Category Archives: The Gospel

Isaiah 16-19; Never Too Far Gone

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It is God’s will that no one die without Him. Throughout the Old Testament we see example after example of God using Israel to reach out to lost people, to reveal Himself as the One True God, the Righteous Judge, and Savior of the world. Sometimes people listened and were saved, like the people of Ninevah in Jonah’s day. Sometimes they refused to bow and were destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah. But don’t miss the many ways God tried to get their attention.

In the chapters I read today, Isaiah is throwing out warning after warning to people who have rejected God; Moab, Damascus, Cush, Egypt. The prophet, with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is clear when he tells how God judges His enemies.

But I love how chapter 19 ends. “In that day…” when God’s enemies repent, God forgives and embraces them as His children. “In that day…” God’s former enemies become His people, His handiwork, His inheritance.

In this case, “In that day…” was fulfilled when the Messiah came and did what He came to do. The apostles preached the Gospel, and people of every nationality were saved. It is believed that it was Mark who started churches in Egypt, just like God told Isaiah would happen. This is good stuff!

Has God laid someone on your heart, but deep down you think that person is too far gone; that he or she would NEVER accept Jesus as their Savior? Don’t you believe it. Keep praying. Keep living Jesus.

I see Scripture assuring us that as long as a soul inhabits the living, it is never beyond what God can do to save them.

Ecclesiastes 6-9; Life Doesn’t Have To Be Lived “Under the Sun”

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Wow. If you need some cheering up today I wouldn’t read these chapters in Ecclesiastes. Life, as Solomon describes it under the sun is bleak, depressing, futile. Solomon’s pessimistic, fatalistic view of life is certainly a downer.

I am reminded what he describes is life without God. A non-believer’s view of God contains no hope. But, dear one, there is life above the sun!

That life is full of hope, and joy, and purpose. That life stretches on into eternity where we who know God will live with Him forever. That life is worth living.

Do you know God through His Son Jesus, and by reading His Word? Have you experienced the joy that comes from knowing your sins are forgiven, never to be remembered ever again? Do you recognize God’s generous hand in your life apart from circumstance, as well as in the midst of them? Do you see Him in the warm summer sunshine, the refreshing spring rains, the sounds of birds, of children laughing, of the wind rustling in the trees?

You don’t have to live a life void of meaning. There is One who died so you could have life, and have it to the full!

Regardless of what Solomon expressed in his attempt to find meaning to life apart from God, there is joy in this life. There is purpose and value, hope and peace.

His name is Jesus!

Proverbs 13-16; How Do You Know?

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The proverbs repeatedly differentiate between wisdom or righteousness with foolishness and sin. Many proverbs speak of gaining wisdom and understanding, acting out of knowledge, holding to this truth.

But how do you know what is true?

I am convinced, as I read these verses, of the absolute necessity of Bible study for each of us. There are so many made-up definitions of truth out there, so much advice that tells us to look out for number one at any cost, so many ungodly examples of people treating one another with anger, dishonesty, violence, and hatred while we call it entertainment.

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. (14:12)

There is a flip side to that verse. There is a way that is right, and in the end it leads to abundant life here in this life, and everlasting life when we leave this earth.

What is right? What is true? What is advice you can bank on every time?

Read your Bible. It’s in there.

 

Psalms 51-55; Don’t Be A Fool

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Did you know Psalm 53 is almost identical to Psalm 14? I don’t think I realized that before today. (Thank you, Dr. Wiersbe for pointing that out; With The Word, p 342)

So, if God inspired men to include these words twice in our Bible, there must be a reason. As I consider the importance of the message, I see Jesus!

David begins by saying only a fool would ever say there is no God. Then he goes on to confirm that fools exist. “They,” meaning fools, are corrupt, vile, without understanding, with no interest in God. That, my friend, is a foolish way to live.

David tells us that fools have it in for believers. They want to destroy us because our presence causes them to be overwhelmed with dread. They hate us because God is present with us, and acknowledging that means they’d have to admit they are wrong to believe He doesn’t exist. To be honest, a fool in God’s presence has every reason to be overwhelmed with dread.

But here is where I see Jesus in these psalms. David pleads with God for salvation. Without knowing it, David is praying for Jesus. Jesus came, lived and died, then rose again to restore the relationship with us that God had with Adam and Eve in the garden. We can walk with God, talk with God, serve Him, love Him through the blood of Jesus.

Because He exists. That is the honest truth.

Don’t be a fool.

Psalm 19-24; The God the World Doesn’t Know

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Christianity gets a bad rap these days. Christians are painted as bigots, judgmental, homophobic haters. God is cursed for being unfair, cruel, jealous. If they only knew.

Most of us who spent any time in Sunday School as children probably memorized the 23rd Psalm. When I read it today I realized it describes the God unbelievers don’t know. It describes what God longs to be for all of us and them:

Our Shepherd.

The One who protects us from our enemy Satan, the One who provides everything we need because He provides Himself, His presence and strength. We don’t need Oprah or pop-psychology or self medication. We don’t need to fear, or to worry, or to feel anxious about anything because He leads us to calm waters even in storms.

He leads us toward righteousness, which is anything but politically correct. But He never leaves us or forsakes us no matter what kind of resistance we face. We go through difficult times, losses, illnesses, pain. But we need not fear because the Holy Spirit – the Comforter – has come and lives right in us.

He blesses us in ways the world can’t understand, because God wants the world to see that He is a God who blesses. He is always working in the hearts of men to draw them to Himself, the Shepherd who wants to be these things for them, too, who does not will that any of them die without Him.

Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11) The God unbelievers don’t know is the God who went to the cross for love of them; the God who paid what none of us can pay, and who saves all who call on the name of Jesus. He’s not cruel. He is loving and self-sacrificing, and gracious.

Then, the psalmist ends with reminding us that this life is temporary. Eternity awaits. And those of us who know Jesus will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Why don’t unbelievers know the truth about God? Could it be because believers aren’t telling them?

Dear Shepherd, sometimes your children seem to think that everyone knows the truth about you and chooses to reject you. But I wonder if that’s true. I wonder if some of these people who are so critical of Christianity really have no idea who you are. Their knowledge of you comes from movies and FB. I pray that you will lay on the hearts of your people, the fervent desire to speak the truth to those who have no clue. Because the God they don’t know is a compassionate Shepherd who wants to spend eternity with each of them, and who died so that can happen.

Job 29-31; Job’s Final Thoughts

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The difference between Job and me is that I can look back on my life and recognize the multitude of sins I have committed. Job seems to be able to look back on his life and see none. I don’t know which is worse.

Let me just get it out there: I AM A SINNER. I know that I am. If I tried to list all the sins I remember committing I’m not sure I’d get to the end before the middle of next year. And that doesn’t include the sins I’ve conveniently forgotten.

Besides, I don’t want to spend that much time considering the “old nature,” because I am forgiven and Christ has made me a new person.

Some people allow their old nature to hold them back. I know you’ve sinned. God knows you’ve sinned. Maybe you are living with painful consequences for that sin.

But if you’ve repented, asked God to forgive you, you are washed clean. That sin, in God’s eyes, doesn’t even exist any more. Stop beating yourself up about it. Jesus has already been beaten up for you.

Paul told the Philippians (3:13-14):

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

He is talking about knowing Christ, pursuing a relationship with Jesus. If I am actively walking with the Lord I don’t have time – or desire – to continually look back. If I draw near to God, He draws near to me, and with Him comes joy, peace, comfort, and help to know Him more and serve Him better.

Job spent a lot of time defending himself. He couldn’t come up with one sin he’d committed. He was, no doubt a good man. God Himself called Job His servant, a blameless and upright man. (1:8)

Job did many good things for his family, his friends, his neighbors, his servants, his enemies, and even his land. He spent his life using the blessings God gave him to help others. But does that mean he was sinless?

Romans 3:23 tells us everyone has sinned, everyone falls short when compared to God. Yet there are people who rationalize or ignore sin in their lives. They convince themselves if they are religious enough, or if they meditate, or volunteer at a soup kitchen, or don’t murder anyone, somehow that  covers up or equalizes the bad things they’ve done.

Friend, the only thing that can cover up your sin is the blood of Jesus. The only way you can be good enough is by accepting the fact that Jesus is good enough, and let Him stand in your place when you repent of your sin and ask Him to forgive you – something He’s dying to do.

So whether you are living in the past and are paralyzing yourself over past sin and guilt, or if you have convinced yourself you are ok as is, let God tell you what He thinks about your life. Let Him remind you that He recognizes your sin and loves you anyway. Let Him lead you to the cross where your sin debt was paid. And let Him make you new, clean, free from the bondage of sin. Then know the joy of having His Presence living in you, and blessing you with Himself.

I’m praying for you.

 

Job 20-21; Zophar, Part 2

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Let’s get one thing straight. People die. Godly people die. Ungodly people die. There are godly people who live to a ripe old age, and there are godly people who die young. The same can be said for ungodly people.

Furthermore, no matter what Zophar would have you believe, there are wicked, evil people who are living long lives of luxurious, seemingly carefree lives, while there are godly people without homes or food. The opposite is true as well.

It’s tempting to equate God’s blessings with the things we can see. I will say God blessed me with a career for 37 years which has allowed me to live comfortably in my aging years. God has blessed me with good health, a loving family, a precious church fellowship. The sun is shining today. The sky is blue. And I have eyes that can see it all.

I could go on. But you get the picture. Some of the blessings I enjoy today come as a result of choices I made along the way. I don’t apologize for that or feel guilty because someone else made different choices. But I clearly know nothing I have, no blessing that I’ve been given is deserved. God doesn’t owe me a good life.

In fact, if I did get what I deserve, I would be one miserable lady.

I guess as I read the conversations between Job and his friends, I am reminded that it is useless to try to explain why things happen in this life. I mean, I can say the reason someone gets lung cancer is because he smoked for forty years. But then how do I explain the one who gets lung cancer and never smoked?

Here’s what struck me as I read Zophar’s second speech and Job’s reply: If I really thought only ungodly people receive devastating doctor’s reports, why am I not stopping everyone from undergoing chemo, and instead get them to accept Jesus? Why don’t I pray with all the homeless people I see so God will give them houses?

I should be talking to cancer patients and homeless people (and neighbors, co-workers, family members) about Jesus. Not for anything they can see. But because their eternity depends on it.

Zohar was right about one thing. “the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts for a moment.” In light of eternity, the “blessings” people enjoy on this earth are merely a blink of an eye.

Do you believe that? Regardless of bank accounts, health reports, popularity, or influence, we all will stand before a Holy God one day and give an account for the choices we made while we were enjoying, or struggling with, life on planet Earth. If you know Jesus as your Savior, that’s all God will need to know. Account paid. Good job, dear one. Let the party begin.

But if your choices haven’t included asking God to forgive you, and accepting what Jesus did for you when He died on the cross, you’re on your own. Good luck trying to defend yourself before a Holy God. Do you honestly think you’ll match up? Really?

Let’s not get bogged down by things we can see. Let’s not waste time trying to understand God’s ways. His ways are not like ours. But let’s look at the true, and eternal blessing that comes from knowing Him personally. And let’s makes sure others know how they can be blessed in the same way.

 

Job 18-19; Bildad, Part 2

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I had a pastor one time who said that when he was younger he gave his heart to the Lord after reading the book of Revelation. He said it scared the faith right into him.

I think Bildad’s speech here in chapter 18 is every bit as terrifying, if not more so.

It’s nighttime. You are lying on your cot, almost asleep in your tent. A lantern flickers on the floor next to you, the embers of a campfire glow outside your door. Suddenly both fires go out, and you are in complete and utter darkness.

You stumble outside, only to trip and fall into a net that has been placed there to catch you. Immediately you feel a metal trap clamp down on your heel, holding you immobile. A noose slips over your head, then tightens around your neck.

Every sound terrifies you in the blackness of night. Something you can’t see begins to eat your flesh. It rips your arm from your body.

You are snatched away by soldiers, who take you to stand before the king, to give an account for offenses you do not know.

Your house is destroyed so that nothing remains. Your very life is ebbing away without hope. You’ve been driven from the light into unspeakable darkness, alone. Totally alone.

People are repulsed by the memory of you. The thought of you horrifies them.

(The only thing missing is a guy holding a chain saw, and wearing a mask)

Then Bildad implies… That’s what you deserve, Job.

Now that’s just mean.

Job knew first-hand what it meant to be crushed, unjustly accused, and absolutely alone. Why his friends thought they had to keep throwing salt into his wounds, I don’t know.

But Job, living in the horror Bildad described, demonstrates a faith that blows me away. Listen to what he says:

Oh, that my words were recorded, that they were written on a scroll, that they were inscribed with an iron tool on lead, or engraved in rock forever!

I  know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes – I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me. (19:23-27, emphasis mine)

I’m so thankful Job’s words were recorded like he wished. Job believed he would see God in the flesh some day. And Job longed for that day! In the midst of devastating pain, Job was confident in the fact that he had a Redeemer, alive, and coming to earth. Job wanted to look into those eyes.

We know the name of Job’s Redeemer. His name is Jesus. And He’s your Redeemer, too. Do you know Him with the same confidence Job displayed here? No matter what your circumstances, you have an advocate, one who died so you can live, one who sits at the throne of God and prays for you, draws you to Himself, loves you beyond what you can even imagine.

My dear Redeemer, Jesus, Lord, thank You for the reality of You! Thank You for taking my sins upon Yourself, for suffering what I deserved, for forgiving me. And thank You for the knowledge that You are alive, and one day I’ll look into those eyes of Yours and know for the first time, just how much I am loved. I praise You. I adore You. I worship You.

Job 8-10; Bildad

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Now Job hears from another friend whose intent is to help Job through this difficult time. Eliphaz had talked to Job about sin. Bildad’s theme is more about God’s justice.

Bildad’s argument includes examples from nature about God’s order. Cause and effect. God, who created an orderly world, is right in his dealing with men. Sin=Punishment. Sinlessness=Blessing.

Job’s reply? You’re right, Bildad. “But how can a mortal man be righteous before God?” (9:2) The best, the smartest of us have no defense before a Holy God. None of us is innocent.

The Creator has no equal. His holiness renders us defenseless. And our finite minds will never understand Him.

Job, in his despair, is ready to give up trying.

Bildad tells Job to buck up, put on a smile, things will get better. Job tells him that putting a smile on his face would make him a hypocrite. His grief is real and unrelenting.

Some of you have been there, may be at that point now. I don’t want you to miss the precious truth found in 9:29-35. Job longs for a helper, someone who can bridge the gap between God and himself. He knows he can’t do it. He might not be the worst guy on the planet, but Job knew he could not approach Holy, Righteous, Creator God.

If only…

Friend, we have that One who touches God and touches us. One who can remove God’s “rod” from us. His Name is Jesus!

If we truly saw ourselves as Job saw himself, as helpless, hopeless sinners accountable to the God of Creation, we’d feel exactly like Job felt. You have no standing before God. I certainly don’t. You deserve hell. And so do I.

But Jesus.

Job longed for the One who is standing next to you, arms opened wide, ready to accept you as you surrender to Him.

Do it!

Esther; An Edict Not Revoked

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Whenever I read this book I wonder, when I get to the part where the king who condemned all Jews to death, why he doesn’t just rescind his order and let them live once he discovers the truth. Why doesn’t he send out an updated edict and let the Jews off the hook? Instead, he gives the Jews a way to survive the death sentence.

Today Warren Wiresbe (With the Word Bible Handbook) put a light on the subject that helps me see things a bit more clearly. If you have read other posts of mine you know my strong conviction that all Scripture is given us by our loving Heavenly Father for the expressed purpose of revealing Himself to us. So what can a book that doesn’t even mention His Name teach us about God?

His Sovereignty. His dealing with prideful people. The fact He blesses obedience. And this:

JESUS!

Dr. Wiresbe reminded me God, from the time of Adam and Eve, has proclaimed an edict: Sin requires a death penalty. ALL sin, every sin comes with a deadly price tag whether we think that’s fair or not. And God is not going to revoke that edict.

Every impure thought, every vulgar word, every unkind action, all disobedience condemns you. You’re not going to talk God out of it, either.

Just like the Jews in Esther’s day were condemned to die, we are condemned to an eternity of death, separated from God.  But God provided a way for us to survive. He didn’t revoke the edict – He FULFILLED it! Jesus died so we don’t have to. That was our death sentence Jesus took on Himself.

Now here’s the other thing: The king didn’t write the new edict allowing the Jews to be saved, then lock the paper up in a vault. He sent couriers out into the land to tell the good news to everyone!

We need to be doing that, too. Your neighbor, your brother-in-law, your co-worker might need to know that they have a death sentence hanging over their heads, and that salvation is their’s for the asking! Jesus paid what they cannot pay. And they can have eternal life through the precious blood of their Savior.

Our Holy God cannot rescind the edict. Sin=Death. But Praise God that He Himself provided a way of salvation from the penalty of death my sin requires. I live because Jesus died. Praise God.

He did the same for you!