The Living word — Faith — Stylin' Granny Mama

Since Charlie Kirk’s murder last week, I have been trying to figure out how to respond. It was only in the last four months that I started to follow Charlie on Facebook, so I certainly did not know him personally, but I liked what he was doing. If a person can get people to think and do it in a way that shows self-control and kindness, that’s awesome. I have seen a number of people talk about Charlie since his death and it sounds like he was one of the good guys: a young man who had a passion, not only for conservative values, but for God and His word. Was he perfect? Of course not, none of us are, but to dedicate your life to connecting and talking with others means something.

When deciding what to write about, I thought it best to honor Charlie by taking us back to God’s Word.

The Roaring Lion

“8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

— 1 Peter 5:8 (NASB 1995)

While we do have enemies made of flesh and blood, our real enemy is much more crafty than any human being. He was an angelic being, created by God to serve Him, but given a free will Lucifer decided he should be the one making the decisions and tried to take God’s throne. God banished him from heaven along with a large number of angels who followed him. Earth is their dwelling place, and Satan loves to play with God’s most precious creation, humanity. (See Ezekiel 28:13-17, and Isaiah 14:12-14)

As I have said before on this blog, what better plan could an enemy concoct, but that which makes the prey think he doesn’t exist, and that the thing that matters most is their own selfish desires. The problem is, Satan has his fingers heart-deep in so many people’s lives due to his adept skill at manipulating the truth.

Charlie Kirk spoke truth. He spoke ideas and thoughts that aligned with God’s Word, and many lives were changed because he had the bravery and desire to make a difference. Yes, a 22 year old man shot him, but it was the unseen enemy, Satan, who was moving and manipulating behind the scenes. He moves and manipulates every time there is a school shooting, a child is forced into the sex trade, families wonder where their next meal is coming from, bullies try to have the upper hand, church ladies gossip; the list is endless. Look at the darkness in the world and you will realize Satan is at the core of all of it.

Difficult Times will Come

Isn’t it interesting that the lion above and the man below have a similar facial expression?

“1 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.”

— 2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NASB 1995)

Why are we surprised by the responses that many people are leaving on social media in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s murder? These verses could not be any more accurate than if a news reporter wrote them this past week: boastful, revilers, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good…lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.

The last sentence in this group of verses tells us to avoid such men/women as these. Charlie Kirk did not avoid them. He met them face to face, and head on he broached the hard topics - racism, abortion, gun violence, and others.

Living According to God’s Word will Bring Persecution

“12 Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
13 But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”

— 2 Timothy 3:12-13 (NASB 1995)

We are told if we desire to live godly in Christ Jesus we will be persecuted. In addition, Jesus said,

“33 These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.””

— John 16:33 (NASB 1995)

In this world we will have tribulation, but Jesus has overcome the world.

Our Purpose through it All

No matter what is going on in the world around us our identity and purpose does not change. We are made in the image of the almighty God (Genesis 1:26-27), and our purpose is to honor and glorify Him with our abilities, talents and our voices (Colossians 3:23). Charlie Kirk knew this and used the gifts God had given Him to lift up His truth and glorify Him. What is God’s will for us during these difficult times?

“14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people.
16 Rejoice always;
17 pray without ceasing;
18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
19 Do not quench the Spirit;
20 do not despise prophetic utterances.
21 But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good;
22 abstain from every form of evil.”

— 1 Thessalonians 5:14-22 (NASB 1995)

These principles, are the same today as they were 2000 years ago. Evil has been here since Satan chose to defy His God and Adam and Eve chose to listen to his half-truth whispers. Thankfully our God has not changed. Whether you are angry at the injustice of Charlie’s murder, or you are rejoicing that his voice has been silenced, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8) and no one on this planet can change that.

Do Not Lose Hope

Image by Muhammad Haseeb Muhammad Suleman from Pixabay

I felt the aftermath of Charlie’s death as if he had been a close relative, and in a way he was. For those of us who believe, he was our brother in Christ and his wife is our sister in Christ. While I didn’t know him other than through social media clips, Charlie represented truth I believe in and qualities I want to have: love, boldness and joy.

My dear friends, do not lose hope.

“Be strong and let your heart take courage,
All you who hope in the Lord.”

— Psalm 31:23 (NASB 1995)

“My soul, wait in silence for God only,
For my hope is from Him.”

— Psalm 62:5 (NASB 1995)

“Sustain me according to Your word, that I may live; And do not let me be ashamed of my hope.”

— Psalm 119:116 (NASB 1995)

“1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;
4 and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;
5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

— Romans 5:1-5 (NASB 1995)

Our hope does not disappoint! We know that Charlie is now with Jesus, as are my father, father-in-law, and many, many others who have gone before. They are rejoicing in the presence of their Savior and the troubles of this world are dim compared to His eternal burning love.

Thank you Father for sharing your love with this world through people like Charlie Kirk, and thank you Charlie for being exactly who God wanted you to be.

We are all story tellers in one form or another. Whether you are telling a friend about your trip to the doctor’s office, your spouse about the new movie you just saw, or people on social media about the sales at Nordstrom, we are all telling a story. Your story might not be exciting, or full of action and romance, but it is your story. Story telling is a way of relaying information. At times the information might be made up for the purpose of entertainment, but more often story telling is a way to relay true accounts and facts.

We tell stories with our words, but we can also tell stories with our body language and other vocalizations. Crying tells a story of great sadness, or euphoric joy. Anger tells a story of frustration or hatred. Walking with your head raised, making eye contact tells us you are confident and most likely friendly. Sitting alone at a social even with your head down looking at your phone tells a story of relational struggle and possible low self esteem.

Story telling has been around for centuries. It is one of the oldest ways of relaying information. When God inspired the writers of the Old and New Testaments He spoke to them in a type of story form. He didn’t just give them a list of facts telling them to write them down as bullet points. He gave them people, places, events with incredible details.

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are rich with details on the birth, life, death and resurrection of Christ. Indeed, they do not just include the who, what and wheres of a good story, but they are also seen as true accounts of Christ’s teaching, travels, prayers, and sufferings.

To be sure, these are not made up stories, but factual accounts of the life of Christ and the lives of his followers. From His birth in a stable in Bethlehem, to His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, to His agony in the Garden, to His death on a hill with a criminal on each side, to His burial, to His walk in the garden after three days, these books give us every detail we need to know the living Christ.

What makes Christ’s story the greatest story ever told? It is unique in its message, and universal in its reach. This story is the only one inspired by the true, living God, put together by 36 different men, all with the same message over a period of 1500 years.

The focus of the Old Testament is the why. The first two chapters of Genesis relate the beautiful symphony of the triune God bringing our planet, and life into existence. Unfortunately by Chapter three, we learn of the devastating fall of that glorious creation by one choice to sin. What follows is a detailed telling of the history of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people and the system of the law, God put into place to govern those people.

We need to remember this was all laid out to point to a future event: the coming of the fulfillment of the Law, Jesus Christ. The Old Testament is full of prophecy pointing to Christ’s coming. In order to fully understand the need and provision of the New Covenant, God gave us the detailed account of the Old Covenant. As seen in Hebrews, the Law was imperfect, but Christ was perfect.

“18 For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness
19 (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.
20 And inasmuch as it was not without an oath
21 (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him,

“The Lord has sworn
And will not change His mind,
‘You are a priest forever’”);

22 so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.”

— Hebrews 7:18-22 (NASB 1995)

Christ is the guarantee of a better covenant, the new covenant brought about in the New Testament. This covenant is laid out simply in a few simple verses from the New Testament.

“16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

— John 3:16 (NASB 1995)

Image by Fernando Rodriguez from Pixabay

The following verses are known as the Roman Road. They tell the Gospel of Christ in simplistic terms.

“23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

— Romans 3:23 (NASB 1995)

“23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

— Romans 6:23 (NASB 1995)

“8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

— Romans 5:8 (NASB 1995)

“9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. ”

— Romans 10:9-10 (NASB 1995)

We learn all about the system of sacrifices that were part of the Old Covenant in the Old Testament. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross did away with the need for that system. The Law given to Moses by God, was fulfilled in Christ given to us by His Father.

The story of the cross was centuries in the making, but the most beautiful thing about it is that it gave access to the throne of God to every single person who believes. It doesn’t matter who you are or who you have been. It doesn’t matter where you live or what sort of job you have. It doesn’t matter how low you have gone, or how great you have been. The story of the the cross is for all.

If you are struggling today with the story of your life, look to Jesus. He will make all the difference.

Thought's on the Reality of Living in this Fallen World

The Greatest Story - The Story Behind the Cross