Religious Faith

 “A friend of mine posted a picture the other day of a church on a cliff. The people were walking in through the front door and falling out through the bottom into a dark pit representing the abyss, or hell. The caption said, “The difference between a relationship  with Jesus Christ and a religion.” It also said, “that you could go to church your whole life and still draw no closer to God, or understand who God was, and what being a Christian is truly about.” The world in my opinion, mistakes religion with true Christianity and disciples of Jesus Christ. Like anything else; I believe we lump all people groups by the actions of a few, and the world especially loves to do that when it comes to Christians and those who follow Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. For many religions claim to know Jesus, but yet do everything opposite of what He taught and stood for, or who the real Jesus is and looked like. 

Jesus had just finished healing a man who couldn’t walk for Thirty Eight years as recorded by John 5:

“One man was there who had been disabled for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and realized he had already been there a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to get well?” “Sir,” the disabled man answered, “I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I’m coming, someone goes down ahead of me.” “Get up,” Jesus told him, “pick up your mat and walk.” Instantly the man got well, picked up his mat, and started to walk. Now that day was the Sabbath,” (CSB)

When the Pharisees saw him carrying his mat or pallet as it states in the NASB, on the Sabbath they focused more on that act than his actual healing. When they found out that Jesus had commanded him to take up his mat, they again questioned Him and argued the point about doing anything on the Sabbath. Jesus went on to tell them that they searched the Scriptures and yet did not understand or realized that He was the fulfillment of the Scriptures. He said that He would not accuse them in front of God but that Moses would, because they claimed to be followers of Moses, yet did not understand the Scriptures and how to interpret them correctly. 

Even before Jesus came, and since He ascended too many pastors, priests , evangelists, whether on TV or going from town to town have changed the word of God to fill their pockets, to fit their desires, or to fulfill their wants, rather than to preach the message of Christ. Religion is man-made that serves the purpose of the person who started it, and we see how everyone of them have different denominations, or sects, or set of rules, because they break away from the original one that started it. 

Hebrews 13 reminds us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Jesus does not change, God‘s word does not change. What changes is the heart of man to seek their own will, their own pleasure, in their own way of being content in their sin, lifestyle, or gathering. 

“For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths.” (CSB)

So my question is, are you in a religion that is leading you to the abyss and dark pit, or are you following the Light of the world and walking with Jesus Christ, the only Savior of the world?”

Jose Barajas

Moonwalk Faith

 “Neil Armstrong as most people in the world know was the first man to walk on the moon back in July Sixteenth of Nineteen Sixty Nine. The citizens of the world were in awe and one would think that this would be Armstrong’s greatest moment, but it was not. In Nineteen Ninety Four Armstrong visited the southern steps of the temple in Jerusalem and was overcome with emotion. He told the tour guide, “I am more excited stepping on these stones than I was stepping on the moon.” He then fell to his knees and kissed the steps where Jesus had walked and the church was born on the day of Pentecost. “One small step for man,” but what a giant leap of faith, that all mankind should make!

Jesus talking to the people during His first sermon says in chapter six, 

““Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” ‭(NET‬‬) 

When most people share this verse, they always tend to reference money, as the following verses refer to  not serving money. But I believe it is more than just money that Jesus was referring to, because our treasures are anything that is put before God. Moths eat clothes that people buy in order to look good for others on social media, or social events, and generally use credit cards to live above their means. Rust eats metal and or other things that have been neglected or left in the rain and become worthless regardless of what was spent to buy them, or time to make, or to purchase it. We also know that the Bible refers to the enemy as the thief who comes to steal and destroy, and this is the robbery of our souls that keep us from following or believing in Jesus. We get robbed of property, ideas, music, and of our health by the things of this world that will never satisfy our desires. 

Neil Armstrong having walked on the moon counted that there is nothing in comparison to not physically seeing Jesus, but standing where Jesus walked as a greater treasure. Jesus words continue in Matthew as verse twenty two says, 

““The eye is the lamp of the body. If then your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is diseased, your whole body will be full of darkness. IF THEN THE LIGHT IN YOU IS DARKNESS, HOW GREAT IS THE DARKNESS!” (NET‬‬) (Emphasis added) 

His perspective was correct and his vision clear because he knew that nothing in this world or on the moon for that matter, really mattered in the end without Jesus. He saw the darkness of space and the light from the sun from space, and so he knew a little about light and darkness. After it was all said and done his focus stayed on Jesus. His eyes were healthy and like his blind trust that the rockets would get him to the moon and he would come back, so is what his faith was and should be for us. Habakkuk Two says,

“For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, BUT THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL LIVE BY HIS FAITH.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

The unrighteous and those living in the dark have souls that are puffed up, but the righteous shall live by faith. Paul quoted this verse many times, and the book of Hebrews is filled with many who walked by faith and though their lives were dark and or plagued by darkness, they remained faithful and true to God and The Name. 

So my question is, where are your eyes focused on and what treasures are you chasing that are leading you away from Jesus. My prayer is that we remember what Jesus finishes this section with, 

““No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord].”‬ ‭(AMP‬‬) 

I can hear Jesus saying not only to Neil Armstrong, but also to anyone who will listen and repent and come to a saving knowledge of Jesus, “I love you to the moon and back, and to infinity and beyond, into eternity.” 

Jose Barajas

Unexpectedly

 Every-time someone famous dies, or for that matter anyone; especially at a young age, the word unexpectedly is used to describe their untimely death. There was another mass shooting in Texas, and I don’t care about the politics side of things, but the deaths of all those involved were unexpected. I was sent some messages that Ray Liotta had passed away in his hotel room, unexpectedly. Later, the same day I heard that Andy Fletcher, one of the members of my favorite secular bands, Depeche Mode, also unexpectedly passed away. Mr. Liotta was Sixty Seven, and Mr. Fletcher was Sixty. The children killed were in elementary school. The word unexpectedly as Webster defines it says, “In a way that was not expected or regarded as likely.” The sad truth is that as humans; we believe that of every person that dies, when in reality we are all going to experience the same fate one day. It can be considered unexpected in the manner that people die, but in reality, should it be? 

Jesus in Luke Thirteen reminds us of a few things. It says, 

There were some present at that very time who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And He answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans WERE WORSE SINNERS THAN ALL OF THE OTHER Galileans, because they suffered in this way? NO, I tell you; BUT UNLESS YOU REPENT, you will ALL LIKEWISE PERISH. Or those eighteen on WHOM THE TOWER IN SILOAM FELL AND KILLED THEM: do you think that THEY WERE WORSE OFFENDERS THAN ALL THE OTHERS who lived in Jerusalem? NO, I tell you; BUT UNLESS YOU REPENT, you will all LIKEWISE PERISH.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

Now most people will read this and claim heartless emotions of the “unexpected” or tragic deaths mentioned above, but if we PERISH without Jesus, then it’s a finality. There is no barometer to kinds of death, or different levels of what is considered normal and not normal death. The human mind likes to categorize the death or the people involved in the death, by how it happened or what kind of life one lived, but Jesus is telling us differently. What I mean by that, is that though death happens daily, there isn’t anything different from one person to another, only if you believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior. We must repent as Jesus says, not just thinking that the things that happened are because of guns, disease, or evil people, but because we all are going to die in one form or another, and that should be expected. 

Jesus says that the people weren’t more evil, so we can’t add to the statement to fit our belief or agenda, but again have we repented? Jesus said that because that tower fell; and we can add shootings, tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes, wars, disease, or other, that unless we have repented, we too will perish! There is a death that can happen before we die and that is being away from God. Remember what the serpent told Eve and by the way Adam was right there next to her, in Genesis three, 

“but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, LEST YOU DIE.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “YOU WILL NOT SURELY DIE. For God knows that when you eat of it your EYES WILL BE OPENED, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman SAW that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.” (ESV) (Emphasis Added)

Adam and Eve didn’t physically die, but yet their fellowship with God was broken, they had to leave Eden, not because God was mean, but because they chose the lie of dying, for self gratification, and self away from God. Notice that the word says that Eve saw, after the serpents lies, but what she saw was what sin is, a delight for the eyes and desire to be wise in their own eyes and minds, and not what God instructed or wanted from them. God atoned for them by sacrificing an animal and covering them, and He can do the same for you and me, if we repent. Paul reminds us in Romans six, 

“But what FRUIT were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the END OF THOSE THINGS IS DEATH. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become bond servants of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the WAGES OF SIN IS DEATH, BUT THE FREE GIFT OF GOD is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

We all are sinners whether you believe that or not, and the message of the gospel is simple and clear, repent and be forgiven, because without forgiveness, our deaths, expected or unexpectedly will happen. The fruit of sin only looks good and may feel good, but it leaves us shameful, broken, alone, and ultimately we will perish, apart from God without His free gift of love. 

I loved Ray Liotta’s movies and thought he was a great actor, but that doesn’t matter without repentance. Andy Fletcher was on every Depeche Mode studio album and contributed to so many songs that I grew up listening to and still do today, but if he didn’t repent, it doesn’t matter. 

Depeche Mode has a song called Blasphemous Rumors, where the chorus says, “I don’t want to start any blasphemous rumors but I think that God’s got a sick sense of humor and when I die, I expect to find him laughing.” That is the mindset of many who don’t believe in Jesus and His atoning death, that we will laugh at God or give Him our two cents. We think that He doesn’t exist, because what kind of God allows this, but those are just the lies of the “fruit” that leads to death. The writer of Hebrews reminds us in chapter nine,

“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.” (ESV)

We are appointed, not unexpectedly, because God knows every hair on your head, all your shortcomings and the words you speak as the Psalmist tells us in Psalm One Thirty Nine, and He knows our every breath. When you stand before Him, will He know you, because you repented it will you be cast away because of your unbelief? We will all meet our maker, but will we be ready? Have you repented, have you asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, not with a little prayer at a conference or church, but truly in your heart, mind and soul, that was life changing? Remember Jesus reminds us in Mark eight,

“And calling the crowd to Him with His disciples, He said to them, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of Him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” (ESV)

The world is full of hate and pain, sadness and bitterness, and death. What are you willing to lose your soul for? Don’t put your hope in anything or anyone, for they will all fail and fall, but only Jesus can save you! It’s coming, that appointed time when we will all leave this earth, but will you be ready? Tomorrow is not promised, today is the day of salvation, today is the day to come to Jesus!“

Jose Barajas

Wooden Faith

 “One of the neat things about six grade camp besides being away from my parents and family for the first time, was being in nature, and creating different arts and crafts. At the end of a long week; even though it was only seven days, it felt like an eternity for me, a sixth grader, we had to pick a piece of wood. The more rugged, not perfect, the better because it signified our week, and though we had a tough week, we were gonna use it to get it signed as a remembrance of what we learned. When I found the piece of wood that I thought perfect, I cut it, sanded, and shaped it into what I felt was perfect. I kept it for a while and slowly over time the names on it faded; like my memory of all of the kids who I had joyfully gotten signatures from. 

In the Ten Commandments, the first three are about loving God thru full devotion, humility, with all of our souls, but most importantly, by not putting anything else before Him. Not having other gods, making gods, or saying the Lord’s Name in vain. Jesus, when asked by the religious leaders, said this about the greatest commandment in Matthew twenty-two beginning in verse thirty seven, 

“Jesus answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and most important command. And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ All the law and the writings of the prophets depend on these two commands.”” (NCV)

Jesus said these were commands, but do you know what the first three commandments are that Moses records in Exodus twenty? Well let’s look, beginning in verse one,

“Then God spoke all these words: “I Am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt where you were slaves. “You MUST NOT HAVE ANY OTHER gods except me. “You MUST NOT MAKE FOR YOURSELVES AN IDOL that looks like anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the water below the land. You MUST NOT WORSHIP OR SERVE ANY IDOL, because I, the Lord your God, Am a jealous God. If you hate Me, I will punish your children, and even your grandchildren and great-grandchildren. But I show kindness to thousands who love Me and obey My commands.” (NCV) (Emphasis added)

Is this one of those arguments that people use to say the Bible is contradictory, not accurate, and not real? Yes, but only for those who are critics, part time Christians and worse, those who only study or use the New Testament. Jesus is saying that the two commandments He mentions are what all the writings of the prophets depend on. Let that sink in for a while! God who wrote all of the Bible, and used prophets and apostles to write His words down, is reminding us that having other gods, to bow, that we carve, or worship as an idol, keeps us from loving the Lord God will all of our heart, mind and soul. He is saying that regardless of what “laws” of religion, self, or hate we live by, anything apart from God is an idol. This includes not love God and in turn, not loving our neighbor.

When I found that piece of wood, I didn’t pray to it, bow down before it, or sing songs to it, for it was just that, a piece of wood. Though there were memories and names written on it, at the end of the day it was a piece of wood. Isaiah tells in chapter forty-four beginning in verse six,

“The Lord, the king of Israel, is the Lord All-Powerful, who saves Israel. This is what He says: “I Am the beginning and the end. I Am the only God. Who is a god like me? That god should come and prove it. Let him tell and explain all that has happened since I set up my ancient people. He should also tell what will happen in the future. Don’t be afraid! Don’t worry! I have always told you what will happen. You are my witnesses. There is no other God but Me. I know of no other Rock; I am the only One.”” (NCV)

How cults and people can deny Jesus is Lord, and that the trinity exists is beyond me; especially when you read verses like this that SHOUT JESUS all through them. The beginning and the end, or as John quotes in Revelation talking about Jesus, the Alpha and Omega. The Rock which is referring to Jesus again, the chief cornerstone, the One whom our faith should be built upon. Isaiah continues in verse nine,

“Some people make idols, but they are worth nothing. People treasure them, but they are useless. Those people are witnesses for the statues, but those people cannot see. They know nothing, so they will be ashamed. Who made these gods? Who made these useless idols? (NCV)

Man makes everything in every form of religion to bow down and worship, from birds, animals, angels, sun, moon, stars, or their version of Jesus. And God is saying through Isaiah, that these people are blind and know nothing. Isaiah continues in verse fourteen,

“He cuts down cedars or cypress or oak trees. Those trees grew by their own power in the forest. Or he plants a pine tree, and the rain makes it grow. Then he burns the tree. He uses some of the wood for a fire to keep himself warm. He also starts a fire to bake his bread. But he uses part of the wood to make a god, and then he worships it! He makes the idol and bows down to it! The man burns half of the wood in the fire. He uses the fire to cook his meat, and he eats the meat until he is full. He also burns the wood to keep himself warm. He says, “Good! Now I am warm. I can see because of the fire’s light.” But he makes a statue from the wood that is left and calls it his god. He bows down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “You are my god. Save me!” Those people don’t know what they are doing. They don’t understand! It is as if their eyes are covered so they can’t see. Their minds don’t understand. They have not thought about these things; they don’t understand. They have never thought to themselves, “I burned half of the wood in the fire and used the hot coals to bake my bread. I cooked and ate my meat. And I used the wood that was left to make this hateful thing. I am worshiping a block of wood!” He doesn’t know what he is doing; his confused mind leads him the wrong way. He cannot save himself or say, “This statue I am holding is a false god.”” (NCV)

Growing up Catholic, I have been and seen idols, rosary’s, but I’ve never been comfortable praying to these, let alone bowing down to them. Even before knowing the word, it felt wrong and pointless, and now, even more so to me. I love how God says it, that people cut the wood to keep themselves warm, cook their food, and then make an idol off of the leftovers to worship them. It’s like thanking the wood for the things that God created, blesses with and yet so many blindly do this daily. 

The piece of wood that faded and the names that vanished, and eventually the whole thing being lost, or thrown into the trash, is what we should do with anything that isn’t about loving the Lord our God. There should be no excuse other than we don’t love God above these, and that is the whole point of everything being dependent on these words. If we continue to hold onto these carven images, we too will be lost, thrown into the fire, trash, and worse our names will not be written in the Lambs book of life, where our names won’t fade.

So my question is, what is keeping you from being like Peter and his brother when Jesus called them, and dropping what you’re holding to follow Jesus. You can cry all day long to them, say repetitive prayers, and go through the motions of religion. Why should you choose to be dead like the pieces of wood, when you can be alive, in Christ Jesus. Isaiah finishes in verse twenty-one and two with,

““People of Jacob, remember these things! People of Israel, remember you are My servants. I MADE YOU, and you are My servants. So Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your sins like a big cloud; I have removed your sins like a cloud that disappears into the air. Come back to Me because I saved you.”” (NCV) (Emphasis added)

We all are God’s creation because He formed us in His image, and our worship should be all for Him and His glory. Isaiah Forty-three says,

“Now this is what the Lord says. He created you, people of Jacob; He formed you, people of Israel. He says, “Don’t be afraid, because I have saved you. I have called you by name, and you are mine.” (NCV)

Are you Jesus’, are you saved? Not because you said a prayer, not because, you were dunked in water, not because you go to church weekly, but because you have repented, and are taking up your cross daily. Because He has your name written on His Hands that held the nails for our redemption.” Jose Barajas

My Father’s House

 “One year my mom and dad decided to build a house in our hometown of Pueblo Nuevo, Guanajuato, Mexico. All of my family, except my little brother, were born there, and all of us have visited our town at least once since we left back in the early Seventies. My dad felt that if he built it, that his kids would always have a place to go to and stay, and not worry about accommodations. It’s a really “big house with lots and lots of rooms” as Audio Adrenaline sings but it does have five bedrooms and two floors, and one of my brothers lives there full time. When I took my daughter there when she was around eight, and she loved running to the store to get fresh tortillas, and just loved hanging around with cousins, that she didn’t want to come home.

John chapter fourteen writes what Jesus is telling His disciples, and it is a great reminder for us,

 “"Let NOT YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. Believe in God; believe ALSO IN ME. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going."”  ‭(ESV‬‬) (Emphasis added)

I love how Jesus reminds us to not let our hearts be troubled! The time for Jesus to die was close, and the “religious” leaders, and the people had begun to turn their backs on Jesus. If you read John’s account of Jesus' life, you will see The Lord Jesus and His love, compassion, but also the truth of who He was. I love what John records with Jesus saying, “Believe in God; believe also in Me.” Why would Jesus say it like that, as many cults and skeptics use this to say, even Jesus knew He wasn’t God. Is that really what Jesus was saying? I don’t believe so because too many scriptures support that fact that Jesus is Lord and Him and God are one. 

The religious leaders believed Jesus a fraud and the reason they wanted Him dead was for blasphemy, because He aquatinted Himself as God. People are okay with believing in God, but my question always is, “What God?” Because man has many little g gods. You have the god of self, money, sex, drugs, cars, alcohol, work, sports, and anything else you want to write in. But from chapter six of John to the end, we see Jesus not pulling any punches of who truly were His followers and who just wanted a room in the mansion without believing. Listen to what John chapter six says beginning in verse 

“After this many of His disciples TURNED BACK AND NO LONGER WALKED WITH HIM. So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, TO WHOM SHALL WE GO? YOU HAVE THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

Jesus had just finished saying that He was the bread of life and that you had to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to get eternal life. Jesus was not saying He was Dracula or Hannibal Lecter, as skeptics think, but was explaining that the people were only coming to be fed and healed and not truly seeing and tasting that the Lord is good. They only wanted the “giving” Jesus, but not the suffering Messiah. Loving God is one thing, but ask people to love and follow Jesus by repentance, and that is a whole other thing. To give up sin and self is hard! So many say the “little” prayer, but their hearts are not in it. So many attend church, but it’s mostly out of tradition, or to check off a box, or because they’re taken there, but the Spirit isn’t in their life’s. 

Jesus knew that His true disciples would run and hide and He knew that they would be lost without Him. When my father on earth passed, we as a family were not the same and many didn’t and still don’t talk for whatever reason, we are lost. But being lost without an earthly father is tough, how much tougher it will be to be lost with the One who can lead us to the Father’s house? He comforts them and us, and though Thomas said, “We don’t know where You’re going, how can we know the way?” Thomas wasn’t doubting, he was asking the question the others were probably thinking. Isn’t that us? 

We may read God’s word and occasionally do “Godly” things and yet a calamity hits and all of a sudden we forget what Jesus promised. John fourteen six continues, 

“Jesus said to him, "I Am the way, and the truth, and the life. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXFEPT THROUGH ME.”  ‭(ESV‬‬) (Emphasis added)

I Am, the same Name Jesus gave Moses as the burning bush. Wait what did I just say? You may be thinking I’m crazy but look at what Exodus Three says,

“There the ANGEL OF THE LORD appeared to him in flames of fire coming out of a bush. Moses saw that the bush was on fire, but it was not burning up.” (NCV)) (Emphasis added)

People overlook this fact that the Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament is Jesus. Because cults, and false prophets teach there is only Jehovah God, Yahweh, The Lord, One God, but look at what is said later in this chapter, and who this Angel is, beginning in verse five

“Then God said, “Do not come any closer. Take off your sandals, because you are standing on holy ground. I Am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.” (NCV) 

The same Angel is talking,  but now the writer of Exodus who many believe is Moses, refers to Him as God, because the Word is consistent and God never changes. Finally the Angel (Jesus and not Gabriel as some might say) says in verse thirteen and fourteen, 

“Moses said to God, “When I go to the Israelites, I will say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me to you.’ What if the people say, ‘What is His Name?’ What should I tell them?” Then God said to Moses, “I AM who I AM (YHWH). When you go to the people of Israel, tell them, ‘I AM sent me to you.’ ”” (NCV)

Back to John fourteen, Jesus was emphasizing that there is no other way, because He is I AM, Jehovah, Yahweh, and The Lord. Call me narrow minded or naive, but I believe what Jesus said. No other person has died and rose again, no other Name under heaven by which we can be saved. I do not pray to saints, other “Baal” gods, statues, or Mary because the Word is clear! Jesus is the only way. 

When my dad built the house, we didn’t go to a neighbor's house or call a cousin or stay with a stranger, we stayed where our fathers house was. So my question is, where is your hope and home at? Is it in a government bail out, a medical cure, or a promise of a better tomorrow here on this rotting planet? Or, are you trusting in God's promise that He will come again and take us home? Remember, there are many, many rooms for all who will accept His invitation. Come home running, walking, stumbling, broken, afraid, or wherever you are in life, but just come home to Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life!” Jose Barajas

Darkness

“Our son used to live in Maricopa, AZ and we would drive out there, at least once a month. I would drive most of the time on the way up, as early as possible to get in front of the LA traffic. On the way home, we would leave early in the evening, as it was about a five hour drive. There were two stretches of just a four lane highway, and nothing but the desert and stars in the sky between Phoenix and Blythe and Blythe and Indio. I used to play my CD’s of worship music and although I'm not a fan of the Hillsong church and their false teaching, they have a great song called, “All I Need Is You.” The chorus says, “All I need is You Lord, all I need is You!” The bridge says, “You hold the universe, You hold everything on earth, You hold the universe, You hold, yeah You hold.” There is a great quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson, that says, “When it is dark enough, men see the stars!” 

John chapter one is one of the best chapters in all the Bible, and it is also one of the most misquoted and mistranslated chapters too. John begins with, 

“In the BEGINNING WAS THE WORD, and the Word WAS WITH GOD, and the WORD WAS God. “HE WAS IN THE BEGINNING with God. All things were made THROUGH HIM, and WITHOUT HIM WAS NOT ANY THING MADE that was made.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

Who is the Word? Jesus is the Word as we will see as we read on. [Now there are those cults and false prophets who will say that instead of was; they say the original text says “a” but for today’s post, I won’t focus on that, as I am writing a few posts on the false prophets and their cults they started.]

Since the beginning Jesus was, is, and is to come, as John says in his other letter, Revelation. There is NOTHING that exists that was not made without Jesus. Too many sadly think that Jesus was created, or only appeared at the virgin birth, but that is not what the whole Bible teaches. “He holds the universe!” John continues in verse four and five, 

“In HIM WAS LIFE, and THE LIFE WAS THE LIGHT OF MAN. The light SHINES IN THE DARKNESS, and the DARKNESS HAS NOT OVERCOME IT.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

There are so many verses in the bible, a lot of sentences, and many impactful words, but none more so, in my opinion, than these twenty five. Many people go to John Three sixteen, and though those words are awesome and the whole gospel in those sentences, none mean more to us as humans than John One, verse four and five. When we think about darkness, many think about a lot of different things, from no lights, blindness, a state of mind, drugs, or sin. Listen to what Genesis one says, 

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and DARKNESS WAS OVER THE FACE of the deep. And the Spirit of God was HOVERING OF THE FACE of the waters. And God said, “LET THERE BE LIGHT,” and there was light. (ESV) (Emphasis Added)

There was darkness before God created the light that removed the darkness, but only later, we see the darkness of sin come and take over the earth and humans. John was reminding us that though darkness was what kept humans from God, that Jesus came into this darkness, and His light was the light of man, whom He came to save. The darkness may fill the earth and sin is still something we deal with, but John reminds us that the DARKNESS has not overcome it. 

The old saying is, “You can only go up, after you hit rock bottom,” but that isn’t always true of faith and belief in God, because sadly too many see darkness and would rather stay there, than to believe in God. I have hit rock bottom, sadly a few more times than I wish to remember, because I was happy in my darkness. I had heard of Jesus, and was even “supposedly” a “Christian,” but it wasn’t until I truly saw the “darkness” that I could see Jesus (the stars). 

John was the only disciple to stand at the cross when Jesus was crucified, because he didn’t care that darkness was hanging His Lord and Savior, holding nails meant for us. He had seen Judas betray Jesus with a kiss and later hang himself because he couldn’t escape the darkness. He had heard of Peter denying Jesus after Jesus had predicted he would, but knew his friend had wept bitterly, rather than stay in darkness. John knew Jesus had come to shine the True Light of life for everyone, but he also knew that not everyone would receive the gift of life through the light of Jesus. John continues in verse nine, 

“The TRUE LIGHT, which GIVES LIGHT TO EVERYONE, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, YET THE WORLD DID NOT KNOW HIM. He came to His own, and His OWN PEOPLE DID NOT RECEIVE HIM. But to all who did receive Him, who BELIEVED IN HIS NAME, He GAVE the right to become children of God, who were born, NOT OF BLOOD NOR OF THE WILL OF THE FLESH NOR THE WILL OF MAN, but of God. (ESV) (Emphasis Added)

The many times that we drove that highway and saw God’s creation through the stars and beauty all around, I sang the song, sometimes in tears because I knew I had failed my God. It wasn’t until I realized that even in my darkness, Jesus never failed me. 

John knew this as he wrote this book, remembering how hope was not lost, even though Jesus had died, because verse five of his first chapter said, “the darkness could not overcome the light” Before the creation of time, before the fruit was eaten from the forbidden tree, Jesus loved us so much, He planned to come and give His life for the people He loved. He did it for the whole world, as it says, for those who believed in His Name, He gave them the right to become the children of God. John writes in First John four nineteen, 

“We love because HE FIRST LOVED US.” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

This is not us being robots or predestined as many falsely teach, but it is true love, in that God allows us to choose Him or not. So my question is, what darkness are you experiencing? Is it a sickness, a broken marriage, a prodigal child, a lost job, the economy, the false promises of politicians, war, or pestilence? Jesus is here for anyone who needs to see the light, to remove the darkness of this world, but ultimately sin, but you have to receive His free gift by repentance. John says in First John one five, 

“This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that GOD IS LIGHT, AND IN HIM IS NO DARKNESS AT ALL” (ESV) (Emphasis added)

When we become born again in Jesus Christ, we overcome, not by anything we do, but only by what Jesus did. John writes in First John Five beginning in verse four, 

“For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (ESV)

“All I need is Your Lord, is You!” I pray you know this and come to Jesus before it is too late, and the darkness overtakes you!” Jose Barajas

Phat Tuesday (Don’t Lent Me Down)

 “New Orleans becomes the center of the party scene when it comes to the end of February, as Mardi Gras, which means “Fat Tuesday” in French, comes to one last hurrah. Now like most things, this is associated with “Christian” beginnings, but I believe the word “Christian” is as watered down as “Love!” It is traditionally the time from January Sixth to the  day before Ash Wednesday and marks the last day of “gluttony” before the Forty days of Lent,  which signifies the fasting of Jesus time in the desert, before He was tempted by Satan. I have never been to New Orleans during this time nor would I ever, but from pictures and videos it seems like a time of drinking, partying and as the French say, Laissez les bons temps rouler ("Let the good times roll") Women showing their breasts date back to Eighteen Eighty Nine for beads which seems odd but then again what is odd anymore, and only confirms that there is nothing new under the sun!”

Luke wrote in Chapter Four, 

“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.” ‭(ESV‬‬) 

This wasn’t a lesson for us to follow, and try and replicate, by giving up "food, drink, or carnal things,"  and Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, not alone, and not on a whim to give something up for Forty Days. He was tempted the whole time by the devil, and after the forty days, Jesus was hungry. The devil came at Jesus when He was physically drained, and said in verse three,

"The devil said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” (NET)

This is how the enemy works, first knowing Jesus was hungry, he tell Jesus, IF. Like the devil was trying to challenge or put doubt in Jesus, If you are God then change this stone to bread, because you are hungry. Jesus had just gone forty days without food, so it should have worked. Many people blame everything on the devil, instead of our own sin, or think that we too are super like God and can battle things on our own, but we should be like Jesus, in the Word, in prayer, but most of all in the Spirit. Listen to what Jesus responds in verse four,

Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone.’” (NET)

Luke is quoting Deuteronomy Eight Three that says, 

"So He humbled you by making you hungry and then feeding you with unfamiliar manna. He did this to teach you that humankind cannot live by bread alone, but also by everything that comes from the Lord’s mouth." (NET) 

It isn't about just giving up something for forty days for a tradition of a religion, but about living and breathing God's word daily and doing what God has commanded us to with everything that comes from the Lord's mouth, and that is HIS WHOLE WORD.

Jesus was about to embark on a Three and a half year journey of ministry that would not only change the world, but reset the relationship God had had with man in the garden. He didn’t give up soda and still talk and treat people badly, He didn’t give up meat on Fridays' and still hate His brothers, but He was in prayer and emptying Himself of self, though God, to be humbled to God the Father thru the Holy Spirit. 

Eating and partying the night before “Ash Wednesday” (another man made tradition) is like going on a drug binge before heading to rehab, or eating a sixteen ounce steak before heart surgery, it doesn’t work that way. We should be fasting regularly and in prayer at all times and in every situation as Paul says in Ephesians Six, 

“praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints (elect)” ‭(ESV‬‬) 

For God, it is a matter of the heart, and being conformed to His will. It is not about abstaining from something for a period of time, for an outward appearance, or to please man, is never what God has desired. So my question is not about what you believe about Lent and this period, but where is your heart and how are you living in conjunction of what God wants of you. The forty days in the Bible is always a time of testing, a trial, or a probation, so to think we gave something up, but our hearts never changed is not understanding the significance of dying to self and taking up our cross daily.

It reminds me of a song by Vineyard that I really love singing and playing, 

“Take My Mind” “Holiness holiness is what I long for; Holiness is what I need; Holiness holiness is what You want from me: Faithfulness; Righteousness: Chorus: Take my heart and form it; Take my mind transform it; Take my will conform it; To Yours to Yours oh Lord!” 

May this be our prayer daily to understand it is all about Jesus and all about not letting the temptations of the world or the ways of the world, blinds us to the ways of Jesus..” Jose Barajas