Isaiah 40:27-28 8/29/2023*

“Why do you complain, Jacob?  Why do you say, Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? Do you not know?  Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. ...”

Why do I complain?... Why am I quick to embrace self-pity, assuming God has abandoned me? Did God say I would never face struggles in this world?  No... He said for me to be strong and courageous because I would never face them alone.

We all want strength… but not weariness.  We want power, without battling through weakness.  We embrace soaring like eagles but don’t want to walk without fainting… In other words, we want the benefit of the struggle without struggling. We want spiritual muscle but lack the courage to work out.

What has caused us to become so soft? … Have we grown too comfortable here?  Have we become fair weather Christians? 

Rhett Walker has a song called “Good to me”… the chorus says, “ I will look this storm in the eye… I won’t fear for you’re on my side. My first hope, my last word now and forever…let it rain, let it pour, I will sing… all you’ve ever been, is good to me”.  Is that my attitude when I face storms?  Do I walk in faith when it’s raining, or just talk about trust when the sun’s shining?

This verse asks an important question that I need to answer… “Do I not know?  Have I not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.” How can I lack courage when I serve a God like that? How can I not face storms head on? 

There are hurricanes in this life… but The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all things.  That means I can lean into the storm … I can face it with confidence, knowing all things work together for good when I love Him and am called according to His purpose… 

It’s time I traded in my complaining for courage … I serve the everlasting God, and all He’s ever been, is good to me.

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.” - C. S. Lewis

2 Peter 2:1...3 8/22/2023*

“But false prophets also appeared among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, …. Many will follow their indecent behavior, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned…. their judgment from long ago is not idle…”

The lies and false teachings we are experiencing in our society today are nothing new. God warned us about this 2000 years ago. Our anxious hand wringing is not necessary. God, long ago, planned His response.

To see an illustration of God as the Warrior God of armies just read scripture about false prophets. Lying about God’s plan to rescue His children from sin is a guaranteed way to experience the wrath of God. The intelligent response to that is to make sure you are not a false messenger.

We carry a precious commodity within us… the “good news” of Jesus Christ.  We must handle it correctly.  Not so people will love us – but because God has already judged those who handle it frivolously. 

Tommy Nelson used to say that when you hear a sermon, “your eyes should narrow”.  Every detail of the Gospel is precise and must be handled carefully. We must validate that what comes out of any preacher’s mouth lines up exactly with what God wrote in His Word. 

Scripture is not written for our approval but for our obedience.  Don’t waste time trying to bend the Bible to fit your lifestyle. - Bend your life to fit the Bible. 

Don’t be shocked at all the destructive heresies out there today. Remember that in the garden the serpent’s initial strategy wasn’t to get Adam and Eve to necessarily sin, his first goal was to simply get them to question God’s word. 

The enemy’s plan has not changed. The inerrant Word of God must be your true north, or you will wander aimlessly. When you hear someone questioning the veracity of a passage of scripture be careful, you are in the company of a false teacher whose judgement is eminent. 

God has clearly written our marching order so tenaciously follow every directive in the inerrant Word of God… Walk softly and carry a big bible. 

“Biblical inerrancy was not only affirmed unambiguously by Jesus Christ, but is foundational to our firm reliance on God’s promises and revelations contained in the Bible.” - David Limbaugh

John 15:22 8/15/2023*

 “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.”

Jesus says the words He has spoken will be the evidence that will convict unbelievers. They have been told the truth and now their sin is without excuse.  But if that is true of unbelievers how much more should it apply to me?

I run to the cross for deliverance, I am saved by faith alone.  But saving faith is seldom alone, and its power should change me.  The Cross provides salvation, but this verse implies that knowledge of the Cross increases my responsibility to live righteously. 

The devil was a believer, but not a Christian… and I must know the difference.  God has defined sin in His word, and He has freed me from its control. I am no longer a slave to sin, so my sinfulness is now a choice.  

Each day I decide who I will follow…  If I put myself on the throne, I will focus on my freedom and deliverance. If God is on the throne I will focus on righteousness. 

Make no mistake, God’s focus is on righteousness and that is where He expects mine to be as well. Salvation is not a minor adjustment… it is a 180 degree turn that produces dramatic changes in my life.

I am saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone… but Jesus has now become not just my Savior but my Lord as well. 

My goal is to reflect the love of Christ and to live free from the entanglement of the sin that used to control me. I still live in a broken world and will need God’s grace to cover me. But that is not a license to ignore the price paid for my freedom from the heinous power that used to govern my life. 

I am free… It makes no sense to sit in an open cell and put the chains back on... I am a child of the King and Today I must choose to run from sin and pursue righteousness. That is why Jesus came… to make me a new creation who longs for righteousness and a relationship with Him.

“It is not enough to be delivered from sin; it is enough to be delivered to righteousness.” - Edwin Louis Cole

Isaiah 36:21 8/8/2023*

“But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, “Do not answer him.”

The commander of the mighty Assyrian army is “talking trash” to the Jews who are on the wall guarding their city. And he’s speaking in their language to frighten them. Yet the people just sit there and look at him. 

I imagine this concerned the commander.  It is informative when people heatedly argue with you… it is also informative when they don’t honor your comments with a response… Like the little dog that barks and barks as compared to the pit bull that just looks at you and confidently waits for you to come into his yard. Which one are you? ...How do you respond when faced with taunts from the enemy?  Do you exude confidence, or uncertainty and agitation? 

The one thing you never see in scripture is God panicking... In fact, you never see Him being surprised.  Can we live in that confidence?  Can we sit on the wall surrounded by the enemy, secure and silent in the power of the King we serve? 

How differently would the world view the church today if we refused to join in their panic?  It wouldn’t be sermons, music, or programs that attracted people… it would be our peaceful confidence that would draw them like moths to a flame. 

So, before you go out today and angrily argue with your “opponents” consider your motivation for quarreling… Is it because of your own anxiety that you need to win the debate?… or are you lovingly trying to give them truth and relieve their fears? 

I suggest that as they tell you their theories of devastation that you look past the surface and see the anxiety that drives their lives.  Your theory is not going to replace theirs… So, either answer in love, or don’t answer at all. 

Fear doesn’t come from God (2 Timothy 1:7) so just let your peace and confidence in the Lord get their attention… Because in every circumstance only faith in the Father can grant sustainable peace. Sometimes it is best to just sit on the wall in silence and let God respond in His own time.

“You do not know the gospel, dear friends, if you have not obtained peace through it; peace is the juice, the essence, the soul of the gospel.” - Charles Spurgeon

Matthew 23:11 8/1/2023*

“The greatest among you will be your servant.”

Jesus makes this statement after condemning the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the day. The rest of the chapter discusses how dangerous it is to be a pretender in the house of God.

Does that concern you?... It does me. 

When Christ speaks to sinners, He tells them to repent, change their lives, and follow Him. But in this chapter Jesus delivers a searing reprimand to people who look a lot like me. People who go to the temple often and speak as though they know God. 

I don’t want to be a man who needs reprimanding, and verse 11 is the litmus test of my authenticity… It comes down to whether or not I am a servant. 

This dovetails with 1st Corinthians which declares that the value of what I do is determined by my motives. When I speak, do I speak because I love spreading the gospel… or do I desire the spotlight? Do I write this blog to help others, or to get comments and clicks? 

Self-centeredness is a slippery slope, and Jesus says it is critical not to slide down it. Take a hard look in the mirror this morning: What motivates what you will do today?… 

Motivation can be the difference between an offering and an abomination. The difference in giving a drink to a thirsty child because you love them… or doing it because people are watching, cannot be overstated. One is an act of worship, the other self-promotion. 

Being a servant is not a complicated theological concept… you can’t say you don’t understand what Jesus means … He is telling you to love others – and do something about it – or quit calling yourself His follower. If you think that sounds harsh, read what Jesus says in the rest of this chapter. He is not recruiting disciples. He is outlining the cost to be one. 

The first commandment is to have no other god… and that includes yourself. You will either seek to be served or seek to serve others.

What’s inside your heart will come out when jostled. What will splash on those around you today? A self-centeredness that demands to be served and recognized… or a love for others that will make you a servant?

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” – MLK, Jr.