The Gospel (part 3)

11/30/12 When the gospel is believed that person becomes a new creature in Christ. They have been reconciled to God and given the ministry of reconciliation. Listen to what the Bible says from 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (NKJV) 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. Over the last couple of days I have written that it is only through the gospel that we can live by faith and please God. And through the gospel people brought into God’s family. God, by way of the gospel saves us provides a way for us to please Him, and by means of the gospel we receive the ministry of reconciliation. Our ‘job title’ is ambassador. Our ‘job description’ is to reconcile people to God. By living the gospel our works and words should be as though God was pleading through us. My personal conviction is that you cannot be pleasing to God if you are not in some way imploring people be reconciled to God. One of the greatest preachers who ever lived, Charles H. Spurgeon, said, “Every Christian is either a missionary or an impostor.” So whether you keep the nursery, or walk the neighbor’s dog, or rake your grandmothers’ yard, or lead a Bible study, or pray for your pastor, whatever you do, you must keep the gospel as the main thing because it is! Do you live in a manner that it is as if Christ was living through you? Prayer: Father, we are to glorify You even in the little things of life. (1Cor.10:31) Help me to live the gospel because witrh the gospel You are well pleased! . In Jesus name amen.

The Gospel (part 2)

11/29/12 Philippians 2:6-7, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. God entered the world in human flesh to reconcile sinners to Himself. Through the shed blood of Christ our sin debt is paid, we are made right with God and we become part of His family. Even when we pray, because of what Jesus Christ has done, we can say, “our Father who is in heaven.” When we think about all the blessing our Lord has given us, family is usually at the top of the list. This is what the gospel is all about. God loved the world (John 3:16) and sent His Son to bring us to God. (1Pet.3:18) The gospel is what brings unity to church families. When groups meet together, if they are not gospel-centered, they are nothing more than a social gathering. The group without gospel-centeredness is nothing more than individuals meeting hoping they can get some felt need met. And as result the Lord Jesus is no longer the focal point. In fact He is replaced by something or somebody else. (By the way this is the essence of idolatry.) And without the gospel there can be no genuine love for one another. (Rom.12:9) Just as your biological family must have love for each other in order to live and flourish, your church family must have it even more so. Every meeting must be gospel-centered. This is the true meaning of Christmas. Christ came into the world to save sinners. People of all walks of life are brought together because Christ came as a man, lived a sinless life, died for our sins, and rose from the dead on the third day. When we begin to grasp these truths and live them our church family will truly be a family that Our Father is pleased with. Prayer: Father, because of the Lord Jesus I am forgiven and can forgive others. I can love because Christ first loved me and I can love others. Help me to live a gospel-centered life. I Jesu name amen.

The Gospel

11/28/12 The gospel is not only a message we share we lost people. The gospel is for us. In its simplest form the gospel is God in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ God is making all things new. This applies to individuals who repent and believe as well as all of creation that will one day be made new. . Through the gospel we are empowered to tell the gospel and live a life that is pleasing to the Lord. You should never get over the gospel! It is truly the power for salvation. Listen to what Paul wrote to the church at Rome .Romans 1:16-17 (NKJV) 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." Notice that the gospel is the power of God and through the gospel we have the power to live by faith. (A life of faith is the only way to please God.) The gospel is Christ-centered and the gospel is what Jesus Christ did for us. It seems that many believers are attempting to live the Christian life apart from the gospel. This is why many are worn out and tired and few seem to have authentic joy because they are trying to do what only Christ can do. Jesus came to give His life and in doing so He gives life to all who repent and believe. The work God has called us to do is empowered by means of the gospel. 1 Corinthians 15:10 (NKJV) 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace (underserved favor) toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. God was working in and through Paul to carry out His mission and purpose. Paul was blessed and God was glorified. It must be the same with you. The life that God demands we live can only be lived by grace. And grace comes by means of the gospel. When you live a life through the gospel you are living a Jesus-centered life. And that kind of life is what pleases God. Prayer: Father, thank you for sending your Son to die for my sin. Thank you that He rose from the dead and now lives at Your right hand interceding for me. Forgive me for attempting to do what you have already done for me. In Jesus name, amen.

Contentment

11/27/12 Contentment! What a precious thing to have. Yet few seem content. Our God has given His all and since He gave His Son then surely there isn’t any blessing that He will withhold from us. Rom.8:32. This being true then why aren’t more people content? I believe it is a poor theology. We do not think about God as we ought. While I don’t have the space to give a theology lesson I want to give you something that I ran across a few years ago. It is a list of some sound theological principles from Martin L. Jones on how to be content. Read them and be content. They are based on Phil.4:11, “I have learned in whatever state I am to be content.” “1. Conditions are always changing; therefore I must obviously not be dependent upon conditions. 2. What matters supremely is my soul and my relationship to God. 3. God is concerned about me as my Father, and nothing happens to me apart from God. Even the very hairs of my head are numbered. I must never forget that. 4. God's will and God's ways are a great mystery, but I know that whatever He wills or permits is of necessity for my good. 5. Every situation in life is the unfolding of some manifestation of God's love and goodness. Therefore my business is to look for this peculiar manifestation of God's goodness and kindness and to be prepared for surprises and blessings because His ways are not my ways, neither His thoughts my thoughts. 6. I must regard circumstances and conditions, not in and of themselves therefore but as a part of God's dealings with me in the work of perfecting my soul and bringing me to final perfection. 7. Whatever my circumstances may be at this present moment they are only temporary, they are only passing, and they can never rob me of the joy and the glory that ultimately await me with Christ.”

Thankful

11/21/12 Ephesians 5:20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Even in the hardest times we can still be thankful. We know our Lord is working all things for our good and conforming us to the image of His Son. Giving thanks is one way of saying to the world that we trust in God and have confidence that He knows best even if we don’t understand. Our Lord was always thankful, even when people rejected His message, thus rejecting Him. He went through the cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum preaching and doing mighty works. But they rejected His message and He told them that it would be more tolerable for Tyre, Sidon, and even Sodom on the day of judgment than for them. But then Jesus turns to His father and gave thanks. Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. (This passage got to me. I complain if people don’t respond; Jesus gave thanks! Father forgive me!) Even when Lazarus died Jesus gave thanks. John 11:41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. Let me give you a few of the many reasons to be thankful. 1. His name Psalm 30:4 Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. 2. His goodness and mercy. Psalm 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever. Psalm 86:5 For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You. Psalm 100:5 For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 3. Rom.8:28. Our Lord works all things for our good. 4. 2 Corinthians 9:15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! 5. 1 Timothy 4:4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; 6. Victory over sin Romans 6:14 (HCSB) For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace. 7. His grace that is always sufficient! 1Cor.12:9

Faith 2

11/20/12 Faith alone in Christ alone is what saves us. But some think that they can believe in Jesus Christ and then do as they please. They think that even though they don’t live right but because they ‘believe’ they will go to heaven when they die. In fact there are many who claim to have faith or belief in Christ but show no evidence of it – they do as they please. But this is not the kind of faith that saves. They have the kind of faith that merely accepts the facts about Jesus. This is how demons believe according to James 2:19. The demons believe there is one God and they tremble but they do not follow the Lord and therefore they are not saved. When someone genuinely believes even though they are saved by faith alone, the faith that saves them is not alone. Saving faith is accompanied by the Holy Spirit. Just as the heat from the sun warms us, that heat has all the backing from its source the sun. So it is with the faith that save us; it has all the backing of the Son. When one is saved they are still ungodly but they do not remain that way. Romans 4:5 (HCSB) says, “But to the one who does not work, but believes on Him who declares the ungodly to be righteous, his faith is credited for righteousness.” Notice that the ungodly is saved when they believe and are declared to be righteous. When you believe in Jesus you will want to obey Him because He is God and the Savior of your soul and the Lord of your life. You will not desire to remain ungodly. True faith opens your eyes to see reality and things that are otherwise not seen. (Heb.11:1, 2Cor.4:18). When you believe from the heart the Lord Jesus becomes real and your desire is to be as close to Him as you can be and to be as much like Him as a sinner can be. You begin to love what He loves and hate what He hates. Do you have this kind of faith? Galatians 5:6 (HCSB) says, … “what matters is faith working through love.” Father, thank you for sending Your Son to die in my place. I believe that Jesus is who He says that he is. I want to demonstrate what I believe. Amen.

Faith and Assurance

11/19/12 Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Faith is absolutely essential. Without it you cannot please God. Without faith you cannot hear what God says. Where there is no faith there is no joy, no peace, and no hope. In fact, without faith there is nothing left for you but to live your life apart from God and then die a death that you will regret forever. Faith in Christ quenches the fiery darts (Eph.6:16) of Satan - doubt, fears, unbelief, worries, anxieties, attacks from others, and etc. The tarts are anything and everything that has the potential to lead you into sin and away from God. Satan seeks to strike you with powerful weapons such as discouragement, depression, and despair. Moses and Elijah, perhaps the two of the greatest figures in the OT, both were so discouraged that they wanted God to kill them. David faced these same schemes and fiery darts from the same enemy that we face. David wrote in Psa.43:5 Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God. What we must do is exercise our faith in the Lord until assurance comes. Assurance of salvation and of our future deliverance is a great protection against Satanic attacks like despair and discouragement. And without assurance it becomes easy to despair and become discouraged and give up the fight. How do I know that I have assurance? Assurance will produce a: 1.Sacrifical love – You willingly and joyfully sacrifice because of the God’s glory and for the good of others. 2. Sound praise –Even when you suffer there is joy that is expressed in praise. 3.Satisfied heart – You are content even with little because of the riches in Christ that awaits you. 4.Strong hands - Even laborious work will seem much easier and more enjoyable because of Who you are serving. 5.Saturated mind – When we fill our minds with thoughts of Christ and His glory we gain assurance of the ultimate victory in the One who died for us in order to bring us to God. Prayer: Father, I believe, help my unbelief! Fill me with your Spirit and word. Forgive me for ever doubting you. In Jesus name amen.

Suffering

11/08/12 Suffering is a gift! I know this sounds unusual, perhaps even strange, but it’s true. Listen to Phil.1:29 – “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake.” God has granted or given you the gifts not only of faith (believe) but also to suffer. Suffering is a gift that no one wants but one we all need. And when we suffer we are to suffer for His glory (His sake). Suffering comes from either our sin or someone else’s sin but all of us experience it. But make no mistake about it – all suffering is filtered through the hands of the God who loved you enough to send His Son to suffer and die for you. So when suffering comes how should you respond so that God is glorified and you get the blessing of this unwanted gift? A glance at how Paul responded is helpful. Paul’s sufferings were to numerous for me to list in this article but they were more than we will ever experience. Yet listen to what he said the believers in Corinth. “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” (2 Cor.4:17) Paul referred to his suffering (affliction) as ‘light’ and ‘momentary’ because he compared it to eternity. And he knew that what God was ‘working’ through his suffering was an eternal weight of glory. Again hear the apostle when he says that God has adopted them as His children “ and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Rom.8:17-18) God has assured Paul and us that whatever suffering we endure will not be wasted. And no amount of suffering can be compared with what awaits us when we meant Christ face to face. We will experience pain and sorrow in this world until we are in the presence of Christ. But knowing that all of the suffering we may be required to endure is seen and will be rewarded by the One who suffered once and for all helps us suffer in a manner that is pleasing to our Savior. In fact if we will keep our focus on eternity whatever amount of suffering comes our way cannot be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us. When God gives you this gift receive it with joy because God is preparing you for glory! Prayer: Father, help me to guard my heart and keep my focus on You. Grant me the grace to live for Your glory even if I must suffer. In Jesus name, amen.

God is Sovereign

11/07/12 I believe in the sovereignty of God. God has always been and will always be in absolute control. Our Lord referred to the birds of the air when He spoke with His disciples and declared that not one of them would fall to the ground apart from His heavenly Father’s will. The Lord Jesus’ next statement was that even the hairs on our heads are numbered by God. We have no reason to fear because our Lord allows nothing to take place, not even a sparrow to fall to the ground, without His divine approval. (Matt.10:29-31). Yesterday our nation elected a president. Some are happy and some are sad. But the Lord Jesus is still sovereign and He is still at the right hand of the Father interceding for us. He has not changed. He is not wondering what to do next nor is He caught by surprise. Therefore I will not fear nor will I be ashamed of my Lord. Today if the Lord gives me opportunity, I will confess His name before those I meet with. Empowered by His Spirit and grace I will worship Him. I will pray for those in authority over me (including the president) that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (1Timothy 2:2-4) Today I will bow my knees before my Lord and ask Him to guide me and lead me for His name sake because “all the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth, to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.” (Psalm 25:10) I hope you will do the same. Today I read my Bible in order to know my God. Nations and leaders come and go but our Lord does not change and He is still sovereign. Prayer: Father, I pray for our nation. You sit in heaven full of glory and majesty and do as you please. Today I will bow in humble reverence and worship You through the blood of Jesus. In His name, amen.

Salt

11/06/12 Matthew 5:13-16 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. When our Lord spoke these words salt was not only common but necessary. Salt was useful to help purify, especially as it pertained to sacrifices that were required before Christ died as the once and for all sacrifice. The purer the salt the better it was. (Christ was without sin, He was absolute purity.) Salt was also used in food just as we do today and it made food much more pleasing to the taste. We as the followers of Christ should make life here on this planet a little more tasteful. Salt could well symbolize passion because salt makes one thirsty. When God’s people share His word some will want more. Salt was also penetrating. And we as believers should penetrate all of society. But I think what our Lord had in mind when he said that we are “the salt of the earth” was that we, as His people, should influence those around us in such a way that we preserve society. Salt will not prevent corruption but it will slow it down. When we speak truth and live for the Lord we are being that salt that our Lord referred too. For too long many have been silent and sadly the ‘salt’ is losing the ability to preserve our society. And what we are now seeing is a country that is decaying like meat that has no salt. And because the church is losing her ‘saltiness’ prayer is no longer allowed in schools, babies are killed as a means of birth control, and the Ten Commandments aren’t even allowed to be put on display. Same sex marriage is not only allowed but even encouraged. And if someone is offended by a cross then it must be taken down. And while all of this has been happening before our eyes where is the salt that is so needed? Have we lost our flavor? And if our flavor is lost then the church is no longer useful and there is nothing left but to throw her out and trampled on her! God forbid! Let’s go before the Lord and repent and turn from our wicked ways of apathy and silence and be what God says that we are. One more thing about salt: in order for salt to useful it had be broken into grains and spread out. Let’s go before the Lord in brokenness and then spread out and be the salt of the earth. “Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” Col.4:6 Prayer: Lord, You are our only hope. Grant us repentance and be merciful to us. Restore us to the rightful place and grant us whatever is necessary to be the salt of the earth. In Jesus name, amen.

Our nation

11/05/12 A couple of weeks ago I posted this article about our nation. Since tomorrow is election day I want to post it again. Please pray for our country as you vote tomorrow. Our nation is in trouble. In fact it seems to me that we are being judged by the Lord. Why do I think this? Throughout history nations has been judged by God. (Assyria, Babylon, Egypt, and Israel, are just a few of them.) And there are similarities with all of them. They were continually at war. Our troops have been fighting on same foreign soil since WWII. Secondly, there was no real solid or sound leadership in those nations that were judged. (Need I say more?) Third, sexual immorality was abundant in those countries and they thought nothing of it. In fact not only did their laws allow it but the religious leaders even approved of it. Today in our own country not only are laws being formatted to allow same sex marriage, but we also have churches springing up across our land that not only allow such practices but even approve of them. And fourthly, like bygone countries, our nation is being evaded by foreign powers. We call them terrorist. And lastly, our economy, like the other nations, is grumbling as we speak. In spite of all these things I don’t lay of all the blame on the government or congress or any of the leaders, though they will be judged too. I believe the problem lies with us – the church, God’s people! When are we going to wake up? Is there an answer? Is there a word from God? I believe there is. And since we have a word from God I have hope because He is merciful. In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God says, ”if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Notice God says that if His people will humble themselves, pray, seek His face, turn (repent) from their wicked ways then He will HEAL OUR LAND! I don’t think anyone questions the fact that our land needs healing. Here is the Judges’ solution. If we will obey God in the power of the Holy Spirit then I believe the church will be restored to its rightful place as salt and light to a miserable and darken world and our land will be healed. Prayer: Father, in heaven, You are holy. Grant us repentance and a broken and contrite heart. Return to us the joy of our salvation Heal our land and let it begin in me.

Tears

11/02/12 When was the last time you shed tears over either someone else’ sin or perhaps your own? Paul sends for his beloved friends from Ephesus in Acts 20. He knows he will not see them again and he reminds them of how he served the Lord in humility with many tears. He warned them with tears flowing from his eyes about what might happen to them if they strayed from “the word of His grace.” 20:19, 29-32. Paul was a broken man and his tears were the evidence of it. He was broken over the hardness of hearts and how easily many were being lead astray. And because of this ‘brokenness’ Paul was often before the Lord interceding. Even our Lord Jesus Christ shed tears over the sinfulness of humanity. Three times the Bible tells us that Jesus wept. Luke 19:41 records our Lord weeping over the city of Jerusalem because judgment was coming upon them for their refusal to receive Him. In John 11:35 our Lord is weeping. When he arrived at the tomb of Lazarus the Jews and Lazarus’ sisters were weeping. Death had taken another and it broke our Lord’s heart to the point that He wept. And in Heb.5:7 we read of our Savior before the Father shedding tears while he prayed. I have often heard that tears are a sign of weakness. But the greatest Christian who ever lived shed tears and our Savior and Lord shed them. And until we begin to shed tears because we are broken over our sin and those of others we may not see the hand of God at work. Go before the Lord and the word of His grace and seek His heart and you will be like our Lord, Paul, and many others and allow those tears to run down your cheeks. And then serve the Lord in humility and with tears! Prayer: Father, in the name of Jesus I ask that you break our hearts for Your glory and our good. Amen.

Suffering for His glory

11/01/12 Why would Abraham leave his home and relatives and willingly go to an unknown place? Why would Moses stand before the mightiest man of his day and willingly spend forty years in the wilderness with a people that didn’t like him? What about Joshua, David, the prophets, Esther, and many more? If space permitted I could tell you of a host of men and women who voluntarily endured much suffering. But why would they? The apostle Paul says it well in Philippians 3:7-8 (NLT) 7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ. Knowing the Lord by experience was infinitely valuable. Again in the words of Paul the church is “to the praise of His glory.” Eph.1:12. Abraham, Moses, Paul and a multitude of others saw enough of God’s glory that when they compared what they were losing to what they were gaining no amount of suffering could compare with the glory that would soon follow. The Lord Jesus Christ is so infinitely valuable that all else in comparison is garbage (literally dung). When you know the Lord Jesus and by faith you see glimpses of His glory, you will willingly and joyfully give up whatever is required in order to gain more of the One who is of infinite worth. And when this joy of knowing the Lord is in your heart it will soon be expressed in praise for the One who is so praiseworthy. Prayer: Lord, I want to know you, really know you. Show me Your glory and I will joyfully tell others. In the infinitely valuable name of Jesus, amen.