Posts Tagged ‘faith in Jesus’
Another Example of Wrongfully Interpreting A Single Verse of Scripture Out of Its Context
Philippians 2: 12 – Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Here is a prime example of how a text, taken out of context, can be interpreted to seemingly mean one thing when it proves to be something entirely different when read contextually.
For instance, most of the time this verse is used like this, “now that you accepted Jesus and are saved you must do what needs to be done in order to remained saved.” “You must work out your salvation of your own will.”
A number of Christian religions, who lean heavily on Old Testament scriptural Law, tend to teach that once one is saved by accepting Jesus as Savior need to be obedient to the Law of the Old Testament or they could loose their salvation.
You must work at being obedient to God’s Law, being careful to observe Church teachings, and obeying all that needs to be done to insure you will keep your salvation from failing. Something that the Jews nor Gentiles ever could accomplish, nor ever will. Each day can start with fear of doing something that will cause you to loose your salvation and trembling even at the hint of sinning a sin for which one could not be forgiven.
How can one ever have confidence in their faith, with this kind of teaching, and be at peace with God?
However, the fear and trembling that is mentioned in this verse is a good thing because of what is said in the next verse that is following. Here is where reading this singular verse in its context will show a different and a more pleasing, God honoring, meaning. See if you can notice the reason for the fear and trembling when this verse is read in its context.
Philippians 2:9-15 KJV – Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
Did you notice verse thirteen? When one, by God’s Grace, is born again by the will of God, and not by the will of man, he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit who begins to work God’s will in him for the works God created for him (Ephesians 2: 9, 10). You will start to see yourself in a different light, with a change of thought and language and in how you will start to treat other people in a more friendly and helpful manor, and more.
These changes, at first, will seem strange and maybe even scary, not knowing what is happening to you and who or what is causing this change. Verse thirteen explains quite plainly what is happening and why. For it is God who is at work in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
Some of these changes may seem wrong and upsetting at first as it may be something you do not want. That is why in verse fourteen we are told to do these things without murmurings and disputings. You may not enjoy some of these changes, but overtime they will become second nature to you.
This will happen because of God working His will in you that you wonderfully begin to see the changes that are taking place in your life, and that can be a scary thing at first. Eventually you will start to expect seeing how God is working His will in your life for your good and God’s glory.
God is at work in you in keeping you saved so that you do not have to fear loosing your salvation. It is God’s job in keeping you saved by His grace and not of your will. For no one is justified before God by man’s will, only by the faith of Jesus is anyone justified.
Again you can see how reading a scripture verse alone can be taken to mean one thing but when it is read in its context the full meaning comes to life. Never take for granted what someone says is what a single verse means until you read it in its full context.
Would not what God says be more meaningful than what man or a religion says?
The What Why and How of Salvation
There are a number of Christian Religions but only two ways of salvation being preached.
The more popular one is a man-centered one where man must choose to be saved and then do or say something in order to receive God’s forgiveness and salvation.
The other, least popular, way is God-centered where He forgives and saves as He wills because man is unable to save himself.
The place to find the answers is in scripture; God’s holy word. We will look at the What the Why and the How of salvation as found in the Word. Then we will see what is the Response of the one that is saved when called by God.
The scriptures are all quoted within the context in which they were written, to understand better why God wrote them in the first place.
The What…
2 Timothy 1:8-9 KJV – Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.
Here we see that the first thing God does is save us as He wills. Then He calls us. But why must He first save us? Read the following verses to see the Why.
The Why…
Ephesians 2:1-5 KJV – And you hath he quickened , who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Twice in these verses we are told that man is dead ( spiritually ) because of our sinful condition and are children of wrath like everyone else. But God makes us alive which sets us free and It is by His Grace that we are made alive. So How does Grace save us?
The How…
Titus 3:5-7 KJV – Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Being saved by Grace is simple. We see that it is not by our will that we are saved but by God’s Grace which is the washing of regeneration ( born-again) and the renewing of the Holy Spirit. We are forgiven, saved and made new by being born-again. We are justified – saved – by the Grace of God. Having been saved, what is the Response of those saved and called?
The Response of Those Saved and Called…
Romans 10:8-10 KJV – But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
When we are Saved ( born-again ) we are made alive in the spirit and given a new heart. One filled with love and faith, having been given to us as a gift when we were saved, and with faith we confess Jesus as our Lord and believe that He was raised from the dead and is alive and watching over us.
Scripture clearly says that God ( The What ) saves us, ( The Why ) for we cannot save ourselves because of our sin nature, ( The How ) by grace which is the act of making us alive , born-again, then calls us. ( The Response ) with the faith given to us as a gift when we were born-again, we confess Jesus as Lord and believe that God has raised from the dead and we confess our salvation found only in Jesus.
So there you have it; The What, The Why, The How and The Response of God’s Salvation. What say you?
A synopsis…
Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace. Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Why Christians Live By Faith
Gal 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
There is nothing we have done to be found worthy of salvation or anything in which we can have faith to be declared righteous before God.
When we first believed in Jesus as Lord it was due to the fact that we were first born-again, not because we were born into a Christian family, nor because we had done good works, nor because of our own will, but by the will and Grace of God. It is at this point that the righteousness of Christ was imputed to us (covering us) so that when God would look at us He would see Jesus and not our unrighteousness. As we read in Romans 3:22…
Rom 3:22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe.
Being justified, that is made righteous, is not because of any works of our own but by the righteousness of Christ. As we see in Galatians 2:16…
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
We have no righteous works of our own upon which we can have faith for salvation and be found worthy of going to Heaven. It is by faith that we believe in Jesus that He has done for us what we could not do for ourselves, and that is to become righteous before God.
We can never be justified, or be found righteous, by our works for no one is justified before God by works of the Law. Jesus came and fulfilled the Law’s requirements for becoming righteous, and it is by the faith of Jesus, not ours, that we stand righteous before God.
Christ died for sins. His perfect obedience to the Father made Jesus the only righteous person who ever lived. His righteousness is given to all who believe in Him and proclaim Him Lord so that when God looks at us He sees, not our unrighteousness, but the righteousness of Jesus.
It is for us to do nothing more than to trust in the works of Jesus the Son of God who loves us and gave His life for us, that Christians, who are made righteous by the death of Jesus, might live by faith and faith alone.
To What Or Whom Are Christians Under Authority?
Rom 2:13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
Every time I hear someone say that Christians are to be obedient to the Law (Ten Commandments) I cringe. What they do not realize is that to be obedient to the Law puts one under the authority of the Law, and that makes that person a doer of the Law.
According to the Romans 2: 13 – above – anyone who becomes a doer to the Law, putting themselves under the authority of the Ten Commandments, will result in being justified by their obedience to the Law. Just the opposite of what we read in Galatians 2: 16…
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
What I do not understand is why would one want to be under the authority of the Ten Commandments and not, by God’s Grace, be under the authority of Jesus, to obey Him?
The Old Covenant is obsolete and is no longer in authority over man, as you can read for yourself in Hebrews 8: 7 – 13. It has been replaced by a new and a more excellent Covenant, one that is based on what Jesus has done for man.
Think of this, as a Christian, either you are under the authority of the Law to obey it, or you are under the authority of Jesus to obey Him.
Ummm, I know under whose authority I am. How about you?
Living The Christian Life By Faith
Heb_10:38 (KJV) Now the just shall live by faith:(see also Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11)
Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Heb 4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Now that you are a Christian, instead of living by faith are you still trying to please God by doing works – why? Did not Jesus promise in Matthew 11:28 that everyone who comes to Him He would give them rest? Do we not also read in Hebrews that they who enter into the rest offered by Jesus would cease from their own works?
So, what does it mean to rest in Jesus and to live by faith?
As was hinted at in Hebrews 4: 10, when God created the universe and all that is in it, He did so in six days and on the seventh day, since there was nothing else for Him to do, He rested.
You also can rest from your works and live by faith.
In the Gospel of John chapter 10, Jesus said:
Joh 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
Joh 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any manpluck them out of my hand.
Joh 10:29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck themout of my Father’s hand.
Joh 10:30 I and my Father are one.
In these four verses lies the work of salvation. Jesus calls us, saves us and we follow Him, He gives us eternal life and we will never perish. No one can take us from Him or the Father, for He and the Father are one.
Salvation is all of God. God saves us by grace – born-again – and having been regenerated by God He gives us the gift of faith, the faith of Jesus, by which we believe in Him to be Lord. He gives us eternal life and promises never to leave us nor forsake us and that He will lose none of all whom He saves.
God, having created our salvation from beginning to end, left nothing for us to do concerning our salvation, but to just sit back and rest. We can live our Christian life by faith in Jesus, for He has done it all for us, that which we could never do for ourselves; we now live by faith.
However, now comes the part in which we play. We do not just sit around and do nothing or go out and have a good time doing the same things we did, said or thought before we were saved, as we will find ourselves being changed by God and it will give us some fear and we will tremble at the beginning when God starts to work in us.
I am sure you probably have heard the following verse from Philippians:
Php 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Most likely, you have been told that you now must do this and that in order to stay saved, and that is why “you” must now work on keeping your salvation. They never seem to tell you the next verse that speaks of why you will find yourself with some fear and will tremble. Here is verse 13:
Php 2:13 For it is God which works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
You see, the reason for the fear and trembling is the fact that God, having saved you, will now start to work in you not only to become willing to be obedient to Him but that you will find yourself wanting to do the good works that He has prepared in advance for you.
In Ephesians, after having saved you, we read this:
Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Seeing yourself starting to think, do and say things differently will at first scare you. For you will know not from where it comes, but when you realize it is God working in you to do His will, the fear will change to being exciting; wondering what will come next as you start to see how God is working in your life.
Yes, there are works involved in the life of a Christian. Good works you will want to do, not to keep your salvation or to receive anything from God, but to please God.
You will do these “works” in praise to God for He has made it possible for you not only to enter into His rest, in this life, but in Heaven as well for all eternity.
The fact is that in this life, God has given you the ability to live a life of freedom from works of the Law. You can just rest in the works of Jesus, which He did for your salvation, and do God’s plan as He works in you to will and to do of His good pleasure. You can live your Christian life by faith, the faith of Jesus.
This is the faith by which we live…
Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (KJV)
Fourteen Years and 170 Essays Later
It is hard to believe that it has been fourteen years since Riff’s Christian Journal began.
During that time there have been 170 essays written with an average of a thousand words per each one. The longest was around 3000 words and the shortest was about 500 words. Of course, many of these words were actual scripture verses upon which the essays are written.
The first essay, written in June of 2009, is titled, “What I believe About Sin & Salvation”. Since then each entry into the journal has been on a different topic using scriptures for the basis of that entry. The scriptures used were done to support the thesis of the essay proving the premise that is the reason for the essay.
In short, these essays were, in some ways based on the “Five Solos” that came out of the Protestant Reformation movement. These are:
➢ Grace Alone
➢ Faith Alone
➢ Christ Alone
➢ Scripture Alone
➢ To The Glory of God Alone
In studying for these essays, a lot has been learned from the scriptures, especially the differences between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Most notably were the facts that the Old Covenant is a man-centered works based system of religion under the Law and the New Covenant is a God-centered faith based system under Grace. Not the least is the fact that the Old Covenant is obsolete and fading away (see Hebrews 8: 7 – 13. To find out who is the Israel about which is mentioned in these verses read Romans 9: 6 – 8. Then read Galatians 4: 28 to find out who are the children of the promise mentioned in Romans 9.)
Only as the Holy Spirit has guided this writer have these essays been written. They came not from the one at the keyboard but from the Word itself to be used as an incentive for what was being written, and for the premise that was being put forth for the reader to consider.
The writer is totally convinced that if it were not for the Grace of God these essays would not have been written. It has been humbling, invigorating and quite a wonderful blessing, as well as educational, to be used by God in this manor, and I do give Him all the glory for all that has been written.
As God wills, I look forward to many more years of service in this capacity to the Glory of God.
I would like to leave with you a prayer, using scripture verses from Colossians to all of you for your future as a Christian. These are varied verses from Colossians chapter 1.
King James Version:
We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which you have to all the saints,
For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;
For this cause we also, since the day we heard, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that you might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
That you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and long suffering with joyfulness;
Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us qualified to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Who has delivered us from the power of darkness, and has translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
Amen
May God’s blessings be upon every one of you, and may God give you peace in living a life based on the faith of Jesus that has been given to all God’s children by which you believe in Jesus as Lord
Christianity Stands or Falls On The Resurrection Of Jesus!
Have you ever given thought to the importance of the resurrection of Jesus from the grave?
If Christ were not raised from the dead, then His dying on the cross would be meaningless. He would just be another Jew put to death by Roman soldiers at the insistence of the Jewish religious leaders for His claim of being the Son of God.
The virgin birth of Jesus to Mary would not have occurred and Joseph would have been His real father and not God.
Christianity would be a false religion, meaningless and accomplishing nothing.
Paul the apostle put it best; of how important is the resurrection of Jesus, when he wrote to the Corinthian church the following information. Taken from 1 Corinthian 15 – various versus. (KJV)
1Co 15:14 And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.
1Co 15:15 Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ:
1Co 15:17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.
1Co 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
1Co 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead,
Having read these verses, you now see how important is the resurrection of Jesus. It cannot be said any better then what we read in verse 17 above in that. “if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; you are yet in your sins.”
Without the resurrection of Jesus from the grave Christianity becomes a false religion, no different from any other religion, but thanks be to God that Jesus has been raised from the dead.
This allows us to confess that Jesus is Lord and we can say that we believe that God has raised Him from the dead to show the salvation, the forgiveness of sins, has been given to us by the grace of God.
Truly, Christianity does stand or fall on the resurrection Of Jesus!
Come Unto Me and Rest
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (KJV)
On a given Sunday from the past, I gave a message on this verse. While it was well received, I always had this nagging feeling that there was something I was missing.
The title of that message was, “Finding rest in a busy world.” So, naturally my focus was on how coming to Jesus could give us rest, physical rest, from how we burden ourselves with our jobs and the worries of life, which can weigh heavy on our hearts.
Fast-forward a number of years…
For quite some time, I have been studying scriptures on the difference between the works-based man-centered religion of being under the Law of the Old Testament and the faith-based God-centered relationship of being under grace in the New Testament.
One verse I had read, in studying living under grace, had a clause in it that kept sticking in my mind. Found in Romans, Galatians and Hebrews, all it said was, “The Just shall live by faith.”, but how do the just live by faith. Faith in what?
Then I remembered the verse on which I had previously preached from Matthew and two words kept coming to mind; “labour” and “rest.” Then it hit me. I had considered Matthew 11: 28 all wrong from a Christian’s point of view.
You see, the word “labour” means – to feel fatigue, work hard, be wearied, and the word “rest” means – to refresh: – take ease, rest. However, I had been looking at this verse in a worldly way, in how works of any kind can be a heavy burden on us, not allowing for any rest.
Instead, I should have been looking in how this verse is related to salvation found only in Jesus, and how Christians should view this verse. Especially in how we need to cease from trying to be obedient to the works of the Law and just rest in our salvation, and live by faith in the works of Christ.
In Galatians 2: 16 we read:
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (KJV)
And in Hebrews 4: 10 we read:
Heb_4:10 (KJV) For he that is entered into his(Jesus) rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. (on the seventh day after creation).
Once a person is saved, we no longer need to keep on trying to be obedient to the Law for our salvation or even in keeping our salvation for we are no longer under the Law but under Grace.
The Law only serves to show us our sinfulness while grace shows how we are forgiven, saved and justified by the faith of Jesus and in His works in His perfect obedience in fulfilling the Law, and not by any works of righteousness, we may think we have done.
When Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” not only was He talking about salvation but also in how Christians can have rest living by the faith of Jesus. That is why it is said, “The just shall live by faith.”
We can rest in the finished work of Christ. Instead of doing any works of righteousness, we feel we must do.
So, go now dear Christian, believe in the love of our Lord Jesus, and live by His faith that was given to you with which to believe in Him when you were born-again and you will have the rest that He promised.
Believing What Christ Said About Eternal Life
If I were to ask you this question, “Do you believe Jesus when He speaks to us?”, most likely you would say “Yes, of course”. What if I were to ask you, “Did Jesus ever lie?”, again you might quickly answer “No, He never did.”, but is this something you really believe?
While there are many different Christian religions, for the most part, they all believe in Jesus for salvation. The problem, however, is that there are many who call themselves Christians that believe it is possible that one could lose their salvation.
If it were possible to lose one’s salvation, along with eternal life, would that not make Jesus a liar? I guess it would depend upon what Jesus has said about eternal life, and the best place to find out what He said is in the Scriptures.
There are three scripture references I would like for you to see. You can read them for yourself and decide what it is you want to believe.
The first scripture verses are from John 6: 37 – 40
John 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
John 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
John 6:39 And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
John 6:40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Here we see that Jesus said that He would lose none of all whom the Father gave to Him, and that they would have everlasting life.
The second scripture verses are from John 10: 25 – 29
John 10:25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me.
John 10:26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
John 10:29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.
In speaking of His Sheep Jesus said that He gave them eternal life and that they will never perish, and that no one can take them from Him. In addition, He reminded everyone that the Father gave them to Him and that no one can take them out of His Father’s hand as well.
The last scripture verse I would like for you to see is this. From John 17: 2
John_17:2 (KJV) As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
God the Father has given to Jesus all power over all flesh, and that Jesus would give eternal life to all whom the Father has given Him.
So, now what is it that you believe? Do you still think that you can have eternal life taken from you? On the other hand, have you been given the assurance that, according to what you have just read, your salvation and the promise of eternal life in heaven is secure in the words of Jesus.
These are but a few scripture verses that are quotes from Jesus, to say that one could lose eternal life is tantamount to calling Jesus a liar. If you still believe eternal life can be lost, you are saying that you do not believe what Christ said about eternal life. It is that simple.
Jesus said:
John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish…
Giving Thanks To A Great God
When it comes to eating a most wonderful meal, November is the month for me.
This is a month for giving thanks and nothing says giving thanks more than Thanksgiving. The meals at this time of the year are fantastic. Especially the ones I remember as a kid from the late 1940’s to the early 1960’s.
From my Mom to my Grandmothers they all knew how to cook from scratch and using nothing but fresh – never frozen – meats and vegetables, mostly from their garden.
The fresh Turkey was always nicely brown, fork tender and juicy. Filled with wonderful stuffing that was moist and tasty. The “smashed”, yes smashed, potatoes were nothing like today’s “whipped” smooth and wimpy potatoes. Those potatoes, which I still make myself, where hardy, full of russet flavor, buttery and so wonderfully stiff with a thickness that it would hold up to any homemade gravy from the pan drippings of the Turkey. Add a side of corn and you have a fantastic meal. Except…
Except, it was even better when you had a side of homemade cranberry relish, made with real cranberries, apples and oranges with sugar for added sweetness.
We ran everything through an old style hand cranked food processor (grinder). Beginning with the cranberries dumped into the intake funnel, as you turned the hand crank to crush the berries out came the ground up berries and juice. Then the apples were added, peeling and all, along with the oranges just sliced with the rind still on, all through the same manual food processor.
Once the right amounts of fruits were added, all the ingredients were mixed with a big spoon while adding sugar to the mixture for the sweetness one wanted. Then it was finished… ummm, not quite.
For best results, the mixture was best made about two weeks before Thanksgiving so that it could sit and marinate, and the results were an added measure of taste that was out of this world. Not to mention, that whoever made this relish always filled a quart-canning jar with the relish, seal it with paraffin wax and a lid, and set it in the back of the refrigerator until…
Until Christmas!
At this point, after having sat for so long in a cold environment the result from the fermenting process gave the relish an extra added boost of extravagant flavor and a taste that no canned relish or sauce could ever duplicate. Can you say “ambrosia”?
Not to be outdone by the meal there was one last thing to have; either a big slice of homemade pumpkin pie topped with homemade whipped cream, or a big hunk of homemade thick apple pie topped with real homemade ice cream. What a way to finish a scrumptious meal.
However, before the meal, one thing was always done before any eating took place, and that was the saying of grace.
Now this was something that the kids always took turns in saying and it was very appropriate for little children to say as it was also the way Jesus wanted people to be in following Him – with the faith of a little child.
Our version went like this…
“God is great, God is good and we thank Him for our food. By His hands, we all are fed. Thank you Lord, for our daily bread. Amen.”
You see, food is a blessing. We do not need to ask God to bless it. It already is blessed because God has given it to us. All we need to do is to be grateful to God for our daily bread and just give Him heartfelt thanks in return.
Even Jesus gave thanks for food as He did at the last supper:
Luk_22:19 (KJV) And he took the bread, gave “thanks”, and gave it unto His disciples…
The food is the blessing…
“God is great, God is good and we thank Him for our food. Amen.”
Riff's Christian Journal 