"The slough of despond"

“The slough of despond” is the pit of mire that no man can repair; it is only once we see our sin as the cause of our destruction that we will look to God for forgiveness. Mr worldly Wiseman will look to deceive and twist that fact; he will say it is religion and the voices of madmen which misleads you, when in fact it is only the fool who says there is no God! The ironies of those professing to be wise are in fact the fools. Morality seems to be the first point of call for most; did you not know that everyone is cursed who is incapable of keeping the whole law. To keep only part of the law is total failure in God’s eyes. All have been condemned by the law! “As it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one;” (Romans 3:10) – Therefore only the chump believes that God will accept him on his own merit. Those taken by this mentality push it upon others to follow their error, have nothing to do with it; your sin must be forgiven, for your burden to be lifted; if not life will continue clawing away at your jugular. Look to Jesus and ask him to reveal the truth of your sinful state to your understanding. Look to Him and live! Run from Mr worldly Wiseman and Mr Legality, they are no more than false guides.

There are many roads that a man may take but only one road which will lead to eternal life; "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matthew 7:13-14) – This then is a reality of finding true salvation, stick to the path and do not veer from it and it will be well with your soul, ignore the warnings at your own peril. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” (Matthew 7:15) – There is no other way to shed ones burden of sin except by the narrow door; "Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” (Luke 13:24) – It may take persistence to arrive at the door which at first is bolted shut; however once you knock with vigour looking to lose your burden of sin, that door shall be opened unto you. However many thieves have been denied entrance; we must come the way of the cross, no other way will cut it! It’s not about a better life with more money and goodies but rather a shedding of one burden; sins must be owned and then confessed. Run with your burden until you arrive at the foot of the cross and when you find yourself alone without any distraction. Bear your heart unto God, confessing your sins and acknowledging that Christ willingly bled and died for your sin.

What a great day that was when the heavy burden of sin fell from my back as I understood that it was my sin that had nailed Christ to that tree. Tears of joy flooded my cheeks as I cried “I can see!” A wretched sinner like me had been set free. So many fiery darts whizzed past my head for days on end trying to trip me up and keep me from the foot of the cross, praise God, I eventually arrived. Let no one deceive you! Salvation is something that can only ever be achieved on a personal level, it must become your reality or it will elude you. Wrestle to be blessed of God and it will happen. He that is now in me is far greater than he who is in the world, praise the name of Jesus Christ the Lord now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

What a relief, as I felt the weight of sin fall from my shoulders, God the faithful One had proved His faithfulness to me and opened my eyes to heavenly truths, what beauty to behold! The interpreter had opened my eyes to see Jesus for who He is, thank you God the Holy Spirit for showing me the deep and yet simple mysteries of God. Two thousand years ago Jesus Christ had lived a perfect sinless life and yet He died a criminals death, they crucified Him, although I had not been born, I had somehow understood the gravity of His sacrifice on my behalf, He had died for my sins, it was my sins that had nailed him to the cross and to realise that He died willingly for me, as it was the only way to reconcile me back to God, praise His name! In other words without Jesus dying for my sins I would never ever be able to be accepted by a holy God, Christ had now paved away that had always been closed, even though I had gone to church and heard a man preach from the bible, it was gobbledygook, it had meant nothing but now I could see, I finally understood what life was all about.

Look to Jesus and live…

Signing off

Tyrone