Richard Ellis Talks

The gift of salvation through Jesus Christ is offered to everyone -- but we each have to choose whether we want to receive it or reject it. The greatest news if this: if we accept His gift, we get to spend the rest of our lives unwrapping all that we're given in Him.

Scripture tells us that once we become Christians, born again into God's family, there's nothing we can do to change that. No matter how far we stray from God, there's a kind of "pilot light" within us and He uses it to draw us back to Himself. Not only that, but sometimes, He wants to use us to bring others back to Him, too.

When we're born again as new Christians, it's important that we receive "milk", or spiritual nourishment, from more mature believers. But eventually, we have to be weaned off and learn to chew on "solid food"! As we grow in our relationship with God, we're then able to turn and help feed other new Christians in their faith.

 

The most effective way for someone to become a truly great leader is for them to already be following someone else. And when we follow Jesus Christ, we're called to become leaders ourselves, make disciples, and teach others to do the same. Discipleship and leadership have to be the focus of the Church -- otherwise, we get out of focus and lose our purpose as the Body of Christ.

There's a difference between saying "I'm sorry" and actually meaning it! Just because God offers us mercy and forgiveness doesn't mean we get to take it lightly. True repentance comes with deep sorrow when we realize what we've done wrong -- and genuine change follows as a result.

When God gave us Scripture, He documented His works and His promises in writing -- all so that we might believe and be changed. But knowing the Word of God and believing the Word of God are two different things. And when we believe it, the power of His Word transforms our lives and we bear spiritual fruit as a result.

God isn't interested in sharing the glory He deserves. That's why we often experience situations that require us to put our full trust in Him and Him alone. We need to first start believing that He's for us, not against us -- and then we need to put that faith into action. When we trust God in seemingly impossible circumstances, we get to see His glory shine through our lives in a way that reflects back on Him.

Jesus turned the world upside down when He gave His own life for the will of the Father, in order for us to be saved. Likewise, the only way God will use us to turn the world upside down is if we give our whole selves to Him and His will and hold nothing back. Christ's sacrifice was about so much more than just a ticket to Heaven -- it was about saving the whole world, and using us in the process.

We tend to seek a mate first and then ask for God's blessing later. But what would it look like if we reversed that by seeking God and then allowing Him to direct our steps? When we put God first before moving forward in a relationship, He guides and directs us to the blessing of marriage the way He intended it to be.

On our own, we're all slaves to sin -- but Jesus paid the ultimate price for our freedom so we could be spared from the death sentence that awaits us. For us to be freed, we first need to confess our guilt. Only once we admit that we're dirty with sin can He make us clean.