What if God appeared right in front of you, right there where you are, right now, and asked, “I’d like you to come to heaven and enjoy my Kingdom with me.” Would you say, “No”?
What kind of fool would you be!…? You might be thinking, “What kind of fool do you think I am?”
What kind of fool? The Bible teaches that anyone who does not believe in God – is a total fool type of fool (Psalm 14:1). And for many who grudgingly admit there has to be “a god”… “There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3: verse 18). What kind of God do you think He is?
God has already proven Himself to be the Intelligent Designer of all creation. Or can you explain how it all came into being, with intricate designs beyond our ability to explain it or reproduce it ourselves!?
Psalm 19:1-2 The Message version (MSG)
God’s glory is on tour in the skies,
God-craft on exhibit across the horizon.
Madame Day holds classes every morning,
Professor Night lectures each evening.
Psalm 19:1-2 Living Bible version (TLB)
The heavens are telling the glory of God;
they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship.
There is no better way to live life — than to live a life that God is pleased with. Wouldn’t you agree? Can a person be more fulfilled living any other way? God, Creator of the Universe — He is the only One worth investing my life into. When you stand before Him on That Day, will He be pleased with you? If not, you will forfeit your soul for an eternity in the darkness where God never shines.
Mark 8:36 (AMP version)
For what does it benefit a man
to gain the whole world
[with all its pleasures],
and forfeit his soul?
Mark 8:36 (GNT version)
Do you gain anything
if you win the whole world
but lose your life?
Of course not!
1 Corinthians 3: verses 18-20
18 Let no man deceive himself.
If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age,
he must become foolish, so that he may become wise.
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God.
For it is written, “He is the one
who catches the wise in their craftiness”;
20 and again, “The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise,
that they are useless.”
What kind of thinking person would reject God in order to stubbornly spend one short lifetime for dubious pleasures here, when God offers non-stop eternal life with Him, all the goodness of the Creative Designer Himself – in His forever Kingdom? Really? Reject Him for this wisp here? Only a fool.
James 4: verse 12
12 God alone,
who gave the law, is the Judge.
He alone
has the power to save or to destroy.
Creator God made our bodies, our minds, our soul, our spirit – – – to enjoy all that He made pleasurable – what we find pleasurable. Think about it! Anything you enjoy (except that which is corrupted by our sin nature) – is possible because our Creator made us for a joy full life! In its proper context within God’s carefully crafted, purposefully formed creation, all creation is for our enjoyment. It’s all for us! (1 Corinthians 3: verses 21-23)
- see, smell, hear, taste, touch, walk, run, lay down, sleep, dream, feel pleasure
- experience joy, love, friendship, music, warmth, taste, sexual pleasure, nature, space
Many studies being conducted show us further how God created us with incredible complexities:
- we experience through multi-sensory interactions,
- we have many non-sensory influences on perception, and
- we have a vast variety of conscious perceptual experiences
(Source: Arts and Humanities Research Council – AHRC. Also see: the AHRC Rethinking the Senses project.)
“sensory information is combined
to create a rich and unified experience.”
– Dr Merle Fairhurst, in a blog, Not 5 but 33 senses, by dorothy | Jun 12, 2014.
“Sensing doesn’t cause perception:
real perception
is all about integrating information
across senses, across time, across space
if you are (as is normal) moving around
partly in order to perceive better.”
– Steve Draper, How many senses do humans have?
I am living it to the max! No wasting time here!
- watching the sunrise slowly dawn
- breathing scents of fresh coffee in the morning stillness
- savoring the moment – a crackling hardwood fire on a snowy, wintery, black starry night
- just being with my wife
- being with family, being with friends
- the thrill of running-down a well crossed ball and a one-touch shoulder high shot to goal
- sex with 43 years of practice
- the unmistakably grand aroma from the smoking barbie, grilling steak and spiced veggies
- the pleasure of a good back rub
- relaxing with a challenging video game
- sitting close, watching TV with the love of my life
The promised Messiah, God’s Son (of the three in one Trinity) was sent to earth by God back in the year 1, (well, it should have been numbered 1, since “BC” years are “Before Christ”, right!? Actually is counted as between 4-7AD). Jesus was born as a baby into our world through Joseph and Mary, grew up to become a real man both all God and all man, taught and ministered for about 3 years, was crucified on our behalf (He allowed them to…), resurrected Himself from the dead, was seen by hundreds of eye witnesses, then went back to His Throne – promising eternal life to any who follow Him.
John 14:2-3
2 In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.
I am living life to the maximum! I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back! I have chosen to be a born again follower of Jesus Christ. How about you? I have put my faith in the One who makes heaven possible for sinners.
Jesus said that after this life on earth, when I die I will go to be with Him in His Kingdom, because I’ve been redeemed. My sins are all forgiven. So I’m pushin’ it forward, all my wealth, that which will not be burned-up. All for Jesus.
This life’s fears and dreads, threats and evil and havoc — bring me no fear. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace.]
He holds me in His hand, and nothing can snatch me away from Him. Not a damn thing. “For to me… to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)
Romans 8: verses 31-39
If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? 33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was [l]raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of [m]Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written,
“For Your sake we are being put to death all day long;
We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
I have everything I need pertaining to this life and living in a manner pleasing to God (godliness). If I am living for God, I must strive for god-li-ness, right? Only natural.
1 Peter 1:15-16 Amplified Bible (AMP)
15 But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves in all your conduct [be set apart from the world by your godly character and moral courage]; 16 because it is written, “You shall be holy (set apart), for I am holy.”
2 Peter 1: verse 3
…His divine power
has granted to us
everything
pertaining to life and godliness,
through the true knowledge
of Him who called us….
Combine that verse with one of my favorite “life verses”. Wow. This is an extremely superlative expression of what God does for us who follow Him:
is able
to make
all grace
abound
to you,
so that always
having
all sufficiency
in everything,
you
may have an abundance
for every good deed….
24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling or falling into sin, and to present you unblemished [blameless and faultless] in the presence of His glory with triumphant joy and unspeakable delight, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
FOR MORE:
NOTES:
1. Dr Merle Fairhurst, in a blog, Not 5 but 33 senses, by dorothy | Jun 12, 2014. https://www.sciculture.ac.uk/2014/06/12/not-5-but-33-senses/. Part of the AHRC Rethinking the Senses project.
Flavour is a rich example of sensory interaction: what we call the “taste” of food largely comes from smell rather than taste buds. A loss of smell will greatly affect one’s eating experience. Flavour experiences are also affected by colour, spatial arrangements and even sounds. These effects demonstrate that multisensory interactions are the rule rather than the exception.
The science of perception is advancing quickly through psychological experiments and through brain imaging techniques including in individuals with sensory or cognitive deficits. We need a new theoretical framework to host the explosion of scientific results: philosophical thinking is needed to relate brain processes, behaviour and subjective experience. Specifically, it is essential that together we create language and a framework to describe the way in which sensory information is combined to create a rich and unified experience. The multisensory nature of perception will be understood only though philosophers and cognitive neuroscientists working together to re-evaluate how the senses work together.
2. Fools in the Bible:
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