Tag Archives: the Gospel

December 7 – It’s A Gift

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Acts 20:1-3; Romans 1-3

What is good enough? I know some pretty amazing, generous, loving, honest people who care about the environment, give to the SPCA, volunteer at homeless shelters, and are great neighbors and friends. I know people who never say a bad word about anyone, who are kind and supportive. They are hard-working, family-centered, salt-of-the-earth kind of people. You probably know them, too.

Maybe you are one of them yourself.

So how do you handle Romans 3:23 in regards to really good people? Oh sure, no one is perfect, you might say with a wink. But the people I described don’t commit those blatant, awful sins that everyone recognizes. Their goodness must outweigh their goof-ups.

We are going to read Romans 6:23 tomorrow. And folks, that verse applies to the goof-ups, too.

Many of us memorized Romans 3:23 as children. But verse 24 completes the thought in a really wonderful way:

being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.

Does that make your heart sing? You are a sinner. You deserve the death penalty your sin requires. But here stands Jesus holding a gift with your name on it. Redemption. Forgiveness. He doesn’t tell you to clean yourself up first, or give money to the poor, or quit drinking before He’ll give you the gift. He bought and paid for your salvation while you were still a sinner.

The truth is, none of us can ever be good enough. You don’t erase a sin by doing a good deed. That’s just not the way it is. That sin that you committed deserves death. And Jesus died. That sin requires blood spilt to redeem you. Jesus’ blood ran down that cross that day.

Forgiveness is ours through the Son of God, Jesus Christ. It’s a gift. It’s His gift to you.

Dearest Savior, I would imagine most people reading this blog have accepted You as their Savior. I pray that is true. But may we, as we consider Paul’s words to the Romans, have the truth cemented in our minds so that we can share this amazing gift with the people you’ve laid on our hearts. And, Father, if there is one who reads this and has yet to ask for the gift that is their’s, I pray they will do that today. Move in our hearts, Lord. And may You find us faithful.

December 3 – A Twinkling Eye

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I Corinthians 15-16

Can you read these last chapters of I Corinthians and not get excited about “the twinkling of an eye,” the trumpet sound that will announce Jesus’ return, when “we will all be changed”? This broken down body of mine will be replaced with an unbreakable one. This mortal will put on immortality.

And I will finally see Jesus face to face. I want to shout, Hallelujah, just thinking about it!

For Christians, that day is something to get excited about, like children looking forward to Christmas morning. We will be swooped up into heaven, either from the grave, or while going about our day. And we’ll find ourselves in the most glorious place, at the throne of God!

But if you haven’t accepted the Savior as your own, you have reason to fear that day. The sound of that trumpet will cause terror to those who don’t know Jesus. Seeing Jesus descending from heaven, gathering up your neighbors, friends, and loved ones, will leave you utterly alone. You’ll look into Jesus’ eyes and see rejection, and know you have no one to blame but yourself.

Jesus is coming again. That’s a fact. I pray that you will be counted among those who welcome Him, because you’ve placed your sins at His feet and allowed Him to cover every one of them with His blood.

I pray that the twinkling eye will be yours when that trumpet sounds!

November 20 – Not What He Expected

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Acts 11-12

I had one of those laugh-outloud moments again this morning as I read these chapters. Peter had just been miraculously freed from jail. An angel appeared in his cell where Peter slept, chained with two chains and lying between two soldiers. Guards were watching the prison, too.

But the angel told Peter to get up quickly. The chains fell off! Peter put on his shoes and coat and he followed the angel right past the guards. When they came to a gate, the gate opened all by itself. Peter was free! What an adrenaline rush.

Peter hurried to tell his friends what had happened to him. I can imagine his excitement. And we know how excitable Peter could be. He probably couldn’t wait to share the good news. I’m sure his heart was pounding in his chest.

So here’s what made me laugh out loud. A servant girl, Rhoda, answered what was probably Peter’s frantic knocking on the door. When she heard his voice and recognized it as belonging to the jailed apostle, she didn’t open the door. Instead she ran back to the other disciples to tell them Peter was there.

So here’s Peter, full of anticipation and excitement with the most amazing news to share. His hand was probably on the door knob, ready and eager to enter, when he realized he was alone. The door hadn’t  opened.

Not exactly the reception he’d imagined, I’m sure.

Of course, eventually they opened the door and let him in. He was able to share what had happened. But the moment was gone. Perhaps a little of the wind in his sails died a bit.

Sometimes people who come to the Lord have the same experience as Peter had. They meet the Savior. They ask Him to forgive them and for the first time in their lives they know what real joy is. They are washed clean, a new person in Christ, set free from the chains of sin. And they want to tell those closest to them.

So with excitement and anticipation, they burst on the scene to share the details of their conversion, only to be met with blank stares and cold shoulders. Not the reception they’d imagined.

But learn from what Peter did. He kept knocking until his friends opened the door. And I think God would have us do the same. If God has blessed you, if you have witnessed His hand in a situation, or if you’ve come to know Him for the first time, and your friends and loved ones don’t share your excitement, don’t stop knocking.

Keep talking about the Lord, keep pointing them to the Savior. Because one day, like in Peter’s case, I believe that door will open and you’ll be able to share the most incredible news with the people you love.

November 15 – He Is Risen Indeed!

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Luke 24; J0hn 20-21

The risen Savior appeared to His disciples and invited them to touch His body. They were not seeing a vision. They were in the presence of Jesus, alive and well.

As you read the last chapters of the Gospels you’ll see Jesus walking and talking and sharing meals with people… after the cross. Many people were witnesses to the miracle of the resurrection of Christ.

One exchange between Peter and the resurrected Jesus got me thinking today. First, Jesus allowed Peter to confess his love for the Lord three times, to equal the three denials Peter had uttered while Jesus was on trial. I love how Jesus loves!

Then Jesus told Peter a little about his future. It doesn’t seem like Peter had much to say about what he’d heard. He looked at John instead, and asked Jesus: What about him?

Let’s consider Jesus’ answer as recorded in John 21:22:

If I want him (John) to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!

Sometimes we’re tempted to compare ourselves to other people. Maybe we rationalize that we’re not as bad as so-and-so, so we must be ok. Or we get jealous if we think someone is blessed more than us. Some people use imperfect Christians as an excuse for not accepting the Savior. The question they ask is, “What about them?”

Hear Jesus say: Don’t worry about them. YOU follow me. YOU!

Jesus died on the cross for sinners, of which you and I are two. Then after three days, He got up from that grave and lived once again. He defeated sin and death, and lives today.

He is risen. He is risen indeed!

Do you believe it? Do YOU believe it? Then YOU follow Him. Don’t worry about anyone else. They have nothing to do with YOUR response to the Savior.

November 13 – Mission Accomplished

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Luke 23; John 18-19

“It is finished.” (John 19:30) Jesus had completed the mission He had set His mind to before creation. If He was going to create man with the ability to choose, God was going to provide a way back to Him when those very choices tore us away.

Everything that occurred in the ancient world happened to point men and women to Jesus. The Law was given to show us what holiness would look like. The consequences spelled out there, and carried out in the lives of the Jewish people, show us how serious God is about unholiness. And it proves we are unable to claim holiness on our own. Fallen man – that’s you and me – have no place in God’s Holy Presence.

But Jesus.

We only get a glimpse of what it cost Jesus to fulfill the Law’s requirements on our behalf. The Man took on God’s hatred of my sin, of billions and billions of people who have walked this earth. He suffered everything that we had coming to us. He fulfilled the prophesies from hundreds of years before to reinforce that Jesus is The Great I AM.

At exactly the right moment, Jesus said “It is finished.” And then He died. Account paid. Sins forgiven. Mission accomplished.

I pray you have accepted what Jesus did on your behalf that day He hung on a cross. Your sins – YOUR’S – are forgiven. All you have to do is ask Him to forgive you. “It is finished.”

November 12 – Humbled

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Matthew 27; Mark 15

Every time I read the account of Jesus’ last few hours on this planet, I am humbled. He endured it all for love of me. He quietly listened to the lies, was punched and kicked and spit on. He heard every insult, and felt the pain of those nails tearing through His flesh. He even experienced what happens when God the Father turns away.

It takes about ten minutes to read about it. But Jesus lived it one minute after another, one long hour after another. Jesus suffered excruciating pain, and died a humiliating death – because He loves me that much.

I believe that as He breathed His last, His mind went ahead to 2016, and He saw my face. And your’s. That’s why He did what He did. He died so we could be forgiven.

Charles Wesley wrote a hymn the speaks to me every time I hear it. In it he asks a question: Can it really be that Jesus Himself shed His blood for me, the one who cause His pain in the first place?

The angels can’t even understand the depth of love that put the Immortal God on the cross to die. Jesus left heaven, took on mortality, and emptied Himself of everything except His love for me. And it’s by His grace that forgiveness found me.

It was like I was imprisoned by sin, chained to desires and actions that caused me pain. But I met Jesus, and those chains fell off, my heart was free. I’m alive in Him. I’m clothed in His righteousness. I got up off my knees a free woman, and followed Jesus.

Now I don’t fear judgment. Jesus, His righteousness is mine. I can boldly approach the God of the Universe, washed clean by Jesus’ blood. And I can claim the Son of God as my own!

Amazing love! How can it be, that You… my God… should die for me?

I am humbled. I am grateful. I love my Savior!

November 2 – Not The Same

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Luke 18:15-19:48

Isn’t it amazing how much Zaccheus changed after his encounter with the Savior? Tax collectors weren’t really known for their honesty. And Zaccheus was the chief tax collector. After meeting Jesus, Zaccheus realized his sin and told Jesus he was going straight. He was going to reimburse with interest, the people he had cheated.

Zaccheus was saved that day. Here’s what I love about this account. 19:10 says, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost.”

Do you know God is actively seeking for you, to save you? If you have yet to accept his salvation, don’t think He’s not paying attention, or that He’s not interested in you. He’s very interested. He’s paying close attention to every thought, every word, every action. He loves you, He calls out to you, He sends signs, performs miracles, nudges you, and pursues you with the intense purpose of breaking you down until you come to Him. He wants to forgive you and lavish you with love, joy, peace… Himself, forever!

To those of you who have gone to Him and received His grace, has that encounter changed you? It ought to. Once you’ve answered His call, like Zaccheus, nothing is the same as before.

October 31 – A Ticket To Heaven

Matthew 19, Mark 10

The rich young man wanted to be sure he was going to heaven. So he asked Jesus to tell him how. Jesus answered:

Don’t murder anyone. Don’t commit adultery. Don’t steal or lie. Don’t defraud anyone, and honor your parents.

Check. Check. And check.

“Got that covered,” the young man said. “Anything else?”

I love how Mark 10:21 puts it. Jesus felt a love for this guy. He didn’t condemn him or correct his view of himself, even though Jesus could see right into this young man’s heart and see his sin. Jesus threw out the ultimate test for him: sell everything you have, give it to the poor, and follow Me.

Some might look at Jesus’ response as being in support of a works-based salvation. Please don’t base your faith on one passage of Scripture.

The other day, as I read Luke 14 about the cost of being a disciple of Jesus, it became plain to me that following Jesus costs everything. And, being that Jesus Himself said He is the only way to the Father, going to heaven involves going through Him, which means surrounding everything to Him.

I believe when Jesus gave the young man that checklist of requirements for gaining heaven, He wanted the young man to see that he had already forfeited his ticket. He may have not murdered anyone. But can anyone honestly say they have NEVER lied, or that they ALWAYS honor their parents? (Come on. I was a teenager once, and so were you). I believe Jesus wanted the young man to see his need of the Savior.

But he didn’t. Instead, he felt pretty self-righteous. Jesus said it’s hard for people like that, those who are rich in the things of this world, those who are self-sufficient, to enter heaven, because either they don’t see the need to ask forgiveness, or they hold out on God. They don’t surrender themselves completely to Him.

And that’s what He requires. Don’t mistake this passage for a honey-do list. There is no way to earn your salvation which will result in eternal life with the Father in heaven. You are a sinner. You need the Savior.

Jesus has already paid the price of admission for you. He went to the cross so that He could forgive you when you ask Him to. He is ready and eager to hand you the ticket to heaven that He bought for you. Because, as He said:

All things are possible with God.

Even saving the likes of you and me.

October 16 – Taking Up Your Cross

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Matthew 9-10

What does it mean to take up your cross and follow Jesus? It certainly does not mean fashioning a big old cross out of lumber and carting it on your shoulders up a hill. It doesn’t mean putting up with a meddling mother-in-law or demanding boss. It doesn’t even mean accepting an illness like Paul’s thorn-in-the-flesh.

Jesus said those words after saying He did not come into the world to bring peace, but a sword. He said them after warning us that if we love anyone more than we love Him, we aren’t worthy of Him.

Yes, the cross Jesus carried to His execution was heavy, a cumbersome burden. It was hard to drag that thing, especially in Jesus’ condition. But that’s not the cross Jesus was talking about here.

The cross was Jesus’ mission. It had been His focus every day of His life. It represents obedience as well as love, submission as well as action, life as well as death.

Jesus is asking us to take up His mission which is the salvation of every living soul. Talk about Jesus. Share the Gospel. Even if it’s not comfortable or easy to do. Even if it costs us our lives.

October 6 – My Food

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John 2-4

Jesus’ disciples went to get him something to eat. The fact that they “urge” Him to eat makes me believe Jesus was so intent on doing what He came to do, He might not have taken time for meals. His disciples knew he needed to eat.

I know, myself, that if I am focused on a task at hand, eating is the last thing on my mind. Jesus said something that made me stop and think.

He said, “My food, is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.” (4:34)

Food. That which nourishes and strengthens, that which is necessary for life itself, that which is pleasant and anticipated. Something you just can’t do without.

Is that how I view my service to God, sharing the Gospel, sowing seed that leads to repentance? Is representing Jesus to a lost world as necessary to me as filling my belly?

It was that to Jesus. It ought to be in me.