We had another good night of racing. We are lifting up Jordan Wendt and his family and others that we know are in need of healing by the Sovereign LORD.

2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

must turn away from wickedness

The fifth and final belt is that of action. It is turning from sin. It is repentance. God does not only want us to have a right view of who He is and who we are, He wants us to get rid of sin in our life. Sin holds us back from a clear, genuine view of God and self. We do not want to be ensnared, entangled by sin (Hebrews 12:1, 2). He wants us to live in freedom, Galatians 5:1. This freedom does not issue the right for us to just live how we want. Instead, it issues the right to be free from sin. We do not have to sin. Rather, we struggle daily with sin and hopefully it is our deepest desire not to sin and to be pleasing to the LORD, rather than self. So we have the fifth and final belt on, the belt of turning away from wickedness, sin.

In the case of strapping in, there is an order in which you strap in. You need the belts to be pulled tight and there is a clasp that must be pulled over. It is a tight squeeze, they do no good being loose. We do not want a false security.

God is a God of order, from salvation to marriage, to children, to prayer then fasting, etc… We cannot have God at a distance. He must be close, as we are close to Him. And we do not want to follow a man or man’s way. We have to know the Bible and the author, God. We want to follow His way. There have been and are far too many that teach a way that is comfortable. Or they teach a way that makes the teacher money.  The ways they teach are not of the Biblical, Godly truth. The clasp is like Jesus that holds this all together. He is the only way. I hope you have read this and understand them as I don’t want any to miss salvation and the fellowship of God’s family. It is the best; don’t settle for less!

See you at a track soon and have a great day racin’ in the SONshine,

Todd

Another good night of racing. Looking forward to much that is coming at MIS. We are still looking for several things to pull together a good Faster Pastor Charity Race in August. One thing we need to a couple more pastors. Please send nominations to John Wells. Also if your church would put it in the bulletin that would be great. We are looking to raise a lot of money and canned goods for the River and K9 Division in Oregon.

2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord

We are pretty secure with the three belts so far but we want those last angles covered too. Declaration is clear here – salvation is for those who confess the name of the Lord. What does that mean? You have read it; have you said it out loud? It is a deeper relationship then that. It is understanding, knowing, that Jesus, that God, that Lord are more than just words. They are a person, deity, master, and creator. It is a reverence, a fear of who God is. This verse is better translated; “name the name of the LORD.” This is Who we point to as the one and only (Acts 4:12, John 14:6) for salvation and refuge. So belt four is strapped on, confessing the name of the Lord as He really is, Who He really is.

On June 14th we celebrate Flag Day in the USA. Let’s think about it for a moment.
 
From USA for Kids web site:
The U.S. flag has undergone many changes since the first official flag of 1777. On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act, which said that the flag would be made up of thirteen alternating red and white stripes and thirteen white stars on a blue field. Stars have been added to the flag as new states join the union. Currently, the flag contains 50 stars.
Ever wonder why the flag is red, white, and blue? While the flag’s colors did not have a specific meaning at the time, the colors were significant for the Great Seal of 1782.
 
White: Signifies purity and innocence
Red: Signifies valor and bravery
Blue: Signifies Vigilance, perseverance, and justice
 
When I think of Flag Day the first two things that come to mind is my Dad and his daily routine of raising the flag and his presentations to grade-schoolers. He presents a history, symbolism and etiquette on behalf of the VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars).   The second think I think of are the two famous “flag” pictures: 1) WWII Iwo Jima and 2) Apollo 11. As I think about the flag and the symbolism of the Old Glory Red, I think of the many that have laid down their lives for our freedoms and this country’s heritage. There was a day that we could honestly say we were proud to be Americans but we have seen a spiral downward in our moral and Biblical roots.

In racing we have flags that tell us a story too, just like the American flag does. The same goes for color of the “Christian flag”. In that flag we see white, red and blue too. White is the purity that can only happen when we accept Jesus’ blood (red) as the only access to heaven on our behalf. The blue is a symbol of baptism. The Holy Spirit seals us when we are saved and baptizes us in Himself. I pray you know Jesus in a personal daily way.

As the soldiers raised the flag and staked it in the ground we too need to put a stake in the ground in this nation. May we echo:
Colossians 4:2-5 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

So as you celebrate Flag Day, think about where this country came from, the price that was and is paid and where we are today.
 
See you at the track soon and have a great day in the SONshine,
 
Todd

2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

“sealed with this inscription:”

Two words to key in on. One, “sealed”. The document is sealed, it is finished, it has an endorsement by a high authority, and it is authentic. Two, “inscription”. It is written on, engraved, permanent. There is a message for others. We will see that seal and inscription below. The second belt is a seal with an inscription from the LORD Almighty.

“The Lord knows those who are his,”

The third belt is that the Lord God knows those who are His. It is one thing to know of someone, to have met them, but it is a different relationship to “KNOW” them. We cannot convince God by words or actions. We either have bowed and Jesus is Lord in our life or not. We have either agreed with God or not. We have either confessed our sin and as to be forgiven or not. God KNOWS our heart and motives. He knows us. He is God. God wants a personal relationship, a saving relationship with each one of us.

Why is the five point harness so important? It straps a driver in from all angles. No matter where the jarring is from the driver is held tight and safe. I have seen cars and trucks take some fierce hits and rolls and have witnessed a driver walk away uninjured. Here is a five point safety too.

2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name if the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm,

One of the first things that must happen for the belts to work is knowing that they are going to hold. The same is true with a foundation of a building. There must be complete confidence that the foundation is firm and square. NO WEAKNESS! If there is a weakness the project must start over; tear out the old and rebuild. If there is a weakness in the belts detected, they must be replaced. In this section of the verse we see that there is a firm, solid foundation. There is no weakness in God, no sin, no flaw. His word reflects that and is also flawless. So belt number one is that there is a firm, solid foundation in that of God.