Christ Our Life

Why Sion Citizens Succeed

by: Rev. Leon Aguilera

Hebrews 12:17-22, “For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.  For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.”

From Sinai to Sion. Sion citizens succeed because they move on from Sinai. What helps us transition from law to

grace, from works to worship, from struggle to success, and from burden to blessing? It is simply moving ahead. Sion is another name for the city of Jerusalem. You cannot get to Sion without first going to Sinai. You must understand and establish God’s holiness before you move on. Sinai educated us in God’s laws. It is there that we learn the vital importance of both personal and corporate worship. Once that is done, what is next? Your focus needs to be on developing a dynamic personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Sion – A Place of Faith. Sion citizens succeed because they exercise their faith. Out of all the perhaps two or three million Israelites, only two adult men got in to the country where Sion is, Joshua and Caleb. Moses sent twelve men in to spy out the land. Ten of them came back saying that, while the land was blessed with abundant crops, the inhabitants were too strong to defeat. Only Joshua and Caleb trusted in God and believed that He would give them the victory. As a result of their lack of faith, the entire generation perished in the wilderness without ever reaching Sion. When the forty years of wandering were over, God brought them back to the border and placed another test in front of them. By the way, before you get to Sion, you can count on it that God will put impossibility in your path just as He did to them.

Sion – A Place of Sacrifice. Sion citizens succeed because they sacrifice. Sion has great historical significance. It was a place where God’s people came to offer sacrifices unto Him. Sion is where Abraham took his son Isaac, and they built and altar. There, Isaac lay on the altar; and Abraham willing to sacrifice his son, but God sent a ram, which was a picture of Jesus Christ. Sion is where David bought the threshing floor of Araunah to offer a sacrifice to God after he sinned by numbering the people. He said, “Neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the Lord my God of that which doth cost me nothing.” (2 Samuel 24:24) Most importantly, Sion is the place where the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, was crucified. One of the reasons you continue to grow spiritually after arriving in Sion is that it is a place of making sacrifice unto God. If you want to be a citizen of God in the city of Sion, then you must be prepared to make sacrifices. There is no way you will ever endure the adversity unless you are a sacrificial giver. Sacrifice involves so much more than just money. We ought to tithe; we ought to give offerings unto the Lord, but we ought to live our lives sacrificially for God. It is only when we are willing to sacrifice that we maximize our potential for spiritual development and growth.

Sion – A Place Called Home. Sion citizens succeed because they make Sion their home. Verse twenty- two says, “But ye are come unto mount Sion”. That phrase in the language of the Bible is very precise. It is not talking about coming for visit; it is talking about moving in to a permanent residence. The idea is to decide that you are going to live in the presence of God. If you read John 15, you will see Jesus talking about abiding in Him. That is what this verse means. Coming to Sion means that we are living in the presence of Jesus. After a long day at work, I look forward to going home. That is a place of refuge for me. Roseann and I love each other, and so we want to spend time together. We often forget that while those of us who are saved have an eternal future waiting for us in Heaven, we also have the obligation and opportunity to live in Sion – “the heavenly Jerusalem” right now. Do not live in isolation from God. Do not view Him as being distant and unapproachable as the people did at Sinai. Jesus has opened the way into His presence through His blood. That means you and I can have the same kind of dynamic relationship with God here on earth that we will enjoy in Heaven. By the grace of God, we can live in Sion and be successful citizens in His country.

The Wise Work Hard

The Wise Avoid Negative Conflict

The Cost of Dropping Out of the Race

by: Rev. Leon Aguilera

Hebrews 12:14-17, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.”

The race of discipleship is a race that is difficult.  Do I need to convince you that the race is hard?  I am sure you did not need me to tell you that!  We have been looked at the reasons God places us in this race and the work He prepares for us.  Now, I want to give you a caution – the story of what happens when we decide to drop out of course.  Yes, it is hard.  Yes, it is difficult.  Yes, it hurts. But, we have to stay in the race. The costs of dropping out are just too high.

Change of Goals. First, when we drop out, our goals change. Verse fourteen tells us to “follow peace”.  This is a very strong word.  In fact, in our New Testament it is most frequently translated as “persecute” because the idea of the word is to pursue with such determination that nothing can stop you from reaching the goal.  Why was it important for Esau to follow peace?  Esau was in a difficult family situation.  His parents, Isaac and Rebekah, had to wait twenty years before they had children; and when they did, they had twins.  Before they were born, God said that the elder would serve the younger.  Esau was born first, which meant that according to God’s plan, he would have to serve Jacob.  If that were not enough, there was another area of contention.  Isaac loved Esau, and Rebekah loved Jacob.  It is dangerous for parents to show favoritism among their children, but that was the case in Esau’s home.

Change of Insight.  Second, when we drop out, our insights change.  Verse fourteen also says “without which, no man shall see the Lord”.  When it talks about seeing God here, it is not talking about salvation.  Hebrews is written to people who are already saved.  It is talking about our vision of God; if you go back to verse two it says, “Looking unto Jesus”.  What we lose is the ability to see God in the midst of our adversity.  As long as Peter looked at Jesus, he stayed on top of the water.  When he focused on the storm and the waves, he started to sink.  A place of adversity without Jesus is the loneliest place imaginable.  We start looking around and ask, “Why is this happening to me? I don’t understand.”  That is where we end up when we quit – blinded by the side of the track.

Change of Values.  Third, when we drop out, our values change.  The things that used to be important to us when we were right with God are suddenly not important anymore.  Verse fifteen says, “Lest there be any fornicator…”  The word “fornicator” is the Greek word pornos, from which we get the word pornography.  The root meaning of the word is “to put up for sale”.  When we quit the race, our values change so much that we are even willing to sell our purity and pollute our personal lives.  Where once you wanted to be pure and holy from a heart of integrity, now you want to gratify your desires.  If you love God properly, you would rather die than displease Him.  Once you drop out, your values change.  The things that once mattered before no longer matter to you.

Change of Future.  Before you get back on course though, you are going to have to go back to the Master and beg for His forgiveness and candidly, transparently admit your sin.  Let me tell you what that process is going to look like.  He is going to test your sincerity and commitment by having you go back to people who were impacted by your quitting and make things right with them.  You may say that it is impossible; and it is impossible in your own strength.  But, if you do not fail of the grace of God, the grace of God will never fail you. He will help you make things right.

A WORD ON EVANGELISM

by: Frankie Lucenti

Do you make it your goal to obey God?  Do you wake up in the morning with a passion to follow God’s commands?  If you fall like I do and you haven’t made it a personal goal to follow the commands of God you can start today.  Did you share Jesus Christ with someone last week, yesterday, or today?  God commands us to go out into the world and share the gospel five times in scripture. Read these verses and allow the word of God speak to your heart. 

1.       Matthew 28:18-20

2.       Mark 16:15-18

3.       Luke 24:46-48

4.       John 20:21

5.       Acts 1:8

Don’t live your life in fear of speaking to people about Christ.   Galatians 2:20 says we are crucified with Christ.  He gave everything for us, so now we give everything to Christ.  When we accept Christ we are forever pleasing to God in His eyes because of Christ, but like Paul we are to live our lives to please God.  “Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him” (2 Corinthians 5:9).  We surrender to the work of God.  God does not gift only certain people to be great soul-winners, it is a command to all of us together.  Mark 16:15 “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” In John 3 Christ spoke to Nicodemus, a man who was Jewish. In John chapter 4 He spoke to a Samaritan Woman who in the custom Jews were not seen with, also in John chapter 8 He spoke with an adulterous woman, and in chapter 9 with a blind man.

·         Everywhere 

·         Everyday

·         Everybody

I know we can feel scared and tell ourselves there’s no way we can speak to people we don’t know, but it’s not true.  “Only those whose risk going too far can find out how far one can go.”  I challenge you to push yourself today and speak to friends and family members about your faith because with Christ your fears can be crushed. In times you do fail, don’t quit.  When it gets hard you hold on, because you will never reach the goal if you don’t keep moving forward, so fail forward.  "And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”(Mark 10:26) So what is the first step we take? We follow Jesus. "And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”(Matthew 4:19)

Our purpose for soul winning is not to establish more members in our church, our purpose is simply to keep lost people out of hell and to follow to the command He gave us.  It is always Christ who saves, never us.  Without Faith all of this is impossible. Believe that you can do this, believe that Christ can work through you to point the lost to Christ.