Smelly Pigs!!!

John Owen is quoted as saying: "He that hath slight thoughts of sin, never had great thoughts of God."

These are some words worth wrestling with. In other words, if you don't think much of sin - you wouldn't of thought, at any length of the greatness of God. You see - God is so much greater than sin. He is so much bigger than all our sins. And yet, we grow complacent with our sinful state.

I recently read of a man who in the late 1980's lived in the farm country of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. This would be a beautiful part of the world, for sure! Anyway, he tells of life being pleasant in all respects but one. He never got used to the smell of manure. That's right, the smell of manure was the one down side. He claimed that it was the pig manure that was the worst. However interestingly though was the fact that he found the pig odor disgusting, and yet he never noticed the pigs being disgusted by their own smell.

J.C. Ryle once put it, "The very animals whose smell is most offensive to us have no idea they are offensive and are not offensive to one another."

Robin Boisvert rightly points out that "Fallen man, it seems, can have no adequate idea what a vile thing sin is in the sight of a holy and perfect God."

How true! I wonder if you have grown complacent or comfortable with your sins? Are you justifying or rationalizing your sin away, instead of repenting or confessing sin?

Brother, the Gospel tells us that God loved us so much He sent His Son, Jesus who was born of a virgin; who lived a sinless life; who was crucified; buried & rose again 3 days later, then revealing Himself to many witnesses; ascended into heaven and now at the right hand of the Father, interceding for us - so that we might find forgiveness and freedom. What love is this? He loves us very much. Though He, God cannot tolerate sin, He sent His Son to pay the price that we might have life. He paid the debt!

What a Savior...

This is just a tiny glimpse at how Great God is in comparison to sin. Do your kids know this?

My Salvation

If you are visiting this sight regularly, you might be thinking, is this guy serious? Why so much about the Gospel? The reason why is because, this is my hope! This is what saves mankind. This is what causes me to get up in the morning. This is why I am alive. I won't grow tired of hearing and reminding myself, what Jesus has done for me!

Read this: This is by Milton Vincent, it's called: "My Salvation"

"Now when my time came and I placed my faith in Jesus, God instantly granted me a great salvation. He forgave me of all my sins, past, present and future. He gave me the gift of the Holy Spirit, who gives me God's power, who pours out God's love within my heart, and who tenderly communicates to my spirit that I am a child of God and an heir of eternal glory in heaven.
In saving me, God freed me from slavery to any and all sins. I no longer have to sin again, for sin's mastery over me has been broken! In saving me, God also justified me, and being justified through Christ, I have a peace with God that will endure forever. In justifying me, God declared me innocent of my sins ans pronounced me righteous with the very righteousness of Jesus. God has also allowed His future and present wrath against me to be completely propitiated by Jesus, who bore it upon Himself while on the cross. Consequently, God now has only love, compassion, and deepest affection for me, and this love is without any admixture of wrath whatsoever. God always looks upon me and treats me with gracious favor, always working all things together for my ultimate and eternal good. God's grace abounds to me even through trials. Because I am a justified one, He subjugates every trail and forces it to do good unto me. When I sin, God's grace abounds to me all the more as He graciously maintains my justified status as described above. When I sin, God feels no wrath in His heart against me. His heart is filled with nothing but love for me, and He longs for me to repent and confess my sins to Him, so that He might show me the gracious and forgiving love that has been in His heart all along.
God does not require my confession before He desires to forgive me. In His heart He already has forgiven me; and when I come to Him to confess my sins to Him, He runs to me (as it were) and is repeatedly embracing and kissing me even before I get the words of my confession out of my mouth! (Read Luke 15:20-24)
God does see my sins, and He is grieved by my sins. His grief comes partly from the fact that in my moments of sin, I am not receiving the fullness of His love for me. He even sends chastisement into my life (Hebrews 12:7-9); but He does so because He is for me, and He loves me; and He disciplines me for my ultimate good. I don't deserve any of this, even on my best day; but this is my salvation, and herein I stand. Thank you Jesus!"

Is this not worth, getting up and enjoying today?

And it is ONLY, because of the cross...

God's Work on My Behalf

A day later then promised, let's reflect on how Milton Vincent understands 'God's work on our behalf'.

"However, what I could not do, God did and in doing it, He did it all, sending His own Son into the world to die on the cross for my sins, thereby showing me unfathomable love. God loved me so much that He was willing to suffer the loss of His Son, and even more amazingly, He was willing to allow His Son to suffer the loss of Him at the cross. Jesus loved me so much that He was willing to lay down His life for me. no one could ever love me more or better than Jesus. On the third day after Jesus' death, God raised Him from the dead, thereby announcing that His death was completely sufficient to atone for every sin that I have or will commit throughout my lifetime. God then exalted Christ to His own right hand, where Christ now reigns from on high, granting salvation and forgiveness to all who call on Him by faith."

This is so well put. Praise God for the understanding and giftedness of this man to put these thoughts on paper.

Brothers Milton is gifted but you should understand, these thoughts are all formed by God's Word. Again, let me provide you with verses that support and endorse all of the conclusions that Mr. Vincent has reached.

Romans 5:6; Romans 8:3; 1Peter 3:18; Romans 5:7&8; John 3:16; Romans 8:32; Mark 15:34; John 15:13; Acts 13:30, 38&39; Ephesians 1:20&21; Acts 5:31.

Reflecting on the work that God has done for me causes me to sigh. I'm free! I'm free in Christ. Not because of myself, but because of what He has done!

What a wonderful Savior!

Our Sin Against God

I was at a dinner the other night where a man boldly and proudly stated: "I don't see a need in my life for Jesus, so why should I give Him my life?" Many a man don't understand what their sin is against God. Let me borrow these words from Milton Vincent who explains very well what 'our sin against God' is...

"Yet I could not have failed this great God more miserably than I have. Instead of giving thanks to Him and humbly submitting to His rule over my life, I have rebelled against Him and have actually sought to exalt myself above Him. Going my own way and living according to my own wisdom, I have broken countless times either the letter of the spirit of every one of God's Ten Commandments. Thinking myself to be wise, I have shown myself to be a fool; and because of my arrogance, God has every right to damn me to the everlasting experience of His terrifying wrath in the Lake of Fire. So as for myself, apart from Christ I am bound by the guilt of my sins and also bound by the power of sin, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures. Apart from Christ, I am also utterly deserving of and destined for eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire, completely unable to save myself or even to make one iota of a contribution to my own salvation."

Here are some verses that support all that has been said by Milton Vincent.

Romans 1:21-25; Romans 3:23, Exodus 20:3-17; Colossians 3:5; Matthew 5:27-28; 1 John 3:15; Romans 6:23; Romans 21:8; Ephesians 2:3; Romans 3:19; James 2:10; Titus 3:3; Romans 5:6

Tomorrow, Lord willing, I will tell you of God's work on our behalf...

The Glory of God

"My God is immense beyond imagination. He measured the entire universe with merely the span of His hand.
He is unimaginably awesome in all of His perfections, absolutely righteous, holy, and just in all of His ways.
He has also been unbelievably good and merciful to me as the Creator and Sustainer of my life.
Every breath, every heartbeat, every function of every organ in my body is a gift from Him.
Every legitimate pleasure I experience is a gift from His loving hand to me.
All that I am and all that I have I owe to Him and to His goodness.
My life in every way is, and will continue to be, utterly dependent upon Him in whom I live and move and have my being.
This wonderful God is the most supremely worthy Object of admiration, honor, and delight in all of the universe;
Ad He has created me with the intention that I might glorify Him by finding my soul's delight in Him and by living in joyful obedience to Him in all of my ways."

by Milton Vincent


These words have been expressed so well. I need not change them, but provide you with them...