Repentance!

Matthew 3

In this passage we see John the Baptist preaching the message of repentance. He says " Turn from your sins, because the Kingdom of God is near." It's a hard battle when it comes to true repentance. It takes a long, deep, examining of yourself in order to see if you really want to let go of this sin in your life and until then your repentance won't have any meaning and you will still fall into the same old sin. Like myself I was like the Pharisees and Sadducees who were listening to John the Baptist preach. I found myself wanting to get baptized when in reality I did not really understand what baptism symbolizes. I found myself wanting to do it because all of my friends did it, and I wanted "juice and crackers" like the older people and first Sunday.

Don't EVER go through the motions of getting baptized "just to do it" like I did when I was younger. You have to come to the realization that you are a sinner and you want to accept God's offer of salvation and New Life, which requires you to start living for God. Contrary to what people say, there's NOTHING you can do to earn salvation because according to Ephesians 2:8 &9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." 

In verse 10 John says "Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." Everything that we do bears some kind of consequence. For every action there is a reaction. God gives us so MANY chances to repent and turn away from a lifestyle of sin, but yet we refuse. IF we do not turn away from our sinful desires than how do we expect to bear fruit, which is one of the main ways to tell who is a Christian, and if you do not bear fruit then you will spend the rest of your life in hell, simple as that. 

Living a lifestyle of sin, not only has it's consequences at Judgement Day, but also in everyday life. Sin causes emotional, mental, and even physical problems. Sin is a very poisonous thing and not only kills your spirit but also affects people around you. In order to live out a life for God, we need the help of the Holy Spirit. He will guide us throughout life if we play the background and decide to live by the Spirit.