salvation

Advent: Thirty Days of Jesus: Day 26, Jesus’ sinlessness

Posted on December 21, 2025December 21, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

This section of verses that show Jesus’ life are focused on His attributes. In His earthly ministry we’ve seen Him as servant, teacher, shepherd, intercessor, and healer. We then looked at His attributes of omniscience, His authority, and now His sinlessness.

He came from glory where righteousness reigns. He descended to an earth that’s cursed where every single human is depraved, thoroughly drenched with a sin nature. He lived among us, sinlessly and perfectly fulfilling the Father’s commands for righteous living. He did this at every moment in every way. Not one blot, not one thought, not one act of anything less than perfection.

For this, He was reviled, mocked, hated, and killed.

He did it for us.

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Advent, Thirty Days of Jesus: Day 14, Propitiation

Posted on December 9, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

Propitiation. A hard word to pronounce…and a hard word to understand, but we have to try, since today’s verse of 1 John 4:10 says this is the reason God sent His son.

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (1 John 4:10).

PROPITIATION: An offering that turns away the wrath of God directed against sin. According to the NT, God has provided the offering that removes the divine wrath, for in love the Father sent the Son to be the propitiation (or atoning sacrifice) for human sin (1 John 4:10). Source: Pocket dictionary of theological terms (1996).

by which it becomes consistent with his character and government to pardon and bless the sinner. The propitiation does not procure his love or make him loving; it only renders it consistent for him to exercise his love towards sinners. In Easton’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary. (1893)

The Easton’s definition uses the word ‘consistent’. God is able to do anything but it would not be consistent with His holy character to abandon his promise to punish wrongdoers for their sin. He could turn away His wrath by deciding to do so, but it would destroy His perfectly just nature to be inconsistent. No, God is consistent, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8). “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed“. (Malachi 3:6).

So He sent His Son to be that sacrifice and absorb God’s wrath for our sins, though Christ was sinless.

thirty days of jesus day 14 propitiation

Further Reading

GotQuestions: What is Propitiation?
The word propitiation carries the basic idea of appeasement or satisfaction, specifically toward God. Propitiation is a two-part act that involves appeasing the wrath of an offended person and being reconciled to him.

Ligonier Ministries: What Do Expiation and Propitiation Mean?
Let’s think about what these words mean, then, beginning with the word expiation. The prefix ex means “out of” or “from,” so expiation has to do with removing something or taking something away. In biblical terms, it has to do with taking away guilt through the payment of a penalty or the offering of an atonement. By contrast, propitiation has to do with the object of the expiation.

Bible Hub Topical Bible- Propitiation
That by which God is rendered propitious, i.e., by which it becomes consistent with his character and government to pardon and bless the sinner. The propitiation does not procure his love or make him loving; it only renders it consistent for him to execise his love towards sinners.

theology

Where is joy?

Posted on November 23, 2025November 23, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

AW Pink wrote about Joy. He said in “The Scriptures and Joy“

The ungodly are ever seeking after joy, but they do not find it: they busy and weary themselves in the pursuit of it, yet all in vain. Their hearts being turned from the Lord, they look downward for joy, where it is not; rejecting the substance, they diligently run after the shadow, only to be mocked by it. It is the sovereign decree of heaven that nothing can make sinners truly happy but God in Christ; but this they will not believe, and therefore, they go from creature to creature, from one broken cistern to another, inquiring where the best joy is to be found. Each worldly thing that attracts them says, “It is found in me”; but soon it disappoints. Nevertheless, they go on seeking it afresh today in the very thing that deceived them yesterday. If after many trials they discover the emptiness of one creature comfort, then they turn to another, only to verify our Lord’s word, “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again” (John 4:13).”

I have found this to be true. I searched for lasting joy unknowingly and then later, knowingly. I had achieved all my goals, graduated from college, was married, owned a home, had the job I wanted..but I was never lastingly happy. I could not figure out why.

Temporarily, yes. I’d be happy with a professional success, a compliment, joke. Unsaved people are happy, happiness is not foreign to humans. But where was true joy? A lasting joy that went down to the bones? Not to be found.

When I was approaching the cross, a process that took about two and a half years, I was also learning the craft of bookbinding. I found it easier to put my thoughts and feelings into picture form. Unknown to me, the Holy Spirit was starting to infuse biblical allusions and metaphors into my mind that came out in my art. Later after salvation when I read the Bible, I would constantly go, “Oh, so THAT’S what that meant!’ I used the metaphors of flies, shepherds, lions, angels, walk, transform, kingdom, etc.

I wrote a little picture book about a girl who was looking for the kingdom, who was always thirsty, who was unsatisfied but had nothing visible to be unsatisfied about, who tried to find the ‘map’ leading her to the kingdom but frustratingly could not find it.

I learned at the time of my repentance, of course, that the visible will not lead me to the Kingdom. Invisible sin is the problem, which I learned when the Lord sent some saved people into my life to explain the Gospel and answer questions I had about the Bible (mostly about Creation and the earth).

but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never be thirsty; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life. (John 4:14).

Pink wrote:

It is not a carnal joy that we are here urging, by which we mean a joy that comes from carnal sources. It is useless to seek joy in earthly riches, for frequently they take to themselves wings and fly away. Some seek their joy in the family circle, but that remains entire for only a few years at most. No, if we are to “rejoice evermore,” it must be in an object that lasts for evermore.

Jesus and the word of God illuminated by the Holy Spirit is that joy.

I’ll finish with Pink-

The spring of joy is faith: “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing” (Romans 15:13). There is a wondrous provision in the gospel, both by what it takes from us and what it brings to us, to give a calm and settled glow to the Christian’s heart. It takes away the load of guilt by speaking peace to the stricken conscience. It removes the dread of God and the terror of death that weighs on the soul while it is under condemnation. It gives us God Himself as the portion of our hearts, as the object of our communion. The gospel works joy because the soul is at rest in God.

Bio of Arthur W. Pink (1886-1952).

Chapel Library’s mission statement: Our purpose is to humble the pride of man, to exalt the grace of God in salvation, and to promote real holiness in heart and life, by sending Christ-centered materials from prior centuries worldwide without charge.

theology

Essential Elements of the Gospel Message

Posted on September 25, 2025September 25, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

At an event broadcast worldwide recently, numerous speakers were said to have given the Gospel to the attendees and remote hearers by video. We rejoice when so many hear the Gospel. We pray after these events that seeds will take root and break stony hearts into soft, loving, faithful hearts.

Some presentations of the Gospel were given more eloquently and some less eloquently. A few contained most of the elements of the Gospel and some contained less. So, what are the elements of the Gospel? What is necessary for the unsaved to hear in order for the gospel message to do its work?

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end time, prophecy

The Impact of Christ’s Conversation with the Samaritan Woman

Posted on September 17, 2025September 17, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

SYNOPSIS

The passage from John 4:1-42 highlights the woman at the well’s encounter with Jesus, emphasizing her past sins and His offer of redemption. This essay reflects on personal accountability before Christ, stressing that both believers and unbelievers must face Jesus their deeds. Believers are not judged, but are assessed for the quality of their works in Christ, which determines their rewards.

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theology

The Grief and Reality Behind Burning Man’s Celebration

Posted on August 27, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

SYNOPSIS

Burning Man, an annual event in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, showcases a temporary city of self-expression and artistic endeavor, rooted in principles of radical participation and self-reliance. However, it also reveals deep spiritual emptiness, with many attendees searching for meaning and purpose, unaware of their need for spiritual fulfillment through Christ.

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death, eternity, hell, jesus

When it is your turn to die

Posted on August 17, 2025August 17, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

In 2013, Aerobatic Wing Walker Jane Wicker and her pilot Charlie Schwenker were killed when the plane crashed at a Dayton, OH airshow.

The second before the plane crashed, the Dayton Ohio air show announcer said as wing walker Jane Wicker positioned herself on the upside down wing: “Jane Wicker, on top of the world!” One second later, she was dead.

I often speak of the soon return of Jesus. Today is one day closer to His return than yesterday was. Paul used to speak of Jesus’ soon return often. As a matter of fact, every New Testament book except Philemon speaks of Christ’s coming. You need to be ready.

However, we are not guaranteed a tomorrow. Yes, Jesus could come, but death could come also.

James 4:14 says “yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”

I often wondered what Ms Wicker was thinking as she sat on the upside down wing. Nothing indicated that one second later she would be dead. Did she think she had loads of time left to ponder the deep mysteries of faith and salvation? Had she put it off until tomorrow, but tomorrow never came?

I hope she was saved by grace of Jesus.

So many people are abruptly taken out of this world to meet their eternity. Yet so many people put off for tomorrow what they should be reconciling today. I remember during a sermon one of my elders had said that as a teen they were evangelizing in a grocery store. One of the team gave the gospel to a man who was exiting. He said he did not need Jesus. He walked out of the sliding door to the sidewalk and fell down dead right then.

If you are not saved, then do not put off to tomorrow what should be done today. God has appointed you to a limited number of days in this lifetime. You do not know what that number is.

“Show me, LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.” (Psalm 39:4-5).

Taking care of business means coming to grips with a few things. First, this life is not all there is. We are given a limited number of days to dwell upon the earth, but this body and this life is only phase 1. After death, there is a phase 2. If you have repented of your sins and believed on the resurrected Jesus as Lord and Savior, you will go to heaven and be with Him. You will be given a glorified body that is impervious to death or sickness, has no sin nature, and can withstand the full blast of His glory and Holiness. (1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 50; Philippians 3:21).

If you rejected Jesus in this life- and you don’t have to actively reject Him but passively fail to accept him (doing nothing is the same as rejecting) then you will go to hell after you die. This is a place of eternal separation from God and you will be given a body that can withstand the full blasts of the punishment that will be inflicted on you as eternal payment for your sins and crimes against Him. (Revelation 14:11, 2 Thessalonians 1:5-9)

It is a lie that you will be annihilated, that there is nothing else after death. It is a lie that hell is only temporary. It is surely eternal, as your sins are eternal and as Jesus is eternal. (Matthew 25:46). That is why Christians can dwell with Him forever, (Matthew 28:20; John 14:3) because He is eternal and He paid the price for our sins eternally when He took God’s punishment on the cross. (Romans 3:23-24).

You say, “God is loving, He would never send people to hell for punishment.” Really? It pleased Him to crush His Son! (Isaiah 53:10). Jesus absorbed all of God’s punishment while He was on the cross. Is God loving who would do that? Yes, He was making a way for YOU, whom He also loves. Jesus did that voluntarily, because He loves His people. If you reject Jesus though, you reject the way to heaven. (John 14:6).

Eternity is real and it is permanent. You do not know what today will bring. Ms Wicker didn’t. I hope these few words from my heart makes you think of the afterlife. For the Christian, it is a joy to ponder the time we will be with Jesus. For the unsaved, there is dread and fear of the unknown. But you can know, your eternity could be secure- if you repent. (Mark 1:15).

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Life, Death, and Salvation: A Christian Reflection

Posted on July 26, 2025July 26, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

SYNOPSIS

In this reflective piece, I contemplate the profound and often staggering reality of death, drawing parallels between historical battles and contemporary mortality rates. Citing biblical accounts, particularly from 2 Chronicles and Isaiah, the narrative explores the weight of human loss throughout history, emphasizing the eternal significance of souls lost to death.

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theology

From Vanity to Victory: A Journey of Faith

Posted on July 16, 2025July 16, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

SYNOPSIS

The essay reflects on the futility of life pursuits outside of divine love, drawing from Ecclesiastes and Charles Spurgeon’s insights. I share personal experiences of striving after worldly pleasures, revealing a deep spiritual yearning that only God’s grace can satisfy. The journey from emptiness to fulfillment in Christ is emphasized.

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theology

The Bolt from the Blue: A Reflection on Mortality

Posted on June 24, 2025June 24, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

SYNOPSIS

A young man on his honeymoon in Florida was tragically struck by lightning, highlighting the unpredictability of death. The piece reflects on the inevitability of mortality and emphasizes the importance of preparing spiritually for death through repentance and faith in Jesus. Life’s fleeting nature calls for persistent devotion to God.

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