07/08/2018 - WORKS LEAD TO REPENTANCE

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For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward[f]relent and believe him. Matthew 21:32

The salvation plan may be demonstrated in many ways, but these must be biblical and have the approval of the Lord.  The important is for people to come to repentance, therefore we cannot condemn the way that some speak of the love of God.  We must, therefore, take into account the confirmation of the work through signs, prodigies and wonders.  Propaganda may show something wrong, but the Most High never errs. 

John the Baptist’s rigor and severity was approved by the Most High with signs that followed his preaching, for the lost often changed lives.    What is the gain of a formal speech or the testimony of people that are convinced they were healed, if their lives remain just the same?  When people are born again, God comes to their being.  Would the devil work against himself leading praises to the heavenly Father?  The Lord’s testimony is of greatest importance.

As for the Law of Moses, John the Baptist was impeccable in his way of leading the people to confess and repent of their sins and change their attitudes.  However, not all people accepted him, especially the very religious.  Today, we live the time of grace, where people who believe in Jesus turn into children of God. In fact, the greatest blessing is to have your sins forgiven, receive the certainty of salvation and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Halleluiah! 

Jesus called John´s preaching the way of righteousness. Upon hearing him, people confessed their iniquities before others and only then were they baptized. However, although many people saw these events, they did not believe in his message. What´s important in any ministry is not the event or show that took place, but the transformation in the lives of people. It´s easy to set up a stage and put on a show, but only those that are sent by Him can bring Him into action. The Most High honors the true servant! 

John should not change his preaching method just because of the doctors of the Law, Pharisees and scribes, for, since they were false in their action before the Lord, they would never believe in the words that John preached. If we allow God to use us, we will see those in suffering come to us and be transformed by the divine power. The testimony of the Father concerning our actions is given by the lives that were transformed and the miraculous works promised in Scriptures. 

The fact that tax collectors (Jews that worked for the Roman Empire collecting taxes) and harlots (women who sold their body for money) changed their life through John´s preaching and not by the counsel of the religious, confirmed that God used him. We are approved by the Lord when the lost are transformed by His power, which works signs after we cry out. 

The Most High uses any person as long as they are in accordance to the Bible; so, the message delivered is more important. The servant of God must worry about divine approval, doing that which He commands and not what men would like to see. 

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares