Tag Archives: salvation

August 30 – Think Again

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Ezekiel 13-15

You all know who Noah, Daniel, and Job are, right? These men had testimonies that rivaled no one. They were godly, obedient, trusting men who had close relationships with God Himself.

But Ezekiel tells us that even if these three were alive, they wouldn’t be able to deliver their sons or daughters from God’s wrath.

Dear one, if you are counting on your parents’ relationship with God, or your spouse’s relationship with God, to get you into heaven, think again. It’s your relationship with God, your acceptance of His grace, that will make the only difference when you see Him face to face.

Not even your godly grandmother can prevent you from God’s wrath against your sin. Only Jesus can do that.

So the next time you start to think you can ride your dad’s coattails into heaven…

think again.

August 27 – Comfort Zones

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Ezekiel 1-4

I almost never sleep through the night. I toss and turn, covers on, covers off, until it’s time to get up… and I fall into a deep sleep. Ugh!

If I lie too long in one position my body begins to ache. So reading what God told Ezekiel to do makes me very glad He wasn’t talking to me! The prophet was to build a ramp, pitch a camp, put battering rams against it, and face the city of Jerusalem. Then Ezekiel was to lie down on his left side, (I assume on the ground in sight of the people) and take the sin of Israel on himself. Then he was to lie there on his left side for thirteen months without turning from side to side.

And if that’s not hard enough, after the 390 days, God told Ezekiel he was to turn over on his right side, take the sin of Judah on himself, and lie like that for forty more days. No turning allowed. In fact, God was going to tie him up so he couldn’t switch sides even if he wanted to.

I am reminded that God is more interested in getting His message out there than He is in my comfort. He is serious about sin, and He wants people to know that. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no one goes to God except through Jesus, and God wants people to know that. People who die without Christ go to hell. God wants people to know that, too.

And everyone who humbles themselves and repents of sin can be saved. That’s the message God is passionate about. That’s what He wants everyone to know. And if you have to take a stand for the Truth, or lose your house, your health, your career, or just get up out of your recliner, that’s secondary to getting the message out there.

Dear God, Forgive me if I am more concerned about the size of my paycheck, the air-conditioning in my home, what kind of car I drive, or if I have a sinus headache, than I am about lost souls. I want your passion for sinners to be my passion. Please give me the courage and the strength to get out of my comfort zone and get your message across. I want to say, “no matter what the cost,” and mean it. Show me how I can serve You today. And may I do what you ask without thought of my comfort. 

August 24 – Cow Tipping

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Jeremiah 46-48

Jeremiah has recorded the prophecy God gave him concerning His judgment on the nations. As I read them I am impressed with the reality that these nations think they have things figured out. Some are proud of their land, some their possessions, some their military strength.

God calls them arrogant. They are self-assured and self-reliant, not to mention worshipers of imaginary gods.

I chuckled at what God said about Moab (48:12) The days are coming when God “will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will empty his vessels and shatter his jars.”

Ever been cow tipping?

The thing is, folks, God is going to have the last word. Whatever it is you think you’ve figured out on your own, accomplished on your own, believe in apart from the Bible, can’t stand when you get pushed.

I know cow tipping is an urban legend. But whether we’re talking about cow tippers or vessel tippers, the point is God is greater than any theology, religion, accomplishment, or anything you think is keeping you secure. He can topple it all in an instant.

Myself, I am secure in my relationship with God. I don’t fear His judgment because I’ve accepted what His Son did on my behalf on the cross. My life, my future, my hopes and dreams are in His hands.

So give me a shove, Satan.  You can’t topple me when God is standing with me. And you’ll never have the last word.

August 17 – Don’t “Should”

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Jeremiah 30-31

There is a former student of mine, the mother of four, a young woman who loves her husband and who is loved by him, yet who battles depression and the all-too-often desire to stop living. She’s not a Christian. She reads self-help books, listens to Oprah, and tries to follow the advice of friends who tell her she shouldn’t feel that way, that she should be thankful, that she should tap into her own strength and pull herself up.

But I think all those “should’s” just make it worse.

I thought about her today as I read these chapters. God is telling the Jews that they have a serious injury, an incurable wound.

There is no one to plead your cause; no healing for your sore, no recovery for you. (30:13)

God even goes a step further and tells them to  quit crying about it. Felling sorry for yourself doesn’t change a thing.

Wow, God. Thanks for the encouragement. I feel so much better now.

Read on. God gives more than just a sympathetic pat on the back.

For I will restore you to health and I will heal you of your wounds, declares the Lord. (vs 17)

The truth is we all have reason to loathe ourselves. We’ve all done things to be ashamed of, to be sorry for. But trying to fix things by our own efforts is a bit like putting a bandaid on that incurable wound. We may feel better for a time. But when we fall (and we always fall) that wound bleeds a bit more. We feel worse than before, more useless, more of a failure than before.

God wants us to know that we don’t have to manufacture a feeling of healing. HE IS THE HEALER. We don’t have to pull ourselves out of the pit. He died, went into that pit Himself, so we wouldn’t have to live there. He rose again so that we could be born again ourselves, be free from the power of sin, and know the joy that comes from having our sins forgiven.

I think the only “should” we should listen to is the one that tells us we should go to the Father, repent of our sins, and let Him heal us. There is a sense of relief in that “should.”

August 13 – Roots

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Jeremiah 14-17

It’s been a hot and dry summer here in Ohio. The grass is brown, the flowers have wilted, leaves on trees droop. The last few days there has been an occasional shower and even a few heavy rains, but so far it doesn’t seem to have had much effect on the landscape.

In fact, I went out in bare feet yesterday to get the mail, and the grass was still dry and brittle. It’s been that parched here. Even a bit of rain isn’t enough to quench the ground.

Jeremiah says people who put their trust in mankind, or even in themselves, are like that. (17:5-6) Like tumbleweeds in a desert, like a desolate land of salt, they are cursed with a thirst that cannot be satisfied. Oh, many will say that’s not true, that they are just fine without God. Jeremiah says they’re so used to living in the wilderness they won’t even see when prosperity comes.

Then the prophet goes on. People who put their trust in the Lord are blessed!

For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit. (17:7-8)

We who plant ourselves close to the Living Water will have deep roots, we won’t fear the heat of battle or hardship, and our faith will stand firm even when things around us dry up. Then, because of our witness, people will want what we have. We’ll bear fruit!

Where are your roots planted?

 

 

August 5 – Repentance

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2 Chronicles 32-33

In church-speak you often hear that we are told to “repent.” But what does that mean, really? Is it an admission of guilt? An apology? A feeling of regret? Those certainly are facets of repentance. True repentance goes further than that, however.

There is a picture of repentance here in 2 Chronicles. Manasseh is a good example of what it means to repent.

He was an evil king, a worshiper of false gods, a king who practiced divination and consulted mediums and spiritists. He even was brazen enough to erect idols right inside the house of God. They don’t come much worse than old Manasseh.

But Manasseh eventually humbled himself “greatly” before God. Manasseh prayed, and God forgave him.

Now here’s where the picture of repentance comes in. Manasseh changed. He removed the foreign gods from the temple, took down the altars he’d built, and set up the altar of the Lord for sacrifices to the only True God. He ordered the people of Judah to serve God, too.

Scripture tells us often to repent. Manasseh’s story demonstrates that no one is too evil for God to forgive if that heart is willing to change. A repentant person doesn’t look the same as he did before, doesn’t go to the same places, laugh at the same dirty jokes, doesn’t disrespect God’s Name, or treat others dishonestly. A repentant heart looks like Jesus.

Two things I take away from Manasseh’s example today: 1. no one is too far gone for God to forgive, and 2. people can change, and do change, when they give their lives to God.

August 4 – Your Children’s Children

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2 Kings 20-21

Every time I read this account of the life of King Hezekiah, I get angry. Why God answered his prayers I don’t know. When God promised to heal the king in three days, Hezekiah asked for a sign. He couldn’t wait three days? Then, when God told Hezekiah that because he had sinned, Babylon would defeat the nation, steal everything Hezekiah had worked for, and capture Hezekiah’s sons, Hezekiah thought, “Is it not so, if there will be peace and truth in my days?”

Yes, Hezekiah your life will be just fine. It’s your children and your children’s children who will realize the consequences for your sin. Happy?

I know Hezekiah did a lot of good while he was king. I just happen to think he ended badly. And his son, Manasseh brought back idol worship when he became king. In fact, under Manasseh’s reign the Jews acted worse than the heathen nations around them.

Then when Hezekiah’s grandson Amon became king, he continued where Manasseh left off. Quite a downward spiral that began, I believe, with Hezekiah’s self-serving attitude.

Just wondering, parents, what is it your children are learning from you? Obedience? Worship? Self-sacrifice? Integrity? Compassion? Love of Scripture? The fear of God?

You may be doing alright in your personal walk with the Lord. But what about the dear ones who are following you? Are you preparing them to know God, to love and serve Him? Or are you satisfied knowing you’re ok, and let them fend for themselves?

I think you know how I’m praying.

July 25 – The Plumb Line of Emptiness

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Isaiah 31-34

God, through Isaiah, is describing the devastation the result of His wrath will bring. Mountains drenched with blood, the sky rolled up like a scroll, streams turned to pitch, a fire that can’t be quenched, complete desolation where the land is inhabited only by pelican, hedgehog, owl, and raven.

I picture a ghost town in a B movie western complete with rambling tumble weeds.

Then God says He will “stretch over it the line of desolation and the plumb line of emptiness.” (34:11)

Has that ever described you? Have you ever felt that life has abandoned you, that you have a longing that burns and can’t be quenched, you feel alone, and lost, and empty?

Dear one, that is not where God wants you to live. Jesus died so that, when you repent of your sin, He can fill you to overflowing with Himself! His love. His grace and mercy. His goodness and joy. When you allow God to fill you, you will have hope for the future, and strength for the day.

The plumb line of emptiness, true emptiness, is the life without God. That void in your life was placed there by God to be filled by God alone. Oh, you can try to fill it yourself. Drugs, alcohol, unhealthy relationships, other gods, self, career, family, busy-ness. But all are substitutes for the real thing – the plumb line of fullness which is God Himself.

That is the point from which your life is blessed by God. You don’t have to live in that black and white movie ghost town with rotting floorboards and banging saloon doors, in a place inhabited by rodents and scavengers.

Let God fill your emptiness like only He can. He’ll turn your mourning into joy, and your tears into gladness. He’ll turn your loneliness into fellowship, and your despair into hope.

July 21 – Blast Off!

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2 Kings 18:1-8; 2 Chronicles 29-31; Psalm 48

Hezekiah was a busy man. He was 25 when he became king of Judah and it seems like he hit the ground running. He did some repairs on the temple, removed the evidence of idol worship (including the bronze serpant Moses had made to help the Israelites on their journey out of Egypt years earlier). Hezekiah directed the priests and Levites to consecrate themselves, and he organized a Passover feast like the Jews hadn’t seen in a very long time.

What I noticed today was that his enthusiasm for doing God’s work was contagious. In fact, after inviting Jews from near and far to the Passover celebration, the turnout was much more than the number of consecrated priests could handle. And the shear enthusiasm of the masses was an embarrassment to the priests and Levites who’d been caught unprepared. So they cleaned up their act and got onboard.

I’m thinking God might be saying we who sit in pews every Sunday need not wait for our pastors to start a revival. Maybe we shouldn’t be waiting for some preachers out there to start preaching the Truth of Scripture. Maybe it’s us everyday people who need to get right with God, and take the bull by the horns.

Let the preachers follow our lead for a change, when we our lead by God.

Is your commitment to God contagious? Is mine? How exciting would it be for us to see that fire ignite. It could be as powerful as watching a launch from Cape Canaveral.

Ignition! Blast Off! Souls won. Lives changed. Eternity won!

July 15 – Spoiler Alert

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2 Chronicles 27, Isaiah 9-12

Are you the person who reads the last chapter of a book first? I’m not. I like to unveil the story one page at a time.

Do you, when watching a movie with someone who’s seen it before, continue to ask what will happen next? Are they going to be ok? Do they find the treasure? Did the butler do it? Do they fall in love?

I am reminded that as I read God’s Word, especially words of prophecy, God’s already seen the movie. He can tell us what’s coming because he has already seen the end. He’s read the last chapter.

Even though we view them as things that will happen, God sees them in the past tense. That blows my mind.

What a comfort to know that, after all the craziness of life on earth, God is still standing. And He wants me standing with Him!

So here’s the spoiler alert: Jesus, sitting on the throne forever. Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace… from then on and forevermore!

That’s how the story unfolds. And, for those of us who know Jesus as our Savior, we’re going to be ok!