Reading in Isaiah 30 recently, I came across a situation we can all relate to. Hearing that the Assyrian army was marching to Jerusalem, most of its residents made plans to flee to Egypt for help. In verse 15, the Lord revealed to them their only reliable option: “For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.” To put it simply, God told them that by turning back to Him from their idolatrous ways and by staying put and trusting in Him, they would be saved. They did not and chose to go seek help in Egypt anyway. Result: they paid a very heavy price for it. Today, this scenario is repeated when Christians are either in the midst of or facing an impending storm. We often want to jump ahead of God and seek help from another source, but the only reliable option for God’s people then is the one we have today. We must wait and trust Him, especially in important decisions. He knows our cares, worries, and fears and will act on our behalf at the right time and save us.
God’s promise for today: (Isaiah 40:31) “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
Note: I have been pressed for time these last few days so today I offered you a meditation I wrote for our church bulletin in 2006. I hope it blessed you nonetheless.
These words which Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians should provoke in us much thought and meditation: “And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” (1 Cor. 2:1-2) Paul clearly stated with these words that He was determined to keep his message to the Corinthians as simple as he could and that he would not focus on anything else other than the cross and crucifixion of Christ. He was not going to embellish his message with flowery words of expression. As Jesus Himself would do, Paul wanted the message of Christ’s salvation by way of the cross to be simple enough so that even children would understand it. The truth is that, because the message is simple, children are usually quicker to grasp and understand it than adults.
The topics I can teach, preach, or write about are endless but this declaration of Paul serves as a reminder to all true ministers of the gospel that we can’t stray too far from it’s central theme, the cross of Christ. It is not mere coincidence that the cross is indeed the center of the gospel message. Without the cross of Christ, there would be no salvation, our lives would be meaningless, and we would have no hope. It is ironic that the cross, a symbol of cruelty, torture, and pain, has become, to countless of God’s children around the world, the thing they cherish the most. Knowing that to be true, George Bennard included this line in one of the most beloved hymns the world has ever known: [So I'll cherish the old rugged cross / Till my trophies at last I lay down / I will cling to the old rugged cross / And exchange it some day for a crown.]
Ever since Christ came into my life, “The Old Rugged Cross” has meant so much to me and I confess that even today, almost fifty years later, I have a hard time trying to sing it. Remember the movie line “you had me at hello”? Well, the Old Rugged Cross does the same to me. I break up as soon as I hear: “On a hill far away.” Every day, we see people wear crosses on a necklace or in their apparel. Every time I do, I am aware that not everybody wears them for the same reason. Even so, and God knows who they are, many wear them because they indeed cherish the cross of Christ. What does the cross mean to you?
God’s word for today: (Galatians 6:14) “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
A well known pastor was flying home after attending a conference. Right before the plane took off, he noticed this lady who was rushing in and just happened to take the seat next to him. She was wearing sunglasses, a baggy cap which was pulled down low, a baggy sweater, and a bright orange sweat suit. He was tired, so as soon she sat down next to him, he decided to take a snooze. When he woke up and noticed the lady sitting next to him, he was shocked at what he saw. Under the frumpy attire was this amazingly beautiful young woman. As it turned out, she was an actress who was traveling incognito.
The gospel is like that. It is a beautiful thing but we can either adorn it or make it unattractive to others. In his letter to Titus, Paul gave him this instruction: “Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things; not answering again; not purloining, but shewing all good fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things. (Titus 2:9-10) The NIV says it this way: “so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” The point is that is that we can adorn our life in Christ or make it unattractive to others by the way we conduct ourselves.
As in the case of the pretty young lady in the plane, we can do the same by the way we dress. To be sure, our salvation does not depend on the way we dress but the bible does say that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and according to I Corinthians 6:20, we are to glorify God in our body as well as in our spirit. We often go to great lengths to pretty up our cars, homes, lawns, etc. Why, then, can’t we make that kind of effort to make ourselves look as good as we can? The lady in the plane had a reason for “dressing down.” She obviously wanted to avoid making a scene. If she had been on an awards show walking the red carpet, on the other hand, you can bet she would do the opposite. Do God’s children have a good reason to “dress down?” I repeat: we can adorn the gospel by the way we dress. I am not suggesting we over dress but I am saying that if we are the children of God, the better we look, the better the gospel looks to others. I can’t speak for everybody, but as far as “dressing up” is concerned, some of us need all the help we can get. Perfume, soap, shaving lotion, deodorant, hair products, toothpaste, and mouthwash can be a great help too. Don’t hide the better looking you.
God’s word for today: (Isaiah 61:10) “I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
Reading today’s title, some of you may have thought I’ll be writing about sharing the gospel, something I try to do from time to time. No, today I want to encourage you to get into the habit of sharing the good things that happen in your lives. I heard this story/joke many years ago on several occasions. Perhaps, some of you have heard it too. It is the story of the vendor who was selling his live shrimp in a village market. He had five or six canisters of shrimp from different parts of the world and each was covered with a heavy linen cloth, except one. When someone asked him why one of the canisters was open, he replied: “Oh, those are the Mexican shrimp. I don’t need to cover them. You see, when one of them tries to climb to the top, the rest of them pull it back down.” The joke was an attempt to portray people in our culture as envious of one another, never wanting for any of our own to climb the ladder of success. Nevertheless, we’ve all come to know that people everywhere are basically the same. They all have good folks and bad ones.
In back-to-back parables in the 15th Chapter of Luke, Jesus told two stories which were practically the same in nature. One involved a man who lost one of his sheep and the other about a woman who lost one of her valuable silver coins. When they were found, both of them called their friends and neighbors to come and rejoice with them. The parables rightfully imply that those who are near and dear to us will rejoice with us any time we are met with good fortune. It is not in line with the character of God’s children to be jealous or envious of one another. In describing genuine love, Paul wrote that “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” (1 Corinthians 13:4) On the other hand, James wrote: “For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.” (James 3:16) Paul reminded the Corinthians that God is not the author of confusion, clearly implying the He is a God of order. (See 1 Cor. 14:33) Therefore, since envy and selfish ambition are a sign of disorder, God can’t be in it. Any child of God who still has a tendency to be jealous or envious, is either out of the will of God or else has not matured in the Lord. Paul asserted that God’s children are members of the same body. When one suffers, every other member suffers and when one is honored, every other member rejoices with it. (See I Cor. 12:26)
If you have met with good fortune, or God has done something marvelous in your life, or He has answered one of your special petitions, or met your most pressing need, I urge you to share the good news with those who are near and dear to you so they can rejoice with you. If you don’t, you will be robbing them of the blessing.
God’s word for today (Romans 12:15) “Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.”
I want to share with you today the thoughts the Lord gave me as I read these verses in the 30th Chapter of Proverbs this morning: [Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches—Feed me with the food allotted to me; Lest I be full and deny You, And say, “Who is the Lord?” Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God.] (7-9) Besides me, I think that many of you have the same mindset as the writer of this proverb, Agur, at least as it relates to money. We don’t want to have it all, just enough of it to supply the needs for ourselves and our families.
Agur knew that those who are full (or rich) are going to think they don’t need God, at least while they are full. I suspect many of you know people just like that, those who, because they have everything they want, don’t see or feel a need for God in their lives. That is why Agur thought, “I don’t ever want to get to that place.” On the other side of the picture, he felt that if he was poor and needy, he could have been tempted to steal, dishonoring his God in the process.
Money, like so many other things in life, can either help or harm people. Just as it can be used to help many who are in need, it can also be the reason someone kills or dies for it. In the parable of the sower, Jesus said: “The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.” (Matthew 13:22) Simply put, The Word of God has little effect on anybody who places more value and importance on money and wealth.
The bible says in 1 Timothy 6:10 that “the love of money is the root of all evil.” The question then is “How do I know if I’m in danger of loving money more than I should.” This is my opinion, so you don’t have to agree with me: I love money more than I should when I have to check every receipt, argue with others or lose friends over it, have my relationship with others strained because of it, and never forget when somebody owes me money. On the other hand, I don’t love money if I give a lot of it away, or find it easy to buy things for others, or pay someone’s restaurant tab, or never worry about the price of something I just bought for myself or someone else, just to name a few. How about you?
One more thing: I don’t know whose idea it was but I sure am glad that these words appear on all US currency: “In God we trust.” To me, it is like the coin or bill itself is reminding us of who and what is really more important in our lives.
God’s word for today: (Matthew 6:25) “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”
Many years ago, my wife and I used to see the programs of a well known TV preacher. Without a doubt, he was one of our favorites and we would watch his shows every time. In time, I began to notice a difference in his preaching. He began to be overly judgmental and demonstrated more intolerance with each new show. Shortly thereafter, I stopped seeing his programs altogether and remember remarking to my wife: “I sincerely believe that _________ is headed for an ugly fall. As we suspected, he suffered a terrible fall not too long afterwards and we found out later that other ministers had unsuccessfully written to him warning him to be careful. It seemed pretty apparent to us that this well known man of God, even in his preaching, had begun to venture out into dangerous and unfamiliar territory, ignoring the pleas of many of his friends to come back.
I was amused recently when I read an article concerning a debate about the moral of the children’s story of Humpty Dumpty. To begin with, I always thought it was just intended to be a riddle or maybe a poem for children and didn't agree with any of the goofy opinions given. However, as I pondered about their many answers, for whatever reason, my thoughts went back to the preacher I just mentioned. I thought that if Humpty Dumpty was really an egg, as most people believe, he had no reason whatsoever to climb up and sit on a wall. In other words, he shouldn’t have gone there. Likewise, any child of God, including His servants, has no business venturing into places where he or she doesn’t belong.
I John 1:7 says: “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” As long as we stay close to Jesus, we will be safe but once we start straying into places where we don’t belong, we’ll lose the safety and fellowship of being in the light. Lets not forget who we are. I Thessalonians 5:5 says: “You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.” As far as the darkness is concerned, the Lord is telling us today, “Don’t go there!”
God’s word for today: (Ephesians 5:8) “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”
In David’s prayer of repentance to God, he included this eternal truth: “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.” (Psalm 51:6) A more modern bible version says it this way: “You want me to be completely truthful. So teach me wisdom.” We all have people in our lives who seem to have an answer to every question. Common sense alone should tell us that that is not possible. The only One who knows everything is God. I am not a psychologist and don’t know why people are like that. Maybe they want to appear to be knowledgeable to others or maybe they are just full of themselves. Nevertheless, God wants us all to be completely honest. It is totally acceptable if we confess from time to time that we don’t know or have an answer for a question that is asked of us.
With that in mind, I’ve been in the gospel ministry for over forty years and yet there are many bible verses I don’t fully understand. Here is one of them: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” (Genesis 1:27) One of my guesses concerning this verse is that there is a little bit of God in every human being which is one reason that, from time to time, even normally wicked people do kind things. When God was in the process of creating the earth, several times we read that He saw it and said that it was good.
I know I have done this often, perhaps you have too. I am referring to doing a certain chore or task, like working the yard for example, and after it is all done, come back and admire the work I just did. Is that not what God did in creation? However, here’s where the tricky part enters the picture: We must not think that nobody else can do as good a job as us, and we must not boast about it to others. We must always keep in mind that if it were not for the Lord helping us, we could have never accomplished what we just did. I feel slightly uneasy every time I hear someone trying to take all the credit for themselves. It happens almost every day at work or at home, even preachers do it. I’ve heard some of them say from the pulpit something like : “People, get ready. I’ve got a message today that is going to knock your socks off.” Perhaps they don’t realize that they are, in fact, robbing God of His glory. Most of the time, that fantastic sermon that was announced was not all that great in the end, probably because God was not given the glory. It is not a sin to admire the things we do, as long as we give God the glory for it. In closing, did you hear about the fellow who proudly proclaimed, “I used to be very conceited but now that I belong to Jesus, I’m probably the nicest guy you will ever meet” ? Besides chuckling a bit, I bet some of you are thinking “Hey, I know somebody like that!”
God’s word for today: (Revelation 4:11) “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, and by your will they exist and were created.”
In David’s prayer of repentance to God, he included this eternal truth: “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.” (Psalm 51:6) A more modern bible version says it this way: “You want me to be completely truthful. So teach me wisdom.” We all have people in our lives who seem to have an answer to every question. Common sense alone should tell us that that is not possible. The only One who knows everything is God. I am not a psychologist and don’t know why people are like that. Maybe they want to appear to be knowledgeable to others or maybe they are just full of themselves. Nevertheless, God wants us all to be completely honest. It is totally acceptable if we confess from time to time that we don’t know or have an answer for a question that is asked of us.
With that in mind, I’ve been in the gospel ministry for over forty years and yet there are many bible verses I don’t fully understand. Here is one of them: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” (Genesis 1:27) One of my guesses concerning this verse is that there is a little bit of God in every human being which is one reason that, from time to time, even normally wicked people do kind things. When God was in the process of creating the earth, several times we read that He saw it and said that it was good.
I know I have done this often, perhaps you have too. I am referring to doing a certain chore or task, like working the yard for example, and after it is all done, come back and admire the work I just did. Is that not what God did in creation? However, here’s where the tricky part enters the picture: We must not think that nobody else can do as good a job as us, and we must not boast about it to others. We must always keep in mind that if it were not for the Lord helping us, we could have never accomplished what we just did. I feel slightly uneasy every time I hear someone trying to take all the credit for themselves. It happens almost every day at work or at home, even preachers do it. I’ve heard some of them say from the pulpit something like : “People, get ready. I’ve got a message today that is going to knock your socks off.” Perhaps they don’t realize that they are, in fact, robbing God of His glory. Most of the time, that fantastic sermon that was announced was not all that great in the end, probably because God was not given the glory. It is not a sin to admire the things we do, as long as we give God the glory for it. In closing, did you hear about the fellow who proudly proclaimed, “I used to be very conceited but now that I belong to Jesus, I’m probably the nicest guy you will ever meet” ? Besides chuckling a bit, I bet some of you are thinking “Hey, I know somebody like that!”
God’s word for today: (Revelation 4:11) “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, and by your will they exist and were created.”
Reading in the 3rd Chapter of Colossians yesterday, this verse caught my attention: "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful."(verse 15) My first thought as I read this verse was one of surprise. To me, it was odd that the apostle would ask the people of God to do something that I thought was virtually automatic. I am referring to being thankful and having peace. As I meditated on this, and remembering what I have learned by personal experience, God’s children don’t always have peace in their hearts. Of course, that is not God’s fault. Secondly, although we can assume that all of us are naturally grateful, we are not always good at demonstrating it.
How often have we heard those who are accused of being unloving or ungrateful say that their actions, not their words, should have already proved their love or thankfulness? How often have you heard a father say something like "I’ve put food on their table and clothes on their back, provided a good education for them and have supplied all of their needs. Have I not proved by that that I love my children?" A husband may say something similar to his wife, then add: "Does that not prove that I love you?" To be fair, being unloving or unthankful is not confined to men only; women and children can be like that too.
As a pastor, I can assume that all of our members love God and are genuinely thankful. Nevertheless, only a very small percentage of them seal the deal by their words and expressions. I bet you know people who though they may be very nice, you never see them show much emotion or enthusiasm. You never hear them actually say things such as "Thank you" or "I love you."
Lets keep the general message of this verse in mind. Lets not permit anything or anyone rob us of the peace of God and lets make a sincere effort to show others, and especially God, that we truly are thankful. Our good deeds are important and very necessary but we only seal the deal when our words and expressions of love and gratitude accompany them.
God’s promise for today: (Philippians 4:7) “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Pastor Ruben preached a great message about selfishness this past Sunday in church. He cited the rich man whose story is found in the 12th Chapter of Luke who foolishly planned to store as much grain as he could so he could enjoy his retirement life in ease and pleasure. He pictured himself in his later years, eating, drinking, and being merry. He was not only wrong, he was dead wrong! God said to him: “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” (Luke 12:20)
To give additional confirmation to Pastor Ruben’s sermon, I saw a TV commercial yesterday morning where a woman starts by saying something like this: “I’m in my sixties, I’ve got a long life ahead of me.” Really, who said so? The world is filled with folks that make one plan after another for this life and never take eternity into consideration. They want to make all the money they can and don’t have any time for God in this life. They certainly don’t have time for something as silly as going to church every Sunday. Just like the man in the bible story, they only think of themselves, seldom thinking about what they can do for others. It was no different with the rich man Jesus spoke about in the 16th Chapter of Luke. In his lifetime, he never did anything for the poor beggar, Lazarus, who was at his gate every day just hoping someone would give him a few crumbs. Later when they both died, the rich man went to hell and Lazarus to paradise. This rich man too, selfishly lived for himself and when death found him, he was totally unprepared for eternity. To be fair, selfishness is not confined only to the wealthy. There are many selfish people in this world who are far from being rich.
The rich man in Luke, Chapter 12, never took this into consideration: Who made the rain that made his crops grow? Who made the soil from where they grew? Who made the seed he planted? Who caused the sun to shine? Who gave him the strength to do the work, or the wisdom to teach his workers how to do it? Lastly, who gave him his life? Is it any different for the people of today? Who has given them their jobs, careers, strength, wisdom or intelligence? You may have family members or friends in your life who are like that. Pray for them. Do what you can that they may hear the bible’s message of salvation while they are still on this side of eternity. As far as we are concerned, lets ask God to help us because if it appears in our life, selfishness is definitely something to be concerned about.
God’s word for Today: (Isaiah 55:6) “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.”
