Nothing Can Separate Us from Him

This week, I hope to finish our study of Romans chapter 8. We have learned a lot from this one chapter of Scripture. We have been reminded that “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” We are told that “what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.” We learned that the “Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” We also are reminded that, “the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us.” We are given testimony of God’s desire to adopt us, Christ’s desire to be a sacrifice for us, and the Spirit’s delight to make us like Him.

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“36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,
39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

— Romans 8:36-39 (NASB)

Verse 36 might be a little confusing, yet as we look at it we must admit that we are indeed facing death each and every day, each and every moment. We do not choose this death, but Christ did and He did it, so that we might be victorious.

“We are conquerors: though killed all the day long, yet conquerors. A strange way of conquering, but it was Christ’s way; thus he triumphed over principalities and powers in his cross. It is a surer and a nobler way of conquest by faith and patience than by fire and sword. The enemies have sometimes confessed themselves baffled and overcome by the invincible courage and constancy of the martyrs, who thus overcame the most victorious princes by not loving their lives to the death,”

— Matthew Henry Bible Commentary on Romans 8:36

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“They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.”

— Revelation 12:11 (NASB)

Verse 37 says that we are more than conquerors, and it adds that it is through Him who loved us. You see we are not conquerors on our own. Sure, there are times when we pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, but more often that is how we keep going: keep working, keep loving, keep running, keep caring, keep on keeping on. To truly conquer all the things that the enemy and life throws our way requires someone much more like a super hero than I.

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The beauty of this idea, is that Christ, not only saves and conquers for us, but he loves us. Once again, we are reminded of His love. I think that truly believing God loves us, is very hard for us to do. We often find it much easier to love and forgive others, but when it comes to loving and forgiving ourselves we stumble, fall and sometimes just give up. Aren’t you glad, that our view of ourselves does not limit Christ’s view of us?

Verse 38 and 39 begins with Paul’s confidence in the person of the Christ. If Paul can be confident in Him, should we also share that confidence? Paul says he is “convinced.” From that we can derive that at one point in time, Paul did not share this conviction or confidence. If you are familiar with Saul’s conversion on the road to Damascus, the Lord Himself changed his name to Paul and convinced him of the truth and solidity of the Gospel and the person of Jesus Christ.

What is Paul convinced of?

“That neither - “

death nor life

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angels nor demons

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the present nor the future

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nor any powers

height nor depth

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nor anything else in all of creation

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Will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We must realize that God’s love is only fulfilled through the sacrifice of His perfect Son. It is that love, the love that we obtain when we call Him Lord, that will keep us forever with Him. Nothing, will be able to separate us from Him and from His love. If you want a real romance story, then this is it. He is the great warrior prince who will never leave you, and if you are taken away and enslaved by the enemy, He will not rest until you are back in His loving arms.

I wanted to share this chapter with you, because it is such an encouraging one to me. I hope you have been encouraged by it as well.

He Intercedes for Us

As we slowly come to the end of Romans chapter 8, I am simply amazed at the amount of “good stuff” in this single chapter of the Bible. God’s Word is, indeed, living, active and sharp. I hope that this chapter has had a deep impact on you, as it has on me. Today we need to look at some questions.

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“33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies;
34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.
35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ”

— Romans 8:33-35 (NASB)

The questions continue as we look at these verses.

Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?

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We are living in times where the more we talk about not judging and not hating, the more we judge and hate. People are angry, upset, frustrated, sick and tired. It it so easy to want to judge. We fall into this mindset easily as we are normally prone to want to defend ourselves and our actions. However, there is only One who judges with truth and equity.

“And He will judge the world in righteousness; He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.”

— Psalm 9:8 (NASB)

God is the one who justifies.

The definition we looked at a few weeks ago for justification reads this way, “to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation.” This definition is specific to situation where salvation is needed, as in a prisoner’s salvation from the death sentence, or our salvation from eternal damnation. Only God is able to justify. He is the perfect one.

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“Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

— Matthew 5:48 (NASB)

Who is the one who condemns?

We often act as though we are judge and jury, that what we say goes and there is no other alternative, but only Jesus who passed through the gates of death, walked into Hell and vaporized the chains of sin, is able to condemn.

Christ Jesus is He who dies, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

It was because of our sin, that His sacrifice was necessary. It doesn’t matter how we try to justify our actions, our words, our thoughts or our yearnings, we are sinners. Each and every one of us. The only way to get out of this bramble of thorny sin infested vines is to give our lives to Him. The reason He makes the difference, is because He rose again. Not only did He rise again, he returned to His place at the right hand of His Father, and ours, and there He intercedes for us. He speaks to His father about us.

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This image of Father and Son conversing over our behalf is an emotional one for me. My dad and brothers did not always see eye to eye. My dad was also not a very affectionate person towards us kids. As we got older, that changed, but growing up it was my mom that took care of us and met our emotional needs. The thought of Jesus the Son and God the Father having these talks over you and I is an amazing concept.

Who will separate us from the love of Christ?

I find it interesting that Paul asks this question, but then follows it with another question.

Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril or sword?

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This is not an answer to the Who will separate us, but a further questioning of the What will separate us. Will tribulation? No! Distress? No! Persecution? No! Famine? No! Nakedness? No! Peril? No! Sword? No! None of these things will separate us from Christ and no person will separate us from His love.

“The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.”

— Jeremiah 31:3 (NASB)

I found this song when I was looking for something that would go with the idea that Jesus is interceding for us. It might be a little old fashioned, but the message is clear and the harmony is beautiful. Enjoy!

Next week we will finish up Romans 8. Have a great week everyone.

O The Deep, Deep Love of Jesus

After a couple weeks away from Romans 8, I think it is time to get back to it. The last time we looked at this chapter we concentrated on only verse 31. Let’s just take a look back at that verse to get a running start.

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“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”

— Romans 8:31 (NASB)

With everything that is going on in our world right now, this verse is so meaningful to me. In a world riddled with hatred for our fellow man, diseased by drugs, crime and violence, and put at risk by viruses that keep mutating and growing, it is good for my soul to know that God is for me. He is for you too. Let’s look at the next verse

“32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? ”

— Romans 8:32 (NASB)

Let’s mull this over by taking this verse a phrase at a time.

He who did not spare His own Son…

The He referred to here is God the Father. His own Son is Jesus Christ. What did He not spare Him from? Death on the cross. If you are a Christ follower, then you understand the gravity of this phrase. God the Father, willingly gave His only son to face, not just death, but a criminal’s death on a cross of wood. There was no dignity or honor in this death, at least not to the Romans or the Jews at the time. This was no death on the battlefield fighting for the freedom of His fellow countrymen, or was it? Let’s look at the next phrase.

“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)

but, delivered Him over for us all…

I am immediately struck by the phrase, for us all. You see God did this for us. Jesus agreed to this for us. It was a necessity for us. This death, like the deaths of soldiers during the Revolutionary War and the deaths of soldiers during the Civil War, and the deaths of soldiers during WWI, and the deaths of soldiers during WWII, and on, was a life freely given to preserve others from death. These sacrifices were made for the benefit of humanity. Jesus died so that we might have life and have it more abundantly.

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“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

— John 10:10 (NASB)

…how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

Now that He has done such an amazing thing, will He not also give us what we need? He provides for our physical needs, but also our mental, emotional and spiritual needs.

“And the Lord will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.”

— Isaiah 58:11 (NASB)

Isn’t that verse amazing? How many of us are feeling lost, scorched, weary and weak? Yet His living word says He will guide us, satisfy us, and give us strength, and indeed He does. I don’t know how many nights I crawl into bed and think, there is no way, I can get up tomorrow and do this all over again, yet, His mercies are new every morning. Even more beautiful is the progression of this verse. He not only takes us from the dry scorched and weary place we find ourselves in, but He makes us like a vast, beautiful watered garden; like a living spring that will never run dry, as long as we are connected to Him.

He takes us from this:

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To this:

Let me leave you with this music by Selah. Worship. He is worthy!

Called and Glorified

I want to continue looking at our two verses from two weeks ago, Romans 8:29-30. We have been slowly moving through this chapter, mulling over each verse or a few verses at a time. Often when I am writing a post, I think to myself that I can get through a set number of verses, but then when I actually get to typing, I realize there is just too much, and I must cut back. As we saw two weeks ago, verse 29 is packed full of information including words that we don’t often use in our vocabularies. When is the last time you used a sentence with the words predestined or foreknew? I bet it wasn’t just yesterday. I hope that the definitions I gave you in the last post were helpful as we moved through the study.

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Today we are going to focus on verse 30. Let’s take another look at both verses.

“29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;
30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

— Romans 8:29-30 (NASB)

Without further ado, let’s jump in to our verse.

…and these whom He predestined…

Two weeks ago we learned that the word predestined means to “decree, determine, appoint or settle beforehand” (Webster’s Online Dictionary). The word these is referring to the people talked about in verse 29. Last week we came to understand that these are the followers of Christ. These are the ones that God drew to Himself and conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus. We also discussed that His knowledge of our choice to accept Him as our Lord, doesn’t not delete our free will. Foreknowledge, predestination and free will work together in a way that our limited minds cannot understand.

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…He also called…

If you recall, the definition of the word called included words like summon, invite, and rouse. I like that idea of “to rouse from sleep,” (Webster’s Online Dictionary). When God calls He is trying to wake us up. He is trying to rouse us from the sleep of darkness. Much like that very curse that Maleficent cast on beautiful Aurora, we were unaware of our need for a Savior until God began to beckon and call, bidding us to rise from our slumber. Just like the young princess, we had to be rescued by a great warrior, one who was willing to sacrifice His life for our well being. It was the prince’s kiss that woke the princess and so too, our Lord’s Holy life touches our hearts with a gentleness and love, to which no other love can compare.

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…and these whom He called…

The ones who are called are those that have risen out of the dark sleep. Many are roused from their slumber, but not all actually get up and get out of bed. During this pandemic, I have found it very hard to get out of bed in the morning. I don’t want to get up and face the world that we are currently living in. If I chose to stay in bed, I would waste away, no longer wanting to eat, or drink or be a part of humanity. The same is true when we are called by the God of the universe. If we do not wake, we will never know the depth of the beauty of the world around us and of a relationship with Him. Perhaps you are wondering, why bother getting up.

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…He also justified…

We get up because He justified us. Jesus, whose mercy is new every morning, was Himself, the surety for our salvation. It is because He justified us that we are able to have a relationship with this all powerful, magnificent being. Christ and His blood make us holy and because of that we are able to approach the throne of grace without trepidation.

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“Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

— Hebrews 4:6 (NASB)

This verse tells us we can draw near to the throne with confidence. We can do that because of what Christ did on the cross. Jesus made us righteous. He made us worthy of salvation.

…and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

What does it mean for us to be glorified? The verse says that “these”, meaning us, as we are the ones He called and justified, He is going to glorify. Let’s go back to the definition of glorified: to make glorious by bestowing honor, praise, or admiration: to cause to be or seem to be better than the actual condition. I want to look at this definition in two ways as both are applicable to the fact that He glorifies us.

The first half of the definition is talking about honoring someone. We do honor people in many ways, but how does God honor us? We know that honor, and praise are words applied to Jesus and His Father. In fact, Jesus’ desire when He walked this earth was to honor and glorify His Father.

“Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

— John 12:28 (NASB)

“Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You,”

— John 17:1 (NASB)

“Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”

— John 17:5 (NASB)

In a similar way a child might desire to honor their parent on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day, or a soldier might honor his commander and his country by living by a code of conduct becoming a soldier, and by being willing to give his life. We also honor those who have gone before us by putting up memorials and by setting aside days, like Memorial Day to remember the sacrifices that were made for our freedom.

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The Bible also says that God will honor us. What exactly does that look like? Let’s look at a few verses

“If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.”

— John 12:26 (NASB)

“He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.”

— Psalm 91:15 (NASB)

God can honor whom He choses to honor and part of that may have something to do with our standing in Christ.

The second part of the definition refers to the idea that to glorify someone causes them to be, or seem to be better than their actual condition. Isn’t this true of us? The reality is, Christ has caused us to be better than our actual condition. What was our condition? We were sinners, sleeping in the darkness. There is nothing about our condition that gives us the ability to be holy and pure as God is holy and pure. However, when we become Christ followers, our situation changes. His blood makes us holy. He has glorified us, making us capable of being called the children of God. One day we will be glorified with new bodies and we will walk in the presence of the Holy God. That will certainly be an honor for us.

I hope these verses have once again encouraged you in your relationship with Christ. He loves you and wants to make Himself known to you.

Until next time, keep laughing and keep looking up!

Conformed Brethren

I will be the first to acknowledge I am no Bible scholar. While I did graduate with a diploma from a Bible school (Moody Bible Institute) back in 1987 and have been the facilitator and recipient in many Bible studies over the years, of late I realize how very little I know about the words that God inspired men to write in His holy scriptures. Yes there are things that are pretty straight forward and easy to understand, but there are also many passages that leave us feeling dumber than a box of bricks. Today’s two verses from Romans chapter 8 are just those. Before I begin looking at them and mulling them over, I want you to know, I do not know, nor understand everything in the mind of God. Yes, I do have His Spirit, and His Spirit gives me much understanding, but I believe, until I am actually standing before Him in a glorified state, there will still be many mysteries too deep to plumb regarding this Almighty One we call God. Which is as it should be.

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“29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;
30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

— Romans 8:29-30 (NASB)

I want to handle these verses in a different way. I would like to define each of the terms before we actually approach trying to understand what it says. There are so many words in these two verses and I think we can easily get distracted or off track if we don’t know what each of the words means. I am going to give you a simple Webster’s Online Dictionary definition to start with and then if need be add more defining as we go along.

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Foreknew - to have previous knowledge of: know beforehand especially by paranormal means or by revelation

Predestined - to destine, decree, determine, appoint, or settle beforehand

Conformed - to give the same shape, outline, or contour to : bring into harmony or accord

Image - exact likeness: a visual representation of something

Firstborn - first brought forth

Brethren - plural of brother: used chiefly in formal or solemn address or in referring to the members of a profession, society, or religious denomination

Called - to summon to a particular activity, employment, or office: to invite or command to meet: to rouse from sleep or summon to get up

Justified - (Used justify for definitions) to prove or show to be just, right, or reasonable: to qualify (oneself) as a surety: to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation

Glorified - to make glorious by bestowing honor, praise, or admiration: to cause to be or seem to be better than the actual condition

That is a lot of words and definitions. Now lets take each phrase and learn from it.

For those whom He foreknew…

The He mentioned in this verse is referring to God. Those whom He foreknew refers to all of us. An Almighty being, who created us is not limited by time, or space. Words that describe God like omnipotent mean He is all powerful. Omnipresent means He is everywhere present. Omniscient means He knows everything. Indeed, He knew us before we were a seed in our mothers’ wombs.

“13 For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.”

— Psalms 139:13-16 (NASB)

…He also predestined…

Many people get hung up on this word. There are those who believe the idea that God’s foreknowledge predetermines who will be saved and who will not, leaving out the idea of free will. There are others who believe so strongly in a free will that they can even lose their salvation. I am not going to get into a long, confusing debate on Calvinism vs. Arminianism. My belief is foreknowledge, predestination and free will all work together in a beautiful dance of sovereign love and salvation. God does know who will choose Him, but His decree is that all should come to repentance, not just those who won the lottery. In other words. His desire is that all be saved, but free will allows humanity to make a choice.

…to become conformed…

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It is God’s desire that every single one of us conform, or take on the shape of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. He decreed, or predestined that all of His created humanity do this, but that decree does not negate our ability to make the choice. Even the potter knows there are various types of clay and various types of vessels made from that clay. We are not all the same, but our responsibility is to be moldable in His hands.

…to the image of of His son…

The image to which we are to conform is that of Jesus Christ. We are not told to conform to the image of a famous football player or rock star. It is not suggested that we take on the image of a government leader or some other famous politician or philanthropist. God’s settlement beforehand was that we come into harmony with the Son.

Photo Rebecca Trumbull

“12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”

— 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NASB)

When we come face to face with Christ we will fully know what our image is meant to be.

…so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren…

Jesus, who died and rose again for us, began a religious order now known by the name Christian or Christ Ones or Christ followers. He was the firstborn, meaning He was the first to rise again. When we accept Him as our Lord, we then become a part of His family or His order, if you like. We become a part of the many brethren. Obviously, those of us who are Christ followers know that this is no mere religious order. It is a relationship with a mighty, just and holy being.

I am going to finish these verses next week as we look at the second portion of this piece of Scripture. There is so much to digest and I want to be sure to take it slowly. I hope you are enjoying this look at Romans chapter 8. Until next week, keep laughing and keep looking up!

His Purpose, My Benefit

Most of us go through life thinking we have some semblance of control over what is going on around us, but I am sure if we didn’t realize it before, we now realize we really don’t have control over anything other than ourselves. We may not even have much control over that, to our dismay. Let’s face it, we don’t control the weather, the traffic, the price of gas or groceries, or the reaction of the drivers in front or in back of us. As we have learned in the last few months we can’t control a virus like COVID-19, at least not yet. While it is true we have found cures, vaccines and preventatives for many diseases in the past, we do not have control over what disease will pop up in the future and wreak havoc on our world, just like COVID is doing now. Wouldn’t it be nice if life and our world came with a reset button? Just flip the switch and everything will be like new.

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“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. ”

— Romans 8:28 (NASB)

The verse we are looking at today is a more well known verse in the Christian community. Even people who make no claim to Christ as their Savior understand that even bad things have a purpose and can bring about a greater good. Look at a natural disaster like a forest fire. The fire, while devastating in its initial claim on natural life, also serves as a catalyst for rebirth and growth. Some of you may know that certain pine cones only open to release their seeds during times of great heat, like that of a fire.

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Let’s take a closer look at the truth found in this single verse.

And we know…

It says that we know. Our knowing had to come from somewhere. Where did it come from? The knowledge talked about in this verse is knowledge given by God, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We do not find this knowledge in a book, other than the Word of God and we will not find this knowledge in the most scholarly universities. We gain this knowledge as we sit in His presence.

“Cease striving and know that I am God;”

— Psalm 46:10(a) (NASB)

…that God…

I am choosing to give this two word phrase a place of its own because of the importance of this Being who is present. God is here. He is active. He is not just sitting around, He’s involved. His presence is with us through every trial, difficulty and trouble. You and I are never alone, when God is near.

“The Lord your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.”

— Zephaniah 3:17 (NASB)

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…causes…

God is the one at work here. He is a God of action. His movements are not known to us, but they are done for us. This is not to blame God for all the terrible things that happen. There is the matter of sin and free will. However, God is able to take all of it, the good and the bad and move it, creating a new thing entirely.

“for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

— Philippians 2:13 (NASB)

…all things…

Let me clarify this for you. The word all, means everything. There is not one thing that God is not aware of or involved in. The good, the bad and the ugly are all things, things that He is able to change into something else.

“I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me.”

— Psalm 57:2 (NASB)

…to work together for good…

All these things that God is aware of and involved in; these things He is causing to work together for good. Like the raging flame blows its heat consuming the tree that bears the cone, is needed by that very same cone to reseed the forest, so too God uses the heat of the flames of difficulty to work for our good.

You might be wondering at this point, what is the good that He is working out, if our loved ones are gone and our jobs are forfeit? What is the good when our marriages crumble and our children walk away from all they’ve been taught? The good is His good. He uses those flames and that heat to bring new birth to our souls, if we but let Him do it.

“28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.””

— Matthew 11:28-30 (NASB)

…to those who love God…

This then becomes the most important question. Do we love Him? As Jesus asked Peter by the sea of Galilee, “Do you love me?” If we truly love Him, our lives will be consumed with His will and His good. We will see that He alone knows what is best and what is best is walking with Him, abiding with Him and tending His sheep.

“He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?”
Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?”
And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”
Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep.”

— John 21:17 (NASB)

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…to those who are called according to His purpose.

What is this purpose we are called to? To be like Christ.

“15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;
16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””

— 1 Peter 1:15-16 (NASB)

But not only that, it is our purpose to glorify Him.

“6 In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials,
7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,
9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.”

— 1 Peter 1:6-9 (NASB)

In addition it is our purpose to be obedient.

“16 Rejoice always;
17 pray without ceasing;
18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

— 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NASB)

God’s purpose is our benefit. To make us more like Christ, to honor and glorify Him is the greatest benefit we can receive.

My Prayers, His Groanings

We are going to dive back into Romans chapter 8. This next section of the chapter is labeled “Our Victory in Christ.” I’m thinking this is something we all need to hear right now, especially in the midst of our current situation. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I know I am daily struggling with the flesh; feeling extremely tired, discouraged and unmotivated.

Image by Phil Burrows from Pixabay

I found an article that I would like to share that makes a lot of sense. The main point of the article is that we are all grieving. We often think that grief is only something felt when someone dies, but the reality is that every change we go through can proffer some sort of grief, even the good changes. The last few months have been fraught with changes. Many have lost their jobs. All of us have lost the normal routines we had of children going to school and taking ourselves to work or to college. We can’t go shopping or thrifting, to movies or sporting events. We can’t even get together with our families and friends. Every Sunday, churches stand empty. We can’t even go to the grocery store without wondering if we will too will become another statistic. All these changes have put each one of us into a place of grief. For more details read this article by Robert Weiss, PhD, MSW titled, COVID-19 and the Grief Process.

Let’s take a look at the next two verses of Romans 8.

“26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

— Romans 8:26-27 (NASB)

In the same way…

We have to pause for a moment and ask ourselves what this phrase is referring to. Looking at Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary gives some insight. He says that this refers to the previous privileges Christians were given, that of being an heir or being adopted by God and that of being redeemed by God. What follows are several more privileges we have.

…the Spirit also helps our weaknesses…

Image by Ryan McGuire from Pixabay

Obviously we have many weaknesses. As I spoke of in the preceding paragraphs, we are dealing with our flesh and this idea of grief on a regular basis. These particular verses are referring to our weaknesses in prayer. Who, as a Christ follower, doesn’t struggle with prayer? Whether it is actually doing it at all, or doing it regularly, or spending very much time doing it, we all struggle to have a regular, consistent prayer life. From these verses, it would appear that even a pillar of the faith like Paul struggled with prayer. What is this weakness we struggle with?

…for we do not know how to pray as we should…

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Do you have this problem? I sure do. I can’t tell you how often I feel like I need to pray, but then, when I actually start praying I am at a loss for words. I don’t know how to pray for certain situations, or people, not for a lack of understanding, but for a lack of vocabulary. How do I tell God I want this person I love so much to come to Him? I don’t even know where to begin or how to pray, except to acknowledge they need Him. In our current circumstances of course we want to pray for the safety of family and friends; for health care workers and other essential people like the clerks at the grocery stores, but where do we even begin.

My spouse has this prayer that we now laugh about, but in reality it makes a lot of sense. When we were going through an especially difficult time with our younger daughter we would pray together. While I would launch into several minutes of beseeching the Lord and praying scripture, my husband would just pray, “Clean up in Aisle 7, Lord!” It was his true, heart felt prayer and probably just as meaningful to God as my own wordy prayer.

The point is, we often don’t know how to pray, but this is the beautiful part; we don’t have to.

…but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings to deep for words…

Image by Wolfgang Brauner from Pixabay

This is an amazing truth. If we are in Christ, and we have His Spirit in us, He is praying for us. I don’t know how that makes you feel, but it is an overwhelming idea to me. This almighty, all powerful being, who created us from the dust of the earth prays for us. But, that is not all. He prays for us with such depth of feeling that it turns into actual groanings, rather than words.

…and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is…

Image by James Chan from Pixabay

Who is the one who searches our hearts? God, the Father. He is the one searching to see what our desires are and where are prayers are coming from. He also is the one who knows what the mind of the Spirit is. It is the Spirit who is sorting out our prayers. He is the one who filters our requests showing what is in accordance with God’s will and what is from our will. He is like the farmer on the threshing floor, winnowing the grain to separate the wheat from the chaff. The Father trusts the Spirit, knowing that His mind is in accord with His own.

…because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

We need to face reality here. Our prayers are not always pure. We are not always operating with God’s interests in mind. I know that many of my prayers have been wrought out of my own selfish desire to not have trouble or difficulties in my life. I also know that I often pray that others, the objects of my prayers, will not suffer too much, because I also don’t want to suffer. The problem with that is, I may not be praying for God’s will in their lives. I might want them to be saved, but I don’t want it to hurt. I might want them to suffer, but not so much that I suffer as well. I believe the Holy Spirit is essential in making our prayers, God worthy.

I am not saying that we have to pray a certain way. As I shared earlier a prayer like, “Clean up in Aisle 7,” is just as pure and viable as the prayer that is filled with scripture and heart felt tears. What I think is important is that we approach prayer with the knowledge the Holy Spirit is going to be involved, so why not just be honest. God can handle our honesty.

The Holy Spirit is going to intercede for us, according to the will of God, not according to our will. While I think it is important to be “real” when we are praying, I also think we need to get to the point where we really do want God’s will more than anything. This is not an easy place to get to, but true, life changing prayer is going to revolve around the statement Jesus made in the Garden of Gethsemane.

“...Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.”

— Luke 22:42 (NASB)

His Rock, My Foundation

I get the feeling, the Lord would have me spend a few Wednesdays redirecting us towards Him. Yes, when we are studying His Scriptures we are directed towards Him, but in my experience nothing is quite remembered as well as a song. I grew up in a Bible church. We sang all the old hymns from Great is Thy Faithfulness and Amazing Grace to When Peace Like a River and The Old Rugged Cross. These old hymns became part of my foundation and reinforced everything I was learning in Sunday School, church services, Pioneer Girls and youth group.

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

Last week, the Lord brought to my mind, that old hymn, May the Mind of Christ My Savior, as a way to convey truth and encouragement during these difficult days we are walking in. This week, it seems that He has led me to another older hymn and I want to share that with you this week.

During this time it can be especially difficult to have hope. When we look at the long term ramifications of the virus and its ripple effects, things can be pretty daunting. When I went with my daughter to the grocery store today, I think we both felt tired and didn’t really want to put on a mask, but we did. It was weird, awkward and uncomfortable, but we kept them on, even though the majority of employees weren’t wearing them and many customers as well. When I got home I had to drag the groceries onto the back porch, where I then proceeded to spray and wipe down every item with a bleach solution before bringing it in the house. By the time I was done, I was emotionally and physically spent.

Image by Mimzy from Pixabay

You know, we can all throw our little platitudes out there about how we are strong and we will get through this and so on, but this is real folks. People are dying. People are very, very sick and not a day goes by that I don’t wonder, is someone in my family going to get this; is someone I know and love going to die from this? I don’t know about you, but I am struggling to just do the tasks that need to be done, let alone, start a cleaning project or start prepping my flower beds. I try, but this is hard. I have loved ones and extended family who do not know Jesus and my heart aches for their salvation, so that, not only are they assured of eternity with Him, but of strength to get through hard times like these. Perhaps that is why Jesus brought this song to my mind yesterday.

My Hope is Built on Nothing Less

Lyrics by Edward Mote, Music by William Batchelder Bradbury

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name. 

Refrain:

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
  All other ground is sinking sand.

2

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

Refrain

3

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

Refrain

4

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
In Him, my righteousness, alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

Refrain

I would like to look at each of these verses quickly and really think about what the author of these lyrics was saying.

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

Verse 1 - I wonder if the author was struggling with a difficult situation, because he starts this song off with this exclamation, “My hope is build on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.” What our world is going through right now is the perfect example that we can put our hope in our money, in our strength, in our loved ones, in our jobs or in our futures, but in a matter of a few weeks, it can all be taken away. Why do we build hope on things that are so easily destroyed? We need to build our hope on the rock that is higher than I. We need to place our hope on Jesus Christ, His birth, life, death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. That is the only foundation that cannot be taken from us.

The author includes in this first verse the idea of trust. Again, what or who are we placing our trust in? Our good health? Gone. Our investments? Shaky. Our relatives and friends? Unavailable. The stark truth of this virus is, if you get it you go into quarantine. If you get worse, you go to the hospital. If you continue to go downhill, you are in ICU. In the end, if you die, the only people with you will be nurses, if even that. Not that they wouldn’t if they could, but we know our health care workers are barely keeping their heads above water when it comes to this disease. The only One we can trust to be there when we die is Jesus.

“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)

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Verse 2- There are times in our lives that all seems hopeless. Even we as Christ followers are struggling to have hope during this dark time. It seems that darkness is hiding our Lord’s face and we are wondering where He is. This is why it is so important to know Him. I don’t mean knowing Him as a historical figure who went around saying a few good things. I am talking about really knowing Him, as in having a personal, intimate relationship with Him.

In the original Hebrew language the action of having sex with a person was described as “knowing” or “to know” them. The intimacy of the sexual act is the same intimacy with which we are to know our Savior. If you think that is weird or gross, then you have a little ways to go, to truly understand and put your trust in this one whom we call Lord.

The author of the song, knew during dark times he could “rest on His unchanging grace.” He also knew during the storms of life, and yes there will be plenty of storms, his anchor would hold. You see, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit do not change. They remain the same from the beginning of our time to the end of it. As we come to know Him more deeply, we realize life on this little jewel is only a piece of a much more amazing life we are meant to live: the life we are meant to live with Him.

“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

— John 14:3 (NASB)

Image by rear_window_00 from Pixabay

Verse 3 - “His oath, His covenant, His blood…” Note, it is not our oath, our covenant nor our blood. The faith that we have is not placed in ourselves, but in Jesus. Sure we can do many things in our own strength and I know there are many people who are getting through this storm maneuvering their own life boat, but it only takes one wave to turn our little boats upside down into shark infested, storm ridden seas. It is this inevitable possibility that makes placing our faith in Him so important.

The author goes on to say, “When all around my soul gives way…” Have you felt that way? Like the very ground underneath your feet is moving and rolling. I have never experienced an earthquake, but I imagine it is an indescribable experience. That is how I would describe my feelings a few years ago, when going through a particularly hard time. Life suddenly looked very different from what I thought it was going to. My being hurt to the very core of my soul, so when the song writer talks about the world around his soul giving way and Jesus being His hope and stay, I get it.

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace”

— Ephesians 1:7 (NASB)

Image by David Mark from Pixabay

Verse 4 - This culminating verse gives us hope and victory in our Lord Jesus Christ. When that trumpet sounds, if we are found to be in Him, if we have believed in who Jesus said He was and in what He did, then in His righteous we will be able to stand before the throne of God.

With the uncertainty of life ahead, don’t you want to be sure of life in Him?

Here is a great version of the hymn. Enjoy!

Creation Groans

When we start delving into today’s portion of scripture, I think you will agree with me that it is quite apropos. Without further delay, let’s look at Romans 8:18-22.

“18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now”

— Romans 8:18-22 (NASB)

I’d like to start with verse 22 and then look at what comes before. The following are a few images I took from Pixabay, which is a website that offers free stock photos for anybody who needs a picture for a blog or other internet posting. Verse 22 says that creations groans and suffers the pains of childbirth. Why is this so?

Terrorist Attacks

Image by JL G from Pixabay

The first picture is a made up image, but the second is the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers in NYC in September of 2011.

Natural disasters

Image by David Mark from Pixabay

Image by WikiImages from Pixabay

The first image is the aftermath of the Oklahoma tornados in 2019. The second photo is what is left after a tsunami devastated a costal town.

Wars

Image by Welcome to all and thank you for your visit ! ツ from Pixabay

Image by Jordy Meow from Pixabay

The first is an old stock photo from the end of WWII; the second part of the devastation in Nagasaki, Japan after the nuclear bomb.

Disease

Image by Terri Sharp from Pixabay

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Obviously, these last two are fairly current. We all are feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many have died. Many are ill. Most are feeling the fear that accompanies something of this nature. Our world is groaning under the burden of sin; the burden of hatred, tragedy, war and disease.

Let’s go back to verse 18 and take it apart.

…for I consider…

The idea to consider something means to think about it; mull it over; let it sit in your brain for a spell.

…that the sufferings of this present time…

This phrase is just as pertinent today as it was when Paul wrote this letter to the church at Rome. For them it was the suffering of persecution, but it really doesn’t matter what sort of suffering you are going through. Whatever it is, it is happening right now.

…are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

We can feel pretty strongly about the sufferings we go through. There are times suffering seems impossible to bear. There are people who give up, taking their own lives and often the lives of others around them, because they cannot bear the suffering. Take that feeling and multiply it tenfold. You don’t even begin to be able to compare it to the glory that is yet to be revealed to us.

“The sufferings are small and short, and concern the body only; but the glory is rich and great, and concerns the soul, and is eternal.”

— Matthew Henry's Bible commentary on Romans 8:18

You might be thinking, who cares about what is to come? The struggle is here and now, and hoping for some vague glory in the future doesn’t do any good to ease the suffering I am going through right now. That is where you are wrong. Placing our belief in a risen Savior makes all the difference in the world.

Remember what we learned over the last few weeks? We are children of God. We are His heirs. We have His Spirit communicating with our spirits. Remember, the last part of verse 17 last week said that if we suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him.

Let’s move on to verse 19.

For the anxious longing of creation…

What do you think creation is anxiously longing for? Why is creation anxiously longing? To understand this we must revisit the idea that God created. The first two chapters of the Bible tell the story of creation. It was at this event the partnership of the three-in-one God-head spoke and breathed the world into existence. If you are a creative type like me, you know when you invest yourself in a creative effort it takes a part of you. Creation was a part of God’s creative being. However, in chapter three of Genesis we see the creation that God intended was marred by sin. Ever since sin entered the world, creation has been longing for a return to the beauty and purity it was once intended to have.

…waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.

This event will come about when we are reunited with Jesus; when those who are living are taken up and those who are dead rise to meet him in the air. After Christ returns we will be revealed in His glory to be His children and heirs. Whatever your opinion about pre, mid or post tribulation rapture, there will come a time when we will be reunited with Christ.

The rest of today’s passage further solidifies the idea that creation was subject to futility, not because it wanted to be, but because God made it so. Why couldn’t God have spared creation and just subjected the ones who sinned, Adam and Eve (humanity) to the resulting disparity? I believe as much as He loved His creation, He loved His humanity more. He created mankind in His image, not the creation. The creation was a result of His creative breath, but humanity was His crowning jewel. To have thrown them out of the garden into a world in which they could not thrive or even survive would have been to have ended the creative effort too soon. Instead, he gave mankind a fallen creation, to work the hardened soil, that mimicked their hardened heart.

Even so, if we look around, we can see, creation groans and suffers, but it also, at least occasionally whispers, sings, shouts and claps its hands in praise of the God of glory.

Image by bertvthul from Pixabay

Image by Larisa Koshkina from Pixabay

Image by Tomasz Marciniak from Pixabay

Image by Dimitris Vetsikas from Pixabay

Image by Andreas Breitling from Pixabay

Image by Domenic Hoffmann from Pixabay

Image by skeeze from Pixabay

Have a great Wednesday, everyone. Keep looking up.

Spirit to Spirit

As we move along in our study of Romans 8, I hope that you are being encouraged to keep fighting the fight and running the race. It is very easy for us to let life knock us down, often to the point of not wanting to get back up. We often feel alone in our struggle, but today’s verses reassure us, we are not alone.

Image by DarkWorkX from Pixabay

“16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

— Romans 8:16-17 (NASB)

We are taking this slowly as there is no reason to rush. There is too much information in this one chapter alone, to just fly through. We must savor each bite, delighting in the flavor and deliciousness of the words of God that He imparted to us through His servant Paul. To not do so would be to leave behind that scrumptious chocolate cake served to us for dessert.

Image by Kevin Petit from Pixabay

Let’s take a few bites.

The Spirit Himself

I like that this verse begins like this. We just got the message that we have been adopted. That adoption happened because we chose to place our faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Because we made that choice we are now able to call God, Abba! Father! We are now allowed into the inner circle with the triune God head. We are now convinced of the intimacy we have with the Father and the Son, but what about the Spirit? This verse confirms that we are now intimate with Him as well. The Spirit isn’t sending someone else to do the job, He is doing it Himself. What is the job He is doing?

Testifies

We all have probably seen enough police shows or read enough murder mysteries to know, in order to put the bad guy behind bars, someone has to testify or give evidence against him. In addition, if we are applying for a job or trying to do something that requires character references, we want someone on our side who will testify to our strengths and why we are fit for the job or the new venture.

It is the Holy Spirit’s job to testify. He is the witness on our behalf and on behalf of the Son. He is the one who gives the evidence of our choice to follow Christ. He also gives evidence to us of the authenticity of Christ’s claim to be our Savior. How does He do this?

…with our spirit…

This truly is a spiritual thing. The testimony of the Holy Spirit is to our spirit. God created us with a physical body, a mind, a soul and a spirit. It is this spirit, that when nurtured and fed, will hear and understand the things of God. I have heard many stories of missionaries who have gone to native villages in countries all over the world where someone in that village was praying, or desiring to know God. This comes about because of the spirit God put within each of us. It is that spirit that is meant to fellowship with His Spirit. I believe that our spirit will shrivel up if it does not come into contact with the Holy Spirit of God. Sure we may still have “spirit” meaning more like a will to live or fight or win, etc. But the spirit that God created us with is meant to know His Spirit.

“We pursue God because, and only because, he has first put an urge within us that spurs us to the pursuit.”

— A.W.Tozer - Fellowship of the Burning Heart

When we believe in Jesus the Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit. In other words His Spirit and our spirit become one. We now have the ability to know things of God, not merely head knowledge, but true heart knowledge. Our spirit and His Spirit become a united entity. Knowing this, it suddenly makes sense that when we sin, we grieve the Spirit of God. When we choose to live by the flesh we quench His Spirit in us, like a pail of cold ice water thrown on a flame. We are meant to burn with the Spirit of God. This is no milk toast relationship, meant to pander to our little feelings of pride or self-righteousness; this is a burning flame meant to consume us.

“To have found God and still to pursue him is the soul’s paradox of love, scorned indeed by the too easily satisfied religionist, but justified in happy experience by the children of the burning heart.”

— A.W. Tozer - Fellowship of the Burning Heart

…that we are children of God,

The Holy Spirit of God, then, testifies to our spirit that we are children of God. Without His Spirit in us we do not have assurance of this familial link. It is only the Spirit that speaks to our spirit, letting us know that we are, indeed, His most beloved children.

Image by lumix2004 from Pixabay

I feel the need to save verse 17 for next week. I hope you don’t mind. Savor each morsel. Think about what these words and phrases mean for you as a Christ follower. Leave me a comment on what you came up with as you think this verse over. I’d love to hear from you.

Have a wonderful day.

Take the Steak

I am not a vegetarian. I do occasionally eat a meatless meal and I also occasionally cook without meat. I am definitely not a vegan. I really like my cheese, butter and eggs. I like chicken, beef and pork. I also like fish and wild game like venison and pheasant. I do not judge those who don’t eat meat as being less than me. I think it is honorable to choose a lifestyle that makes you feel healthier and gives your life purpose and fulfillment. What about our spiritual lives?

Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay

“ For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.”

— Hebrews 5:13 (NASB)

This statement in the book of Hebrews is pertinent to our study of Romans 8. As we progress through the chapter it becomes obvious that this is written to people who are followers of Christ in the true sense. It is Christ followers who are able to eat the meat of the word, and delve into the deeper layers of God. There are many people today, who call themselves Christians, but when asked what makes them a Christian the answers are often a complex web of political points of view on social justice and tolerance. A true Christian is one who follows Christ. What did Jesus say about himself?

““I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

— John 14:6 (NASB)

Image by PDPics from Pixabay

Jesus is the one who made this statement. Christians did not make this stuff up. Jesus said that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He didn’t say He was one of many ways to God. In fact, He goes on to say, “…no one comes to the Father but through Me.” That is pretty narrow minded thinking, isn’t it? Not really. The one saying it is God and He dictates what truth is. I want to get back to Romans 8, so I will not get into a philosophical talk on truth or the fact that God exists. The fact of the matter is, just like most things we cannot fully know and understand, it is an act of faith. It is to those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, that Romans 8 is written. Let’s look at the next few verses.

“12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—
13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ”

— Romans 8:12-13 (NASB)

I’d like to point out several points of truth.

1 - We are not under obligation to the flesh.

What exactly does that mean? It means that we don’t have to listen to our flesh. We have the capacity, because we are in the Spirit to actually say no to the pull of the flesh. Once again, let me clarify, we do have an obligation to our flesh, to take care of it. Good nutrition, exercise, sleep, healthy relationships, all help to nurture our flesh in the appropriate ways. However, we are not obligated to over eat, watch pornography, participate in self harm through things like cutting, alcohol or drugs, or live in a state of anxiety and fear, such that we are incapacitated.

Image by bluebudgie from Pixabay

2 - We will die.

Verses 12 and 13 are pretty straight forward. We are not obligated to the flesh, to live according to it. In fact, if we are living according to the flesh, we must die. Let me head down the rabbit trail for just a minute. All of us will die. Thus far, there has been no discovered fountain of youth, Holy Grail (Indiana Jones) or cure for this end of life event called death. Death came into the world because of sin. Do I think man kind would have lived forever if there had been no sin? I don’t know the answer to that, but I believe God created Adam and Eve with the ability to procreate and to live an extremely long time. It was the choice to sin that brought the darkness of death into our world. This darkness will remain with us, until Christ comes to set up His kingdom.

As Christ followers we are not exempt from physical death. Unless, Christ comes before I die, I too will leave this physical body behind.

3 - We can live.

The last part of verse 13 says, “…but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” This is talking about spiritual life, not physical life. Why is it important to be putting to death the deeds of the body? What does God’s word say?

“And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

— Acts 2:21 (NASB)

Judging from this verse anyone who calls on Jesus name will be saved. They will have eternal life. Even though they die a physical death, their spirits will live on forever with Jesus. Why then, does verse 13 of Romans 8 say that putting to death the deeds of the body will give us life? I think it has to do with our true heart.

Image by bruce lam from Pixabay

There can be a lot of emotion involved in making a decision to turn one’s life over to Christ. Often the call comes at a time when things are not going well, and is made as an act of desperation. A person can make an emotional response, without fully realizing or making a true commitment of their heart. A person who has made a real response to Christ will realize that is only the beginning of a life long commitment to their Savior. Just as in a marriage, the commitment must be worked on and guarded, so too our commitment to Christ must be continually before us and we should be constantly putting to death the things in our flesh that come between us and Christ. This death of our flesh, will allow the life of Christ to manifest itself more abundantly in us and we will truly live.

Our Christian lives should be never be stagnant. We should be growing and learning and enjoying the deeper layers of God. These layers are where we really begin to eat the meat that He intended for us. It is not easy to grow to this point. I have been struggling for years to overcome and put to death my flesh, but I also realize, growth often happens in spurts, just like with our children and grandchildren. One minute they are tiny toddlers and the next minute they are ready to join the basketball team. God knows we can’t learn everything all at once, but if He is offering you a steak instead of a potato, take it and enjoy.

Next week we will rediscover an amazing truth about our relationship with God. Until then. Have a great week.

How Will You Answer These Questions?

These last several weeks, I have been looking at the 8th chapter of the book of Romans in the New Testament. The book of Romans was written by Paul the Apostle to the Christian believers in the church at Rome. The basic theme of this book is the gospel message, thus when we come to chapter 8 it makes sense that Paul would discuss the battle between the flesh and the Spirit. We cannot accept Christ as our Savior and then expect to go on living just as we were before we made that commitment. The Spirit of Christ in us changes us, if we let Him have His way with us.

Let’s take a look at the next portion of Romans 8:

“9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.
10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness.
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.”

— Romans 8:9-11 (NIV)

I chose the New International Version of these verses because I like the picture it paints. There are three pictures I want to look at in the form of three questions.

1 - What realm are you in?

I like that the NIV uses the term realm. Since I am a fiction writer, specifically trying to focus on science fiction and fantasy, kings, kingdoms and realms are easy ideas for me to imagine. Paul says that we, if indeed, the Spirit of God lives in us, are not in the realm of the flesh, but in the realm of the Spirit. Why, then, do we spend so much time living, working, striving and worrying in the realm of the flesh?

We worry about money. We fuss over our homes, our clothes and our personal space. We worry about our families, our parents, our kids and our grandkids. We obsess over movies and books. We plan for vacations and save our pennies, just in case the economy crashes. We search for the perfect home, car, job and partner. We do all this, pulling ourselves along by our own bootstraps, willing ourselves to fight, to claw, to overcome and to win. All for what? In the end our flesh decays, just like all the stuff and we all end up in the land fill.

That is the realm of the flesh. This realm is built on a garbage heap of lies, circulated by an enemy unseen, who comes unbidden, crouching outside the door of the home we think is so secure, waiting for the opportunity to pounce and devour. Yet, because we live in the flesh, we do not see him. We do not realize the effect he has had on our lives. We do not even care, because out of sight is out of mind.

But, we are not in the realm of the flesh. We are in the realm of the Spirit. This realm is the realm of light. It is light that only those who know the Son can see, if they are brave enough to look. Often, as we walk in the flesh, in this world, we forget that there is a real spiritual world moving and operating behind the scenes. This is the world, that we, who walk in the Spirit, have access to. It is in this realm that things can be changed: hearts moved to Christ, battles won against the enemy, prayers answered, miracles performed.

There is no doubt, we need to take care of ourselves, our families and our affairs, but when we allow this world and things put out there by the enemy to consume us, then we are living, not in the realm of the Spirit and light, but in the realm of the flesh and darkness

2 - Sin or righteousness?

Image by Chetan Dhongade from Pixabay

We are faced with a choice as we walk through life. Am I going to choose to sin or choose to be righteous? What is sin exactly? Sin is anything that separates us from God. Things like hate, envy, lust, murder, adultery, lying, eating too much, spending outside our means, stealing, cheating, gossiping, etc. are all things that bring darkness into our lives. The Bible says God is light.

“This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”

— I John 1:5 (NASB)

Living in the Spirit means we are fellowshipping with the light of Christ. Our desire should be to be like Him. He was the perfect man.

“You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.”

— I John 3:5 (NASB)

We should strive to be perfect as well. You might say that is not possible. It isn’t possible if we are living in the realm of the flesh and choosing to sin.

“By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.”

— I John 4:17 (NASB)

This verse says that as He is, so also are we in this world. He was perfect and by His Spirit, we are able to be perfect as well. Don’t misunderstand, as Paul said,

“Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.”

— Philippians 3:12

Our complete perfection will not happen until we are with Christ, but day by day, as we make the choice for righteousness, we sin less and less.

3 - Living or dead?

Image by Foto-Rabe from Pixabay

If Christ is in us and we are walking in the Spirit, rather than the flesh, we will have life. This doesn’t just apply to the afterlife. Many Christians sit around, mistakenly thinking that life only happens after we are dead. While that is true and we who are in Christ will live for eternity with Him, look at what Jesus said in the gospel of John.

“9 I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

— John 10:9-10 (NASB)

The life that He gave to us, starts the moment we enter through the door of belief in His sacrifice and resurrection from the dead. We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven to have the abundant life.

Does that mean we will never struggle again? Does that mean we will float along with no more storms or difficulties? No way. What we will have is a life that is full of joy amidst sorrow, healing amidst pain and peace amidst chaos. I know, I am living it.

What it really comes down to is one word…Him, Jesus, Lord, Savior, Lover, Friend, Defender….okay, so that is more than one word, but I know, many of you who follow my faith posts, know exactly what I am talking about. You have experienced His peace, love, forgiveness and joy even when your world is rocking like an earthquake of epic proportions.

I leave you with those three questions, based on three little verses in Romans. How are you going to answer them?

Until next time, keep fighting the fight.

How Do You Walk?

This is not going to be a post about exercise, although, when it comes to self-control and discipline, it all ties in. This walk refers to our spiritual lives. When you go out for a walk you can walk in different ways; you can walk at a park on a pave trail, or down the sidewalk in your neighborhood. You can also go off roading and hike a more rugged path strew with rocks, streams and logs. Walking isn’t that difficult for those of us who have two good legs, but it still requires that we place one foot in front of the other.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

“5 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, ”

— Romans 8:5-6 (NASB)

Verse 4, which we looked at last week, mentions the word walk. Here are a few other verses that use walk as a way to show our being or not being in Christ.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”

— Galatians 5:16 (NASB)

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”

— Galatians 5:25 (NASB)

“in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.”

— Ephesians 2:2 (NASB)

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

— Ephesians 2:10 (NASB)

“for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light”

— Ephesians 5:8 (NASB)

There are numerous verses in the Bible which use the word walk as a way to describe our relationship and standing before God. The very first Psalm uses walk as an active marker for the righteous man.

“How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!”

— Psalm 1:1 (NASB)

Let’s take a closer look at our Romans 8 verses.

1 - For those who are according to the flesh - we have to make the point here that there is a definite distinction between those who are according to the flesh and those who are according to the Spirit. At some point in time, we all have been, according to the flesh.

2 - Set their minds on the things of the flesh - In other words, flesh begets flesh.

3 - but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit - Spirit begets spirit.

4 - For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace - there is one word I want you to focus on in that verse, set. The word set as defined by Webster’s online dictionary has a number of different definitions, but the one I want to focus on is, “to direct with fixed attention.” We either can fix our attention on the flesh or we can fix or attention on the Spirit. The outcome of setting our mind on the flesh is death. The outcome for setting our minds on the Spirit is life and peace.

Let’s examine this for just a moment. When we talk about death, there is a two fold meaning. If I think about something fleshly, like feeding my stomach for example, I won’t die (unless I eat something really nasty - ha, ha), so what death is Paul talking about? Spiritual death. If we only spend our lives worrying about what to eat, how to make ourselves feel good, how to make more money and so on, we will eventually die, both physically and spiritually.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

The opposite situation occurs when we set our minds on the Spirit. Obviously, we are talking about the Holy Spirit of God, not just some random spirit. If we seek to know Christ and follow Him and really desire what His Spirit desires we will have life and peace. Once again, the life here is referring to Spiritual life, as we will physically die at some point. I also want to point out that Paul added the word peace.

Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay

Don’t we live in an anxiety ridden society? It seems more and more people are taking medication to help keep them from feeling anxious. Once again, let me reiterate mental health is a key component in being a functioning person and sometimes that does mean medication, but since when did it become not okay to feel nervous? When did it become not okay to experience fear, or worry, or discouragement? These are real feelings and emotions that are just as much a part of being human as joy and happiness. No, a person should not have ongoing anxiety, irrational fears or depression and those things should be managed by a professional doctor and phycologist or psychiatrist. But, the Bible says when we set our minds on the Spirit we will have life and peace.

Perhaps part of our problem is that we are not setting our minds on the Spirit. I am specifically speaking to those of us who call ourselves Christ followers. How many of us struggle with anxiety? How many of us daily battle fear, discouragement, anger, lust, jealousy and on and on? How many of us struggle with having discipline and self-control? Can’t we trace most of those feelings to the idea that we are not setting our minds on the Spirit?

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

What are you setting your mind on today? Are you, like the woman in the picture above being overwhelmed by everything around you? Fix your focus on Jesus.

“6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things”

— Philippians 4:6-8 (NASB)

I will throw these verses at you over and over and over again, because this is God’s truth. Do not be anxious! I’ll save that study for a different time, but today, make the choice to fix your attention on the Spirit.

Next time, we’ll explore a few more verses from Romans 8. What are your thoughts on these verses today? I always love to have your feedback.

Traits of a Godly Person - Goodness

I am skipping from 2 Peter 1 to Galatians 5. I thought it would be useful to talk about goodness while we were still mulling over the idea of virtue. A question comes to mind when looking at these two words side by side. Can a person be virtuous without being good? Can a person be good without being virtuous? It seems to me these two words are very closely related, almost like two peas in a pod. Each one is distinctly its own thing, but they are two parts of a larger entity, which I will call morality. Can we truly have morality without having virtue and goodness?

Image by Ruslana Babenko from Pixabay

Websters Online Dictionary defines the noun goodness in this way:

1 - the quality or state of being kind, honest, generous, helpful, etc

2 - the quality or state of being useful or effective

From a philosophical perspective, the word goodness and the word virtue are two distinctly different things. A person can be virtuous, meaning they have the qualities of courage, diligence, chastity and so on without being a good person. A person can also be virtuous, but not necessarily good at it. For instance, if a person bravely runs into a burning building to save someone, we would say he has the virtue of bravery, but if he trips and falls and dies in the fire and never saves the person, we would also say he wasn’t very good at following through on that bravery. Even though, I am married to a philosophy professor, I have no desire to go any deeper into the intricacies of virtue and goodness, other than to point out they are two distinct things and one does not necessarily depend on the other.

For this post, I want to stick to the idea of what goodness looks like as a state of being and as a state of doing.

1 - Goodness as a State of Being

It is my personal opinion that in order to be good and express acts of goodness, we must first be good inside. Think about acts that we would deem good: things like kindness, helpfulness, honesty and generosity typically grow out of thoughts that revolve around kindness, helpfulness, honesty and generosity.

Of course there are people who are deceptive and are not truly doing things out of goodness. They are manipulating the world around them by being good, in order to get something, even if it is the satisfaction of feeling like a good person. For this series, I am speaking to people who truly desire to be good and do good things for the sake of the gospel, or for the sake of doing good.

Image by skeeze from Pixabay

Let me interject here, that the Bible is clear on our goodness:

“9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin,
10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become
worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.””

— Romans 3:9-18 (ESV)

Image by Sarah Richter from Pixabay

Paul was writing to the Jews at the church in Rome, however, he included everyone in this group, both the Jews and the Greeks, or in other words, Gentiles. Anyone who wasn’t a Jew was a Gentile. So, you see, we are all sinners. No one is righteous. No one is truly good. Sure lots of people do good things and live their entire lives with honesty, kindness, helpfulness and generosity, but for the sake of this study, the trait of a Godly person is that it is a trait that makes him/her Godly, or in other words, more like Jesus. The only one who can truly make us more like Him, is Jesus Himself. That is part of why Galatians 5 lists the fruit of the Spirit. This goodness is His fruit. In order for us to live in a state of goodness, we must immerse ourselves in Jesus; in His words; in His spirit.

You might be asking yourself, “How in all of creation, then, are we really supposed to be this goodness? How are we supposed to live in a state of being good?”

I am so glad you asked, and I am even more glad that Jesus, through His spirit and His inspired Word, gave us a clue. Let’s look two more verses.

“8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

— Philippians 4:4-9 (ESV)

God has given us clear direction on how to get our mind going down the goodness track. Every word and action begins in our minds. What we spend our time thinking about will show in our actions. If we think about how many things are wrong with the world, with other people and even with ourselves, we will be anxious and frustrated. If we think about past mistakes and wrong choices, we will be consumed with guilt. However, if we think on these things, as Paul encouraged us to do, we will be more likely to be good people.

2 - Goodness as a State of Doing

Frankly, what good does it do to be good and not act on it. If we are truly good, this should lead us to take action. Those actions will include three areas: goodness towards our God, goodness towards others and goodness towards ourselves. Let’s look at each of these briefly.

Goodness Towards Our God

How is it that we can be good towards God? Just as we choose to commit wrong, we also can choose to commit good. Doing good towards God, would be refraining from choices to sin, committing time to prayer, study of His word and worship. In addition, doing good towards God would include the simple act of thankfulness. Have you ever tried to worship or pray when you are angry and upset? It does not work. However, as soon as we humble ourselves and begin to nurture a thankful heart we change and we bring honor and glory to our God.

Goodness Towards Others

It is easy to be good to people who are good to us, but what about people who are negative, ungrateful and demanding? Does that sound like anyone in your life? I think we all have at least one person in our lives like that. It is easy to hold a grudge; to begin to not like that person, and eventually to not do good to and for that person. God’s Spirit in us, is able to produce good acts, even when we don’t feel like it or want to be good, but we have to choose to let Him have his way and bring to mind verses like those in Philippians and others. A big chunk of exhibiting all of these Godly traits we have been talking about is yielding to His Spirit in our lives and in our circumstances. As we think on good things, acting with goodness towards others, the choice to be and do good will become more natural and Spirit driven.

Goodness Towards Ourselves

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull

In all honesty, this is probably one of the areas I struggle with the most. For me, it is easier to be good to others: customers at work, my family, friends, and others, but when it comes to myself, I am my own worst critic. My husband has this problem too. I have definitely softened towards myself over the years as the Spirit has brought me light on the topic of who I really am: created in His image, a royal priesthood, beloved and other wonderfully descriptive words. I still have days where I look in the mirror and am convince I am a cartoon character and should be residing in a comic book. I also have days where I feel so completely inept and unworthy, but these thoughts are not from God. (See my fiction piece The Tower, for a look inside my own struggling soul).

It is important that we give ourselves grace on a regular basis. We are not perfect. We are on a journey, just like everyone. It is also important to treat ourselves with goodness. Look in the mirror and thank yourself for getting rest the night before, showering to get clean and drinking lots of water. Make a mental list of your good traits; those beautiful eyes, pretty collar bones or shapely legs. Give thanks to the One who made you with an incredibly creative mind that desires to please Him.

There can never be enough good in the world, so let’s be sure we are doing what we can to make goodness, not only a state of being, but a state of doing.

Have a great day!

Traits of A Godly Person: A Look at Two Passages

This week, I want to continue my introduction to the traits of a Godly person by looking at two passages, 2 Peter 1:1-11 and Galatians 5:16-26. Just a few weeks ago, we finished a Mulling It Over series on 2 Peter 1:1-11. It was this series that got me thinking I should follow that up with a series on the traits of a Godly person.

Image by Myriam Zilles from Pixabay

When I speak of Godly traits, I am talking about the characteristics outlined in scripture that are those traits that God desires of us. These are traits like love, brotherly kindness, faith and so on. Let’s review 2 Peter 1: 1-11

“1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.
10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

— 2 Peter 1:1-11 (NASB)

In this passage we see nine Godly traits: diligence, faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love.

The other passage I want to stew over is in Galatians.

“16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,
20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,
21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.”

— Galatians 5:16-26 (NASB)

In order to fully understand these passages and fully grasp the traits that each is referring to, we must understand the work of the Holy Spirit.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

When a person accepts the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ he or she is choosing to place their faith in His person and His work. As a person He is fully God and fully man. His work, didn’t just consist of pertinent teachings such as kindness and love, but it included the most important work of all, that of bridging the gap between a Holy, Perfect, God and a fallen, sinful humanity. That is why He died on the cross. It was for us, to make atonement or a payment for the wrongs that all of humanity has done since Adam and Eve chose to eat of that tree in the garden.

Image by jaaannnaaa from Pixabay

When you place your faith in Him, we then receive the person of the Holy Spirit. This is the third person of the trinity. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Each are uniquely different, yet all are of one mind and being. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the ability to walk the Christian life. Sure people can be good, and love and be kind, but it is only these traits that are done in the Spirit of the triune God that truly last.

Image by Colin Behrens from Pixabay

The other thing that this bond with the Holy Spirit does is allows us access. We have access to God the Father, a direct tram to the throne room, so to speak. We have access to the forgiveness and cleansing of Jesus and we have access to a powerhouse of God-given ability to live life, but life more abundantly. The Holy Spirit is in essence, the mover and shaker of the God-head. Obviously, there is controversy over how the Spirit conveys His work, but no matter how you look at it, the Holy Spirit helps us to live a Godly life.

Next week, we’ll look a bit more closely at this relationship between us, the Holy Spirit and His ability to manifest Godly traits in our lives. I hope you’ll join me.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this post. If you have the time, leave a comment below. Have a great day.

Mulling it Over - Part 9

Once again I am looking at 2 Peter 1:1-11. Over the last number of weeks I have been walking slowly through this passage, desiring that you and I ruminate on the verses each week, much like a cow chewing on his cud. We want to read, reread and reread again. Not only read, but really think about the words that God inspired His chosen ones to write in the Holy Scriptures.

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The context of this passage written by Peter was to encourage believers that were scattered throughout the areas of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. His readers were mainly Jews who had become believers. Seeing as it was a large area Peter was writing to, it makes sense that he was trying to cover the main points of what a walk with Christ would look like. Let’s look at the whole passage again.

“1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.
10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

As we have learned in our study, the eight qualities that Peter lists are ours to have because of Jesus’ great and magnificent promises. They are to be increasing in our lives, meaning we need to be putting in the effort to focus on these qualities and determine, how we can allow God to bring them to fullness in us.

Today we are going to finish the passage, by looking at the last two verses.

“10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

— 2 Peter 1:10-11 (NASB)

Therefore, brethren…

Once again, we are reminded that these letters were written to believers. In the Christian community we look at our fellow believers as our brothers and sisters.

…be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you…

I believe in eternal security, meaning once you make the decision to accept Christ as your Savior, you are always saved, however, there are decisions made when emotions are high, that aren’t necessarily real. I grew up in a Bible believing church and was taught that asking Jesus to be my Savior was a decision I had to make. While my Sunday School teachers did an excellent job to teach me how to make this decision and what and who exactly I was believing in, it wasn’t until I was twelve that I fully committed my life to Christ. That decision was real. I knew exactly who I was talking to, when I prayed that prayer, on my own, in my bedroom at home.

Image by reenablack from Pixabay 

When Peter says to be diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you, He isn’t saying you might have lost your salvation along the way. He’s saying, make sure that decision was real when you made it. I also think that he is encouraging us to go back and ruminate on what, exactly Jesus did and why He did it. With Easter just around the corner, what better time to be certain about His calling and choosing. Did you make a decision to follow Jesus? What it real? Has it changed your life? That brings us to the next phrase.

…for as long as you practice these things you, will never stumble…

Do you believe this? There is a connection here between the two phases. Practice is essential for not stumbling. The passage doesn’t say, “…for as long as you read about these things…” Nor does it say, “…for as long as you occasionally do these things…” The word is practice. You all remember the old saying, “Practice makes perfect.” Of late, there is a new movement towards a different mentality of “Practice makes permanent,” which actually might make more sense. We want what we practice to become a permanent part of who we are. If I am practicing brotherly kindness, I want to practice it and practice it, until it becomes a natural response for me.

So what exactly does it mean when it says, we will never stumble?

If we were truly practicing all of the qualities listed in this passage, and it was a practice that made permanent, I think Peter would be right, we would never stumble. Unfortunately, how many of us are practicing these qualities until they are firmly embedded on our minds and hearts. Sure we might be really good at brotherly kindness, but when it comes to self-control, we trip up. Yes, we might make a regular practice of moral excellence, but when we have to be diligent we fall short. I do believe we can become better and better at every single one of these qualities, and we may even get to the point where we no longer stumble, but again, it is only Jesus and his Spirit that gives us this stumble proof ability.

For in this way, the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.

If we don’t really pay attention, one could say that this verse is a proponent of good works theology. This is theology that says, we gain entrance into heaven by our good works. But the Bible is clear on this:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

— Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB)

i believe this verse is speaking as a matter of degrees. The Bible says,

“...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”

— Romans 10:9 (NASB)

If we believe in Jesus we will be saved. We will get into Heaven and dwell with the Almighty forever. What this verse seems to be suggesting is that it can be even better than that. It says that entrance into the Kingdom will be abundantly supplied to us. Abundance implies wealth and resources. Maybe for those who have been practicing these qualities and striving to be diligent and remember God’s precious and magnificent promises, they will receive a ticker tape parade. I really don’t know, but I find it interesting that the point was made that the entrance into the Kingdom will be abundantly supplied.

Image by Dimitris Vetsikas from Pixabay 

I hope you have enjoyed this look at 2 Peter 1:1-11. Next week, I hope to do an Easter post. After that I might return to the eight qualities listed in this passage and start looking at those in depth. Until then, have a great week everyone.

Mulling It Over - Part 2

It was a good morning to stay inside. The temperature hovered at 32 degrees Fahrenheit making the moisture that fell turn everything into something similar to a glazed doughnut without the sweet taste. Even now, as the temps have risen to a balmy 34 degrees, the ice still lingers, stubbornly clinging to branches, wires, driveways, cars and buildings.

I am looking at a portion of scripture that I introduced last week in the New Testament book of 2 Peter. Peter, one of the original twelve disciples, authored 1st and 2nd Peter. Here is the passage again.

“1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

— 2 Peter 1:1-11 (NASB)

Last week we looked at verses 1 and 2. You can see that post here. This week we will dissect verse 3. If you have not been a participant in my Mulling It Over series before, let me briefly explain how this works. I love to let the Bible speak for itself. The Holy Spirit gives us the capacity to understand scripture, so what I am doing is sharing with you what I have learned in my study of certain scriptures. I think is is wonderful to study the Bible in different ways, so I would strongly encourage you to do further research and study on various passages, but for this particular study we will just chew on what it says and let the Bible do the talking.

On to verse 3:

“...seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.”

— 2 Peter 1:3 (NASB)

…seeing that His divine power…

The fact that it is divine power, means that it is power of God, not men or machines or whatever you want to use to fill in the blank. This power is from God. It is His to give and His to withhold. Here are a few other verses that talk about His divine power.

“With Him are wisdom and might; To Him belong counsel and understanding.”

— Job 12:13 (NASB)

“I will instruct you in the power of God; What is with the Almighty I will not conceal.”

— Job 27:11 (NASB)

“O God, You are awesome from Your sanctuary. The God of Israel Himself gives strength and power to the people. Blessed be God!”

— Psalm 68:35 (NASB)

“Daniel said, “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him.”

— Daniel 2:20 (NASB)

…has granted to us…

I looked up the word granted in Webster’s Online Dictionary. There are two specific definitions that I feel define the way the word is used in this sentence. The first says, “…to permit as a right, privilege or favor.” God has given us rights. He has privileged us and he has given us favor. It may not always seems like it, but it is true.

The second definition says, “…to bestow or transfer formally; to give the possession or title of by a deed.” God, in His great generosity gives us things. Just as a good father loves to give his children gifts, so too, our Heavenly Father derives great pleasure from giving His spiritual children gifts.

“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!”

— Matthew 7:11 (NASB)

“Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, And He gave gifts to men.””

— Ephesians 4:8 (NASB)

“Arise, walk about the land through its length and breadth; for I will give it to you.””

— Genesis 13:17 (NASB)

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

— Matthew 7:7 (NASB)

So what, exactly, is it that God granted to us?

…everything pertaining to life and godliness…

The word everything is pretty all encompassing. We could all list things that we have wanted that God didn’t necessarily give us, so why does it say everything. The key phrase here is pertaining to. Everything pertaining to life and godliness. We all might think, now wait a minute, there are plenty of things pertaining to life that I haven’t been given. For example, a woman who desires to have a child, but is unable or someone looking for a life partner, but not able to find the right one. What about the man or woman who is out of a job and can’t find work, or people in other countries who live in fear for their lives and the lives of their children? Isn’t the ability to find love, have a family and have a secure, safe place to live all part of life?

How many of you remember the song, sung by Lynn Anderson, I Never Promised You a Rose Garden? Here’s a refresher if you have the time to listen.

The first few lines go:

“I beg your pardon, I never promised you a rose garden

Along with the sunshine, there has to be a little rain sometime.”

It might sound rather trite, especially if you are going through a hard time, but there is great truth there. God didn’t promise us that we would have everything we want, or even everything we need. The power He has granted to us is the ability to live life, regardless of what difficulties come along.

Notice that the verse says everything pertaining to life and godliness. There seems to be a connection here which cannot be ignored. Godliness goes hand in hand with living life. We don’t become godly after life is over, we become godly as we live life. As many of you have already experienced becoming godly often happens during the most difficult portions of life, not during the rose garden moments, but during the monsoon moments. It is during these monsoon moments that God grants us what we need to keep living life, or the grace to give up.

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There is nothing wrong with giving up, particularly if you have struggled and struggled. There are times that the giving up is more a matter of our pride than it is the desire to get what we want. We don’t want to look weak, or stupid, or unable to cope. We don’t want to ask for help or admit that this is definitely not what we thought life would look like. But it is okay! Come to terms with it, you are weak, sometimes your decisions are stupid and frankly I have had many days where I just could’t cope, but God has always been there through it all and that brings me to the last portion of this verse.

…through the true knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and excellence.

That divine power that grants to us everything to live this journey we call life and make us godly is only obtainable through the true knowledge of Him. In other words, it is through our acknowledgment and acceptance of Jesus as our Lord and Savior that we are able to live life and be godly. We can’t do this on our own and that is precisely the point.

God called us, each one of us, by His own glory and excellence, which was personified in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the crowing glory of the Father and Jesus is the perfect man, a man of true excellence. When we come to know Him by our faith in His virgin birth, life, death and resurrection, we are given the ability to live this life, no matter what it throws at us. Our loss is an opportunity for gaining more of Him. Our weakness is an opportunity for being infused with His strength. Our stupidity is an opportunity for learning more of Him and growing in His wisdom. Our deepest, unmet desire is an opportunity for becoming intimate with a Holy, loving god.

I hope this verse has given you hope. You are not living this life alone. He is with you, granting you the ability to live life, no matter what storm you are going through. Hang on!

Mulling It Over - Part 1

I wanted to get back to my Mulling It Over series, where I look at a portion of scripture, taking it apart in order to more deeply understand and think about God’s word. When we dig deeper into God’s word we learn new things. It doesn’t matter how many times we have read through the Bible. The Holy Spirit is capable of teaching us something new over and over. Searching through the scripture is often like going on a treasure hunt. My goal with this series is to discover some of the wonderful nuggets that God wants to teach us.

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Beginning this month, I want to take a look at the book of 2 Peter in the New Testament, specifically verses 1 - 11. Both 1st and 2nd Peter were written by Peter, one of the original 12 apostles. If you know anything about Peter, you know that he could be rather bull headed, overly enthusiastic and thick, but Peter was the one to which Jesus posed statements such as,

“And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. ”

— Matthew 16:17 & 18 (NASB)

Scofield’s reference notes from 1917, makes clear Jesus was not intending to build the church on Peter, but on Himself. Jesus’ statement to Peter was a confirmation of the faith he had; a faith that is necessary for all believers to have. The fact that Peter was privy to this information reveals the depth of trust and love Jesus had for this man.

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As a shepherd of the flock, Peter had the responsibility to teach and instruct the members of the early church. In his first letter he encourages the church through the difficulties of persecution, which Christians were facing at the time from Nero. Many followers of Christ were being used as torches, if you get my meaning. Peter speaks of hope and the grace of God.

In his second letter, Peter addresses the presence of false teachers and wrong doers within the church and suggests the need for growth in the faith and watchfulness for Christ’s return.

This week, I just want to introduce the passage and then look at the introductory verses.

“Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.
10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

Take it apart:

Verse 1 -

Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,

The author identifies himself by giving his name and then by giving his credentials. He is both a bond-servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ. These two descriptions say much about the man Peter.

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I have looked at this idea of being a bond-servant on an earlier occasion, but lets review. Another word for bond-servant is slave. Typically, a bond-servant is one who works for someone else without wages. Basically a bond-servant is owned by their master. Why would a person want to identify themselves with this moniker? The Apostle Paul also used the term bond-servant to refer to himself. The common denominator for these two is the person of Jesus Christ. They had committed their lives to Him in such a way that they identified themselves as being His slaves. They were sold out to the person of Jesus and knew their lives were no longer their own.

Peter also identifies himself as an apostle. One way to define the word apostle is to list other words that have the same idea. Words like, advocate, backer, proponent, promoter, supporter and herald, all are synonymous with apostle. Peter was one of the original 12 men who followed Jesus and lived with him during his three years of earthly ministry. This fact gives Peter a huge amount of credibility to speak about Jesus’ message to the early church and to us today.

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…to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours…

This letter is written specifically to those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. Many people today who are not proponent’s of the Bible claim that it is no longer relevant in our world today. They claim it is outdated, yet Peter, over 2000 years ago wrote his letter to those who were of the same faith as him. In other words, his letter is as real and living to us today as it was to the early church, for the very reason that we share a common faith in Jesus Christ.

…by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:

This confirms that same faith came about by the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Our faith in Him is secure because of what He did and who He was. Jesus is God and his life on this earth, was not to preach a social gospel. The gospel that Christ preached was not salvation from the hardships of life, but salvation from ramifications of sin. It is His death on a cross and his rising from the dead that enables us to place our faith in Him.

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Verse 2 -

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord

Who doesn’t long for grace and peace. We desire others give us grace when we are having a hard time. We desire peace from all the fears and anxieties that plague us on a daily basis. The author states that these will be multiplied to the readers in the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. Knowledge of God and Jesus are essential to knowing peace and grace. This is not a head knowledge that nods absently when asked the question, “Do you know Jesus?” This knowledge is a personal, burning knowledge that can only be obtained when we call Him Lord.

The idea of Lordship takes us back to the term bond-servant. Have you chosen Jesus as your Lord? Are you sold out to Him? Do you call Him master?

Next week we will delve into verse 3. If you have any thoughts on this passage or these first two verse, I love to have your feedback. Just leave a comment.

Have a wonderful weekend.

The Light of Joy

One of the things about the Christmas season that I get very excited about is lights. I love the look of houses outlined in tiny specks of shimmering light, whether they are white, green, red or blue, I love them all. I enjoy driving home from somewhere and seeing how many houses are embellished with twinkling splendor. Now don’t judge me, but I also enjoy seeing Christmas trees inside people’s homes. It’s not that I am being nosy. After all, don’t we put our trees in windows for that purpose, so the outside world can see our beautiful displays of light?

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What is it about light that we so enjoy? I know that most of us would rather be out and about when it is day time. We enjoy when morning comes and feel loss at the slipping away of light as night time takes over. I personally have to convince myself that darkness is good and God allows the darkness so that we may rest. What I find fascinating about this God of ours is that He didn’t leave us in total darkness. He provided, even before sin became a reality, He provided the moon and the stars to rule the night, so even in darkness the light is still meant to preside.

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There is a lesson here for us, if we are willing to see it. Light is always present even in the darkness. Darkness is, for lack of a better definition, the absence of light. But even in the deepest and darkest dark, somewhere there is still light. If we lost all electricity, the sun would still rule the sky by day and the moon and stars by night. As long as God allows the planets, stars, moons and sun to hang in space, there will always be light. What if those things disappear, or burn out? What if there is nothing left, but darkness? That will never be the case, because God is light and in Him there is no darkness.

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When we think of Christmas we often have images of children playing, laughing and looking with awe and wonder at the lights and decorations. Can you even imagine a Christmas without the idea of child like joy being a part of it? I realize, not everyone grew up with wonder filled Christmases like many of us did. Some of you may not even celebrate Christmas or may think of it as merely an overly commercialized holiday meant to line the pockets of corporate America. Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I think most of us can relate to the idea of joy.

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Joy is often misunderstood. It is regularly mistaken for happiness, but joy is eternal, whereas happiness is temporary. Let me see if I can explain this in a way that makes sense. Joy is light. Joy comes out in dazzling displays like fireworks and rocket launches, but it also twinkles like Christmas lights and candle flames. The difference is that when the fireworks and rockets are burned out and the Christmas lights break and the flame smokes, joy still shines. The reason for this came in the form of a bundled baby boy, born in a stable over two thousand years ago.

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No matter how deep the darkness is, joy still shines. There is no darkness or evil thorough enough to overcome joy. You might not feel like you have joy right now. Maybe you feel like you have never had joy, but you know those moments that bring tears to your eyes; those moments are shimmers of joy. You experience them when a movie has a happy ending or a musical movement runs together into a river of sound so beautiful it sweeps you along with it. You experience it when you come upon a breathtaking view or stand at the water’s edge when the sun begins its descent into a cloudless sea. This is joy.

Then when life tries to break you and you cannot hear the music or see the sunset, that is when you must reach back and in, deeper and deeper, to the event where joy first burst onto the scene of humanity. A virgin birth. Shepherds watching their flocks. Animals in the stable. A straw filled manger. This event was and is and evermore shall be the birth of joy. At that moment joy moved from happiness to an eternal possibility. Joy became the essence of bliss.

If you believe in that light, then even when all is dark, all you have to do is call his name. Jesus. And that light of joy will explode, once again in your soul and the darkness will scatter.

Mulling It Over - Part 2

This cute little critter looks like he is thinking something over. Maybe he is wondering about that dog he sees on the other side of the yard, or maybe he's wondering where that nut is that he buried last fall. Whatever, the case may be, we need to occasionally take time to think about God's word. His word is something like those nuts that Fuzzy up there buries to eat at a later time. We can read His word many times before something really hits us. This is one of the reasons I like to tear passages apart in a verse by verse way. God's word becomes like those nuts that get buried and that are suddenly unearthed! What a joy, when God speaks from something we have read a million times. 

Last month we began looking at a short passage in 2 Timothy chapter 2. We learned briefly that  Timothy was a young pastor and Paul's letters to him, were letters of encouragement in dealing with church problems.

“20 Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor.
21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.
22 Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
23 But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels.
24 The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged,
25 with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth,
26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”

— 2 Timothy 2:20-26 (NASB)

We looked at verse 20 and learned about a large house, one that is symbolic of the Body of Christ. In this large house are vessels of silver and gold, but also vessels of wood and clay. We in the Body of Christ are the vessels. We are not all the same, and while we all have the same purpose, glorifying God, we do not all go about it in the same way. Now, let's move on to verse 21. 

“Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work”

— 2 Timothy 2:21 (NASB)

Therefore,...

Whenever we see the word therefore, we need to ask the question, what is it there for? Paul goes on to say, "...if anyone cleanses himself from these things..." What are the things that he was referring to?

...if anyone cleanses himself from these things...

“14 Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers.
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
16 But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness,
17 and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
18 men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some.
19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.””

— 2 Timothy 2:14-19 (NASB)

It seems that young Timothy's church was full of wagging tongues. It was not just an issue of gossip, though that is condemned in other portions of scripture. It was an issue of "...worldly and empty chatter..." Paul states that "...it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene..."

That is not a pretty picture. I have never seen a gangrenous limb, but I am sure it is not pleasant. If left untreated gangrene can lead to amputation and even death. What a fitting analogy for a church whose members do not watch their tongues. One person's lies, gossip or vain chatter can affect others, which in turn can affect others and so on. If the empty talk is not nipped immediately, chaos can follow. 

Since the books of First and Second Timothy were written as a guide for how church leaders and mature Christians should behave, it is natural to assume that any type of sin and wrong doing were to be avoided. Besides trying to live a Godly and pure life, what does it mean to cleanse ourselves from these things? 

1. Regular confession.

Only Jesus and His blood can cleanse us from our sin. He is our high priest and we are able to come to Him and confess all. 

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

— I John 1:9 ( NASB)

2. Real repentance.

Repentance is a turning away from sin. We don't wash our hands, just so we can put them back in the dirt. We usually wash our hands in order for them to be clean when we are going to eat, or do something where clean hands are important. Confession cleanses us, but repentance keeps us clean. 

“Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;”

— Acts 3:19 (NASB)

...he will be a vessel for honor...

If you read my post from last month, (see that here) you will remember the idea of these vessels in the big house being either, for honorable or dishonorable use. Paul reminds Timothy here that if we cleanse ourselves we will be vessels for honorable use. Just imagine you are throwing a fancy dinner. Since Easter is on Sunday, I'm sure many of us are preparing celebrations with our families. You might be setting out your best dishes and silverware, adding pretty napkins, and even Easter or spring themed decorations on the table and around your home. Now imagine that you've set the table with dirty dishes and crusted silverware. What would your guests think? I'm pretty sure, many of them would lose their appetites. Why then do we wonder why we aren't bringing people to the Lord, or into the church? Perhaps it is because we are not cleansing ourselves from these things, but are dirty, dishonorable vessels. 

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...sanctified...

The word sanctify as defined in Webster's online dictionary has three definitions that work for the purpose of this study. The first means to set apart to a sacred purpose. The second means to free from sin. The third is to impute or impart sacredness. 

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What could be more beautiful at this time of year, when we celebrate our Lord's death and resurrection, than we think about the idea of sanctification. Jesus is the one who sets apart. Jesus is the one who frees from sin. Jesus is the one who imputes and imparts sacredness. Sanctification is totally an act of a perfect being, by His shed blood on the cross. It is His blood that cleanses us. Yes, we must confess and repent, but we have nothing to do with the actual act of sanctification. It is all Him.

Thank you Jesus!

...useful to the Master....

How could we not be useful to Him, if we are cleansed and sanctified! The mere fact that we are clean vessels will make us useful. If you are anything like me, I often have dirty dishes by the sink, in the sink and in the dishwasher. Is it any wonder I can't find a clean bowl or spoon for cereal in the morning? Ha, ha. Now apply that real life idea to your life with Christ. Has it been a long time since you have felt used by Him? Maybe you need to check to see if you are clean. Yes, it is time to wash those dishes and wash our hearts and minds of all that does not honor and glorify Him.

...prepared for every good work.

I love this idea, that we can be both useful to the Master and prepared for every good work. If we are regularly going to Jesus, confessing and repenting, then we are regularly allowing Him to wash us sparkly clean, so that then we are useful to Him, whenever and wherever He chooses to use us. 

As you look forward to this weekend, a time of remembering and being thankful for all that Jesus did for us, spend a few moments thinking about your own condition. Are you a vessel that is prepared for honorable use? Are you clean? I don't want to be caught with dirty dishes on my table when He comes to dinner. Do you?