Hello All, Grace and Peace be to you from our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST,
"Will you choose to live or die? What do you say?"
The questioner was Henry VIII, the king of England, who had unrestrained power in the land. The "criminal" who stood before him, charged with heresy, was John Lambert, a Greek and Latin tutor.
Lambert audaciously challenged his pastor for delivering a sermon that didn't agree with Scripture. Lambert was brought before the archbishop of Canterbury and later before King Henry. Quoting from the Scriptures and explaining the original Greek. Lambert presented his case to an assembly of bishops, lawyers, justices, and peers. The two sides argued strenuously back and forth until Henry, bored with it , presented Lambert with a final choice: "After all the reasons and instructions of these knowledgeable men, are you now satisfied? Will you choose to live or die? What do you say?
Lambert took a deep breath and answered confidently, "I commend my soul to the hands of GOD, but my body I give to your clemency."
"You must die, "Henry answered scornfully, "for I will not be a patron to heretics." Convicted of heresy, Lambert was unbowed in his slow, torturous death. He lifted up his hands in worship, declaring, "None but CHRIST! None but CHRIST!"
In the modern age of possibilities, our right to choose has grown nearly insatiable. Two hundred television channels are a "basic" right, tantamount to freedom itself. We want options. Variety. Assortment. Even Mundane decisions are delivered daily to your doorstep: what to wear, eat, drive, or do. However, our choices are no longer utilitarian, they are virtually limitless. In contrast, when life's greater questions come to us, we have only answer to give: "None but CHRIST." Is there another way to HEAVEN? None but CHRIST...HE IS THE WAY. Is there another priority in life that deserves one's full devotion? NONE BUT CHRIST...HE IS SUPREME. Can someone else satisfy the longing of the human heart? NONE BUT CHRIST can satisfy. Truth has no alternative. When life's greater questions come, and they will, are you prepared to testify that of all the possibilities "NONE BUT CHRIST" will satisfy?
What will you choose?
Tom Usher said...
Hi Donna,
These recent stories you've been sharing are both inspiring and humbling. They've done me good. I'm sure many others are benefiting as well.
Peace,
Tom
Real Liberal Christian Church
May 18, 2009 at 5:00 AM
Michael Aulia said...
Amen to that. I guess we all are being bombarded with wordly pleasure that we already forget who we really are.
and that there is nothing that can fulfill that "emptiness" inside us that God has purposely created to be filled with Him and Him alone
May 18, 2009 at 6:56 AM
Betty said...
This piece is a great eye-opener. I do watch alot of T.V. now that I am laid off from work and didn't realize that I am going down a road to depression. I alone have the ability to stop this. I need to get more into the truth of Our Lord and Savior instead of watching the lies on T.V. I need Jesus more than the evil of the world. I know that Jesus has been convicting me of this and I kept pushing him away to watch shows. So I have to turn the T.V. off and spend time with my Lord. That is why God gave us freewill, is to see how far we as humans go. Will we follow satan to hear lies and filth or turn our lives over to the truth who is Our Lord and Savior. Mom (Keep up the good work, ready to read more.
May 18, 2009 at 9:51 AM