by Tony Sasse

There are 4 Laws that affect everyone.

1. The Consequences of Unforgiven Sin.
2. The Consequences of Living in a Fallen/Defective World
3. The Forces of Evil.
4. The law of Free Will.

You can run, but you can't hide from these. No exemptions. Real laws, powerful.

1) Sin Everybody sins. ‚  Everyone. ‚  You, me, The Pope and The Queen. Basically it’s the various forms of selfishness and pride. The usual sins are listed by Jesus in Mark 7:20"¦"¦ ‚   "for from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly"¦" and there are also plenty of others mentioned elsewhere.

It’s the consequences that get us. Firstly, our peace is lost, and we have only partial forms of love and joy. Our hearts have instead various forms/levels of ache, pain, frustration and anger stirring around inside. We know what real love is; we just haven’t got it. The Psalms tell us "many are the sorrows of those who pursue false gods" (Psalm 32:10), and "there is no rest/peace for the wicked"(Psalm 57:20), and ultimately "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23).

There is only one solution - forgiveness through the blood shed on the cross: "Taste and see that the Lord is good" scripture invites (Psalm 34:8)."My soul finds rest in God alone" (Psalm 62:1).

There is no other solution, but funnily enough, God is happy for us to try any other path we like. In the Prodigal Son story The Father (representing God) does not stop his child from going to the city to try the party life. The son is free to go. The Father is of course hoping that when the music stops and the reality hits, the son will come to his senses and realise there is no peace on the path he has chosen, and be humble enough to recognise this.

So, Unforgiven Sin is the first law, and it destroys happiness fast. And it leads to behavioural defects, adverse behaviour patterns are established and become addicted to. This Jesus calls "being a slave to sin" (John 8:34) and Paul enlarges on this in Romans 7. I have seen this time and time again as I’ve lived long enough. From friends always choosing a loser boyfriend, to low self-esteem, compulsive gambling, cigarettes, drugs, sex-addiction"¦..the list is endless and is in the newspapers daily. Sin can lead to illness and disease, physical consequences of spiritual damage.

2) Defective world. If you haven’t worked out that this world is defective, where have you been? ‚   Humans can be cruel to other humans; problems like defective genes, accidents, cancers, earthquakes and Tsunamis, floods and fires are all included here. It is painful, very much so. When Jesus was asked about a collapsed tower which killed some people, and also about some victims of political violence, He merely commented to make sure you have repented of your sins (Luke 13:1-5). Of course, God didn’t mean for all this to happen, He created it perfect originally, but the weight of sin and the transfer of power to Satan has had these consequences. Those who try to blame every adverse event on a particular sin are refuted by Jesus when he declined to blame anyone for blindness from birth (John 9).The world is defective. It is loving to search for scientific solutions to our problems, antibiotics are wonderful, and so is CPAP. ‚  But some catastrophes are as a result of judgement from God, but He warns first through a prophet with calls to repent (Jonah), judgement often affects one third of the objects of wrath and is appropriate to the crime, and particularly occurs after persecution of Jews or believing Christians (Genesis 12:3). Furthermore, as the world nears the second coming of Christ, Jesus predicted increased political turmoil and "natural" disasters, as a consequence/judgement of human sin (including the destroying of the earth: Rev 11:18), and as a signal to repent of sin.

3) The Forces of Evil. Satan and his minions are real, and you may have had some experiences of this, I certainly have, and The Bible has plenty to say on the subject. Their goal is the oppression/destruction of the human. When you see irrational or cruel behaviour going on, evil powers are possibly acting as accelerants on the compliant and willing humans involved. Furthermore, serious persistent unforgiven sin, particularly sexual or occultist stuff, gives the dark forces permission to enter and push around the hearts of people. If you or your ancestors have made obedience oaths particularly including blood or death, this also opens a door to enable dark forces to gain a foothold in a human heart. ‚  External social pressure, combined with these internal pressures can influence a heart towards addictive selfishness and evil, or cause misery internally. Have you ever wondered why the "voices" in serious mental illness are never loving or peaceful ? People end up trapped with a whirl of unhappiness and often the thoughts/voices then conveniently suggest suicide"¦.Ever wondered why peacemakers in the Middle East all end up murdered? ‚  Some physical diseases can also have a spiritual cause, as can some natural disasters. Satan can whip up a good storm if he wants to.....(Mark 4:35)

Free Will. God will never crash your boundaries. Never, ever, ever. ‚   Satan, the prince of this world according to Jesus, as he has been given the rights because of sin, can push around humans. God has given us unalienable rights of free will (Luke 13:34). He will only act if invited, but only under His terms .Humans can even close off distinct areas of their life to God, and He will respect that. He’ll dislike it, and there are adverse consequences, but we have the right.

Humans have freedom of Choice, but not freedom of Outcomes. This is important.

Also, all sin gets justice, sooner or later.( It’s just a matter of who pays the price).

All this stuff God calls "The Kingdom of Darkness" (Colossians 1:13). Self-centred living is not a safe option or a long-term way to contentment, despite short term pleasures. Fear emerges periodically. God says we need rescuing. He says life is not good, and eventually terrible, on the "dark side", but we are all welcome to try our best"¦.. "without hope and without God in the world" Ephesians 2:12.

But God has set up an alternative way to live, He calls it "The Kingdom of God".

There are at least 6 Weapons/Laws available to those who sign up.

1. The Law of Repentance"¦"¦..sorts out the sin and its consequences.
2. The Law of Faith"¦"¦"¦"¦"¦"¦"¦sorts out adverse Worldly events that are outside God’s will.
3. The Power to tell Satan to leave.
4. Common Sense.
5. The Word of God"¦"¦"¦"¦"¦"¦..powerful indeed.
6. The Spirit of God..............guidance, comfort.

1) Repentance removes the rights of sin and Satan. So behaviour patterns can be healed. So peace can return, and love for others can grow and grow. Jesus’ first words were "repent, for the Kingdom of God is near" Matt 4:17. No repentance, forget it"¦........you’ll never break free.

First, humans must recognise themselves their own flaws/defects/sins/oaths"¦"¦"¦. Being specific is important.

Second, humans must recognise that they cannot change themselves.

Third, humans must ask for forgiveness and ask to be changed, on the basis of the blood of Jesus shed on the cross.

God won’t do anything until these terms are met. If you choose to disagree, He says "Go away, come back when you are ready". Somehow, a perfect sacrifice was necessary to break the power of sin and the devil. God went to such trouble....., ‚  much of the Old Testament was a foreshadow to the mission and sacrifice of Jesus:

Such as Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son.

Such as Moses holding up a snake on a pole, prefiguring Jesus on the tree/cross.

Such as the Passover Lamb saving from death.

Such as Psalm 22 being a complete crucifixion scene.

There are over 300 references or "types" to the Jesus mission through the Old Testament, over 1600 years, and that’s a big effort.

And it works. It worked for my defects"¦"¦.and the guy who wrote "Amazing Grace" I guess had a similar experience, he was a slave trader. It is quite liberating actually....

2) Faith can overcome anything the world or Satan throws up. It is conditional that both God and the person praying must agree, and his/her own sin must be forgiven. God can’t respond unless approached through the Blood of Jesus"¦.(Hebrews 10:19). His terms. Unforgiven sin it seems creates a huge barrier. Not asking is another problem humans have.....and sometimes you have to wait, or even keep asking and giving....Jesus stilled storms, He says we can too, and even more. (John 14:12). I’ve seen it. Healings and miracles occur when faith is used.

God says He has a plan for every human, if they will agree (Psalm 57:2), including a set life span (Psalm 139:16). But many die prematurely because they did not have the ability to fight off the thief who came to steal, kill and destroy the happiness.

This does not mean that there will be no trouble, Jesus specifically states that actually there will be trouble, but not to be afraid as He has overcome the world (John 16:33), and the power of death, and that in the end everything will turn out well for those who love Him (Romans 8:28). God is negotiable"¦..many have persuaded Him to move differently on various circumstances, but not on the basics.

I have seen God do amazing things. Jesus lived a life that we too can live, in an imperfect but improving manner, God wants us to be imitators of Christ (1 Cor 11:1). The most frustrating thing is seeing people miss the ride. God has consistently turned up for me, (and I have a high standard for miracles), as He keeps His Word that He will (John 14:21).

God though reserves the right to put His servants through tests and trials to teach, purify/refine (Heb 12) or even display trust and character; also to help others in the midst of trouble (Hebrews 11,12, Jeremiah, Daniel).Indeed God tells Christians not to be surprised when trouble and persecution comes, but to rejoice when we suffer according to God’s will, and continue to do good (1 Peter 4:12-19). God also will judge a community/nation should their sin reach a high level, particularly if they persecute real Christians and Jews, or if the percentage of people who are righteous (in His eyes) fall too low.....see Sodom and Gomorrah, or both of the falls of Jerusalem. God also reserves the right to take "righteous and devout men" early to be spared from evil (Isaiah 57:1). The death of saints is precious in God’s eyes, and the manner of which can bring glory to God (John 21:19).

3) Satan has to leave a human when the specific sin is forgiven and he is ordered out. There are many examples throughout Jesus’ life, and this quietly continues in biblical churches today. James 4:7.Every believer has this right, for themselves and others.

Common Sense. No one ever gives a talk about common sense, but Jesus is always appealing to it. "Judge for yourselves what is right", "Make a right judgement" ‚   He says. When asked if is right to heal on the Sabbath, Jesus does not refer to Scripture, but asks would you leave your son or an animal down a hole on the Sabbath, an appeal to common sense.

God’s Word is the Bible, and it is powerful in its own right. "The Word of God is living and active..." Hebrews 4:12, and my life has been drastically improved when He pointed out certain instructions contained within. I was having thought-control problems, and God pointed out 2^nd Corinthinians 10: 5 which contained the secret,(look it up...) which I immediately applied to excellent and wonderful effect. It also contains instructions how to avoid sin, how to access God, the future of planet earth, and answers questions"¦..it is God’s letter to us"¦.long and complicated, objective, our only reference point which our honest hearts can use to prevent being deceived, ‚  but the essence is simple. We need to be saved, and God wants to save us, but only on His terms. Furthermore: "Test everything"(1 Thess 5:21) including your own perceptions/wisdom. God’s fundamental character is love, justice and holiness, everything He does comes from one of these"¦..

The Spirit of God. God asks us in the book of Hebrews to not be stubborn when The Spirit talks to us, God ‚  promises to guide us through the maze that is this life, and to speak to us as well"¦"¦ "today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your heart"¦" Hebrews 4:7. The whole Bible is an extensive catalogue of humans hearing from God, and of how they responded, and of how it turned out. God does not change, so humans can still hear from God today.

His Terms are simple.

Be prepared to repent of your sin, both generally and ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚  specifically. If you fail, ask for forgiveness a.s.a.p.

Ask to be saved in the Name of Jesus. (Acts 2:21) "“ this is good for eternal life too as it covers the justice issue.

Ask to be filled with His Holy Spirit, and keep asking, ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚   ‚  (Luke 11:13)

Be prepared to dump your own agenda for His. ("Your kingdom come, your will be done"). God will provide your every physical and spiritual need if you do.("Seek you first the kingdom of God, and these things will be given to you as well" Luke 12:31.) If you look after God’s business, God will look after yours.

Use the "weapons of righteousness" as needed....and not to worry, God will work it out.

What is God’s agenda ? Love, of course. "To remember the poor" (Galations 2:10) both the physically poor, and those stuck in the Kingdom of darkness, to show them the exit (Galations 2:20). And to obey His word, which is to pursue gentleness, kindness, live a life of love, love God the wonderful source of all this freedom, and every human"¦"¦.see the Psalms"¦"¦but the world will dislike you, and the evil one also. God wants us to join a bible believing church/group, as solo flyers always give up, and there is diversity of gifting in a body for the common good, indeed Jesus promises to turn up when 2 or more gather in His name (Matt 18:20). Read about others who have lived this life.

So, we humans have a choice. Which Kingdom? Our eternal destiny is also decided by our choice. And whether your earthly works are destroyed by testing fire, or result in praise and reward when you enter the Kingdom of Heaven (after you die) on presenting to the judgement seat of Christ (1 Cor 3:8-15, 2 Cor 5:10, Matt 25:14). So, how are you going to spend your years? Serving/pleasing yourself, or finding out what pleases The Lord?

He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot loose. (Jim Elliot)

Let him who has hears to hear, let him hear.