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There are many people on this planet who don't believe God is real, and if they do believe in the concept of a god, their beliefs certainly don't align with what the Bible teaches.

What do you think about this subject?  Is God real, and if so, how can we know for sure?

I believe there are several ways to approach this question, each of which convince me that God is indeed real.

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I believe the love of God should be the motivation for what we do with the brief life we have in this world. Love is the greatest source of motivation. Love is a greater motivation than obligation. Many believers treat their relationship with Christ as one of obligation more so than love, but I believe that as we mature in knowing Him, our love for Him deepens and becomes a greater source of motivation than obligation.

a. Why do we serve others? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.
b. Why do we speak His gospel? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.
c. Why do we care for and honor our families? Because we love Jesus who loved us first. d. Why do we work with integrity? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.
e. Why do we maintain hope in this world? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.
f. Why do we suffer for the name of Christ? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.
g. Why are we joyfully sacrificial? Because we love Jesus who loved us first.

Jesus loves His church. We are His body, and He prayed that we would believe in Him, live in unity, see His glory, and that the love of God would be within us.

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Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here:  https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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We're called to be people who hold nothing back from God. We're challenged not to adopt this world's mindset and values as our own. We're taught to begin appreciating who we are in Christ, and we're encouraged to use what God gives us to bless others. A life that's lived in such a way is a life that won't be wasted.

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Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here:  https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to [email protected].

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here:  https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to [email protected].

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Nearly every day we live, we will experience moments that test our patience, people who let us down, and situations that are outside of our control that might provoke us to anger. But as believers in Christ, we don't need to give in to the provocations of this world. The Spirit of God is transforming our thinking and He is enabling us to approach each day with a new mindset, a mindset of grace.

In Colossians 3:12-17, Paul explains what this new mindset looks like when it's being lived out.  It's a mindset or an attitude of worship that we're called to apply to every aspect of our lives.

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The closing verses of Mark’s gospel provide an interesting summary of events that seem like a synthesis of events that are referenced in the other gospel accounts.  The reason that may seem to be the case is that’s precisely what these verses are.  In fact, it’s widely believed that these closing verses weren’t actually penned by Mark, but were added sometime in the second century by an unknown editor.  The earliest manuscripts of Mark’s gospel do not include them, but I still think these verses offer a valuable postscript on the earthly ministry of Jesus as well as an encouragement to us to faithfully follow Him.

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I don’t know if you’re struggling to have hope right now.  I don’t know if there’s something provoking a sense of fear in your heart.  But I do know this.  Jesus lived the perfect life on your behalf, then He atoned for your sin through His suffering and death.  Then, just as He promised He would, He rose from death and completely defeated its power.  For those who are in Christ, death has lost its sting.  In the most literal sense, all it means for us is a transition from our earthly sojourn to living in the presence of the Lord forever.

Don’t let unhealthy fear grip your heart, and don’t lose hope.  Jesus came through for the original disciples, and just as He promised, He will come through for you too.

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Scripture tells us that Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.  Jesus was crucified and died in our place so that we could experience reconciliation with God.  There's a certain amount of mystery to what Jesus said in that moment, but in some deep, spiritual way that is beyond my natural comprehension, He experienced the Father's hatred for sin and some form of temporary spiritual separation that I'm not convinced I can fully understand or explain.  This was done, however, so that we wouldn't need to experience an eternity of separation from our Creator.  Jesus was cursed so that we could be blessed.

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After Jesus had been scourged with whips, He was brought back inside Pilate’s headquarters and a battalion of about 200 soldiers was brought together for the spectacle.  At this point, His body was beaten and bloody.  I’m guessing His face was bruised, swollen, and looking less and less recognizable.  And as if the physical torment He had been forced to endure wasn’t enough, Jesus was mocked by the Roman soldiers who seemed to enjoy the task of fulfilling His execution.

There are several ways the soldiers decided to mock Jesus.  For starters, they took a purple cloak (because the color purple represented royalty) and put it on Him.  Then they fashioned a crown out of thorns and pressed it into His skull.  In Matthew’s gospel (Mt. 27:29), we’re also told they put a reed in His right hand to complete their attempts to mock His royalty.  Jesus put up with it all, even allowing Himself to endure their mocking salute of “Hail, King of the Jews!”

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It isn’t really pleasant to think about what Jesus willingly endured for us in the moments prior to His crucifixion, but it does foster a genuine sense of gratitude, appreciation, and admiration for Him within me.  We deserved this punishment, but He endured it.  We deserved the accusations, but He took them.  We deserved the rejection, yet He put up with it so we could be welcomed into His everlasting kingdom as children of God who are made holy and blameless in His sight.

Jesus was accused, arrested, and scourged to set us free.  He experienced sorrow to bring us joy.  He experienced and defeated death to grant us life.  He is worthy of our trust and thanksgiving.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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There is a time to remain silent and a time to speak up.  Let me encourage you to seek wisdom from the Holy Spirit as to when it’s time for each response.  And when you’re given opportunity to testify to who Jesus is, don’t hesitate to honor Him with your words and your testimony.  Even if you’re treated in a similar manner to the treatment He endured, honor Him with your lips, your lifestyle, and the lasting impression you leave upon those you interact with in this world.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to [email protected].

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