Did you know creation waits for us to get our act together?
It’s actually “frustrated” (Romans 8:19-22).
Earth and all the things in it – hope to be liberated from their shackles. Paul tells us creation is chained up and left to decay. It longs to be brought into the freedom and glory of God. It longs to breathe. It longs to live! Ever since Adam, creation has been cheated and it yearns to be restored (Gen 3:17).
Restore to what? Soon God will restore everything (Acts 3:21). He will reinstate a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13, Rev. 21:1).
Jeremiah asked, “How long?! How long will the land starve?” (Jer. 12:4) Not long, man. Closer now than ever. And what a day that will be!
God Bless!
Ever been at the airport and people-watched? That’s the best place to watch people. I think it’s so interesting; just observe people as they come and go. Where are they going? Where did they come from?
Ever notice the people who are prepared? They are calmly seated. They have their ticket out and ready to go. They are not anxious about anything except to just to get going!
Ever notice the people on standby? They are not calmly seated. In fact, they are pacing back and forth. They do not have their ticket out and ready to go because they are not sure if they are going to be lucky enough to get one. They are anxious alright. And actually they have every right to be! They may not have a spot on that plane. Then what?
God is all about us being confident. He wants a people who are not pacing back and forth wondering if they have a ticket or not. He wants us to be anxious… not because we aren’t sure if we’re on the manifest, but because we are so excited we can hardly contain ourselves!
Is it too bold of a thing for me to say to you: You can be sure that you are going to Heaven? Ok, well – do you believe that the Gospel is the Word of God? Of course you do. Then what do you think about 1 John 5:13? “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.”
So that you may KNOW! Do you believe in the name of the Son of God? Has He made something new out of the mess you’ve made of your life? Then what are you worried about? “Oh, I’m not sure… I hope I get to go to Heaven… but,… you know, I’m not sure…” What?! That doesn’t sound like Victory to me. Jesus didn’t die on the cross, glorify His Father, and take on our sins for you and I to be… uncertain.
God doesn’t want us spending all our time and energy fretting over our destination. He wants us spending all our time and energy praising His name, helping the poor, and getting as many other passengers on that plane.
John 10:28 says “no one can snatch them out of My Hand.” No one. Not even you! No one can snatch God’s children out of His hand! Why act like someone snatched you out of God’s hand? It’s not even possible.
John 6:37 “whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”
Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 10:9 “Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
I could go on and on. There are so many verses assuring salvation… hmmm, maybe God knew we would need this many. Maybe He knew we would struggle with just flat-out accepting His amazing Love. So, like a good parent, He tells us over and over, down through time: You are saved.
I can do some things through Christ which strengthens me. I can do a couple of things through Christ which strengthens me. I can do a few things through Christ which strengthens me.
Nope, that’s not what the Holy Word of God says, is it? Instead it says: I can do ALL things through Christ which strengthens me. ALL THINGS! Not some, a couple, or a few.
All things.
That means everything. That means anything headed your way, good or bad – you can handle through Christ which gives you strength.
Now, does that mean you could run faster than a speeding bullet and jump over a building in a single bound? No… not unless God willed it and it would bring Him glory. Then, you bet you would. But, this refers more to like daily troubles.
As we face daily trials and tribulations, we know that Christ Jesus will strengthen us. He will be our strength when we have none. He will be our courage when ours has run dry. He will be there for us daily and supply us with ALL that we may require.
What if you had a bright-green glob of spinach stuck right in the middle of your two front teeth? Then you went the whole day and no one told you. Wouldn’t you wonder, with all the people you came into contact with that day, why no one told you?!
If someone did tell you, it would probably be embarrassing at first. It might even make you feel stupid. However, later on, you would thank them. Right?
If no one told me, I would think that the whole day, people were actually ignoring it. They had to have been distracted by this giant glaring piece of vegetable lodged in my teeth! Oh, you know they saw it, right? I mean, there’s no mistaking it!
Well, it takes guts to tell someone there is something stuck in their teeth. The whole time you’re thinking, “Should I tell them? Nah, it’s not that bad. Maybe someone else will tell them. Maybe it will become loose and just fall out on its own. How do they not know? Look at it! Wow, its huge!… Great, too much time has gone by and it would look weird if I mentioned it now. Ok, this is making me uncomfortable. WAIT! Maybe I’ve got something in MY teeth! AHHHH!”
If I did tell you had spinach in your teeth, how would you respond?
“MY TEETH? Look at YOUR TEETH! You think YOUR TEETH are so clean? They are just as bad as mine! Not to mention your breath! I’ve been meaning to tell you: Your breath is pretty rank, buddy. Why don’t you use some mouthwash? THEN come back and tell me about MY terrible spinach infestation!”
Of course not. You and I are not like that, are we? We would thank that person and get that dastardly spinach out of our teeth right then and there and FOREVER! Right?
I don’t know. Maybe. Maybe not. Pride is a funny thing. It can topple even the strongest person. It can blind even the brightest of people. We have to fill ourselves with the Holy Word of God and align our steps with His only Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. That’s the only way any of us even have a chance.
And if someone loves you enough to tell you that you have spinach in your teeth? Thank them. Thank them for being so brave and honest.
God Bless!
#BearOneAnothersBurdens
Ref: Galatians 6:1
He sent Abraham to Canaan. He sent Moses to Pharaoh. He sent Nathan to David. He sent John the Baptist to pave the way. Then He sent His Son to this world. He sent His Holy Spirit after that. He sent the Apostles to the rest of the world. And now?
Now, God sends us. Now, we are the sent ones (Mark 16:15).
He sends us out to spread the good news of His Risen Son. He sends us out to love in a world filled to the brim with hate. He sends us out to bring hope to the hopeless and to set the captives free (Luke 4:18)!
He sends us out to represent Christ.
Sent ones carry the authority of the Sender (Romans 10:15). The US Ambassador to the United Nations is just a man, but with that title, he represents the United States, it’s president, and it’s people. We are just men and women, but clothed in the precious Blood of the Lamb, we represent Jesus’ Love, Mercy, and Peace.
What a privilege! What an awesome responsibility! It is joyous and terrifying at the same time, isn’t it?
Now more than ever, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand (Matt. 10:7). Just as Jesus submitted to His Father, We must submit to Jesus. (John 17:18)
How about we make year 2014, the year of Please and Thank You.
Please, God, mold me. Please, Lord, help me get closer to You. Please, Father, give me the Peace that passes all understanding!
Thank You, God, for all You’ve done for me. Thank You, Lord, for the Cross and all that it stands for. Thank You, Father, for loving me, for remembering me, and for saving me.
I think if we can make 2014 the year of Please and Thank You, we will all have a very blessed year!
Are you wrestling with God over something? Who isn’t, right? Did you know that someone actually did wrestle with God? And I don’t mean “wrestle” metaphorically either. I’m talking literally. God wrestled Jacob in a straight-up, hand-to-hand wrestling match. The first-ever Smack Down occurred in Genesis 32:24-32.
In fact, God wrestled Jacob all night. They wrestled until daybreak and when God saw that He had not prevailed against Jacob, He touched Jacob’s thigh and dislocated it. Just a touch. That’s all it took. This showed that obviously God could’ve won at any moment. As dawn was breaking, God said, “Let Me go.” No one can see God’s face and live. But Jacob replied, “No. Not until You bless me.” Ha! Imagine that! The gumption of this guy! God then (I envision with a smile on His face) changes Jacob’s name to “Israel” which means, “he who wrestles/strives with God.” Then He blessed him.
Why did God do that? If He wanted to challenge Jacob, He could’ve picked any kind of contest: a race, a riddle, or tic-tac-toe. Why wrestling? Well, any of those other contests are not interactive. They keep contestants separate. Wrestling is more intimate. God picked an activity that involved actual physical contact.
I’m not sure, but I figure Jacob had that limp for the rest of his days. I also imagine that he limped proudly. It became his badge of courage, his price for a blessing, and his evidence of a God that loves him.
We all wrestle with God, maybe not physically like Jacob here, but spiritually? You bet. All the time. It’s the “old man” in us rising up. It’s the rebellious tickle in our ear. Envy. Pride. Gluttony. Pick one. But here’s the thing, God will wrestle you right back. He will step into the ring. He wants to bless you.
Wrestling with God, however, does come with a price. You may carry a limp for the rest of your days. But you won’t view that hurt as loss. You will view that hurt as victory. You will want to tell everyone about your limp and what it means to you. You will want to tell everyone how much God loves you and how much God loves them.
God bless!
This post owes a lot to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones‘s “Victorious Limp” via Tim Keller‘s “The Theology of the Cross and Walking with a Limp,” I encourage everyone to check out these incredible links!
For our honeymoon my wife and I were blessed with a trip to Paris. While we were there, we visited the Palace of Versailles. Once the center of political power, Versailles is now France’s foremost tourist attraction. Besides it’s sheer grandeur, one thing stuck with me about that palace: the thrones.
It is there that I learned what a throne represents. I mean, of course I knew that a throne represented power. It is obvious that to have people come to you is a demonstration of power. But, it is absolute power to have people come to you as you remain seated.
Ever thought of that before?
The Throne of God is mentioned several times throughout scripture. I won’t bombard you with all of them. Most famously it is described by Ezekiel (chapter 1). I’d like to mention also that the angel Gabriel refers to the Throne of God in Luke 1:32-33 because… he should know, he’s been there. He’s actually seen it!
God is mentioned as “sitting” multiple times as well.
• “The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.” – Psalms 29:10
• “He that sits in the heavens laughs” (at the futile efforts of man’s rebellion) – Psalms 2:4
• “Who is like the LORD our God, the One who sits enthroned on high?” – Psalms 113:5
Sitting on His Throne, God is The Absolute Power. He is the Power of the Power. There is none above and all below. Yet, He makes Himself low to guide and love His fragile creation.
In your quiet time with the LORD today, reflect on our God’s astounding ability to speak stars into being and also whisper encouragement to His children all in the same all-powerful breath. He does so with perfect love from His magnificent Throne.
With one hand He is holding yours and with His other hand, He is clearing your path.
One of the most beloved of David’s poetry is Psalms 23. It describes God as the caring Shepherd and the dependable Guide.
He leads us beside quiet waters and refreshes our soul. With one hand He gently guides us along the right path and with the other, he makes a banquet. Even as enemies approach, we have nothing to fear for God is with us.
By allowing Jesus to guide us, we trail in His goodness and love and we dwell in His house forever.
There was a man named Philip… not the Apostle Philip, but another Philip,… who treated an audience of thousands and an audience of one with the same zeal. A man who did not discriminate between race and class. A man who was miraculously transported across the land. He was a man who, no doubt, inspired countless missionaries with his wisdom and compassion.
Let’s take a second and remember Philip.
In Acts 6, the early church has just gotten started. Now, you would assume that it was perfect, right? However, it had problems just like today’s churches do. The conflict in this instance was that certain widows were being overlooked with the food distribution.
So they appointed seven men to handle the food. The qualifications for these deacons were: they had to be full of the Spirit and full of wisdom. Philip was one of the seven chosen. Therefore, we know that Philip was respected as being full of the Spirit and wisdom.
The next time Philip is mentioned is in Acts 8:5-40.
Here is where it gets really interesting!
The early leaders were commissioned with spreading the Gospel outside of Jerusalem. Philip is spreading it in Samaria. Why is that significant? Well, the Jewish people held the Samaritans as “half-breeds” and therefore hated them. Philip’s example demonstrates that the Good News is for everyone, regardless of class or color. Hatred, bigotry, and ignorance have no place in spreading the Good News of our Savior!
Now, skip down to verse 26.
Philip is approached by an angel and told to go to Ethiopia. On that road he runs into an Ethiopian eunuch who is reading the Book of Isaiah. The eunuch was having a hard time deciphering it. Starting there, Philip begins preaching the about Jesus.
Philip baptizes him and is “taken away.” He then “appears” many miles away. Did he fly? Was he teleported? Who knows, but anything is possible! There’s nothing that the Spirit of the Lord cannot accomplish!
So what can we glean from the life of Philip? What can’t we?!
• He was full of the Spirit and wisdom.
• He did not discriminate who could and could not hear the Gospel.
• He also could share his witness with a whole nation or a single person because both are equally important.
What a great example. Take some time to meditate on Philip and his admirable characteristics. How can you apply these to your walk?
A Verse A Day 