The following is such a profound video. It shows the gaping holes that “Religion” has, and reveals our need for “JESUS”. The video is called “Why I Hate Religion, but Love Jesus”.

I hope you found this video to be a great reminder of that our faith should not be in religion, but in JESUS.

In God’s Love and Grace,

Colton

Often we, like the prodigal son, turn away from Jesus for the things of this world…sooner or later we find that this path leads to emptiness…but Jesus is waiting with open arms to save us…all we have to do is turn and run to him.

Here is a skit, done at Winterfest in Knoxville TN. 2006, that does an amazing job showing us this:

I hope you were touched by the video, it is one of my absolute favorites. It had been far too long since I myself had watched it, and felt it was necessary to share it with all of you as well.

Remember, if you have fallen away from Jesus, or maybe have never had a relationship with him, it isn’t too late. Jesus is waiting with open arms to save you from the mess you are in…just run to Him.

In God’s Love and Grace,

-Colton

Today is the day we celebrate the most important event in the history of the existence of man; the day a sinless man took on our iniquities, and bore the penalty we were destined to pay for our sin. It is the day that Jesus died for us on the cross, so we could be made perfect in Him. Today is Good Friday.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. -Hebrews 12:2

Reflecting on today, I can’t help but be filled with awe, wonder, tears of joy and amazement, hope, faith, and liberation as I think of the amazing Love of Jesus. I find it completely appropriate to present this event as found in the Bible. The following is from the 27th chapter of the book of Matthew:

²⁸ They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, ²⁹ and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. ³⁰ They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. ³¹ After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

The Crucifixion

³² As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. ³³ They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). ³⁴ There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. ³⁵ When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. ³⁶ And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. ³⁷ Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS. ³⁸ Two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. ³⁹ Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads ⁴⁰ and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!”⁴¹ In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. ⁴² “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. ⁴³ He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ⁴⁴ In the same way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

The Death of Jesus

⁴⁵ From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. ⁴⁶ About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi,^[c] lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”⁴⁷ When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

⁴⁸ Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. ⁴⁹ The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰ And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

⁵¹ At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. ⁵² The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

⁵⁴ When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”

There are no words that can express what this day truly means. The sacrifice Jesus made is completely beyond our comprehension, and yet he did it. We are all loved by the King; We, lowly peasants, are loved by the King.

I don’t know what you are going through, or where you are, but just know you are loved by Jesus. He came to this earth to die for you, that you could be made perfect in/through  Him. It is because of His love for you, for us, that we can boast in the cross!

Jesus counts you His priceless treasure. Know it. Believe it. Live in it.

In God’s Love and Grace,

-Colton

This video is a great example of how we have fallen short of the glory of God, no matter how hard we try. And how powerful the grace of God is.

When we believe in, and trust in, Jesus, he can then throw out our sins (our file) and when God looks at us, all he will see is Jesus (Jesus’ file).

Great Video.

In God’s Love and Grace,

-Colton

It has been a while since I’ve made a post on L4J (sorry everyone), but God really smacked me upside the head with the following scripture, and I knew I HAD to share it with you all. I really hope each one of you really takes the time to soak it all in, and allow it to help you with your daily attitude.

Philippians 2:3-8 (NIV 1984, ©1984)

³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴ Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

⁵ Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
⁷ but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!

Oh how easy it is to be selfish and prideful. I know I have insulted Jesus so many times by my actions….if He was willing to humble himself and do everything he did for me, how much more willing should I be to do anything he asks of me?!!?

I hope you found this scripture encouraging, and may it help us all to remember how our attitudes should be; the same as that of Christ Jesus.

-Colton

The following is scripture is one of my absolute favorites. It really shows us that God’s love has nothing to do with who we are, or what we deserve, but that it has everything to do with HIS mercy and grace, and who HE is.

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. – 1 John 4:10

I hope the scripture encourages you, and helps you realize that God’s love does not depend on who we are, but on who HE is.

In God’s Love and Grace,

Colton Jansen

The following is a entry from one of my old journals. I have felt like I should share them with you all, hoping that you may be blessed by from them, but that I too would receive something by looking at what God has taken me through.

I hope you enjoy!

What Can Separate Us?

Romans 8:28-39

The previous mentioned passage is a long one…so I thought I would take out an expert or two…but I then realized that each and every verse is very powerful, and I would have ended up posting the WHOLE passage…so instead, make sure you read it on your own. Get out your bible, or click here to do so.

I really love Romans 8:28-39 so much. It always brings encouragement to me. It not only reminds us that God is always working things out for our benefit, but also explores how powerful and strong God’s love is; which is so strong that nothing can separate us from it.

The first verse is amazing to me. I’ve read it quite a few times, but every time I read it, it reminds me that I really shouldn’t worry about things as often as I do; that I have full reason to trust God with everything.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him” -Romans 8:28^a

This gives me such great hope. In every situation I have been in (or will be in), good or bad, God makes it work to better me. It is part of the process of me becoming more like Jesus.

Then the passage goes on to explain the greatness of God’s Love; He sent his only son Jesus, a perfect being, to save us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8). By no logical reason, we were worth the sacrifice that had to be made. By his love, we are more than conquerors. NOTHING can separate us from the love of God. If God gave his son to die for you, what else will he not do for you? This is the hope we have, and why God deserves our full trust in Him.

Nothing can separate us from His love that is greater than ALL things.

I hope you were blessed by reading this post. If so, be sure to take a quick moment to share this post on Facebook or Twitter via the tweet or share buttons at the top of the page (or any other way you feel fit)! It is through readers like you that this site gets spread around.

Thank you so much!

In God’s Love and Grace,

Hello everyone. Welcome to the start of a series I am calling “God’s Love is _____”. The topic of God’s love is one that is very close to my heart. I am in no way an expert on the topic, I am just someone who has experienced it first hand. Over the course of the next few weeks I will be delving into different aspects of God’s Love. This will definitely not be an exhaustive study, I will merely be pointing out the different attributes of God’s love that I have experienced and/or discovered during my studies of the word (Bible). So lets get started:

God’s Love is Real.

What do I mean by real?… I mean it is not counterfeit. It is in no way related to the way you love coffee, pizza, sports, etc. And beyond that, it still does not do God’s love justice if we compare it to the love we have for our friends, siblings, parents, spouses, etc. This is the main reason we have such a hard time grasping how amazing God’s love actually is. We have little-to-nothing we can compare it to.

What’s difficult is that in our language, we have one word (love) to convey many different things. But thankfully, the Greeks had four different words for what we now translate into our one word (love), so if we look at the meaning of each of these, it will help us to understand what God means when we read about God’s Love for us in the Bible.

The four Greek words for love are:

• Eros – Romantic love
• Philia – Love for a friend, or in friendship
• Storge – Natural affection parents have for their children
• Agape – Unconditional love

Whenever we read about what God’s love is like in the New Testament, the writers always used the word agape. Agape is the strongest love that there is because it is one without conditions. We do not have to earn it, we cannot lose it, God simply, and for no logical reason, LOVES us.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. -Romans 5:8

That is why God’s love is REAL. I used to equate God’s love to being earned, and what a heavy burden that was on my life; figuring that since I’m human, I made (and still continue to make) many mistakes. But once I began to accept that I could not do anything to make God love me more or less, to lose it or gain it, a huge liberation occurred in me; I was usable to God. I am still on the road of discovering how amazing the love of God is, and part of that process is letting it begin to mold us to look more like Jesus. We need to accept this unconditional love, and let it change us.

Have you accepted it yet?

So…how was this post? Did you find it insightful or helpful? Would you like to share with an encounter you have had with God’s Unconditional love? I’d love to hear from you! And don’t forget to take a quick moment to share this post on Facebook or Twitter via the tweet or share buttons at the top of the page (or any other way you feel fit) if you got a lot of value out of it! It is through readers like you that this site gets spread around

Thank you so much!

In God’s Love and Grace,

Today during church, the whole message was about God’s love. That topic always hits me really deep inside, because I sense that that is the theme for my life right now. So I find the following quote, from an unknown person to me, quite fitting. I hope you take time and let it seep in.

“I asked Jesus, ‘How much do you love me?’ And Jesus said, ‘This much.’ Then He stretched out His arms and died.”

- Unknown

What a short and simple quote, yet it manages to capture a small glimpse of the beauty of Jesus’ amazing love for us. If you are ever wondering how much Jesus loves you, the answer lays up there on the cross. And I want you to know that even if you were the only person in existence, Jesus still would have done all that he did, just for you.

Lets all take the time to reflect on Jesus’ love for us, not just now, but daily. We need to remember that this love is the same love we are to be know for. It is our duty to share Jesus’ love with the world around us, more importantly, with actions, not just with words.

I hope you enjoyed this post…if you did, be sure to share it with your friends by clicking on the tweet or share buttons at the top of the post, or in any other way you feel fit. It is by you readers that LivingForJesus.com becomes known, so I personally want to thank you

In God’s Love and Grace,

What does love look like?….A question so many people have often pondered. Some say it is romance. Some say it is bliss. It is one of those words in our English language that have so many meanings to choose from. Dictionary.com defines it as:

• A profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person
• A feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend

Though those definitions are nice…I can’t help but realize that these mere emotions or feelings….but isn’t love something more real?

To be honest with you, I have yet to find any better definition of what love TRULY is than in the following verses:

• “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” -1 John 3:16
• “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” -Romans 5:8
• “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” -1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Love is so much more beautiful than momentary bliss. It is so much more powerful than romantic passion. There is not a word to describe what love truly is. All I can say is that Jesus loves you, and it is not the kind of love the world knows.

What is love?….This is how I know what love is: Though I am a nobody, Jesus Christ, my King, died for me. Not because of acts that deserve such a sacrifice, no, on the contrary; while I was still a sinner.

I pray that you can find rest and peace in Jesus and in his love (Matthew 11:28-30). It may be hard to understand, but I know Jesus thought of you while he was on that cross…Jesus loves YOU.

In a low point of my life, God revealed to me how He felt about me. He showed me to what extent He went to be with me; how great a sacrifice He made to save me…ME!! As always, he used an analogy to show me; one of the Peasant and the King.

peas·ant [pez-uhnt]

1. a member of a class of persons who are small farmers or farm laborers of low social rank.
2. Me.

king [king]

1. a man who holds by life tenure, and usually by hereditary right, the chief authority over a country and people.
2. Jesus, God.

cross [kraws, kros]

1. a structure consisting essentially of an upright and a transverse piece, upon which persons were formerly put to death.
2. the Cross, the cross upon which Jesus died.

A peasant is of the lowest social rank; they hold little to no status over anyone…the peasant is me.

A king is of the absolute highest social rank; they hold chief authority over a country and its people…Jesus is the King.

The cross. The place I deserved to die—yet the place the king died for me.

I, the peasant, did not deserve the life of my king. In the social world, it would be unfathomable for a king to die in place of a peasant…yet Jesus died for me…why? Simply because He loves me! It is nothing I did, but everything He DID.

It is that simple. I know Jesus is counting down the days until He gets to hold us in His arms. He loves each and every one of us so much that He would have come for just you, or me, if we would be the only ones to take Him up on his offer.

So what can a peasant do? This answer is simple too; since Christ died for us, we – in return - should live for Him.

So lets do it!

The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.
-Luke 24:7

The third day. This day is much more than candy, presents, eggs and the easter bunny. This third day is the day that solidifies the cross. Because of this day, we can rejoice in the cross.

Jesus died for my sins…but he was not bound by death, he overcame it! And that same man is sitting at the right hand of God interceding for me! (Romans 8:34). Peter puts it better than I ever could:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  -1 Peter 1:3-7

This Third day is why we can rejoice in any circumstance. He has RISEN!!! and that is the promise we have for new life!Because of this third day we have hope. I encourage you all to reflect on what God has done for you.  Thank the Lord for what He has done for you. He is worthy of our praise!