I am reminded once again how important it is to read and study the Scriptures in an age where you can pretty much make up a religion and follow it, or not.
Yesterday, it was Ash Wednesday or Lent according to Roman Catholicism. This practice (that has somehow aligned itself with Jesus' Wilderness experience for 40 days and 40 nights and His action of fasting) whereby Catholics receive ashes on their foreheads while making a sign of the cross to observe Jesus' wilderness experience for 40 days and 40 nights. In addition, they make a solemn attempt to sacrifice something for the same duration of time that Jesus walked in the wilderness and are reminded of where they come from; "...for you are dust, and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).
Now before I continue, I would like to say that I once ignorantly followed this practice many years ago out of not knowing, reading, and studying the Scriptures. It both angers and saddens me to see people who have yet to taste and experience the love, grace, mercy, redemptive, and liberating saving power of Jesus follow this practice. It angers me because while those in hierarchical church authority have the Scriptures, they have not shared the true gospel of the Lord Jesus that sets humanity free from obeying religious practices to somehow earn "Jesus points," or feel that they have done something good while the prophet Isaiah says, " But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are like filthy rags..."
(Isaiah 64:6). In addition, they do not encourage them to read the Scriptures nor teach them how. How can they if their eyes have not been open by the Holy Spirit?
It saddens me because while the practices of discipline, fasting, and remembering where we came from is honorable, isn't this something that can be observed every day we draw breath or just for the next 40 days and 40 nights? And without the Holy Spirit living in their lives how can they accomplish this? Jesus Himself taught and stated that when you fast, "...do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:16-18).
In regards to discipline, how can they exercise spiritual discipline with mere natural strength? Remembering where you come from and where you're going is a sobering thought...for the body, but what happens to the soul once your body gives out is all the more important (Matthew 10:28). All to say that I am called to love people as our Lord graciously and willingly did, hence the cross, for everyone. This beckons me to not only read and study the Scriptures but to tell others in love and with a sincere concern for their eternal destination that redemption, forgiveness, and freedom does not come from vain and repetitive religious practices but through knowing that Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man did it all, that "For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Psalm 92:1-2: "It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; to declare Your lovingkindness in the morning..."
Waking up this morning, I saw my wife laying beside me and I'm reminded of how gracious the Lord has been to me; an undeserving sinner. Second to my salvation in Jesus Christ, she is one of the most precious gifts God has given me. I also remembered what happen 17 years ago today.
As I was curled up like a football on the examination table, I received my last spinal tap or lumbar puncture; which is a 22 1/2 inch needle that penetrates into the spine to extract spinal fluid. The purpose of these lumbar punctures were to examine whether there were cancerous cells in the spinal fluid. On February 11th, 1992, Dr. Peter Steinherz told my mom, "Mrs. Soria, Kevin does not need anymore treatment. He's finished." At first, I didn't understand why my mom was crying. I thought this was the last time I would receive treatment for leukemia she would be happy, but she cried...a lot. Then I remembered: it was my mother's birthday. Looking up I thought, "man, somebody must love us up there."
Some of you reading this probably knew this about me already but for those who do not, I'm still in awe of what the Lord did for me 17 years ago. Even now I think that I was not worthy to be saved. Saved from leukemia or my sins. Boy, do I love those verses that start with the word "But God..." =D
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Ephesians 2:4-10
His mercy healed me, His blood saved me, His grace is with me, His Holy Spirit lives in me, and one day I will stand before Him.
"Thank you Jesus, I don't know how else I can express my utter gratitude in words but Lord, I will love and serve You til my last breath. Jesus, empower me, anoint me, and use me to declare to the whole world that You love them, died for them, and want to save them from their sins, and that You want to spend eternity with them. Thank You (x eternity) my God and Savior.
I love You always,
Kevin L. Soria
Thinking of what to blog about, although I have other things I'd like to share, I felt the Lord has put it on my heart to share what I've endured during this tumultuous semester. The apostle Paul, writes "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). This was one verse I held very close to my heart entering bible college long after leaving a possible profession as a Registered Nurse. Up until this semester, things have been flowing very well, through the grace and mercies of God I was able to come out with more A's and B's than I ever had as a pagan heathenish idolatrous slave to sin. Where getting an A in one semester was like once a blue moon, is now happening regularly without blue moons. I rarely cared about doing well prior to knowing Christ as my personal Lord and Savior because I did not know who I was, why I was here, and where I was going. The years I spent as a Nursing major at Long Island University were years in the wilderness not having a reason do to well but only so that my mother's money wasn't wasted away.
I felt more like a slave ordered to do well than free to do well for a legitimate reason.
Everything changed the day when I came to know and believe Christ as my personal Lord and Savior. Things are different now because I know who I am, why I am here, and where I am going. Moreover, I have a solid and eternal reason to do well in the educational aspect of my life: I serve a great and mighty God, one who not only has given me life eternal but gave me a reason to live, a reason to hope, a reason to go on, and a reason to do all things well for His glory. Why? Because He is worthy...He is more than worthy. He expects this of us.
Getting back to this past semester (which is over, praise the Lord!!!), my back was against the wall. I didn't have any space to breathe. For the first time in bible college, I was considering dropping two classes (Readings in NT Greek and Elementary Hebrew 1) because I was struggling miserably (WARNING: DO NOT TAKE TWO LANGUAGES IN THE SAME SEMESTER). I was failing miserably because as I have depended on past successes, I thought this would be a cinch, but due to inconsistent lack of studying and preparation, I was facing this ordeal. It was just that I was struggling for I did not take the time to study (I found myself not able to juggle all these classes as in the past). What you sow, you will reap. So I asked the Lord to forgive me, for not taking this semester seriously, for not being a good steward in my studies. I was desperately feeling like I would not pass these classes, hence, thinking about dropping these courses.
I even heeded to the lies of the enemy: "You remember what the radiation tech told your mom years ago during your treatment, 'Because he is receiving radiation on his brain, he will not be as bright as he was and he will not excel as well as he has in the past.This will be a life-long effect on your son, Mrs. Soria" You can't excel, you will not pass. Cop out now. Drop these classes."
My wife encouraged me not to believe the lies, that the Lord is bigger than this, and that I was not the same person I was during that unfortunate time in my life. She prayed, her parents prayed, I prayed. I pushed hard with faith and diligence, believing that the Lord would help me succeed for His glory. Do you believe He did?
BIB 313: Genesis- A
PMN 346: Personal Spiritual Formation- A-
INT 481: Integrative Capstone Seminar- B
GRK 231: Readings in NT Greek- B-
HEB 101: Elementary Hebrew 1- C
You bet He did!!! Yes, brothers and sisters, He does care about things like this. We might think that this part of our lives are insignificant to our Lord but it is not. I say this with assurance: When you depend solely on the Lord and you labor hard in whatever you for His glory and not our own, He will show Himself powerful, faithful and present. We serve a great and mighty God, brothers and sisters and we would do well to remember that we have a duty to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world not just with our words but with our actions and in what we do because when we witness to our classmates and excel in our studies, it speaks volumes. Ladies and gentlemen, remember the words of the apostle Paul..."So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." Amen. Excel for His Excellency.
Jesus replied, "If anyone loves Me, he will obey My teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." (John 14:15-23)Looking back on the day when I accepted Christ, it has been a tremendous joy as much as it has been difficult. Being part of Christ's blessings and sufferings, I've gone through the thin and thick of life and I know that there will be many more blessings and sufferings as I remain in Christ. This does not divert me away from my Savior at all of course, it only draws me closer. I only hope I can say this for the remaining years I have on this earth. I pray and ask that He continues to give me the faith to do so. I can't really explain how amazing the Lord has been with me during these last 8 years, but only to say that these 8 years are far better than the first 20 years. From battling with Leukemia (cancer) for 5 years, the divorce of my parents, my unforgiving heart towards my father, the many years I've wasted looking for love in humanity (especially in the last six dating relationships I've been involved in with different young women), being in financial debt which caused my inevitable dismissal from college for 5 years, to being diagnosed with Hepatitis C (two years ago) one can say that God could not have been in the picture.
However, consider the present situation: Leukemia is gone but God has placed me in the same hospital I was treated for and working as a Patient Escort, transporting patients from point A to point B while given the opportunity to bridge the gap with them as I share my testimony and the powerful message of the Gospel, the forgiven heart towards my father and a renewed relationship with him, the precious gift of marriage given to me by God with my wife Allison, one semester away to graduating from college and receiving my Bachelor's Degree, and my unmovable belief that God will use my current situation to be that much more glorified, hence the preaching of the Gospel reaching to those who share a similar situation, whether themselves, a family member, or someone they know, that living this life without being forgiven of their sins is a life lost and wasted, than a life signed by the blood of Christ, sealed with the Holy Spirit, and delivered to God sin free and heaven bound far exceeds the previous. My desire is none other is to preach the gospel of Christ, to anyone and anybody who desires to hear. Even if they don't want to hear it, I will still preach it to them.
With that being said, again, I cannot explain how awesome it has been living with Christ these last 8 years. The last 12 verses of John 14:23 brings me to tears because it clearly states that if I love Christ, I will obey His teachings and the Father will love me, and He and the Father will come and make their home with me. That, my friend, my brother, my sister, is an amazing statement. Think about it: the God of this universe, the One who created the heavens and the earth, land, sea, moon, stars, and sun states that He will make His home with you. That, my friend, does not compare to any storm, trial, tribulation or difficult circumstance that comes our way. You can rest on the fact that if we love God by obeying His word, He will be with us, and no storm, trial, tribulation, and difficult circumstance can change our eternal destination.
Hosanna by Paul Baloche
Praise is rising, eyes are turning to You, we turn to You
Hope is stirring, hearts are yearning for You, we long for You
'Cause when we see You, we find strength to face the day
In Your Presence all our fears are washed away, washed away
Hosanna, hosanna
You are the God Who saves us, worthy of all our praises
Hosanna, hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here, Lord Jesus
Hear the sound of hearts returning to You, we turn to You
In Your Kingdom broken lives are made new, You make us new
'Cause when we see You, we find strength to face the day
In Your Presence all our fears are washed away, washed away
Hosanna, hosanna
You are the God Who saves us, worthy of all our praises
Hosanna, hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here, Lord Jesus
When my dad used to take me out, it was always a mission. My little legs couldn't keep up with his huge steps so I was determined to reach my father's steps and meet him there, and perhaps be able to walk ahead of him. On the day that I accomplished this feat, I almost got hit by a car. My dad pulled me back quickly and disciplined me as any loving father would. This was because I had not only got ahead of him, but by "letting go" of his hand and walking ahead, I put myself in harm's way.
Walking with our Lord is the same. He does not want us walking "ahead of him" because there are things we cannot see that only He can. For example, if you've suddenly become enamored by someone at school, church, the workplace, etc and you want to pursue a relationship with this person, consult with Your Savior first. Our emotions can get us into a whole lot of trouble. Consider the following scripture text: "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). Do our hearts have a stomach ache or a nasty flu when the scripture says it "is desperately sick?" Of course not! It is simply making the diagnosis of the heart's condition: SIN. It has been contaminated by this disgusting infirmity that man cannot make wise decisions. The soul is consisted of the mind, will, and emotions. The heart, obviously dealing with the emotions of man if not born again by the Spirit of God cannot and will not make decisions based on God's will but by its own will. Catch my drift?
Therefore, do not make decisions based on your emotions or how you feel. This goes for everything else: choosing a career (What does the Lord want me to do and how can I effectively proclaim the gospel while doing this?), finances (How can I glorify God in tithes and offerings? Am I being a good steward with the money that God has given me? Do I have dominion over my money or does it have dominion over me?), shopping (Is this something I need or something I want? Remember, you should be storing up treasures in heaven, not on earth. You're not gonna take it with you when you die. I have yet to hear anyone claiming to have brought their belongings with them to heaven), movies( Does this glorify God? Would Jesus watch this with me?), music (Does this bring glory to God? Does it bring me closer to God? Does it constantly remind me of my Savior?), relationships (Am I ready to get married?).
Walking with your Savior requires you to follow, that is, look to Him for direction, guidance, counsel, when making a decision. We're not walking with a dead person, but One who has not only resurrected but is seated at the right hand of the Father and lives inside you and me. We're not talking to a dead god, but One who is alive and well, One who all of creation proclaims and exhibits His existence and says to you and I..."I am with you always, even to the end of time." (Matthew 28:20). Every step you make with the Lord is an outward expression of His grace. We are not worthy to follow Him yet He has called you and I to follow, to be His disciples. "Jesus, thank you for allowing us to walk with you. Thank you for every step we make with You."
"Therefore, be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Ephesians 5:15-17).
