Category Archives: The Gospel

The Manufacturer’s Manual

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Deuteronomy 2-4

If God, the Creator of life, tells us how to live life, how foolish is it to do anything other than what He says?

Do we use the pilot light on our gas water heaters according to what the manufacturer says, or do we decide what works for us? Maybe we don’t see the need to relight a pilot light that’s gone out if we weren’t washing clothes that day anyway. Besides, didn’t we see something on You Tube that said believing it could blow up wasn’t even true? A little gas escaping shouldn’t effect anything when you finally light that match, according to the guy in the video.

I’ll do me.

How many of you actually use the manufacturer’s owner’s manual for your car? Oh, you know you can use the car without it. But, are you using it to the fullest? Are you doing damage because you’re not aware of certain changes made to that model?

Ok. You get it. I’m talking about the Bible, God’s instructions for living. Can you imagine how different our world would look if we actually followed His instructions?

How foolish are we not to?

I Think We’ve Got It Wrong

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Numbers 4-9

Chapter 5 reminds me that God demands purity in His house. Those who were unclean were to be put out, removed “that they defile not their camps, in the midst where of I dwell.” (vs 3) It goes on to say when someone sins, “then they shall confess their sin which they have done…” (vs 7).

Now I know some will say these verses were about physical diseases and we shouldn’t put spiritual lessons into everything. And I would say your are wrong about that. 2 Timothy 3:16 tells me there is something to learn about our walk with the Lord in every verse of the Bible.

So considering how often God tells us to keep ourselves free from uncleanliness and those who would defile His dwelling place, I’m sorry but I think we need to stop inviting unsaved people to church. That is in direct opposition of what Scripture repeatedly tells us should be happening in God’s house. If we want God to be in the midst of our worship, we had better be a holy people unto the Lord. (Deuteronomy 14:2).

“Well,” you might say, “if only holy people can worship then there’d be no one in the pews.”

And there’s the problem. We have exchanged holiness for numbers. Our churches are social clubs and soup kitchens. We’ve got play grounds and polished performances, but we don’t even talk about holiness.

We approach worship like a sporting event. We want to have an experience instead of being cleansed. We open our arms in the name of inclusion, and welcome sinners into the fold. Instead of going and making disciples, we think an invitation to church is sufficient. It sure is easier.

Oh, Church – I think we’ve got it wrong.

God’s Character

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Leviticus 24-27

My Study Bible reminds me that, although these rules and regulations we read in Leviticus are no longer in effect because Jesus fulfilled them all once and for all, God has not changed. He is the same Holy God today that He was when He gave Moses the Law. We can learn a lot about God’s unchanging character as we read the book of Leviticus. Here’s what I see:

  1. God is holy, and demands holiness of His children. His law paints a picture of that holiness. He expects us to be separate from non-believers in our worship, in the way we conduct business, the way we treat others, and in our speech.
  2. God is patient – but not tolerant. He never winks at sin or condones it. He always – always – punishes sin. Just look at the cross where He punished His Son without mercy for sins He did not commit, to be the perfect substitute for sinful people who deserve to be punished without mercy.
  3. God is just. The regulations were the same for everyone, no matter their social or financial status in the community. The rules were the rules and didn’t change just because the people didn’t like them or were offended by them. In the New Testament we hear Jesus tell us that in order to be saved, we must believe on the Son. It’s the same for every human being. It’s the “whosoever” of John 3:16.
  4. God looks out for the underdog. Those who are blessed have a responsibility to help those who are struggling. This is NOT a picture of our present day welfare system that keeps people in poverty. God expects His people, when we see a need, to meet that need so the needy person can get back on his feet and get back to work to provide for his own needs and reach out to other needy people who need a hand. God’s regulations, if followed, would eliminate poverty. Jesus often reached out and touched the outcast, the “less than’s” of the world. We are called to do the same because God still looks out for the underdog.
  5. God blesses obedience. The rules were given so He COULD bless His children. They were given so His children could live freely, safely, and in harmony. The rules were not given to enslave the people, but to free them from slavery to sin.

I see in Leviticus a God who longs to bless His children. And I am reminded that God is love. He provided a way for us to fellowship with Him (even as sinful as we are). He provided that way first through the Law, then and finally, through His precious Son, Jesus. God’s greatest joy is the intimate relationship He has with His obedient children.

God’s unchanging character is revealed through what we read in Leviticus and reinforced throughout Scripture. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever: Holy, Just, Loving, Forgiving, Compassionate, and honest enough to tell us He demands the same of us. He blesses obedience according to His riches in glory. And he punishes disobedience without mercy.

This unchanging God, who demands the impossible of sinful people, made it possible for us to obey when He died on the cross and took the punishment for our sin without mercy.

We can rest assured that God isn’t going to change the rules. We can know without a doubt that He is true to His Word. His character is unchanging. And He wants to have a relationship with you.

True Justice

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Leviticus 2-5

A couple of things stood out to me today as I read these chapters in Leviticus. One is that no one was exempt from offering a sacrifice for sin. Offering a sacrifice was the ONLY way a person could be forgiven by God. No exceptions.

If a person was too poor to offer a lamb, or even a couple of birds, he could offer a handful of grain. Being poor did not give a person a free pass. And the poor person didn’t expect someone else to bring a sacrifice for him. A person’s offering had to cost that person something.

The truth we see here is that each of us has to bring our own sins to the foot of the cross. We are responsible for our own repentance, our own acknowledgment of sin, and our own offering of ourselves to God in order to be forgiven. No one can do that for us. Dealing with our sin is something between ourselves and God in a personal, intimate encounter. It’s the same for every human being.

The other thing that stood out is actually related to the first. It’s the fact that ignorance is not bliss. Someone who sinned without realizing that what he’d done was considered a sin, was still guilty of sin. There was no such thing as, “My bad!” to get off the hook.

Once an action was revealed as sin, the guilty party had to offer a sacrifice in order to be forgiven of that sinful action. That’s why I think we who know the Truth need to be calling sin sin, not choice, not a character flaw, not a mistake or shortcoming.

Sin is serious. The wages of sin is death. And the only way to escape that eternal separation from God is to humble ourselves at the foot of the cross, to accept His gift of grace; the forgiveness of our sin.

The requirements are the same if you sin knowingly or unknowingly, if you are wealthy or poor, Jewish or Protestant, American or Iraqi. That’s what makes God’s conditions fair for all of us.

There is perfect justice because God is perfectly just. There is one requirement all humans must meet in order to receive eternal life. Jesus met that requirement when he died on the cross, then came back to life three days later. He is the perfect sacrifice for my sin and yours.

And you and I are required by God’s Law to “believe in the Lord Jesus.” Jesus, the Messiah, eternal God in the flesh, the fulfillment of the Law, the only way, truth, and life, the perfect Lamb of God.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

That’s true for every single person without exception. That’s true justice.

It Is Finished

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Exodus 28-30

The intricate details spelled out in these chapters of Exodus speak of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. What we read here are the demands of God for the forgiveness of sin. It wasn’t simply that an animal was sacrificed. Every inch of that animal was significant. Every drop of blood had purpose.

We all know Jesus died on the cross, the Perfect Sacrifice for sin. He fulfilled the requirements we read about in Exodus. Every minute detail was carried out to perfection when Jesus died.

This past Sunday our church celebrated the Lord’s Supper together. Taking communion can become mundane, just another “thing” we do. Oh, may it never be that to me again.

When Jesus cried, “It is finished,” He was referring to the sacrificial system I read about today. He completed the requirements perfectly, once and for all. Every drop of blood He shed had a purpose. He became sin, and climbed up on that altar of sacrifice willingly.

I sinned. I deserve death, the eternal separation from Holy God. Jesus said, “Kill me instead.” And they did.

Let’s take time today to consider the eternal significance of Jesus’ voluntary death on the cross. Read these verses in Exodus and praise God for satisfying every intricate detail so that you and I can be saved from the awful consequences of our sin. Let’s worship and adore our Perfect Sacrifice who alone can say, “It is finished!”

Ready To Give An Answer

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Genesis 50; Exodus 1-2

Our church is conducting an Apologetics class Wednesday evenings, led by our Youth Pastor, a young man gifted by God with insight into God’s Word beyond his years. I am loving this study.

What DO I believe? Why do I believe it? How do I know what I believe is true? And can I share what I know in love to someone whose beliefs are void of God?

I love the Bible. My whole life is grounded in God’s revealed Word. But what does that mean to someone who doesn’t believe the Bible is even true? For me to say I believe because it’s in the Bible would mean as much to them as their telling me they believe what they believe because Santa Claus said it’s true.

Can I, grounded in God’s Word, share what is in there without chapter and verse? I thought of that when I read Exodus 3:14. God reveals His Name as I AM THAT I AM. In other words, God is self-existent, self-sustaining, stable, unchanging. He is who He is and always has been, always will be. He is the supreme authority.

Last night we briefly touched on something called the Ontological Argument which starts with the premise that there is a higher power, a highest, greatest conceivable being. An honest look at nature, at science would lead you to that conclusion. There is order, there is purpose, there is design. And it fits together to become life as we know it. That didn’t happen without a greatest conceivable being.

The beauty of this orderly universe is that this greatest conceivable being invites us to know Him, intellectually, and relationally. He is the Great I Am.

Now, I am in no way ready to sit with an atheist, walk them through what I believe, and lovingly point them to the Truth. But I want to be ready to do that because I have people close to me who need to hear it and believe it. I imagine the same is true for you.

So, what DO you believe? Why do you believe it to be true? On what authority do you stand? Are you ready to give an answer for the hope you have in I AM?

Open Arms

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Genesis 42-45

I love this part of Joseph’s story. He is finally reunited with his brothers. It’s a beautiful reunion. But it could have ended quite differently.

Joseph was looking at the ten men who had wanted him dead, who had thrown him into a pit then sat down to dinner like it was the most normal thing in the world. They sold their brother to evil men, probably hoping Joseph would die at their hands instead of the brothers’. It a heartless betrayal.

Yet when Joseph meets them after thirteen years a slave, he embraces his brothers. There is no mention of the sins they had committed against him. He eventually welcomed them with open arms.

Most of us wouldn’t have blamed him if he had acquired ten slaves that day. Tit for tat. An eye for an eye. Karma, baby! That’s not what happened. And some people scratch their heads and wonder why.

The answer is in the life Joseph had lived those thirteen years in captivity. He walked with God. He trusted God, depended on God, submitted to the will of God. You can’t hold a grudge if you’re holding onto God.

Which got me thinking about the term, “open arms.” When you stretch out your arms to someone you leave your heart unprotected. It’s a gesture of openness, acceptance, trust. vulnerability. You take a chance when you open your arms to someone who has wronged you.

But isn’t that what Jesus did? The ultimate open arms occurred when they stretched His arms out and nailed Him to the cross. Talk about vulnerable! And He opened Himself up like that for those of us who betrayed Him, disrespected Him, hurt Him.

He did that for you.

We know that Joseph is a type of Christ, a picture of who Jesus is. I think it’s a beautiful picture.

What I see in these chapters I read today is an example of how I want my walk with the Lord to look. No grudges. No revenge-seeking. No holding onto hurt or painful memories.

Is there someone who needs your open arms today?

A New Identity

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Genesis 31-34

Why did the angel ask Jacob his name before blessing him? He was an angel so I imagine he knew who he’d been wrestling with all night. I believe there is a lesson in the question.

Fast forward a few thousand years. Jesus is in the middle of His short ministry as a human on Earth. He healed thousands. He forgave sins.

Take Bartimaeus for example. He was obviously blind, yet Jesus asked him to state his request. To the paralytic at the pool Jesus asked, “Do you want to get well?” When a woman touched the hem of his garment, Jesus demanded she identify herself.

Do you see the pattern? Very often in Scripture, we see Jesus requiring people to state their need. Say the words. We see the necessity of confession. It’s not so God is informed of our need. It’s so we know exactly what we need, admit it, and go to the only one who can meet it.

Here in Genesis we see Jacob wrestling with God. Who hasn’t, right? We know what is right, but we want to have our own way instead. A battle ensues. It’s a tug-of-war until we do what? Admit our sin and allow God to change our wants to His.

In my experience – and in Jacob’s – God won’t bless until I confess. When the angel asked Jacob his name, he had to reply: “I’m the deceiver, the holder of the heel, the supplanter.” That’s what his name meant. And we know Jacob had lived up to his name.

Jacob had to admit who he had been before God could give him a new name: Israel. According to the Abarim Publications, Israel means “He retains God,” or “God is upright.” Jacob’s new name reflected God. His new identity honored God.

Jacob received a new beginning, as do all of us who confess our sins and allow God to forgive us and give us new life. Jacob had lived for himself and had committed sins to fulfill his own desires. God was giving him a chance to turn that all around, to live for God and make choices that fulfilled God’s desires for him. That’s awesome!

May that be true in all of us. Some people think they are Christians because they go to church and live good lives. That’s not true. Being a Christian involves a change of heart, saying the words, admitting guilt. And receiving God’s amazing grace.

If God has laid a finger on any sin, if you (or I) are wrestling with that sin, hear God ask “What is your name? What do you want me to do for you?” Then confess. Repent. Be forgiven, and receive a new beginning!

Not Too Late

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Genesis 25-27

I see me in Esau. He wanted his father’s blessing. He just wanted to live life on his own terms, too. He hadn’t really taken his father all that seriously, until it was too late.

So often I want God to bless me. But I also want to live life on my own terms, like Esau did. I read God’s demands in Scripture, but I don’t always take them seriously. I think both Esau and I are counting on our Father’s love to overlook our selfish choices.

The thing is, no matter how much He loves us, God CAN’T overlook our choices that go against His rules. He is holy. He demands holiness of us. He won’t let the guilty go unpunished. He wouldn’t be holy if He did.

Esau missed out on the best his father could offer. He was given a blessing of sorts in the end, but oh, what he’d given up because of disobedience.

I am blessed much more than I deserve. I thank God that when I confess and repent of my sin, He gives me the greatest blessing of all – HIMSELF! It doesn’t get better than that.

Esau reminds me that in order to receive all the benefits from that precious blessing, I need to obey. I need to humble myself, let go of the reins, and let God have His way in my life. My Father wants to bless me beyond what I can ask or think. He only asks me to follow His rules.

It was too late for Esau to receive the blessing he was hoping for. It’s not too late for me. My gracious Heavenly Father is eager to shower me with the blessings of His presence and care, His joy and salvation. May I be ready to receive all He has to offer, as I submit to His will, and let go of mine.

Heaven

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John’s Revelation

Think about it: God will wipe away our tears. No more night. No more heartache and sin. No more cares and worries, sickness or death. And we we look upon the One who loves us with a love we cannot fathom right now.

I don’t know if there will be a thousand calendar years before we enjoy our eternal home. It doesn’t really matter if John’s revelation has a material interpretation or whether it is meant to be interpreted spiritually. This book, to me, is about hope.

It’s about redemption. It’s about Jesus and the fact that one day I will be in His Presence! I’ll look into those eyes, study that face, see those nail prints in His hands and know at last I am home.

I have no doubt about that. I know it is a fact because I have died, and God raised me to new life in Him. How? I admitted my sins and repented of them from a humble heart in need of a Savior. I’ve accepted the redeeming work of Jesus, His death and resurrection, and I know I can stand before the Holy God without fear because Jesus paid my death penalty and placed His holiness on me. It wasn’t my doing. It’s all Jesus.

Tomorrow marks a New Year, a new beginning for many. I pray that you will welcome in 2023 with Jesus, your Savior, at your side and in your heart. I pray that you will grow a relationship with Him by reading His Word every day, praying every day, resisting Satan every day.

Who knows if the ball will drop on 2024? It may, or may not. Reading God’s Word reminds me when Jesus returns (and He will) it will be too late to change your mind, too late to repent of sin and accept the Savior. Too late.

There is a heaven for God’s followers. And there is a hell for anyone who hasn’t accepted God’s saving grace.

Choose Jesus. And have a blessed 2023 as His precious child.