Richard Ellis Talks

The story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden shows the consequence of sin, the shame that comes after it, and the necessity of death to cover it. But that is the Gospel story: that Jesus took on our nakedness and guilt when He died on the cross on our behalf, offering us a covering and right relationship with God.

Every believer is called to share the Gospel with those around them. And in the places where we work, God's called us to be "on the job" for Him. The single greatest way we can demonstrate the love of Christ and the impact of the Gospel on our lives is to be salt and light to those around us -- and to show the world that we live differently because He lives in us.

Changing our actions means nothing unless we allow God to come in and change our hearts. Instead of judging other people for the lifestyle choices they make, let's examine ourselves first and realize we need Jesus just as much as they do! When we allow Him to come in and change us on the inside, it will reflect through our actions on the outside.

The Bible tells us over and over again that God always pairs truth with mercy. Without mercy, truth becomes too difficult to grasp, and without truth, mercy allows for too much freedom. In the same way that God pairs the two, it's up to us to do the same when dealing with others.

Jesus died not only to give us eternal life in Heaven, but also so that we can live this earthly life in freedom. We don't have to live our lives in a prison cell where we're caught up in sin. Jesus offers us the opportunity to be free, and it's in that freedom that we find our purpose and fulfillment through Him.

God extends His love and mercy to all of us -- no matter the mistakes we've made. And when it comes to abortion, He wants to offer grace and forgiveness so there can be a fresh start. As Christians, may we pray for our leaders and the decisions they make on behalf of the unborn.

When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, He restores the "maker's mark" within us that was lost from the fall of creation. We're redeemed, never to be condemned again. But we have to actually believe in the promise that because of Christ, we've been made new -- restored to bear the image of God because that's how He created us to be.

Jesus did everything in order to be in relationship with us. And when we're in relationship with Him, He draws us into relationship with others, too. The Church is God's people, and we're called to be with each other, disciple one another, and advance His Kingdom together.

Jesus accepted the cup of suffering that God gave Him in order to fulfill the greater good of saving us from our sins. We have to be willing to drink from the cup God gives us in order to experience His blessings for us. Sometimes that cup may be filled with suffering and we won't experience the blessing until Heaven -- but if we're going to suffer in this life either way, it's far better to suffer God's way.

The devil will try to remind us of our past sins in order to cripple us from moving forward. That's why it's so important that we cling to the forgiveness God offers us so freely. We can overcome the enemy's accusations through Christ's sacrifice on the cross -- and in doing so, we can continue to move forward in what God's called us to do knowing that He's already forgiven us.