Jesus

The reason to glorify God

/ The Pastor

[Now that I have had a pot of coffee and am functioning somewhat normally, I am ready for that “thoughtful” word. Hopefully I won’t be as random as I was this morning :-)]

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. [Romans 11:36]

Think about that benediction for a moment…

From God all things/people exist.
Through God all things/people are allowed to exist and thus sustained.
And therefore all things/people belong to God and will return to God.

I think about this and have great joy in my heart; that my life is from God and is sustained by God and that I belong to God. This is comforting especially considering the fact that we live in a messed up world. We live in a world were there is war and terrorism and cancer and abuse and death and hatred and sin and the depressing list goes on. We live in a world that is uncertain and a world that will not last.

But I do not belong to the world
I belong to God through Jesus Christ.

Through God I came into being.
Through God I am sustained.
To God I will return.

What an joyous thought.
What a hopeful outlook.
What a victorious picture.

And therefore all glory and honor and worship be to God our Father through Jesus Christ. If you need to reason to glorify God, then think about where you came from, who sustains you and where you will return through faith in Jesus. That thought alone should cause much rejoicing in the face of Satan’s reign of death.

Oh the look on Satan’s face when he sees that his rule is finally over.
Oh the joy of living in God’s kingdom.
Oh the hope
Oh the peace

Praise be to God and Amen!

The (fully awake) Pastor -|—

The Law is good

/ The Pastor

Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law. [Romans 3:31]

Yesterday we explored the awesome grace of God as we briefly surveyed the 10 Commandments and found that we definitely stand condemned, but by the mercy of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, we have salvation.

Praise be to God!

The question before us now (and one that the apostle Paul answers) is this:
Now what?

If we are saved by grace apart from the Law, does that mean that faith in Jesus nullifies the Law. 

Basically, the implication here is that since we are saved by grace through faith, why worry about the Law. Why obey the 10 Commandments when God will forgive anyways? Why bother learning these Laws? The apostle Paul, in response to these questions, would slap you you up across the head and say ” You idiot” (but say it with all love of course) it’s because we are saved apart from following the Law that we are free to obey the Law with all joy in order to show love to our neighbor and to God.

You don’t abandon the Law because you are saved, but rather follow the Law because you are saved. Just read Psalm 119 and you will discover the joy the author has in learning and following God’s Law. He’s not seeking salvation but rather wants to learn more and glorify God.

Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors. (vs 24)

The earth, O Lord, is full of your steadfast love; teach me your statutes. (vs 64)

Teach me good judgement and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments. (vs 66)

And there are many more such verses. The Law of God convicts us of our sin and therefore our need for a Savior (Jesus Christ). But the Law also shows us how to love God and neighbor. As Tom Brokaw once said, They are not called the 10 suggestions. They are Commandments. This is a holy tension; this grace and Law thing, but one that makes sense through faith.

If your faith is truly found in Jesus Christ, then said faith will find joy in obeying God for God is worthy. When one foolishly tosses the Law away because they are saved it makes me wonder if they are really saved at all.

So give praise to God for salvation through Jesus Christ and then seek to learn God’s righteous decrees more and more. Seek to know Him better through His Commands. Seek to honor God more through your obedience.

May God be praised and obeyed; served and worshiped; honored and glorified; always and forever. Amen.

May God bless your day 🙂

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Flesh vs Spirit

/ The Pastor

For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. [Romans 8:6-8]

The prosperity gospel…

[Oh no, here goes the Pastor again :-)]

…tries to convince people that peace is found in this life; through the flesh. It says that in order to “have your best life now” all you need to do is get your flesh in order. Meaning ~ thinking right, believing right, dreaming right, saying the right things and doing the right things. All of this, they claim, will curry God’s favor and therefore you will live “your best life now“. In essence, the prosperity gospel is trying to sell peace when it is actually bringing the wrath of God.

Those trying to sell this crap (excuse my language but this is what it is) have their minds set on the flesh and not on the Spirit and therefore they themselves are really not at peace. But when you are in the midst of what you believe is “your best life now” you don’t know you’re really not at peace. The flesh has a way of shielding one’s eyes from the truth.

So what is true peace if it is not found in this life? That answer seems pretty simple: By keeping your mind set on the Spirit which is faith in God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
~ A mind set on the flesh thinks only of this life; but a mind set on the Spirit thinks of the promised life to come through Jesus.
~ A mind set on the flesh can only achieve a temporary peace; but a mind set on the Spirit receives true, everlasting peace from the only true peace-giver: Jesus Christ
~ A mind set on the flesh can only achieve a fleeting happiness, that comes and goes and comes and goes; but a mind set on the Spirit has a joy that is not fleeting.
~ A mind set on the flesh CAN NOT please God; but a mind set on the Spirit has salvation.
~ A mind set on the flesh lives in death; but a mind set on the Spirit lives in Life.

And you probably get the point. When you have true faith in God through Jesus Christ then you submit to God’s Law and follow him in complete joy, for God is worthy. Your focus is on pleasing God, not the flesh. The prosperity gospel does not get this and therefore will never preach this. The true Gospel is understanding we can do nothing to achieve peace in this life but rather its submitting to God who is the only peace giver. It’s placing your faith in Jesus and believing your best life is yet to come, not now.

So set your mind on the Spirit and be at peace.

May God grant you a peace that totally blows your mind so that you may see and experience true peace in Him. Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Such a time

/ The Pastor

For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” [Esther 4:14]

Haman has unleashed an evil plot to destroy all the Jews in the kingdom, but Mordecai finds out the plan. Upon his discovery he tells Queen Esther (a Jew herself) but she is unwilling to go and tell the king. You see, there is a law on the books that states: if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. (Esther 4:11) And at this point Esther had not been called in to see the king for 30 days. So Esther fears for her life. But Mordecai reminds Esther not to be so foolish to think that she will escape this judgement, besides, who knows whether she has been brought to a time such as this.

Long story short, Mordecai finally gets through and Esther agrees to help. She secures an audience with the king and Haman’s plot is revealed; where he is eventually hanged on the very gallows that he was going to hang Mordecai (the man who earlier saved the king’s life). God DID bring Esther to a time such as this and therefore millions of lives were saved.

Have you ever wondered what God is doing in your life? Have you ever wondered why you were in a certain place at a certain time? Have you ever wondered why you were called to suffer in a certain way? Well, maybe you were called to a certain place and time for such a time to bring glory to God. Maybe, just maybe, God had His reasons and was using you to do something special and amazing.

Esther’s story is pretty incredible and maybe God won’t call you to save millions of lives, but he might call you to save one. I believe in the depths of my heart that God calls us to moments to share the Gospel and with a particular person, in order to bring that person to faith. But how many times do we miss those moments or not trust God to be faithful. I also believe that God calls us to suffer in order that we may witness to others. What a powerful way to witness when you do so through suffering; a time when many people would curse God or turn away from God. What an opportunity to proclaim God’s love and faithfulness and the hope of the resurrection through Jesus Christ.  Maybe you have been called to such a time.

So instead of wondering why God is doing what He is doing or wondering why here, why now; just witness. Make the most of the opportunity and situation to bring glory to God. Share the Gospel of Jesus Christ; that through his death and resurrection you can have forgiveness of sins and thus eternal life. Live your faith and show your trust in God because who knows, someone might hear the Gospel for the first time and be saved.

And thus God using such a time for His glory.

May God open your eyes to see opportunities and may you have the faith to accept God’s call.

Praise be to God, always and forever. Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ THE War on Terror

/ The Pastor

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. [Galatians 5:16-17]

We are at war.

No, I am not talking about the war on terror but it is close. This is the war against the flesh; sinful desires. And this is a war that has been going on since Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden in Genesis 3. And it is a war in which Satan is relentless for he knows what he is up against: Weak human beings.

The problem for many is that they don’t realize they are at war. It is hard to fight a battle if you don’t arm yourself. But worse yet, you are not going to fight a war unless you first declare war. You need to be ready and that means knowing who your opponent is, where the war is being fought, what is at stake and what your assets are.

Opponent ~ Satan
Location ~ The flesh
What’s at stake ~ Your soul
Assets ~ Jesus

Your biggest weapon in this “war on terror” is walking in the Spirit; staying close to God in Jesus Christ. That means staying in scripture; being in prayer; living a life of worship; studying the Word; having regular fellowship with believers. If you arm yourself in such a way, you are giving yourself the upper hand, not because you are so smart or strong but rather, through faith, you are submitting to the one who already fought the battle and won the war.

That’s right, the war has already been won, but the battle still goes on. It’s a backwards way of doing things but Satan is still trying to take down as many people as he can before Jesus comes again to claim his prize once and for all. But don’t despair, God is not throwing you to the wolves in the interim. You are here to glorify God in this life and bring others to him. You’re not alone.

Fight this battle with the flesh as you walk along side the one who has won the war for you: Jesus Christ. Declare war on Satan and realize temptation is all around you. Stand strong and hold firm to hope of the resurrection.

So go into battle today, ready and willing to fight, all to the glory of God.

Praise be to God and Amen!

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Don’t wait to be asked

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.” [Acts 13:15]

After reading from the Law and the Prophets, the ruler of the synagogue urges Paul to share words of encouragement with all those gathered. No doubt they had heard of Paul and his ministry, now they want to hear for themselves. And so Paul goes on to talk about Jesus, who was crucified and raised from the dead. Paul shares that through this man (Jesus) there is forgiveness of sins and freedom from that which the Law of Moses could not free you.

Upon hearing Paul’s words of encouragement and the Good News they begged him to stay and say these things again the next day. And why wouldn’t they? When you hear Good News you just can’t get enough of it.

Christian, do you really know Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Do you believe that your sins have been forgiven through faith in Jesus? Do you cling to the hope of the resurrection? I mean, do you really? Does this excite you and give you encouragement? Then don’t wait for people to find you and ask you to share words of encouragement, because chances are they won’t. If the Good News is really Good News then share words of encouragement without being asked.

And sometimes you don’t need to start out saying words. Sometimes your life is enough to get people’s attention. But don’t let that be enough for you. Don’t simply do things for others but also say words. Paul writes in Romans that faith comes through hearing (not seeing alone). Faith comes through words (not actions alone). Faith comes through YOU speaking words so therefore, do so without being asked.

But what am I saying, if Jesus is the Word of Life; I mean really the Word of Life for you, then you are probably already doing what I have said. If Jesus is not the Word of Life for you then I pray that the Holy Spirit infects your hearts with hope and leads you to faith in Jesus as your Savior.

And once you have said these words of encouragement, say them again and again because if people are anything like me, you just can’t get enough of the good stuff.

So in the words of TobyMac from his hit song Speak Life:

So speak Life, speak Life.
To the deadest darkest night.
Speak life, speak Life.
When the sun won’t shine and you don’t know why.
Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted;
Watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope,
You speak love, you speak…
You speak Life

Speak life and praise God always and forever. Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Glory to God

/ The Pastor

On my desk I have a picture frame that houses our family’s 2014 Christmas card. The card proudly shows off six pictures. Five of the pictures are of my two beautiful children and the sixth picture is a shot of our family of four. I find myself staring at this picture often; in awe that that is my family.

But as I stare at that beautiful arrangement of pictures; my eyes drift to the bottom left side of the card. There, in that corner are the words:

Glory to God

The words are meant to be a Christmas greeting and proclamation to our family and friends but they also remind me of God’s grace and faithfulness in our lives.

You see, about two years ago, my wife and I were wondering if we would ever be parents (especially after our painful failed adoption in March 2013), but now we are the parents of two beautiful children (both under the age of two, crazy, I know). Life has definitely changed for us, and in more ways than one:

~ Our house is now chaotic as our living room has turned into one big toy room.
~ Our Schedules are more complex.
~ Sleep is a premium.
~ Children’s songs now ring in my head.
~ Packing and traveling is stressful.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way 🙂

But also, our faith in God through Jesus has been strengthened (and I definitely wouldn’t have THAT any other way).

Glory to God

You see, I was a Christian before the failed adoption, but afterwards, something “more”. And that’s the best way I can describe it. My wife and I became so much closer to each other and especially to God. We began to look at God differently (and in a good way). We began to lean more on God, especially during the healing process following the failed adoption. God was great before, we just noticed it better after we thought our lives were falling apart. God never deserted us; He was just doing something amazing.

Glory to God

Now I wonder how people do it. How do they navigate life without God? How do they deal with loss without God? How to they deal with tragedy without God? How do they face death without God? All of these questions perplex me and drive me to proclaim the Good News of Jesus. I don’t want anyone to deal with the crap of this world on their own.

I want people to lean on God through faith in Jesus.
I want people to know the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.
I want people to see their sinfulness and need for a Savior.
I want people to see their need to confess their sins.
I want people to hear God’s forgiveness through Jesus.
I want people to know the hope of the resurrection.
I want people to know Jesus.
I want people to give…

Glory to God

So in case you wanted to know what drives this pastor to serve and minister and write all these blog posts, well, there you go. It’s about Jesus. It’s about the Gospel. It’s about Life. It’s about giving…

Glory to God

…always and forever; for He is worthy.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Don’t be lazy

/ The Pastor

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. [Matthew 7:21]

Dear Christian, it is a dangerous thing to be so secure in your salvation that you become complacent. It is a dangerous thing to think you can coast through life without “working out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2). It is a dangerous thing to think that the Christian life is a spectator sport. For if this is what you are doing, then you don’t know Jesus.

May you not find yourself in a position where the door is being shut in your face because you traveled down the wrong road. I imagine (because I can’t say for certain since I am not God) many a “Christian” have lived a “secure” life because they have “put their time in” or because they thought they were already through the door and then found themselves being rejected by the one they through they were following, because they really did not know Jesus. That is a terrifying thing to think about.

Instead, O Christian, work out your salvation with fear and trembling (as the apostle Paul so eloquently says).  See your salvation through faith in Jesus as a wonderful gift and then seek to do the will of God. Search him out and listen. Listen and then do. Do and rejoice. Rejoice and glorify God.

When you truly know your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and what he has done for you, then you are not going to want to sit on the sidelines. When you realize what salvation truly means you are going to want to “get into the game” in order to glorify God and share with others this awesome God.

So dear Christian, don’t be lazy. When you say, Lord, Lord” actually mean it. Get to know the real Jesus and work out your gift of salvation with fear and trembling.

Praise be to God, always and forever. Amen

The Pastor -|—

WARNING

/ The Pastor

Christian beware!!! Today is the “last day of Christmas”.

Maybe you have already taken down your tree and decorations. If not, I am guessing soon. Whatever the case, beware, watch out, don’t let your guard down.

As the world around us moves on from Christmas, the many reminders of the season are slowly being packed away for another year. And as that happens, the threat of forgetting looms larger and larger all the time. Soon life will return to “normal”.

May that never be.

Just because the Christmas season has passed it doesn’t mean the promises of Christmas should be packed away as well. The love of God that came down in that baby in the manger, Jesus, is still alive and well the other months of the year. This Good News is not seasonal, and praise be to God for that. I don’t know about you, but I need to hear about God’s love every single day. I need to read scripture, pray, think about, contemplate, ponder and question every single day. I need to hear that my sins are forgiven. I need to hear that God is nearer to me than I am to myself. I need to hear the Good News proclaimed to me every single day. I need to hear about the hope of the resurrection.

I need Jesus.

So Christian beware!!! Don’t grow complacent as “normalcy” re-enters your life.

Keep running to the manger to see God’s love.
Keep running to the cross to see Jesus die for you.
Keep running to the tomb to see it empty.

Don’t pack away the Good News of Christmas with the rest of your decorations. Prominently display this Good News for all to see. And if it helps you, throw in a few “Merry Christmas” greetings throughout the year. I guarantee you will get people’s attention and get them thinking again and maybe even yourself.

So Christian beware and be merry.

Merry Christmas and Praise be to God 🙂

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Great Joy

/ The Pastor

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. [Matthew 2:10-11]

What gives you great joy?
~ Seeing a beautiful sunset
~ Your children
~ A healthy looking checkbook balance
~ Athletic success
~ Good health
~ A full sanctuary
~ Peaceful relationships
~ [Fill in the blank___________]

All these things give a sense (false sense) of peace and happiness yet we pursue and worship them. The magi traveled a great distance to find a baby who was King and were exceedingly joyful when the star finally stopped at the place where Jesus was.

Once in the house they fell down in worship; the only appropriate response to Jesus but also, the only one/thing worthy of worship. Health or money or children or big houses or good jobs or many friends do not and can not give life, and therefore they are not worthy.

The magi gave up a way of life and belief system to worship the King. Will you give up your idols and worship the only one who is worthy for ONLY Jesus has given his life for you. Your idols of this world care nothing for you as they can not save your soul.

See in Jesus your hope, your salvation, your Life and be exceedingly joyful. All praise be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Pastor -|—