Isaiah 61:8 "For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing."

Our Father’s love is immeasurably deep, enduringly high and surpasses the farthest star. His passion for us in Jesus is truly without end and everlasting. Much of our lives, after He saves us, is spent on the task of learning about this tender act of grace bestowed on us. We were far from a genuine desire to know Him; now, we understand our fellowship with Him is a present reality because He chose to draw us to Himself. The early days in our fresh walk with Him are marked by intense service and vigorous devotion in the form of a spiritual honeymoon. But the experience is a flame that tends to fade over time and the hard work of sanctification, that process where God molds us into the image of Christ, begins.

This spiritual development can be exquisitely excruciating. In my life, I lacked real supportive discipleship after I went forward one Sunday morning to receive Jesus as my God and Savior. While it is definitely not a requirement, I wish my eyes were open wider to the transformation that was about to occur in the entirety of my being. Jesus was going to honor His word and take me off to heaven someday. First, I had to be used to finish His work here on earth. This wouldn’t happen until my old stubborn habits were crucified. Fears and godless attitudes, buried under mountains of ignorance needed to be exposed and let go. I had to learn about this God. I spent a large part of my life, into my early teens, in church every Sunday but never heard an emphasis on the love of God to me. John 3:16 was a cute memory verse pertaining to a God far away with a Son helping me out somehow in the distant past. But He wasn’t here, now. God was on a throne, and I had to fend for myself the best that I could, never able to please Him. I had no idea how to make the word of God practical and effective in my life.

In my early days walking with Him, I was suicidal, depressed and generally useless for the kingdom. I lost an incredible amount of weight. Alcohol and drugs were established strongholds in my life with deep deep roots. These roots included generational curses, racism, religion, family issues and more. I had also played in the enemy’s camp, and he was not thrilled that I was leaving. There was a lot of momentum invested in a life without God. I was making a long 180-degree arc that would take some 30 years to complete. There are plenty of stories about the individual who received Christ and were loyal to Him the very next day. That is not my experience. I was subjected to extreme disillusionment. The process was much like Mel Gibson in Braveheart. It is the scene where he is betrayed by a few of his allies. With an arrow in his chest, he captures what he believes to be an enemy only to reveal it is the very prince/king he is fighting for. It turned out that I was the enemy when I ripped off the helmet. None of what I considered to be a benefit for the kingdom was fit to lay at the feet of Jesus. Every possibility to trust myself for righteous living had to be eliminated. Everything that made up my personal interests had to come under the control of Jesus before I was ever to hope in a life that meant something for the kingdom.

One story is appropriate here. I wouldn’t leave drugs alone – even though life was holding out a ministry, beautiful fiancé and a future filled with hope. All these things are well in reach for the mature Christian, but I was a babe under the illusion that I had control over my life. Fortunately, there are consequences to that wayward behavior; otherwise, I would have continued on and been destined for hell. God used the closing doors and the need for special care to position me for a closer walk with Him in a few decades. This dark period of disillusionment brought me to the brink of wanting to take my own life. The pinnacle of my crisis came when I was on a bridge over an expressway in Philadelphia and gave serious thought to jumping. I was close to making that decision to jump when God pulled me from my plan to end it all and take a breather. It just made no sense to me why all the willpower in the world could not keep me from these gross shortcomings and losing the love and fellowship of close friends. I heard no voice, only a feeling that there was more to do.

His love reached me in two ways on that bridge that day. Those early years, after coming forward to say the sinner’s prayer, I went in and out of shelters and spent time on the streets of Philadelphia. I had learned how to survive on the benevolence of churches and missions. I rarely went hungry. I learned to sleep anywhere due to where my addiction would drive me that day. But I hung around Center City the most.

After God changed my mind about jumping off that bridge, I saw a van in the distance. The logo on the side of the van was a raven with a loaf of bread in its talon. The van was from Raven’s Ministries, and it was just what I needed after that ordeal on the bridge. There was a short message and prayer, followed by sandwiches and soup. I sat down in a nearby ornate park and cried out to God in personal loathsome despair. I have no doubt that God was watching over me my entire life. However, this self-revolting response to the food and the word was because I knew that God put those people there. They were God’s hand of ministry at one of my lowest points in life. Like Elijah, God knew I needed refreshment after so great a battle with myself and Satan. I think I started eating again after that day. I was indifferent to food during this season. My lack of taking nourishment started to concern me because I like to eat. Sadly, there were many decades ahead of me to turn me away from my deviations from God’s love, word and will. This experience was an example of just how spiritually bankrupt I was. I wanted my experience to be like the testimonies I heard about those people who received Christ and were absolutely different and ready for kingdom work the next day. My road would unfold before me deliberately over time. Chemical dependency was just the tip of an iceberg that had abysmal roots in racism, sex, religion, history, family and so much more.

“For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing.”

Here is where I found my answers to a long series of learning experiences. The verse tells me that I can depend on God to be near when I love what He loves and hate what He hates. Over time, I learned to hate those little behaviors and attitudes that were feeding the chemical dependencies. My spiritual blindness, permission from the world and the enemy’s tricks led me to believe that the problem was only cocaine and alcohol. The Lord showed me that those things were the easiest things to relinquish once their fundamental roots were cut. I’m successful today because I no longer trust any attitude that supports going back to a lifestyle without Christ.

This prosperous walk is not only captured in a lifestyle of negation. Life would not be entirely fun if it was a daily grind of ‘don'ts’. But the Lord says He loves something. I’m finally living in the direction of what He loves. This layer of protection is even better than hating a host of things. Loving in God’s direction and other people places me in the Blessed Assurance where I find peace and usefulness in the kingdom. I’m amazed to watch myself pleasantly bless or correct someone when I am raging inside. Well, I didn’t say I was a master yet. But I have come to a distance.

This love portion is a compass to use for determining whether we are on course or not. He is a lover of justice. God loves to see that people and situations get their proper rewards. I was so confused and angry when God began His work on me. My thoughts centered around His wrath and punishment, but I was wrong. My life had to become odious so that the life of the Holy Spirit could break through. Many people stumble here, as I did. We don’t understand that our lives and the life of the Holy Spirit are mutually exclusive and at odds with each other. The recipient of His justice would recognize that God is performing His will, with love, along greater arcs of His passion that are too great to understand.

Being alive to write is just one example of the miracle of Jesus. The changes are ongoing for me, but those early years were tough. I’m sure I gave up hope numerous times. Being in a place to sincerely write about God’s love being a compass is a far leap from my crisis on the bridge that day. I hope I can grow more in this realization of God’s sanctifying work.

Photo by Nicola Fioravanti on Unsplash

Mirrors are one of the most diabolical illusions that cats can encounter. Sure, they’re intrigued by movement under the linen, strange stringy things being dragged across the floor and unintelligible objects suspended from twine. However, nothing beats the drama that ensues when a fairly inexperienced cat meets a perfectly polished piece of reflective material – a mirror. It’s the behavior the new cat exhibits at seeing itself and the illusion of another room beyond the glass that incurs amusement in onlookers.  

The animal will spend hours at the edge of the mirror trying to reach its flat replica on the other side of the glass. It will paw, sneak and have imaginary discourse with its identical twin. The activity always becomes an exercise in how fast the cat can reach behind the glass to capture its elusive doppelganger. The ball of sensual fur engages in endless experiments to apprehend the prey but the paw aways comes back empty. This possible specter on the other side of the mirror is an unnecessary worry. We know this because it does not take us humans quite as long to figure out that there’s nothing on the other side of the mirror, especially not our twin in an identical room to be apprehended. 

Jesus encouraged us not to be engaged in life in that way. He spoke extensively for three chapters in the Bible, Matthew 5 – 7, on the various ways that we paw at the air for things that do not exist, are out of our control, appears to be in need of change, and belong to the sovereignty of God. Jesus goes to great lengths to show us how the condition of our minds and spirits can be great hindrances to a working relationship with Himself. He is pointing out that things beyond our reach are better left in the hands of God. When Jesus gave the ‘Sermon on the Mount’, He was speaking with intimate authority on the condition of man in terms of worry. He knew full well that this problem persisted in us and went unanswered in His day. He knows that deadlines, seasons, health, ministries, relationships and more can appear to be serious concerns for us.  Our imaginations projected as like in a mirror, suspend our attention away from concentrating on God the Father before us now. We ‘paw’ at those non-existent illusions beyond our reach. This care beyond our reach begs for some resolution right at this moment. Instead of experiencing contentment, peace and worship, fear and dread consume our awareness of the presence of the Father. That reflection is our hope for something else or something to change. 

Elements of this conflict can be found with our original father and mother, Adam and Eve. (Genesis 3) We inherited the belief that something, beyond our reach, is proper nourishment and must look good, and attaining it makes one prudent from her. We can add that this desire, out-of-the-way, promises complete satisfaction after it is acquired. Hopefully, we have matured and learned to grow from repeated failures at pawing for imaginary satisfaction. Staying present in this moment is a good sign that we are aligning ourselves with Jesus’ intentions. Where some distress or enigma draws us away from our peace with God is a good time to refocus our energy and attention back to the creator and trust His timing for settlement. A good compass would be to test whether this present issue is at hand and if there is an abiding sense of Jesus in the midst of this particular sphere. Is faith in the person of Jesus being exercised in this instance? We know we are extending ourselves beyond our reach without true faith when worship, peace and contentment are certainly absent.  

So, fix your hair and make sure the broccoli isn’t sticking in your teeth, but beware of lingering too long at your other self in that identical room – and trying to reach or change that person without prayer and devotion to God. The same holds true if you are privileged to see to the edge of an ocean or the outline of a mountain range. Those horizons are where God figures everything out and prepares places for us. Life between us and those boundaries are already more than we can handle. All of our concerns have their solution at the throne of God. 

Photo by Vince Fleming on Unsplash

A couple of weeks back, I was preparing a lesson for our Extended Session group (Pre-K for those that do not know), and ironically it became one of the most challenging lessons I have ever taught. I have spent nearly my whole adult life training and teaching people in the church and non-church settings, and these Preschoolers had me more worried than ever. Our lesson was on Forgiveness, and the context was “The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant.”

When I first started preparing for the lesson, I thought it would be simple. I have taught on this section of scripture in my past; however, teaching two and three-year-olds the concept of Forgiveness began to weigh on me.

I judge these children by their age and development, but in my own life, I have struggled to be forgiven and forgive others. In working with adults and teenagers, Forgiveness is not always an easy thing to talk about or accept either. The more I thought about my own experiences and the experiences with older groups of people, the more I became dependent on God to help me with a room full of young children.

God led me on a path in my preparation by first talking about showing kindness to people. We took a look at pictures where children could help others. One picture was of a young child getting the mail for a grandmother. Another image was of a child getting a band-aid for their friend who fell off a bike and hurt their knee. We had other examples, but you get the idea.

Then I felt God push me to talk about unkind things people can do. For Preschoolers, we talked about kids not sharing or kids knocking down a tower we built. These kinds of things are not fun and can hurt our feelings. This setup led us to talk about how we feel when people do unkind things to us; then we discussed that we do not have to be unkind back. And when we choose not to be unkind back, that is an idea of what Forgiveness is like. Forgiving another person can also be a way to be kind. I also took a moment to clarify that the unkind things people do are not okay, but again, we do not have to be mean back.

During my time creating the lesson above, God also used the moment to press on me a little.

Parable About Forgiveness

If you are unfamiliar with “The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant,” you can read about it in Matthew 18:23-35. To summarize it quickly, an individual is brought before the King/Master (pending the translation you are reading) to pay off his debt. He has a significant amount of debt and cannot pay for it. Through a conversation, the King/Master decides to pity the man and let him go, and cancels his debt. 

The now free and debt-free man then goes and grabs another man that owes him a lot less debt than what he had owed the King/Master and has the man thrown in prison until the debt can be paid. The accounts of this incident eventually reach the King/Master, and the original man of our story is brought back in, and this time the King has him jailed because he had his debts canceled and failed to do the same for another person.

Jesus concludes this Parable (Story with a spiritual significance) by saying, “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother and your sister from your heart” Matthew 18:35.

These are very stern words that Jesus concludes his story with. Jesus, again at a separate time, when teaching his disciples how to pray, also pointed out this stern truth. In Matthew 6: 14-15, Jesus teaches, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

I believe as I was studying for my young audience, God took the time to remind me of this stern truth and prompted my heart to share it with everyone that will listen or read this blog. Unfortunately, in the last two years, I have witnessed Christian organizations and Churches allow political agendas to dominate their lifestyles so much that it has caused a lot of believers to forget to forgive.

Jesus had to address it in his time, and I believe He is drawing our attention to it today. How will we respond?

What Is Forgiveness?

Forgiveness is releasing the hurt or pain or resentment we may have toward someone that has been unkind to us. In biblical terms, I believe it releases the hurt or pain or resentment and allows God to handle it to be the ultimate judge. It is being okay with how God decides to address it and move forward.

The Big point of the Parables is to realize that God has forgiven each of us more than we could ever imagine, and we should be able to forgive because of this. Again, as I told the children, it does not make the incident okay, but it releases us from seeking revenge or looking to be unkind.

In the larger context of Matthew 18, this section of scripture is found following a passage of scripture that churches use to justify church discipline. While there is a procedure here, if you look closely and study well, you will see that in the end, the ultimate goal is Forgiveness and reconciliation. Too many churches are quick to shun and cast out someone because of their sin, but that is not the point. To treat someone as “a pagan or tax collector” is to pursue them with the gospel.

Seventy-Seven Times Seven

With that being said, I have purposefully left out the Big Point God laid on my heart these last couple of weeks. In between our scripture and the section on church discipline are two verses God pressed on my heart. These two verses are the bridge that ties the passages of scripture together.

I would say that these verses provide a hint of some practical advice to stay in a proper situation with God concerning Forgiveness.

In Matthew 18:21-22, we get the famous part of scripture where Peter asks Jesus if forgiving seven times is enough. Depending on your translation, Jesus answers seventy-seven times or seventy-seven times seven times.

Many people write books on the completeness found in these numbers and the Jewish culture. In addition, many people outside of the Jewish culture teach that this implies that we are to forgive an infinite number of times (when paired with the parable). While these arguments can be made,  I do believe that God is also giving some practical advice here concerning the process of Forgiveness. I may be taking some liberty here, but I felt God laid on me that sometimes Forgiveness could literally be seventy-seven times seven.

I came to this conclusion (I believe from God) because the Bible does not teach “Forgive and Forget.”  We have discussed that God commands us to forgive, but what about the forgotten part?

This is a human-coined phrase that we have attached to the process of Forgiveness. Scripturally, God can do this based on Isaiah 43:25 and Psalms 103:12. However, even with these verses, God is still all-knowing, and I would say he still knows about our sins but chooses not to hold them against us, and only he can indeed have the ability to do so.

So, long-story-short and keeping it personal, there are some things in my life I continually have to deal with on my insides concerning events that happened years and years ago. I question myself if I have truly forgiven that person(s). God’s answer to me was, “Sometimes seventy-seven times seven really is seventy-seven times seven.”

The meaning behind this is that while I may forgive someone in the present, the hurt and pain do not just go away and perhaps never will. SO maybe seven times a year for the next seventy-seven years, I may have to choose repeatedly to forgive someone whenever something triggers and brings me back into the pain and hurt. This may be needed in the closest relationships of our lives for the people that we will be around the most.

So, in conclusion, if you are like me and struggle with some past hurts; The things that happened are not okay, but God wants us to forgive (Release it all to him) as we have been forgiven and not to be the unmerciful servant holding that incident over someone’s head for the rest of their life. You may consciously have to choose to forgive time and time again as old emotions or feelings randomly emerge. It is important to do so because you can just as easily choose not to forgive a past hurt five years down the road as that gross dead incident or zombie incident (I call it) raises up out of the ground. I see this in long-term relationships all the time. For example, people in a marriage may truthfully forgive each other in a moment about some hurt, but then years down the road, bring it up again as ammo and at that moment choose not to forgive but use it to hurt. You do not have to choose to be unkind but be kind and forgive.

Isn’t it amazing what a simple Pre-k lesson can do.?

Photo by Alex Shute on Unsplash

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CHURCHES IN AURORA

Trinity Baptist Church is one of many churches (and Southern Baptist Churches) in Aurora, CO. If you do not have a church home, we would like to invite you to our service: Sunday at 10:30 AM. You can join us in person or online!

Wow! It is incredible to me how time has a way of escaping. Trinity's last blog was written in July, and here it is now November and the week of Thanksgiving. In some ways, the time has felt like years since the beginning of COVID-19, and in other ways, it feels like it happened five minutes ago. It also feels like many of us have blotted it out of our minds. Now we are a few short weeks from 2022, which is hard to believe.

During the past few weeks, I have realized we are behind on the blog, and I wanted to keep trying to press forward with the blogs. I have attempted to write a cliché' Thanksgiving blog, but it did not go well because my heart was not there. It is not that I do not have gratitude. On the contrary, I have continually thought of things I am grateful for and encouraged many of you to do the same. However, forcing my mind to write about it to "write a blog" did not go well.

God's Blog Idea

God gave me a blog idea over the last week and a half, and the message has just flowed because it was authentic and genuine. It was something God laid on my heart. So while it has nothing to do with Thanksgiving, I hope God will use it to speak to you anyways.

A couple of weeks back in Youth Group, we took a look at John 15 and talked about being connected to Jesus (the vine), and explored/investigated that passage with some intentionality.

During that lesson, God brought my focus more intensely to the first five verses of Chapter 15. This focus, paired with some yard work around the church, helped produce this blog and a short lesson.

Look at John 15:1-5. In this teaching, Jesus calls himself the "vine," which throughout the Bible is usually a metaphor for Israel, but here, Jesus takes on the label. The vine is the part of the plant connected to the roots. The root is the part of the plant that helps sustain life to the branches to produce fruit.

Jesus then labels God the Father as the "gardener." God is the owner and keeper of the vineyard. He is the one that is in control and manages the things that happen in the vineyard. Jesus expands on the role of the "gardener" by mentioning it is the "gardener" that cuts of the branches that bear no fruit. This branch can very much be people that proclaim to follow God or believe but do it as "lip service." Maybe they really do not have an allegiance to God. If you do not have a relationship or belief in God, please consider the seriousness of that decision. For the rest of us who proclaim to believe, I think it is important to point out that the "gardener" cuts the branches and not the church.

Moving forward, the next part or statement in verse 2 has been heavy on my heart. It states, "While every branch that does produce fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." It is interesting to me that both branches (fruitful or fruitless) get "cut." I do not enjoy this part of being a believer, but it is essential. I believe I go through seasons of "pruning" that are painful and annoying and are something I would rather not have to endure. However, this process keeps me humble and attached to God to "produce" more "fruit" (God's fruit is to be like Jesus; spiritual fruit found in Galatians 5:22-23) and to mature.

During the summer of 2020, the rose bush outside my office looked dead. By July of 2020, there was not one flower. I thought the rosebush was yet another victim of COVID-19. Pastor Bart decided to cut it down quite a bit, and guess what happened? It bloomed and grew nearly twice its original size. The pruning process was needed to produce "fruit." It was a nice picture in the physical world about the issues Jesus is addressing in John 15 about the spiritual world.

The growth of this rose continues (see the blog photo) in this warm November (2021) we are having, and some of the pruning of the trees around the Trinity property is still bringing new growth even on 11/23/21; while this is not a vine, I hope it helps you visualize Jesus' lesson. See the picture below. The recent growth was the darker colored branches cut only 2 or 3 weeks ago. 

John chapter 15:4-5 are the famous verses about staying in Jesus. Remaining in Jesus does not mean being perfect but staying in allegiance. We all have to make an effort and be accountable for our actions; however, the fruits of the spirit require the Holy Spirit. Following Jesus means we must hold onto Him in the toughest of times. To produce fruit and growth, we must stay connected to Jesus (life source) and allow Him to work in our lives. It is not always easy, and COVID-19, the hardships of life, temptations, and sin ALL confirm the difficulties we all face.

While Jesus spoke these words in His lifetime, the disciples would later endure many hardships after Jesus left earth for the sake of the Gospel. Holding onto Jesus and being pruned is necessary for bearing fruit in the Kingdom of God. While there is pain and seasons of pruning, know the "gardener" is doing it to help you grow and be more fruitful/useful. As we finish out yet another year, I pray you'll continue to remain in Jesus even if some pruning is needed.

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Churches in Aurora

Trinity Baptist Church is one of many churches in Aurora, CO. If you do not have a church home, we would like to invite you to our service: Sunday at 10:30 AM. You can join us in person or online!

It doesn’t matter if you think you are unpopular or have few friends on social media, your life matters!

It doesn’t matter how smart you are or if you feel you are not so smart, your life matters!

It doesn’t matter how much money you have or if you are poor, your life matters!

It doesn’t matter if others have said disparaging and hurtful words to you, your life matters!       

It doesn’t matter if you have a job or not, your life matters!

It doesn’t matter if you hold a high office or have no office at all, your life matters!

It doesn’t matter if you feel all alone, or are surrounded by people, your life matters!

Your life matters because it was given to you by God and it is eternal.

You matter because you matter to God.

You matter because you were created in the image of God to love Him and to be loved by Him.

You matter because God loves you even when you have not done the things you should.

You matter because you have the opportunity to love others and help change their lives for the good.

You matter because you can live a life that reflects who God is as a testimony to His greatness.

You matter so much to God that He sent His only son to die on a cross so that you would not have to face eternal death and separation from God for your personal sins.

Your present life matters because after your present body dies you will live on and stand before God. That means that what you do here and now will matter for all eternity!

The problems people have, and the reason they sometimes feel that their life does not matter, is we all (me, you and our neighbors) have all sinned against God. The Bible says;

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23

The “glory” is God’s perfection and goodness. We just don’t measure up no matter how hard we try.

This fact means that, unless someone intervenes on your behalf, when you stand before God, because He is perfectly righteous and just, He will have to cast you away from His presence and you will endure eternal separation and punishment. The Bible says;

For the wages of sin is death; Romans 6:23a

So, what can you do? Well, God in His love for you provided someone to stand in your place to receive the punishment that you deserve. The Bible says;

But He was wounded for our offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings;
The punishment for our well-being was laid upon Him, And by His wounds we are healed.
All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the wrongdoing of us all To fall on Him. Isaiah 53:5-6

This person who received our punishment is Jesus the Christ or Messiah. It is through His death on a cross and resurrection to new life, that we can receive the gift of eternal life from God.

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 1 Peter 3:18

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23

To receive this gift of eternal life all you have to do is to receive Jesus Christ into your life. You can do that through prayer, which is simply talking to God who is always present. Simply talk to God as you would any one else. Express to Him the following;

Lord God, I realize that I am a sinner, one who has not been obedient to your moral law or commandments. I recognize that I am in need of a savior who will stand in my place. Thank you for sending Jesus Christ to die on the cross for me. I now put my faith and trust in Jesus by inviting Him into my life to save me and to make me the kind of person you want me to be.

God promised that: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord (Jesus) will be saved.” Romans 10:13

God is not as concerned about the exact words you use as He is about the attitude of your heart. Prayer is a way to recognize to Him, and yourself, what you need. It is also a way to demonstrate your faith and trust in Him, rather than faith and trust in yourself.

 But, as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, John 1:12

When you receive Christ you become spiritually reborn. You become a child of God, a new creation in Christ.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

If you just received Christ, your old life has passed away and everything has become new in Christ.

If you have received Christ, the most important thing about you now is your new life in Christ! Use it well. Live righteously. Live in obedience to God to honor and glorify Him. Whatever you are facing, whatever the circumstance you live in, whatever the difficulties are, whatever your socio-economic status is, you have unlimited potential for good in Christ. In Christ God will lead you to accomplish amazing things. Live by faith in Him and His word the Bible.

And, that’s the secret! “Christ in you, the hope of glory!” Colossians 1:27

To help you take the next steps or to learn more about Christ click on this link: https://www.thetrinitytouch.com/next-steps

Blessings to you!

Photo provided by: Photo by Melissa Askew on Unsplash  

The word “bible” simply means “book.” It has sometimes been called “The Book” or “The Good Book” because it is the most widely published book of all time and because of its content.

Actually, the Bible is not really a single book. Its content was written over a period of about 1,500 years by approximately 40 authors. The subsections of the Bible, also called “books”, consist of various types of literature, from historical narratives, to poetry, proverbs, letters, and prophecies. These books are grouped into two main sections: The Old Testament, originally written almost exclusively in Hebrew, and the New Testament, originally written in the common Greek of the first century AD.

The first 5 books are called the books of Moses, or the law (“Torah” in Hebrew). They tell us about the creation of man, how we came to be separated from a personal relationship with God, and the consequences of that. They also tell us about the beginnings of God’s plan to bring us back to Himself.

First God called a man, Abram (later called Abraham), to have faith in Him. From the descendants of this one man, God promised to bring blessing and created a nation known today as the Hebrew or Jewish people. Early in their existence, the Hebrews because enslaved in Egypt. So, God called another man named Moses to lead the Hebrew people out of slavery and give them laws and regulations to become the nation known as Israel. In this process, God entered into a covenant with the Hebrews such that they would become a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation” with the task of revealing God’s word to others. The history of Israel and God’s revelations through them make up the rest of the Old Testament until we come to the time of Christ / the Messiah.

Many people do not realize that the word “Christ” is a title and means the same thing as “the Messiah”. The term Christ is from the Greek and Messiah is from the Hebrew. Translated into English, these terms mean “anointed one.”

As God sent a deliverer to lead the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt, God spoke to the Hebrew prophets, priests, and kings about a coming ‘anointed one’ who would be a deliverer to redeem all people of all nations from their bondage of “sin”, i.e., their acts and attitudes that fall short of God’s holiness and perfection. This sin is what separates us from God and from each other leading to conflicts. The Bible says:

 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23

The arrival of Christ and the consequential changes brought about in people’s lives is the story of the New Testament. The New Testament describes Christ’s coming as Jesus of Nazareth, his ministry on earth, his death on a cross, his resurrection to new life, and the development of the early church. The New Testament ends with prophecies of things to come.

The New Testament tells us that Jesus Christ’s death redeemed us from our sins and through his resurrection we are given new life, His life, in and by the Holy Spirit.  That is, we can now have a spiritual rebirth through the spirit. The Bible says:

For the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

Thus, the Bible is sometimes referred to as “the gospel” which means “good news.” Yes, the Bible has some hard things to say about us, and the people whose stories it recounts. But it also tells us how we can now be reborn spiritually, and in the future experience a resurrection to life with God eternally, restoring the relationship we were created to have with Him.

How do you avail yourself of this opportunity for new birth, for a spiritual reset? The Bible says:

8 “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth, he confesses, resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; 13 for “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:8-13

You can call upon the name of the Lord by prayer. Prayer is simply talking to God by faith, out loud or silently in your heart. Express to Him your need of a Savior, or redeemer, and invite Christ into your life to change you into the person He would have you to be. Then thank Him for His death on the cross for the forgiveness of your sin and for the promise of the Holy Spirit in your life. You will now experience a new life, Christ’s life in your heart.

To grow in your understanding and to express worship to God and experience fellowship with other believers, seek out a good Bible-teaching church and go there. Ask God to lead you to the right church. As with anything new, it will take some time for you to adjust to what God is doing in your life now that you have placed your faith and trust in Christ. Also, spend some time reading the Bible each day to better understand what is happening in your life. I’d recommend that you start with the New Testament section of the Bible, the section that recounts the Life of Christ on earth and the teachings of the early church. In time you will learn about the Old Testament section of the Bible that recounts what led up to the arrival of Christ on earth and it will give you more foundation for your faith.

Additional Notes about the Bible Quotes:

Words in italics are quotes taken from the New American Standard translation of the Bible.

The words after the biblical quotes, for example, “Romans 10:8-13”, refer to where the quote came from in the Bible. First is the name of the book within the Bible. In this example, the book is called “Romans.” The numbers after the book’s name refer to the chapter and verse or range of verses where the quote is found. In this example, it is chapter 10, verses 8 through 13.

If you are not familiar with the books of the Bible you can look them up in the table of contents in the front of the Bible.

-GJE

Photo by Kiwihug on Unsplash

It is nearly one year later from the beginning effects of Covid-19 that reached Aurora, Colorado.  It still seems unbelievable.  Throughout last year God continued to move within Trinity and many amazing things occurred.  You all have heard about many of them.  One of the biggest takeaways I saw last year was how God used the lockdowns and obstacles of Covid-19 to reset the ministries at Trinity.  One by one God was able to guide each ministry to do things a little differently. 

Trinity had a restructuring of the Worship Team and our online presence.  God supplied ways for Mighty Oaks to overcome the meat limitations.  Mighty Oaks also had some fresh faces get involved and the crew was challenged to stay faithful during a season that prevented them from serving the food at the DRC.  The Youth Group spent most of the year out-of-order and yet after coming back in October, there has been a much-needed culture change providing the students much more quality time with God and each other.  The atmosphere has been the best it has been in the last three years.  We have seen growth in the 9 AM Bible Studies. The Women’s Ministry has had a good response in restarting as well.  The “Ladies’ Night of Encouragement” has supplied good momentum moving into the new year.  And last night there was one of the largest Wednesday Night Adult Bible Studies I have seen in the last year.  All of these are testimonies of how God kept working during a difficult 2020.

In 2021, we (as the body of Trinity) will continue to move forward and there are still ministries and operations to address and do differently.  The Children’s Ministry is one of the most obvious ones.

All these changes are exciting, and God is supplying a fresh breath of air as we hopefully continue to move towards a life that Covid-19 will not affect as much.  I also must mention that none of these changes take away from the ministries and those that came before.  Each of you that have been faithful over the years and those that are not here anymore have done wonderful things for the Lord.  For that time and place you ALL were good servants for the Lord.  However, I believe God presses onward and there are new things that are coming.  I pray we all will pay attention and get involved as God continues to reveal his work and the places He wants us to restart and join him.

While God continues to restart the ministries at Trinity, ask yourself, “What is God doing to restart me as an individual?” Today I encourage you to ask God to renew your mind and how does that happen?  Well getting into the Word of God is an excellent place to start and the one that we will focus on briefly today.

Upon returning, the Youth Group has had a more effective time holding a physical Bible (not phones) and thumbing through it.  The students have had challenges to look things up are their own and they have responded in positive ways.  While I was working with them, I realized that videos on YouTube and other places on the internet really complicate this.  I was looking for a fun, short, reference to show students how to look up ONE verse.  I was shocked that most of the videos are 15-30 minutes long on looking up ONE verse.  It was honestly eye-opening.

For many of you, you have heard Pastor Bart, or I instruct you to “open your Bibles” or “Read your Bible” yet, you may not know-how.  I hope today you will not be intimidated but will start a journey of renewing your mind and enjoying getting into the Bible.

How to read a verse in the Bible?

Let us make this simple.  There are 66 books/letters that make up the Bible.  In the front of a physical Bible is the Table of Contents that lists all the books/letters of the Bible.  You can go there to start.  Let us lookup John 3:16. JOHN is the book.  So, in your Bible look in the Table of Contents for JOHN. In my Bible, John starts on page 1059.  Once you find the Book of JOHN, move to chapter 3 (number on the left side of the colon).  The chapters are separated by numbers that are a larger size of the font and often in bold text.  Once you find the chapter, you will move to the 16 (number on the right side of the colon).  The verse will be in the text of the chapter you just found.  The verse is identified by the smaller-sized font numbers.

So, to recap:

1) Find the Book

2) Find the Chapter

3) Find the Verse

If you are in the right place, John 3:16 will state, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”

Congratulations!  You have looked up your first verse!  You can follow these steps and try other verses.  Why don’t you give Romans 12:1-2 a try?

Next Steps to Reading the Bible

Once you are comfortable looking up verses, I challenge you to expand your new skill.  Read the verse in the context of a paragraph, a whole chapter, a whole book, and the whole Bible.  Do not be afraid to explore. Do not be afraid to ask questions. 

For those of you already immersed in the Scriptures, continue to read, and ask God to “renew” your mind.  God is moving within Trinity and I pray God will move you as well!  Let us all start this first quarter of 2021 by renewing our minds by getting into God’s Word!

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Isaiah 30:10, 11

        I’ve got good news and bad news. We’ve heard that statement from mechanics and accountants and even people who are close to us. For most of us, we cringe and brace ourselves for the bad news first. Sometimes you feel like you have to get the medicine down before you can have the dessert. “Give me the bad news!” We listen, we ache but . . . what we know deep down inside is that good news is going to follow and maybe, just maybe . . . the good news will swing the pendulum the other way and we’ll have the strength to endure the difficulty through the good. It may not be the best way of handling bad news, but it is the method of choice many people use.

        With the world we live in today being filled with so much ‘bad news’, many people have been doing anything in their power not to hear, see, run into or be involved in any more bad news. 2020 has been filled with so much difficulty and so many trying days that most of us are desperate for some good news. How many of you have thought, “If anything else goes wrong, I’m just going to scream?” Yeah, me too. And to be honest, I’ve had a few screaming moments in the last 9 months. Did it fix any of the difficulty in the world? Not really, but it did feel good. Of course it didn’t stop the covid virus or the street violence or the forest fires or 2,000 other inconveniences that all tied to a world-wide pandemic. But sometimes a good scream as you walk in your neighborhood is cleansing for the soul. (One quick reminder.

 Be careful when you scream because some people on their afternoon walk might think that 2020 is the year of the Zombie Apocalypse and they might call the police on you!)

        All that to say, it’s easy to be conditioned to ignore, deny, hope that bad things will cease to exist and filter your life with only what satisfies or makes you feel better. For millennia, people have been flocking to the best version of life in the hope that denial will make the bad go away. It won’t. But that doesn’t stop humanity from desiring what will make us feel better.

        I was reading this week from Isaiah 30:10, 11 reminded me of the good news, bad news question. Look what it says:

        They say to the seers, see NO more visions!

        And to the Prophets, Give us NO more visions of what is right!

        Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions.

        Leave this way, get off the path and

        Stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel.

It’s interesting when you look at the context of Isaiah. God is prophesying against all the nations, including Israel, concerning their relationship with God, their chosen sins and their denial of God’s requirements. The prophecies described the imminent future of the nations and God’s people for disobeying him. Most of those prophecies were extreme. God had repeatedly urged the nations to turn to Him, to treat others well, to push aside all foreign gods and people continued to push God aside. The bad news kept coming and God’s judgment was inevitable.  He referred to those that wouldn’t listen as rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. The byproduct of their rebellion is summed up in Isaiah 30:10, 11

        Don’t tell us anything of than pleasant things. When you prophecy, don’t prophesy truth—give us prophecy that is filled with illusions, falsehood, warm fuzzy feelings even if it’s not truth. We’re tired of being confronted with what is real and consistent with God. Give us NO more visions of what is right!

        That attitude of the heart rings true today. Speaking the truth in love was Paul’s exhortation, but doing that in many circles today just opens the door for people to leave and find someone who will speak ONLY pleasant things. The demand is becoming more prevalent: Give me the warm fuzzy feeling I long for --- but don’t you dare tell me what is right and pleasing to God. As I was reading Isaiah 30:10, 11 I thought: what’s the point? If disaster is coming, don’t you want a warning? If you could change something in your life—to hold back the devastation, wouldn’t you be interested? Truth is still truth. God has never had an issue extending love, blessing and peace for those who seek him. His promises are true and lasting for those who make the choice to love and serve Him. We don’t need to put our heads in the sand—we need to return to him, confess our sin, seek him in our lives and then we won’t have to live in a cellophane world, made of our own fantasy, hoping that God looks the other way. Children don’t want the bad news—because it exposes their hearts. A Child of God – seeks to obey and please the King of Kings. David got it right --- even in his own sin – to ask God to search him and try him and see if there is any wicked way in him. He didn’t want to be told something that was only an illusion. He wanted the truth so that he could change his life and honor the Lord.

All meaning and purpose originates in the mind of God.

Living in Colorado we are blessed with some breath taking views. We have 54 mountain peaks that are 14,000 ft. high or higher. We can literally stand and look out over the surrounding area with a birds eye view.

But what if we had the ability to see from an even higher viewpoint? No, I’m not talking about the views from an airplane or even from space. I think by now we have all seen photos of the view of the earth from the moon. Breathtaking! But, at the same time, we lose a view of each person from that vantage point. We don’t see their needs, their triumphs, or their struggles. We don’t feel their pain or their joy.

What if we could both see and feel from God’ point of view where He sees and feels for each individual and at the same time He sees the overview of how they are connect in a web of relationships, challenges, struggles and triumphs? What if we could bring even a small bit of understanding from God’s view point into each and every daily encounter? Wouldn’t that change how we interact and relate to one another? To do that, here are some things to keep in mind.

First, understand God’s wisdom, plan, and priorities

All meaning and purpose originates in the mind of God. You are not the source of meaning and purpose for events. You don’t get to decide meaning and purpose. You are not going to think up God’s viewpoint on your own. It is something that God Himself has had to reveal to us by His Spirit by speaking through the prophets, apostles and by His son. The record of this revelation has been gathered together for us in what today we call the Bible. The business acumen, philosophies and advice of the world will not cut it.

In the book of Genesis, we read that Eve partook of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil and gave it also to her husband Adam. When she did this, she made a great mistake because she substituted her understanding and assessment for God’s judgement of right and wrong (see Genesis 3: 6). This is a mistake that is made by billions of people to this day who, unwittingly, follow after her example, i.e. judging things based on pragmatism, aesthetics (beauty) and the wisdom of this age or of their own making.

Long ago, the prophet Isaiah put into words the great distance between how natural mankind thinks versus how the Lord God thinks. Isaiah wrote:

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9

We cannot possibly understand God and the reality He has created without reading and understanding what He has revealed in the writings of the Bible. These writings were inspired by God’s Spirit and reveal God’s thought and ways.

The apostle Paul describes God’s plan as follows;

“Things which eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9

God’s plan for those who love Him is beyond our finding out without God having revealed them to us. This He has done through His Spirit.

10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 1 Corinthians 2:10-11

Thus, our primary resource for seeing from God’s perspective is the written word of God, applied to our hearts and minds by the actions of the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised a helper, the Holy Spirit, that would guide us into all truth (see John 14:7, 15:26, 16:13).

Second, beware of joining in with the agendas of the day

In every age and culture, there exists the schemes of men and women for political, social, intellectual and economic power. These agendas are almost always at odds with God’s agenda and can blind us to what God is really doing though various events. The quintessential example of this is the crucifixion of Jesus the Christ. Paul writes of the ignorance of men’s agendas in the sentences just before the ones mentioned above. Paul wrote:

7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;  1 Corinthians 2:7-8

The religious and political leaders came together on a “politically correct” scheme in an attempt to “solve” what they thought was their problems by putting to death one Jesus of Nazareth, whom they did not understand, nor see that He was the very savior that they needed. But God was at work through their ignorant and angry plan to work salvation for us all. Who could have known all that God was doing in and through the crucifixion of Christ. Even Jesus’ disciples had trouble trying to comprehend what God was doing through that event. Even today, we are slow to understand all that God did and accomplished. If we had lived back then, would we have been caught up in the political and religious agenda that cried out “crucify him”?

Remember, when Jesus was on trial before Pilate, he said,

“My kingdom is not of this world… My kingdom is not of this realm.” John 18:36a,c

As Jesus was not trying to set up and earthly kingdom to rival Rome, he told Pilate that;

…If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over… John 18:36b

If the disciples had started a battle to “rescue” Jesus, they would have actually been fighting against the plan of God.

Third, keep God’s perspective in mind

We need to see all things from God’ perspective. Paul wrote to the church in Corinth.

1Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4

Our problem in personal encounters is that we are most often focused on our own needs and agendas. These are shaped by, as Paul describes them, as “things that are on earth.” These could be own priorities, and the priorities of organizations we belong to, which are not necessarily God’s priorities and desires. This skews how we understand and respond to the people we come in contact with. If we are “in Christ”, and all believers are, we are effectively seated with Christ at the right hand of God the Father and can know His desires and viewpoint. We just need to keep seeking these rather than setting our desires on the agendas of this earth.

Note that “seeking” is an on-going process that takes place over time. But keep at it and you will be amazed at what God can do through your life. This is the process by which God can make you more mature in Christ and have positive impacts on others.

Fourth, see people through the eyes of the Spirit.

Paul also wrote to the church in Corinth;

¹⁶ Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; 2 Corinthians 5:16

It is easy to see people in terms of their outer man or the flesh. These are the most obvious things and don’t take spiritual discernment to know these things about a person. As a result, a lot of our interactions stay at this surface level. They don’t get down into a person’s spiritual condition. This surface understanding may include how a person looks, what they know, their title, what their talents are, and how good they are at talking with other people; i.e. the things the world usually takes into consideration when appraising a person.

It takes the Holy Spirit to know the true spirit of a person (1 Corinthians2:11, Romans 8:27). A person’s spiritual condition can often be sensed or revealed to us by the Spirit if we ourselves are walking in the Spirit and listening to the Spirit. But, we need to have our own spirit calmed so we can listen to the Holy Spirit, rather than come at encounters with our own agenda.

Seeing through the eyes of the Spirit is especially true of knowing other Christians, because as Paul states next;

17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.  2 Corinthians 5:17

We need to see each other in terms of what God is doing through the life of the other person and not in terms of whether that person helps us “meet our needs”, or whether we “like” that other person. Too often we seek out others to get “needs” met in our own lives. This can block relationships and effective ministry to others. The person who, on the surface, you find difficult may be a person God wants you to minister to or may be a person used by God to minister to you.

Fifth, we can have all our needs met in Christ

We will not be able to effectively minister to others if we are seeking to have our hopes, dreams, needs, and desires met through other people. Paul wrote to the Philippians;

19 And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

And;

13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

Paul is not saying you will have all that (you think) you want or that life will always be easy. But he is saying that Christ will meet all your needs so you can be focus on ministering to others. This includes ministering to family, friends, associates, and strangers; to all you come in contact with. Ministry can be a simple as a smile, a word of encouragement, or a deeper involvement. But most often it starts with words. Therefore;

Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken in right circumstances. Proverbs 25:11

And;

Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. Colossians 4:6

There is a lot to seeing things from God’s perspective and ministering to others in His name and power. But perhaps this is a start to understanding what we are to be about.

(Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation - www.lockman.org.)

Photo by Patrick Perkins on Unsplash

The events of recent days have tried many people’s patience and understanding. We are seeing it all; from the sickness of the Covid19 virus to marches in the streets, to rioting and looting, and political intrigue. In the midst of it, it is easy to lose a focus on what being a Christian is all about.

Some side with a particular political or activist group. Some side with the police and others with the call to defund the police. Some identify with this racial or ethnic group and others with a different group. There are plenty of viewpoints to go around. As we all respond to people and the issues of the day here are a few things to keep in mind from a Christian perspective.

What has been happening is Nothing New nor a Surprise to God

There have been intergroup misunderstanding, dissention, inequities and wars since the beginning of human history. Education, politics, police, armies, etc. cannot solve the basic problem of people’s hearts. Only God can change us from within. That is why Jesus told a very religious and pious man that he needed to be “born again” or “born from above.” God is in the business of changing us.

Also, remember that all of what comes your way is “filtered through the hands of God.” He knew this was going to happen and is with you through the midst of it.

I (Jesus) am with you always, even to the end of the age. Matthew 28:20b

Act as God did, out of Love

For God so loved He gave…John 3:16a

God was under no obligation to rescue us and save us from ourselves. He acted from a pure, self-giving love. This type of love always has a cost. This is why God’s actions to save us are referred to in the Bible as redemption and as God “paying” a price for our redemption.

Jesus instructed us to love as He loved, and to go so far as to love even our enemies.

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Matthew 5:43-45

If we are to have this type of giving love for enemies, how much more should we have this love for those who simply disagree with us or advance a different cause? Also, note that we are to pray for those we believe persecute us. Some of our problems are because we are not praying for those we disagree with.

See people and people groups as God does – See them from above

Our basic perspective is very limited if all we do is see things from our natural limited point of view and time on this earth, which is all too brief and self-focused.

Paul wrote that he no longer saw people after the flesh, i.e., from the viewpoint of a natural man who is without the Spirit of God in his life.

Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; 2 Corinthians 5:16

Instead Paul urged the following;

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ (as all Christians have been), keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. ³ For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4 NASB

Our present and future is not to be that of the natural man or woman who has not been born again of the Holy Spirit. We are to see people from the perspective of God and eternity. Our own rewards and glory will come when Christ is revealed again in all of His glory.

Resolve to be an Ambassador who is a Peace Maker

An ambassador is someone who represents another person or a country. An ambassador does not represent himself or his own self-interests. As we interact with others we need to keep in mind that as a Christian we are to be ambassadors for Christ.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 2 Corinthians 5:20

Christians are to be God’s ambassadors to bring about reconciliation between God and man and between men. Jesus taught his disciples;

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Matthew 5:9

And,

10 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:10

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; Matthew 5:11-12a

A peace maker is one who brings reconciliation. We should ask ourselves what would Christ have us do to reconcile a person to God and to bring about reconciliation between people we interact with.

Your actions are not to focus on You, but about the needs of Others

Your needs will be met in Christ;

God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:20

With your own needs met in Christ you can move forward with confidence in helping others.

Listen carefully, you don’t know the Whole Story

Each person you meet is coming to you with a lifetime of experiences, both good and bad. They are most likely acting out of that compilation of cultural inputs, teachings, successes, failures, rejections and hurts. So, listen carefully to understand before you try to speak. This isn’t about you winning a Harvard style debate. It is about you being an ambassador for Christ (see above).

But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. James 1:19b-20

God is at work to change you as much as He wants to change them

So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed…work out your salvation with fear and trembling; Philippians 2:12

Each believer is called upon to apply the Word of God in everyday situations as part of “working out” or the “out working” of his or her salvation. As noted above, God knew you would be in an interaction with whoever it is that you are interacting with today. Now is the time to be the man or woman God intends you to be. James teaches us;

But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22-25

God will bless us through interacting with others in a godly way in spite of tough or challenging circumstances.

Count it all joy

James wrote;

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4

God is more interested in you becoming a complete man or woman in Christ with Christ in you (Colossians 1:27) than He is in your “solving” whatever challenge you are facing. The trial or challenge you face helps accomplish this goal. Therefore, rejoice in challenges as an opportunity to grow as a person and help fulfill the mission of Christ.

The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name (of Christ). Acts 5:41

You also may be helping to fill up what was “lacking” in Christ’s suffering on behalf of others in the body of Christ. Paul wrote of himself;

Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. Colossians 1:24

What you are going through is not without purpose for your life and others.

Take courage

As stated in the beginning of this essay, Jesus told His disciples that,

I (Jesus) am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20b

The apostle Paul was so convinced of his life being “in Christ” that he could therefore confidently say;

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:21

In life or death Paul’s life was safe in Christ. Yours is too if you have received Him into your life.

Abide in Christ

Trying to do any and all of the above will be futile self-effort if you are not abiding in Christ. Give up on your self-efforts to control people and situations. You are not God. Give up on trying to have an immediate answer for everything and focus on Christ and His word. Jesus told His disciples;

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Some ways to abide in Christ include;

• Read and think about God’s word
• Listen for God’s voice
• Pray for God’s direction, for the needs of others and to be an instrument of His love.

(Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation - www.lockman.org.)