bible commentary.

CreationWiki - CreationWiki is a free encyclopedia of apologetics that is being assembled by an international team of missionaries. Creationists are encouraged to get involved with the development of this ever-growing resource (3,457 articles).

Crosswalk - Our aim is to offer the freshest and most compelling biblically-based content to Christians who take seriously their relationship with Christ. Crosswalk.com is built around four primary content areas – Faith, Family, Fun and Community. Each category is further subdivided into areas of significance to many Christians, including Bible Study, Devotionals, Marriage, Parenting, Music, etc.

Dr. Dino - Creation Science Evangelism began in 1989. CSE's speakers are some of the most requested on the creation and evolution topic in churches and universities all over the world. With over 30 years of research in Biology, Anatomy, Physical Science, Mathematics, Earth Science and many other sciences, CSE has become a trusted source of information in the creation versus evolution debate.

Faith in Motion - Orange County Social Services partnership with Churches and other Faith-Based associations in the orange county area.

Hope For Today - A ministry of David Hocking, bringing God's truth to a lost world. Hope For Today focuses on teaching God's word verse by verse, book by book with an emphasis on God's plan for the nation of Israel.

Institute for Creation Research - ICR equips believers with evidences of the Bible's accuracy and authority through scientific research, educational programs, and media presentations, all conducted within a thoroughly biblical framework.

Koenig's International News - Provides readers, by means of a 365-day, year-round news service, with "front lines" information from the White House relevant to Israel and its role in the unfolding global drama. Educates readers, through truthful, discerning, and frequent commentary, about the significance of current events affecting Israel and our world either directly or indirectly.

Koinonia House - Koinonia is a New Testament word which is most often translated to mean "communication", "fellowship", or "communion". Koinonia House, or K-House as we are affectionately called, is dedicated to the development and distribution of materials for encouraging and facilitating serious study of the Bible as the inerrant Word of God.

Moriel Ministries - MORIEL is a teaching ministry to believers that stresses the need to rediscover the scriptures as Hebraic literature (as opposed to Hellenistic literature), demanding the hermeneutic models of Second Temple Period Judaism as a basis in biblical interpretation. Essentially this means an attempt to rediscover the methods of interpretation used by the New Testament writers.

OnePlace.com - The One Place that you need to go for Biblical teaching on God's word. Here you will find numerous Bible teacher's that provide free streaming of their audio and video sermons.

The Berean Call - The Berean Call is a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation which exists to: Alert believers in Christ to unbiblical teachings and practices impacting the church. Exhort believers to give greater heed to Biblical discernment and truth regarding teachings and practices being currently promoted in the church. Supply believers with teaching, information, and materials which will encourage the love of God's truth, and assist in the development of Biblical discernment. Mobilize believers in Christ to action in obedience to the Scriptural command to "earnestly contend for the faith" (Jude 3). Impact the church of Jesus Christ with the necessity of trusting the Scriptures as the only rule of faith, practice, and a life pleasing to God.

Understand The Times - The ministry's founder and president, Roger Oakland, is an author and lecturer who speaks internationally on a variety of subjects from a Christian worldview. His easy-to-understand teaching style provides people of all ages and backgrounds with biblical insights that help them to understand the past, what's happening in the world today, and what's yet to take place in the future.