Richard Ellis Talks

It's possible that you've lived your entire life knowing religious tradition, without ever knowing Christ Himself. Rituals aren't the same thing as relationship, and it's important for us to sift through the traditions we hold and figure out what we need to hold onto as "non-negotiable". The only way to discern the difference is by studying what comes from Scripture and what doesn't. And in order to grow in our relationship with God, we have to be willing to let go of some things and hold fast to others.

Jesus told His disciples that if they followed Him, He would make them fishers of men. If you and I follow Jesus, we'd better do so with the expectation that we, like the disciples, will also be fishing for men, because of the work that God's doing in us!

You may have endured unspeakable hardships, or done unspeakable things, that make you believe you can't experience joy in this life. But no matter your past, God offers unspeakable joy, blessing, and promise, in this life and for eternity. Through Jesus, we're offered abundant hope that lasts not for a moment or a lifetime, but for all time; the only thing standing in our way is our unwillingness to surrender to Him.

There's a day coming when we'll see Jesus face-to-face -- and when we do, we'll be asked to give an account of how we spent our time here. We have one life that we can either build with temporary pleasure or with eternal treasure in mind. It's up to us whether we want to present the Lord with a life that was lived for Him.

Jesus took upon Himself all the transgressions of human history. He died on the cross as the perfect sacrifice God required for the atonement of your sin and mine. Because of Him, we're made clean and righteous in the Father's eyes. But to receive this free gift, we first have to respond. Are you going to accept or decline His invitation?

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were three seemingly ordinary guys in the Old Testament who refused to bow down and worship the king of Babylon, and they were thrown into a blazing fire as a result. But they trusted that God would deliver them -- so why do we struggle to trust Him in far less dire circumstances? Regardless of the "fire" we face, God always has a plan: either He'll deliver us from it or He'll deliver us in it.

We'll never achieve perfection in this life -- but perfection isn't the point. The point is that we strive to obey God, and that we keep trying even when we fail. The more we persevere in our obedience to Him, the deeper both our faith in Him and our relationship with Him grow.

Before Jesus, justice came in the form of "an eye for an eye" and "a tooth for a tooth". But Jesus turned justice upside down when He instead told His followers to love their enemies; do good to those who persecute them; give more than what is asked; go further than the extra mile; and love their neighbor as themselves. What He requires of us goes against our very nature most of the time -- and it requires us to surrender to God and allow Him to extend mercy, love, and forgiveness through us.

True wisdom doesn't come simply from age or life experience; true wisdom is given to us by God Himself. And being wise isn't just knowing what the right thing to do is -- it's following through and doing it. The wisest, most important choice we can ever make is the choice to follow Jesus, and when we do that, He gifts us with the discernment of the Holy Spirit to make God-honoring decisions in every aspect of our lives.

There is a place called Heaven, and there is a place called Hell, and the decisions we make in this life will determine where we spend our eternal life. Choosing to follow Jesus -- or reject Him -- is the single most consequential decision any of us can ever make, because that choice directs our eternity. We all face the same destiny of death in this life, but the only way to have life beyond this one is by choosing to give ourselves to Christ.