"A Royal Priesthood"

     For Christians Jesus is The Ultimate Priest. He is also the Lord of Lords and The King of Kings.
       So when The Bible speaks of the followers of Christ as being a royal priesthood what does that mean for us?
      We have been given authority by our king. Christ has set his seal upon us.
      Since his kingdom has no boarders we are on a mission of bringing the world into The Kingdom of Heaven. For every knee shall bow and every tongue confesses that Christ is Lord. From every tribe tongue and nation.
       We are to (through the love of God) bring freedom to the captives. Whether people are imprisoned physical or spiritual shackles. For whom the son sets free is free indeed.
     Jesus gave us power over the kingdom of darkness that covers the earth. It is in the name of Jesus (which is the name above all names) we can cast out demons.
     Through HIS power we can heal the sick.
      In his name we can raise the dead. This might be those who feel spiritually dead. Spiritual death is the worst kind of death. But for those of us who are the light of the world we can reach into the place where those who seem dead exist and show them the way out of the pit. For he who is within us is greater than he who is in the world.
     We have the God given ability to cleanse the lepers, the untouchables. We are to reach out the outcast. We are to reach out to the one who sits alone in the cafeteria. We can approach the person sitting in the back corner of the churches we go to.
      It means bringing a meal, a warm coat, and through charity bring the message of the our creator. The message of Christ to the lost and wounded souls we encounter daily. To bring hope to those who no longer know what hope means anymore.
      Our vocation includes praying for the nations. Praying for those who are in power and those who labor under the power of world leaders.
      We can pray for those whom the media casts as idols. A prayer who in many ways are also untouchable.
    

"The Cost of Free Movie Tickets"

     A few days ago I was given two free movie tickets. I planned on using them as part of a date night.
There was one major problem though.
      The movie was all about smuggling drugs and one of the characters was a stripper. The main characters were supposed to be posing as a family. The movie is supposed to be a comedy.
      My fiance and I are both Christians. We've both known people who have lost their lives in one way or another whether they died or are now dealing with the spiritual damage done by years of drug use.
      I'm soon coming up on 5 years without a drop to drink and not one single intake of my drug of choice which was Marijuana.
     So we could not condone seeing a movie that makes light of smuggling drugs simply to make an insane amount of money.
     For us there is nothing funny about drugs even what some people call a "harmless" drug such as pot.
     We have made a vow to ourselves and each other not to get involved in drinking or any other drugs.We made the very same vow to God. After all we will answer for our lives someday. I thank The Lord that my sins are forgiven.
    Forgiveness isn't a one time deal. It is not to be taken lightly.
     Though God is faithful to was away our sins and toss them into the sea of forgetfulness the point of repentance is turning our backs on our sins. Saying sorry must mean something. We must make a conscience effort to turn from those sins forever.
    You wouldn't want someone to say sorry for stealing money from your dresser and then continue to do it.
   Another part of this tale is the fact that my fiance and I agreed not to give those movie tickets away to anyone else.
     For me that would be the same as helping someone pay for a six pack of beer when they may be a little short.
    The cost of doing so would be something that would grieve The Spirit.
Freedom isn't free. Jesus gave his life for us. He died to set us free. And whom The Son sets free is free indeed.