Month: March 2022

A Deepening Dependence on Christ

1 Thessalonians 5:23
Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.

Once we are washed clean by the blood of Our Savior, the Holy Spirit dwells within us to assist us in our journey toward complete sanctification. We will never reach complete sanctification in this life. Our full transformation is reserved for the time when we stand in the presence of God in His throne of glory and hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant”.

Until that time, the Holy Spirit will take us through an intense narrowing of our interests. Less and less will the things of the world call us. More and more we will hear the voice of Our Savior as we press toward complete holiness.

Through it all, we are sure to fail from time to time. But we can be confident by virtue of the faith and promises given to us by Our Creator that He will do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. He will provide an ever flowing fountain of grace that will enlighten us, encourage us, strengthen us and prepare us to stand before Him without spot or wrinkle.

Let us yield to all that God is doing to lead us into rich encounters with His Son. Let us ask the Holy Spirit’s help in ushering us into a new season in which we seek a new brokenness and a deeper dependence upon Him in all that we do. Let us learn to put the heart of Jesus on the top of every agenda that we have.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for making us blameless and holy in Your sight. We bless the name of Jesus who washes away all of our sins. We live our lives full of thanksgiving for the constant presence of the Holy Spirit. We pray for the grace to walk in the holiness that has been given to us through Our Savior. May we learn to ignore the world’s agenda and to surrender completely to the way, the truth and the life that is Your Son, Jesus. May we leave the green grass of earth to rest forever in the pasture of the Lamb. We ask all this things in the Holy Name of Jesus Christ.

Drawing on the Strength of God

Isaiah 40:28
Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.

If we find ourselves knee deep in doubt about our service to God or find ourselves overwhelmed by our circumstances, it would be good for us to listen to Isaiah. Isaiah reminds us that we serve an everlasting God who created all things, who possesses depths of understanding that exceeds anything that we can imagine and who is never weak nor weary when it comes to meeting our needs.

Whenever we do the work of the Lord, we are like broken bread and poured out wine. We are providing nourishment to those around us. It does not matter what we are doing. We may be serving. We may be giving. We may be praying. Whatever it is that we are doing for others can drain us to the point of exhaustion. When the body is physically or emotionally drained, the spirit can also be exhausted. To keep up our strength, we must insure that we are seeking our power from the One who never wearies. Our affections must be with Him and not with the world.

Whenever we draw on His strength to carry us through our trials, we are privileged to draw on His infinite wisdom. He is never at a loss to provide the perfect counsel to carry us through to a place of comfort. Our focus must be on Him and not on our problems.

No matter how we may be serving Him, no matter how challenged we may be in our service or in life in general, we should always be inspired and filled with confidence that we rest in His hands. There is not a single need that we have that escapes His attention. He is never weary in attending to the countless needs of His children.

Let us gather our strength from the One who never tires. Let us draw our wisdom from the One with a depth of understanding that is incomprehensible to us. Let us seek the One who created us and is our ever sufficient supply.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You that our every need is known to You and that You never weary in hearing and responding to our pleas. We rejoice in knowing that Your response to our needs is always perfect and always perfectly timed for our good and for the good of Your kingdom. We pray, Father, for the grace to never lose faith in Your faithfulness as Our Provider. We ask that you show us how to draw on the endless reservoir of the Holy Spirit within us to provide our strength. May our ears be opened so that we hear the urgings of the Holy Spirit as we humbly submit to the process of overcoming our unbelief, our pride and our self-confidence. We ask all these things in the name of our Wonderful Counselor, Jesus Christ.

Letting Almighty God Settle Our Issues

Luke 24:21
But we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.

For the two men on the road to Emmaus, dejection had set in. They had heard the reports that Jesus had risen from the grave and was alive, but they were perplexed as to why Israel had not been redeemed. Their expectation was of a redemption of a temporal kind – a redemption that would free Israel from bondage to Rome. Jesus reproved them for the weakness in their faith and their lack of understanding of the prophetic Scripture.

For all of us that have grown up in an era where instant gratification has become the norm, waiting on the Lord to answer our prayers is one of the most difficult challenges that we face. We often feel dejected, perhaps even feel rejected, when we have not seen our prayers answered quickly or in a manner that we wished for. We suffer the same weakness as the men on the road to Emmaus. We are weak in our faith and we lack understanding of how God intends to rule and reign in our lives. We tend to seek things from the hand of God without fully seeking the presence of God in our lives.

Let us learn from the men on the way to Emmaus. Let us refuse to have our hopes dashed because God’s work in our lives does not meet our expectations of immediate gratification. Let us separate ourselves from our old ways of living in the flesh and not in the spirit. Let us learn to move away from dealing with the issues of our day through our own strength alone. Let us move to higher ground where we rely on Almighty God to settle our issues. Let us graduate to the highest ground where we seek the continual presence and impact of Our Savior in our lives and we experience the anointing of living in the Spirit and not in the flesh.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to live among us so that we could learn about who You are. We praise the name of Jesus for making it possible for us to enter into Your presence here on earth and forever in Your eternal kingdom. We pray, Father, that You open our eyes so that we can see You in all the commonplace things that surround us. We call upon Your Holy Spirit to give us the strength to overcome the depression and oppression that we find in our world. May we always be mindful of all that is promised to us because of the price that was paid by Your Son, Jesus. May the world see our joy as we live in Your constant presence. We ask all these things in the name of Our Lord and Our King, Jesus Christ.

The Ultimate Win-Win Situation

Philippians 1:21
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Paul knew and appreciated something that all Christians should hold dear. We are in a win-win situation. Having been washed clean by the blood of Our Savior, when we die we will be delivered from all the tribulations of life. We will be free of all diseases and free from any concerns about worldly things. We will leave behind forever all sin, all unbelief, all doubts and all fears. We will be absolutely free from the temptations of Satan. More importantly, the benefit of what we gain will be far greater than what we are freed from. We will be in the presence of Almighty God. We will experience continuous communion with Our Savior. We will receive eternal places of rest in the Kingdom of God. We will live in constant light, love, joy, peace and comfort. We will be surrounded by endless pleasure.

If we continue in life, we can confidently meet every affliction, every disappointment, every oppression and every persecution in joy because we are certain of our glorious victory over death. Our certainty of our victory over death will also allow us to enjoy our time on earth without the shadow of death haunting us. While the world struggles when facing death, the followers of Jesus are able to face their death beds with an exuberance that the world cannot understand. We know that Our Savior is waiting to receive us and that He has prepared a place for us that is free from all misery and weakness.

Let us live with the fullness of Christ in our lives. Let each one of our remaining days on earth serve as living testimony to Our Eternal King. Let us proclaim to the world all that He promises us here on earth and in heaven. Let our joy be the reason that those around us seek a relationship with Our Redeemer.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the eternal inheritance that You have set aside for us. We praise the name of Jesus who secured our place with You for all eternity. We rejoice in knowing that only a wisp of time separates us from claiming all the rights of the heirs of Your kingdom. As we wait for that time of glory, we pray that You equip us to be Your laborers in these end days. We ask that You arm us against the attacks of the enemy as we help bring the church to completion. May we show the world the living Christ that is within us. We pray these things in the name of our waiting Savior, Jesus Christ.

Taking Up the Work of Jesus

John 21:17
He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep”.

If Jesus had asked any of us the same question that He asked Peter, surely our response would have been similar. “Of course, I love You Jesus,” is a refrain that each of us would speak very easily and we would believe fully in our sincerity. Yet aren’t we all a bit like Peter? Our spoken proclamation of love does not necessarily measure up to our proven love.

Peter, believing his love for Jesus was obvious to Jesus, became frustrated. So Peter challenged Jesus, saying, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus’ response to Peter’s challenge was essentially, “Prove it.”

Jesus challenges each of us as well to feed His sheep. He calls us to provide appropriate nourishment to the young lambs and encouragement to the mature members of the flock. He calls us to go after any that leave the flock until they are found and brought back under the protection of the Good Shepherd.

Jesus calls on each of us who love Him to go out and do the work that He was doing. He tended to all of the needs of the people, all the way to the Cross, because of His love for His Father. Jesus expects us to take up His work, to take up our cross, because of our love for Him.

Let us go out into the world and join Jesus in the work that He would be doing for His Father in heaven if He were still on earth. Let us allow Him to do His work through us. Let us show the world His love as we respond to His question, “Do you love Me?”

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to tend to our every need, especially our need to be freed from the sin that separates us from You. In response to Your loving kindness, mercy and grace, we surrender our lives to You. We ask that You show us the cross that You have prepared for us. We pray, Lord, that You instruct us in the way that we should go as we join Your Son in His work. May Your Holy Spirit guide us and strengthen us for the journey. Father, we pray that You release Your power through us so that others may discover the Way of the Cross. We ask all these things in the name of the one who went to the Cross and shed His blood for us, Jesus Christ.

Expressing Love Through Small Sacrifices

1 John 3:16
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.

The life of Jesus Christ was the epitome of servanthood. He poured Himself out upon the needs of the people, especially the need for salvation from sin. He was willing to be the sacrificial lamb. He was willing to be the door mat under people’s feet. He sought no recognition. He sought to show us what love is. He is the precious Lamb of God. He is love.

More than that, Jesus is the perfect model of love. He represents the ideal standard for us to imitate. As His disciples, we are called to be His bondservants. We are called to serve the will of Our Master. We are called to serve the world as He served the world, sacrificing all that we are and all that we have for the good of all mankind and for the honor and glory of the Father. We are to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. And like Jesus, we must extend ourselves on behalf of others whether or not they merit our services.

Let us define our lives by the continuous extension of ourselves to others. Let the accumulation of our smiles for the downhearted, our encouraging words for the downtrodden and our charitable services for those who are down and out be the ultimate measure of our sacrifice for our brothers and sisters. Let the accumulation of our small sacrifices and acts of love be for the honor and glory of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to be the blood sacrifice required to atone for the sins of all mankind. We praise the name of the Precious Lamb of God who gave His life so that we may all have eternal life with You, Father. We pray that the Holy Spirit will take us to the foot of the Cross to seek a life of service to all men. We pray that the Holy Spirit will teach us how to minister in love to those around us just as Jesus did. We ask, Lord, that you provide the grace that we need to forsake the need for recognition, except in Your eyes. We ask all these things in the holy and mighty name of Our Servant King, Jesus Christ.

Our New Lives in Christ

2 Corinthians 5:14
Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.

Had Jesus Christ not died for us, we would be spiritually dead and ruined. We would be slaves to our sin and we would have no power to deliver ourselves from the miserable state that we would be in.

But, indeed, Christ did die for us, so that we could all die to sin and self. As we receive Jesus as Our Savior, we are freed from a spiritually dead life. We are freed to live for Our Redeemer. It is through Christ’s love that we are able to live as Our Redeemer lived in the perfect will of the Father.

It is the love of our beloved, Jesus Christ, that shines forth in us when we submit ourselves to be vessels of His perfect love. The love of Jesus in our lives is what allows us to show the world what living for Christ is all about. With Him and through Him, we will do more for the kingdom of God than we could ever even imagine.

Let us be certain in our faith that Jesus lives inside us today. Let us surrender to Him, giving up our old lives in the flesh and claiming our new lives in the spirit. Let us mirror His nature and His character. Let us live in the fullness of His will and plan for our lives.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the sacrifice of Your Son who died for our sins. We praise the name of Jesus for accepting Your will and plan for His life all the way to the Cross. We pray, Father, that the world will see the way, the truth and the life of Jesus through us as we leave our old lives behind in exchange for the our new lives in Christ. We ask, Lord, that the fullness of the life of Your Son, Jesus, be perfected in us. May the world know us as His disciples. We ask all these things in the name of the precious Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.

Our Fruit is Attributable to the Cross

1 Corinthians 1:17
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Paul served the emerging church in a number of ways, but he understood that God had called him and equipped him specifically to preach the Good News through the power of the Cross. Paul teaches us that, as we serve our churches and communities, it is important that we rely on the Holy Spirit to help us to find out what God is specifically calling us to do in service to His Kingdom. We need to discover how we can share the power of the Cross in the world around us. As we discover our role in God’s kingdom on earth, we should be aware of several important aspects of our calling.

  • No role is too big, nor is any role too small, when we are doing what Our Creator called us to do.
  • When we find our calling, we will recognize it because we will have the same passion for our calling that Paul had for his calling.
  • The fruit that we bear in our calling will be the result of the supernatural work of God released through the Cross. The fruit will not be attributable to us.

Paul made it clear to his audience that the redemptive power of the Cross did not rely on anything that he did, nor would it rely on anything that they did or said. We learn from Paul that it is not our enticing words or the strength of our presentation that wins hearts. We are simply vessels of the divine truth of God’s mercy on all of us. We should never consider ourselves to be the reason that a soul came to Christ. The redemptive process is totally reliant on the supernatural work of Jesus Christ on the Cross.

Let us serve from the foot of the Cross. Let us guard against taking any credit for the salvation of another. Let us rejoice in the power of the supernatural, redemptive work of the Cross. Let us give all the glory to God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You that You equip us to do Your work. We praise You for allowing us to participate in the work of redemption made possible by the sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus. We pray, Lord, that You will open our eyes so that we can see the unique ways that You have endowed us to serve You. We pray that Your Holy Spirit will prepare our hearts so that we may serve You as humble vessels of Your divine, redemptive power. We pray all these things in the name of Our Lord of the Cross, Jesus Christ.

Delight in Jesus as He Delights in Us

Zephaniah 3:17
The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

Who is Our Lord? Surely this is a question we must all ask before we can decide to surrender our lives to Him for all eternity. With the question unanswered, it is easy to understand why we struggle to pick up our crosses to follow Jesus. How can we sacrifice so much for someone we do not know well?

This one simple passage from Zephaniah provides all we need to know about the character and the heartbeat of Jesus Christ. Zephaniah prophesied about the mighty one who was coming to save us from destruction. Zephaniah told of how He would dwell within us. And Zephaniah emphasized how He would rejoice over us in gladness and bring us eternal comfort through His love for us. Zephaniah added that His joy would be so great that He would celebrate over us with song.

Let us strive to know Our Savior and delight in Him as He delights in us. Let us learn to trust Him completely with our lives. Let us learn to celebrate Him as He celebrates us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son to save us from eternal destruction. We bless the name of Jesus who comes to dwell within us when we receive Him as Our Savior. We pray, Lord, that the Holy Spirit will reveal to us the perfection in the character of Your Son. May the Holy Spirit show us how Your Son’s heart beats for us. May the depth of our understanding lead us to pick up our crosses and completely surrender to the fullness of a life in Christ. We rejoice in knowing that we will serve You day after day without end. May we join You in the celebration of life. We ask all these things in the name of the One who rejoices over us in gladness, Jesus Christ.

Source of Holiness and Happiness

John 14:16
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,

Belief in the ministry of the Holy Spirit is core to the life of a Christian. The Holy Spirit is a gift bestowed on the disciples of Jesus Christ that is not available to the world at large. The Holy Spirit is the differentiator in the lives of those who are believers. Nothing of kingdom significance is possible on this earth without the presence of the Holy Spirit. As believers, the Holy Spirit is our source of holiness and happiness. It is only through the work of the Holy Spirit that believers are able to fulfill their God-given calling in life.

One of the tragic misunderstandings of many Christians is thinking of the Holy Spirit as a force, a power, but not as a person. Jesus Christ paid a great price for us to have His Spirit within us. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit seeks to have a very personal relationship with each of us. The Holy Spirit longs to be our counselor on all issues big and small. The Holy Spirit stands ready to be our advocate in heaven and our defender against Satan. The Holy Spirit monitors everything that we do and whispers to us to keep us on our course of sanctification. And yes, the Holy Spirit will not hesitate to rebuke us harshly if we do not listen to His quiet urgings. Through it all, the Holy Spirit is forever with us to give us peace, comfort and strength in all of the trials of our lives.

Let us commit today to developing a deep, personal relationship with our Helper. Let us seek His instruction, His guidance, His comfort and His strength. Let us rejoice in knowing that He is our constant and unfailing companion.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing the ever present Spirit of Your Son, Jesus in our lives. We exalt the name of Your Son for giving His life so that we could have a personal advocate, intercessor, counselor and protector who never leaves us. We rejoice in knowing that the Holy Spirit is our source of holiness, happiness, comfort and strength throughout our lives. We humbly submit to His whispers and urgings. We pray that we will surrender to His perfect instruction. We ask that we may develop a deep and mature personal relationship with our ever present Lord. We ask all these things in the name of the One who asked the Father to provide Our Helper, Jesus Christ.