Redemption is free to mankind and it has been bestowed on ALL Mankind for all of time and eternity. Redemption is of the spirit that part of us that will return to the God of all who created us all. Redemption is given and is of benefit to all who accept it and to all who reject it. Redemption requires nothing of us. Neither a yea or a nay. And it is my belief that this Redemption came through the man Jesus The Christ.
Salvation on the other hand is NOT A FREE GIFT. Salvation is not of the spirit as Redemption is. Salvation is of the soul i.e. the mind, the will and the emotions that are in the here and now. Salvation can be permanent (lifetime) or it can be temporary and lost on a moment by moment basis.
So what is the price and cost of Salvation to the soul i.e. the mind, the will and the emotions?
The cost is the faith you have in your personal faith. The price is the belief you have in your belief. The only way Salvation of the soul i.e. the mind, the will and the emotions can be permanent is if you give up believing and trusting in your faith and belief in God! You must come to the end of your personal faith and belief in God in order to find real faith and that is not of yourself but of Christ. The requirement for you to believe and have faith ended at The Cross. And as well it should have because as Jesus said if you faith was only as big as a mustard seed you could tell a mountain to throw itself into the ocean and it would obey. The church teaches that Jesus wanted us to have our own faith. The truth is He was teaching us that we had NO FAITH AND NEVER WOULD!!! He at the Cross ENDED the requirement to believe and included ALL in Redemption. And when we know without a doubt that our Redemption is sealed and that all of mankind’s Redemption is sealed then we can come to the point of saying with confidence, " I NO LONGER BELIEVE IN MY BELIEF AND I NO LONGER HAVE FAITH"! And we will be saved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We will be having a celebration of Life ceremony Saturday, April 25th, 2009 (4:00p.m.-??) It will be held at the American Legion located at 109 North 6th Street, Richmond, Indiana 47374. We will laugh, sing, cry and tell amazing stories about Cliff! We will have pictures and videos so we can share some of his incredible moments with all of you.
Clifford L. Hazelbaker II, 57, of Richmond was born January 13, 1952 and was reborn on April 16, 2009. Cliff was the son of Clifford and Barbara (Goodwin) Hazelbaker. Cliff graduated from Centerville High School in 1970. He was married to Nancy McBride Hazelbaker on March 6, 1970. They recently celebrated their 39th Wedding Anniversary. Cliff enjoyed spending time with his incredible family. Their family motto is “Love Never Fails!” He also enjoyed sharing his love of God on www.boldgrace.com. Here is an excerpt from that site… “Clouds don’t seem to care where they’re going. They are content to follow the directions of the spirit of the air, enjoying the journey as they make their way to their purpose. Though they are unaware of their designation or their purpose as they travel along, they find themselves eventually called upon to join forces and deliver liquid life to the earth. Often exhausted, they whither and die, having given all of themselves in doing their work. But, as those clouds die, others are reborn from their seed to carry on the purpose.” Cliff is survived by his wife Nancy ; Mother, Barbara; Children: Tammy (Bob) Thompson of Centerville, Clifford (Bridget) Hazelbaker III of Richmond, Mindy (Charlie) Hill of New Carlisle, Ohio, Amy (Todd) Witter of Bath, Indiana; He is also survived by 9 grandchildren: Josh, Jacob, Paige, Samantha, Clifford IV, Abby, Emma, Lilly and Phoebe. Brothers: Andy (Teresa) and Doug (Cindy) Hazelbaker.
A popular Bible verse says to, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Romans 12:2
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I’ve never liked the word “repent.” For me, it conjures up images of judgment, condemnation, and fear. Jesus often says in the gospels, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” For years it was troubling to me that Jesus so often used this word because it smacked of everything that repelled me about religion. But then the Spirit began to open my eyes to its true meaning and place in my journey with God.
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First I realized that Jesus could not have been using the word pointing a finger of condemnation. Jesus said in John 3:17, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” I discovered the word “repent” (metanoia) actually means a change of mind or having a new mind. The word suggests a radical revision and transformation of our whole mental process. That “change of mind” allows God to take center place in our consciousness, in our awareness, and in our minds.
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You’re getting it if you can imagine Jesus walking into a crowd of hurting, rejected, empty, lonely, fearful, wounded, hopeless people and saying, “God’s kingdom is now within your reach! But you’ll have to undergo a change of heart and mind to grasp it.” Metanoia literally means “beyond the mind.” So it’s an idea of stretching or pushing beyond the boundaries with which we normally think and feel. For me, it has often involved pressing beyond my religious conditioning.
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Initially, Jesus “calling me to repentance” went something like this:
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“God’s kingdom is now within your reach Jim! But grasping it will push you beyond the boundaries of what you normally think and feel about yourself, God, and life. It will even call into question certain religious notions you have learned. You don’t feel deserving of the life, peace, and freedom God wants to give you. Press beyond those feelings Jim. The truth is, God loves you and freely offers all of this and more. Jim, you think and act as if your daily performance and behavior determines your good standing with God. The truth is, there’s nothing you could ever do or not do that would alter your worth, favor, and acceptance to God. Wherever you are now on the journey, you are loved and accepted by God. You feel inadequate to know and understand God and the things of God. Consider this Jim, you have the Spirit within to guide you into all truth. Pay more attention to the ways of a child and you’ll get it. You are a son of God. I was resurrected from the dead within you. When it all works right, you won’t even know where “you” end and “I” begin. It will be like the life you are living is me living in and through you. You tend to think of your separateness from God, I want you to feel and experience your oneness with God. Trust me Jim. You’re just scratching the surface. There’s more to it than you think. I’m always at my work within you. Rest in me.”
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“Metanoia” has been more of a process that an event for me, and has involved changes such as:
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• Associating my deepest feelings with the voice of truth
• Locating the source of life, love, peace, freedom, contentment, goodness, and connectedness within me
• Seeing myself and all people as sons and daughters of God and therefore my brother or sister
• Opening my heart to the spiritual dimension of all of life, regardless of how mundane or ordinary it mat seem through human eyes
• Understanding the significance and relevance of Jesus in terms much greater than I had ever realized before
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I’m sure others will have further comments to add about metanoia. Lately I’ve tended to use the word less and less because it felt like I was making too much of a concept and religion out of it. So, rather than focus on the word or concept I just allow myself to be in tune with the reality the word points to, which is akin to “marching to the beat of a different drummer.”
Over the last week or so, I’ve been keeping track of some things I’ve said in conversation with others. These are by no means original thought. They are sayings that have rattled around in my brain through the last few years, some coming from my friends, some from various books, and some from my heart. But, sometimes I write something, and find the resulting verbiage remarkable! Sometimes, I’m not really sure where it came from, but it was the perfect thing to say at that time. So, I jot them down so I can remember. And now, I share them with you. Use them freely in your own conversations, and please add you own through the comment section! Thanks!
Freedom is only for the free.
If your salvation is determined by "what you believe", doesn’t that make you responsible for your own salvation? And if only God can save someone… doesn’t that make you God?
You can only know if your love for God is genuine if you understand that he loves you completely and deeply, and without expectation or requirement.
Love is a response, not an action.
If you think God doubts you, then you will doubt God.
If you know that God loves you, then nothing else will matter. If you don’t know that, nothing else will make any difference.
Is God’s love so fickle that he only loves those who love him first?
God in me loves God in you.
Only love can birth love.
Christ was the greatest teacher of the Law. He expanded on the depths of its purpose to the point that everyone had to admit that complying with it was far outside their grasp. He pushed and pushed and let them fester in their fears. Why? Because he needed to set the stage for a redeeming event! He used their religion against them to show them their self-righteousness and cause them to cry out for a savior!
The definition of "self-righteousness" is when we think we can influence God’s thoughts for us, or against us.
The concept of Universal Reconciliation doesn’t imply that God forces everyone to choose him. It simply states that God chose us! Why? Because he created us in perfection, and loves what he created.
God says that we should love others, even when they fail us. It is possible that he holds himself to the same standard?
If you think God will hate you because you don’t believe the correct things, you will give yourself license to hate others because of their incorrect beliefs.
True belief can only exist when the requirement to believe is removed.
We will be having a celebration of Life ceremony Saturday, April 25th, 2009 (4:00p.m.-??) It will be held at the American Legion located at 109 North 6th Street, Richmond, Indiana 47374. We will laugh, sing, cry and tell amazing stories about Cliff! We will have pictures and videos so we can share some of his incredible moments with all of you.