Category Archives: The Gospel

February 6: Not From Yourselves

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Exodus 13-15

Every day I read God’s Word, I write my thoughts and observations in a journal. These past few years my journals have served as a rough draft for the posts on this blog. The journal I am using now has a Bible verse on each  page. Today’s verse is Ephesians 2:8-9, and it reinforces the truth found in these chapters in Exodus so beautifully!

For it is by grace you have been saved through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.

The parting of the Red Sea is a familiar story to most. The dramatic rescue of the Jews from the Egyptians is nothing short of spectacular. God revealed His power to the whole world when those waters parted, and the Jews were saved.

I am reminded the Jews didn’t build a dam to stop the water. They didn’t throw together a barge to float across the water. They didn’t do a part-the-water-dance. In fact, God told them to be still.

Their salvation had nothing to do with anything they did. It was His grace that saved them. And His grace is still saving souls thousands of years later.

Someone told me recently that a friend of their’s who lived a very difficult life with health issues and heartache was in heaven now because, “She paid her penance on earth.”

Dear one, that isn’t close to being true. Your troubles here on earth – or even all the good you do – have zero to do with whether or not you spend eternity in the Presence of God.

ZERO.

There is only one thing that will save you. It’s not from yourself. It is a gift from the heart of God. It’s His grace.

The Jews walked through the waters of the Red Sea on dry ground because God alone made a way. And we can walk through this life and into the next because God made a way. His name is Jesus.

There was only one way for the Jews to be saved from their enemy. And there is only one way for us to be saved from ours. They had to go through the Sea. We have to go through Jesus.

Acts 4:12 tells us there is no other name on earth or in heaven, no other salvation in anyone else other than Jesus Himself. No other way. And we can accept what Jesus did on the cross, because of the grace of God.

If you haven’t already, please surrender to God. Be still. Quit trying so hard. Ask God to forgive you, and He will. Let Him save you by His grace through the precious blood of Jesus.

 

February 5; It’s In The Blood

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Exodus 10-12

To those who don’t understand, Christianity might seem a little bizarre. I mean, there is so much emphasis on blood. In the Old Testament, you read about gallons and gallons of it being spilt for sacrifices. Christians talk about washing in blood, applying blood. We even sing songs about blood. To an outsider, that might sound strange.

But for those of us who do understand, we make no apology. That blood we sing about is precious, and life-giving. We’re not talking about rubbing the red gooey stuff over our bodies for any reason. We are talking about blood that was shed 2,000 years ago. We are remembering what that blood bought for us.

As I was reading these chapters this morning, a hymn we used to sing in my youth was running through my head. It was written in the 19th century by John Foote, “When I See The Blood I will pass, I will pass over you.”  So I got out my hymnal, and had my own private worship service as I sang:

“What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!”

“Lay aside your garments that are stained with sin, and be washed in the blood of the Lamb.”

“Would you be free from your burden of sin? There’s power in the blood!”

“Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it. Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.”

“My sins are all pardoned, my guilt is all gone!. Saved by the blood of the crucified One.”

Yes, we Christians are obsessed with blood – but not just any blood. In the Old Testament it was the blood of a lamb that protected the Jews from death. It was the blood of lambs, goats, ox, and birds that satisfied the sin debt for a time.

But since God came to earth as a man, and shed His own blood once and for all, we celebrate the blood of Jesus. Because when that blood is applied to my life, when it covers my sins, I am free! I am forgiven! I can stand before a Holy God without fear!

Hebrews 9:22 reminds us that without the shedding of blood, sins cannot be forgiven. That’s why Jesus died. So you and I can be forgiven.

If you have a minute, get out a hymnal, or Google some of the great hymns of our faith and consider Jesus’ blood. Read all five verses of William Cowper’s “There is a Fountain.” And the five verses of “Hallelujah! What a Savior,” by Philip P. Bliss.

Isaac Watts wrote “At the Cross,” and “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross.” He understood what Jesus’ shed blood means to us.

Jesus shed His blood for you because He loves you, and wants you to know Him. His love sent Him to the cross so you can be forgiven.

“Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.” Amen.

 

January 31; At Least Until They Are Settled

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I Chronicles 4:1-23; 7:1-5,30-34; Genesis 46:13-26; 47;1-12

When Jacob finally got to Egypt, and he and his family were saved from the famine, Joseph didn’t just sit in his office and assume someone else was going to show his dad how to get to Goshen. Joseph went himself. He couldn’t wait to be reunited with his father, and share with him what he had received while living in Egypt.

Joseph, already a resident of Egypt, went to Pharaoh and prepared the way for his family’s transition. The Bible tells us that it was Joseph himself who settled his father and brothers in the best part of Egypt.

I think this is a picture of what the Church should look like. Think about this:

  1. Joseph had been saved. First from slavery, then from the famine.
  2. Joseph invited his family to join him.
  3. They did.
  4. Joseph stayed with them, and fed them until they were settled.

Are you with me? (1) We believers are like Joseph. We’ve been saved, we live in a blessed eternal kingdom and have everything we need in this life.

(2)Many Christians invite family and friends to join them. We share the Gospel, (3) and sometimes they do join us by receiving Jesus as their own. I think the Church is pretty good at the first three things on the list above.

I’m a bit concerned about the fourth point, however. When we lead someone to the Savior, do we stick with them until they are settled in their new-found faith? Evangelism doesn’t stop at salvation. Discipleship needs to follow. And we who have inhabited God’s Kingdom for a time need to be nurturing, feeding, encouraging new believers until they are rooted and firm in their faith.

And maybe beyond that.

Joseph wanted to be the one to lead his family to Goshen. I pray that each of us will want to be the one who leads that new citizen of Christ’s Kingdom into a solid relationship with Jesus, and an understanding of God’s Word so that they are ready to do the same for other new believers when the time comes.

January 30; Walk Away

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Genesis 45:1-46:12; I Chronicles 5:1-6, 2:18-55

Pharaoh is inviting Jacob to come to Egypt so he and his family could be saved from the effects of the famine. That invitation spoke to me today.

Pharaoh said that Jacob should pack up his whole family, and come. “Never mind about your belongings, because the best of all Egypt will be yours.” (Genesis 45:20)

It reminds me that some people hesitate to repent of sin, and accept God’s grace because of what they will have to give up. Friends, lifestyle, that sin they enjoy, maybe family or a job. They see what they have, and hold tight.

But hear God say, “Never mind about any of that. Because what you’ll receive as My child is so much better than you can even imagine. The best of My kingdom will be yours.”

Walk away, dear one. And walk toward your best life as a man or woman forgiven, clean, and in a relationship with God Himself.

It really doesn’t get any better than that.

January 29; When You Look Into His Eyes

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Genesis 42-44

It had been Judah’s idea to sell Joseph into slavery, rather than killing him. He was part of the cover-up, to take Joseph’s coat, splatter it with blood, and tell their dad Joseph must have been killed by wild animals. Judah and his brothers watched their dad’s soul die that day. Jacob would never get over losing Joseph.

Now years have passed. The boys are grown with children of their own. But I wonder what Judah thought every time he looked into his father’s eyes, and saw the unspoken grief that was always there. Judah had to know he was responsible, and that he had the ability to return hope to his father, if he told the truth.

Something had changed in Judah according to what I read today. Where earlier, his father’s welfare was of little concern to him, now his father’s welfare was his only concern. In fact, Judah was willing to give up his own life to protect his father from any further grief.

Have you ever done something shameful, or hurtful toward your parents, and seen the hurt in their eyes? Have you ever watched your mom’s shoulders slump, or your dad silently fighting tears, knowing their pain was a direct result of something you’ve done? Have you watched your parents grieve, knowing you could change their grief into joy if you’d only make a different choice?

Then I want you to look into the eyes of your Heavenly Father. You might think the choices you make to sin has no effect on Him. But look closer. Our Dad is heart-broken, and we have the ability to do something about that.

If you’ve never repented of sin, do it. If you are a Christian battling a sin, confess it. Put on Jesus’ righteousness bought for you with His blood.

Then look into the eyes of your Heavenly Father, and see the love, the forgiveness, and the pride He has in those of us who choose Him.

January 19; Come As You Are

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It stood out to me today that God changed Abram’s name to Abraham before he was circumcised. Abram had gotten Hagar pregnant with the mistaken idea God needed a little help fulfilling His promise. Abram did what he thought was right, but it was sin.

Then God changed his name. But Abraham’s name wasn’t the only thing changed.

Hasn’t today’s Church adopted the “come as you are” mantra to a fault? Not just in church attire, but behavior inside and outside the church, too. It’s gone to such an extreme that the word “sin” is left out of some sermons, and in some fellowships sin is ignored or promoted in the name of tolerance and love.

When Abram met God, he fell on his face, a sign of humility and worship. He got up with the name Abraham, and that same day obeyed God and was circumcised. No, of course he didn’t become perfect after the name change. He questioned God seconds later. A work in progress, Abraham progressed.

Friend, if Abram was circumcised before the name change, I’d tell you to clean up your act before going to Jesus. I’d tell you to quit smoking and drinking, to quit being mean to your neighbor, to start telling the truth and be faithful to your wife. I’d say you’d better start going to church, and quit using God’s name as a punctuation mark, then ask God to save you.

But, I’m not going to tell you any of that.

Go to God today, just as you are right now smelling of smoke and hung over, caught in a lie, or in the middle of an affair with your husband’s best friend. Go to God with your doubts and fears and scars and tears. Fall on your face before Him and ask Him to forgive you. He will.

But let me warn you; if you do, it can change your life. It can make you want to obey, even in the difficult things. (I have to believe being circumcised at 99 was a difficult thing. But the new and improved Abraham obeyed.)

Even if you’ve already asked Jesus to be your Savior at some time in your life, but find yourself chained to a sin today, go to him bound. Ask Him to forgive you and break those chains.

If you go to God today, if you confess your sin, if you repent you will receive His forgiveness. That’s His promise to all of us. It’s not make yourself a better person, clean yourself up, then repent. It’s ask, and receive.

Ask, and receive.

Come to God just as you are, but don’t stay that way. Let Him change you into the person you and He both want you to be.

January 17; Putting Yourself in a Position to be Blessed

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Job 40-42

The Lord continues to speak to Job in the storm. He continues to remind Job that there is one God, and it’s not Job. Job’s reaction is:

I am unworthy. I spoke out of turn. I thought I understood You, but now I really see who You are. I’m sorry.

This past Sunday the pastor spoke about putting ourselves in a position to be blessed by God. I think Job does that here. Job emptied himself, confessed his sin, and repented. Then God blessed him.

Yes, Job received material blessings after this. But please don’t make this about material things. The pastor reminded us that putting ourselves in a position to be blessed means humbling ourselves before our holy God, recognizing sin and repenting, allowing Jesus to do what He died to do.

Then God will lavish us with the greatest blessing of all. Himself.

He’ll forgive you. He’ll break the hold sin has over you. He will walk with you every minute of every day. And one day, He’ll welcome you home.

I believe Job knew how blessed he was when he said:

My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. (42:5)

Have you seen God? I don’t mean have you face-timed Him. Have you recognized God for who He IS? Have you had the experience of total surrender to the One who died to save you? If you haven’t, I pray you will do that today. Put yourself in a position to be blessed. Get on your knees and ask Him to forgive you.

Then brace yourself. God in your life is a blessing like you’ve never experience before.

January 9; Is There A Target On My Back?

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Job: 15-19

Job brings up a hard truth about God that we often try to ignore. We can talk all day about God’s love, His grace, His forgiveness, kindness, acceptance. But we don’t like to even think about His wrath.

Now, to be perfectly clear, chapter 1 tells us Job’s suffering is not a direct result of sin. God is not punishing him. In fact, Job is an upright citizen. God even calls him “righteous.” Yet awful things are happening to Job.

In chapter 16, Job says he feels like God has placed a target on his back. Job feels God’s anger as though God were ripping him to shreds with gnashing teeth. Job says he’s tried to bind his wounds himself, he’s cried endless tears. But Job realizes his helplessness to combat God and win.

It’s easy to say Job didn’t deserve this. But here is what God impressed on me: if Job, described by God Himself as a “righteous man,” has no defense against God, I’m in serious trouble.

Paul, in Romans 3:23 tells me everybody has sinned. Romans 3:10 actually quotes some Old Testament verses that tell me there isn’t a righteous man or woman anywhere. Not even one.

(I have no problem hearing God call Job “righteous,” then reading more than one Scripture that says no one is righteous. Job never lived like he was sinless. He continued to offer sacrifices for his sins and for those of his children. “Righteous” described Job because he had dealt with his sin.)

Scripture repeats these words, or words like them: Every sin is punished. Every sin deserves death. Every. Sin.

That’s why I think we should probably remove the word “deserve” from our vocabulary when talking about circumstances of life. We are all sinners, and God hates sin. Hates it. It’s hard to hear, but God considers sinners his enemies. (Romans 5:10; Philippians 3:18; James 4:4; I Samuel 12:14; and others)

Being sinners, we “deserve” God’s wrath. And, friend, you can’t handle God’s wrath.

As I look at the theme of worship in the book of Job, I am blown away that this man who is so lost, so grieved and alone, still looks to God. He begs God for an audience, not to give God a piece of his mind, but to present his case before God. Job longs for an advocate from heaven. Listen to this:

Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend. (17:19-21)

Read that again and let God speak to your heart. Hear Job’s confidence that there is Someone who is on his side, someone who pleads with God on his behalf like a man pleads for his friend. And Job had never even heard the name of Jesus. My soul is overwhelmed at the beauty of this truth. I love it so much.

Here’s something about God’s wrath: It’s real. And it’s frightening. It’s harsh and relentless. And we are absolutely, totally powerless against it.

But Jesus!

Jesus took God’s wrath directed at you and me. He faced God’s fierce anger – AND IT KILLED HIM.

But He didn’t stay dead! He defeated the last enemy – death. Now, by His grace, I can stand before God – not an enemy – but as His precious child. Not because of my own righteousness (which is non-existent) but because I’m wearing Jesus’ righteousness through the blood He shed on the cross.

God is no longer my enemy. He’s my Father. He calls me His friend!

Please understand that unless you have accepted what Jesus did for you on the cross, you are an enemy of God. You can try to bandage your own wounds, you can try to stand before Him in your own strength. But you don’t have any hope of winning that battle. No hope.

I don’t know what the circumstances of your life are like right now. But I know if you are blessed, you don’t deserve it. If you are suffering, you deserve much worse. You might feel like there is a target on your back, and you might be right.

But read again what Job said in the quote above. And know there is Someone in heaven who would love to be your advocate. Someone who would love to cover that target on your back with His own blood. Someone who wants to turn you from being an enemy of God, to being His most precious child.

January 4; Gibberish

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Genesis 10-11:26; I Chronicles 1:5-7,17-27

When my mom stepped into her first grade classroom on the first day of school, she couldn’t speak English. Her German-born parents spoke only German in their home. Her siblings were her best friends. I’m sure she picked up some English words from the neighborhood and church. But she was a German-speaking six-year-old in an English speaking school.

I have a friend who was telling several of us about her granddaughter’s Spanish immersion school. Grandma was extolling the virtues of such a progressive education. Her granddaughter was coloring at the kitchen table. So to make her point, Grandma asked the six-year-old, “Sara Beth, do you understand your teacher?” Sara Beth simply answered, “No.”

The language barrier is real.

I think about Mom when I read the Tower of Babel account in Genesis. How confusing it must have been to be that little girl plopped in a situation where no one speaks or even thinks in the same language you do, and then expect you to follow directions. How confusing it must have been for those building the tower to be talking to their co-worker one minute, then all of a sudden realize you have no idea what he is saying. Some people seem to understand. But you have no clue what that gibberish is supposed to mean.

I’m convinced that sometimes our communication breaks down for the same reason when we are sharing the Gospel. Those of us who know Jesus speak a different language than those who don’t. We understand and speak the language of the Holy Spirit.

We understand what sin is, what repentance involves. We get that Satan is a created being, a real fallen angel, and hell is a reality. We take for granted that everybody knows that Jesus died on a cross to pay for sin, and that Jesus is part of the Trinity which is God. We get that this world is not all there is.

What we forget is that the majority of the world – maybe the majority of the people in your world – have no idea what we are saying when we share any of that. It sounds like gibberish to them.

My Mom slowly learned to speak English. She learned the basic words first, then was able to put together sentences, and understand simple instructions from her teacher. Before long the was having conversations in English, then it dawned on her she was actually thinking and dreaming in English. She got it!

If you are sharing Jesus with someone and find yourself frustrated because you can’t understand why they don’t get it, remember they don’t understand the language. It might take time, repetition, patience. But don’t give up. To them, it may sound like gibberish at first, but once they get it, it will change their lives. Before long they will be speaking, thinking, and understanding the language of the Spirit.

It just occurred to me that after Mom learned English, she stopped speaking German. (being anything German was not a popular thing here in the States during the 1940’s) Eventually she even lost her ability to speak German. (The old passed away, all things became new; from 2 Corinthians 5:17)

Not only that, Mom taught her siblings how to speak English. She helped her mother learn to speak English. She shared with them what she finally understood for herself. Isn’t that what often happens when someone finally understands what Jesus did for them, and accepts His forgiveness? They get it. And they share it!

That’s my prayer for all of us. May we never grow tired of sharing Jesus with that one who is slow to understand. And may we be so immersed in the language of the Holy Spirit, that we recognize the world’s language is gibberish to us.

1&2 Peter; Too Late

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Can you celebrate the birth of Jesus and ignore the fact that He is coming again? He first came as a baby boy, grew to be a man, rocked the world at that time, and continues to rock our world after His death on the cross, and resurrection.

Christmas is not just a birthday. It’s the beginning of the end. Jesus will come again, and Peter reminds us it will be a day of reckoning. Are you ready?

I hope your Christmas holiday will be blessed with happiness and precious moments with family and friends. But I also hope – no, I pray – that when you consider that baby in a manger, you will consider how His birth has impacted you. That baby was born for love of you. That baby was born to save you.

Do you now Him? I pray you do. But if you’ve never confessed your sin and allowed Him to forgive you through the blood of Jesus, do it today. I can’t imagine a better birthday gift to give that Baby Jesus, than your heart.

Because He is coming again. It could be today. And when He comes it will be too late for you to suddenly accept what He died to give you.

May you celebrate the birth of YOUR Savior this season.