Actions Speak Louder Than Words!

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:  Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! Philippians 2:5-8, NIV

FACT: Actions speak louder than words; they always have and they always will. Christ proved this by leaving His throne in heaven to become man and die on the cross for our sins. John 15:13, NIV, says, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Christ not only claimed to love us; He proved that love on the cross.

What about us; our words; our actions? Do you live daily the way you proclaim to others to live? Do you have a “Sunday-face” to show to the world and an “everyday-face” that is only on display for your family and friends? And most importantly, as we go about our daily lives, do we live the life we propose to live when we go before the Lord in prayer?

I pray, “Lord, my heart’s desire is to love you with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength and all my mind.” Does the Lord see me doing that; could someone who knows me well testify that they see that in my life?

I pray, “Lord, let me see others as you see them; let me love others as you love them; let me love my neighbors as I love myself.” Again, do I live my life in that manner before the Lord and before others? Could someone who knows me well verify that claim?

How about this: Paul writes in Romans 12:1, NIV, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” Am I truly offering my body as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable, and pleasing to God or do I merely say that I do? Paul says this is our reasonable; our logical; our true and proper worship. In other words, this is not above and beyond the call of duty; this is our duty!

I am convinced our strongest testimony for Christ is the way we live our lives 24 and 7. Others are always watching us; how we live; how we act and how we react; etc. Be true to your convictions and beliefs for the sake of Christ Jesus and for the sake of those around you. Jesus said, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. John 14:23-24a, NIV.

Actions speak louder than words!

God Bless!

God’s Mercy Not Our Righteousness or Beware the Sin of Pride!

Hear, Israel: You are now about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you… After the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, “The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.” No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is going to drive them out before you. It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the LORD your God will drive them out before you… Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.  Deuteronomy 9:1a, 4-5b, 6, NIV

When things are going well for us, we fall so easily into that miry pit of pride, believing, 1) how very talented, how smart, how great, etc., we are to have accomplished so much and 2) how very deserving we are of all we have accomplished. Our bodies become misaligned by stretching our arms around to pat ourselves on the back!

But pride is the miry pit of sin and we need to be acutely aware of that fact. Since the time of Adam and Eve we have all been born into sin; we are all born prideful. For example, have you ever seen a baby cry because they did not get what they wanted, when they wanted it?

When Eve succumbed to temptation, it was because of pride. She saw the fruit of the forbidden tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, but she ate the fruit because the serpent told her, “You will not certainly die, for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil,” Genesis 3:4-5, 6, NIV. And thus, sin entered into the perfection of God’s creation because of pride.

When Isaiah speaks of the fall of Lucifer from heaven in chapter 14 and you hear the words Lucifer speaks in his heart in verses 13 and 14, NIV, they reek of pride: “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon (the most sacred mountain of the Canaanites). I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

When we think of the destruction of Sodom, we tend to think of sodomy and homosexuality; but Ezekiel 16:49, NIV, says: “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.” The King James Version uses the word pride for arrogant and abundance of idleness for the word unconcerned.

Beware the sin of pride! The book of Proverbs says where there is strife, there is pride (13:10); pride goes before destruction (16:18); and that pride brings a person low (29:23). It is not about us; it is not about our righteousness; it is all about God; God’s love, God’s mercy, God’s grace.

Know that the LORD, He is God;
         It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves, (we are His);
         We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 100:3, NKJV

We only have an opportunity for greater things because God provided us with a way of escape—a way of redemption; through His Son, Jesus Christ.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16, NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV

Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, Ephesians 3:20, NIV

And finally, faith is the victory:

For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:4-5, NIV

AMEN!

God Bless!

Hope Everlasting

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39, NIV

Several years ago my husband’s youngest sister died with cancer at age 49. As the end of her life was nearing I began to understand the need we all have for hope. Hope is an integral part of the human psyche.

My sister-in-law had that hope that is everlasting because of her faith in Jesus Christ. Do you ever wonder, “How do people cope that have no hope in Christ?” I cannot imagine the despair they must suffer because they do not know; they have never experienced the saving grace, mercy and love of Jesus.

Recently, I have been convicted to spend more time praying for the lost. I know there are those within my own family that do not have hope everlasting because they do not know Christ as Lord and Savior. I know there are those within my community that are lost. I know there are those within my country that are lost and I know there are those globally that are lost and dying without having known, or possibly without having heard, of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. And that my friends, is the greatest tragedy of all time.

If you read through Romans 9 and 10 you will find Paul lamenting over his people, the Jews, because so many rejected the Good News of Jesus Christ. Romans 9 begins with Paul saying he wishes his own self “accursed” and separated from Christ for the sake of his brethrens’ salvation. In Romans 10:1, Paul goes on to say that his heart’s desire and his prayer to God for them is salvation.

Our own prayers for the lost should be no less heart-felt and urgent than those of Paul for his own people. Time is short and the need is exceedingly great. Pray for the lost each and everyday. Pray the Lord will draw them to Himself; pray the Holy Spirit will convict them; pray they will have open, pliable, receiving, believing, hearts and minds. Pray for workers for the harvest.

And—let the redeemed of the Lord say so (Psalm 107:2). Let others know; let others hear your testimony with compassion and love. The way you live daily is one of the best testimonies for Christ. Always be ready to tell others the Good News. Plant the seed—Jesus commands it; God will do the rest. Pray for the lost, tell them of the saving grace of Jesus wherever and whenever you have the opportunity and then rejoice with those in heaven over the ones who repent and are saved!

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 1 Peter 3:15, NIV

God Bless!

Complete Joy and Happy All the Time

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. John 15:9-11, NIV

The verse of a one-time-popular children’s song, “I’m Happy All the Time” reads:

Since Jesus Christ came in,
And cleansed my heart from sin.
I'm inright, outright, upright, downright happy all the time.

When we experience joy internally it is typically reflected outwardly in a happy demeanor. The only way to have complete joy all the time is to have Jesus within our hearts. To place your trust in anything else and expect the self-contained, residing-within, continual joy that Jesus brings is fruitless. While worldly people change quickly and other worldly things lack stability, Jesus has promised, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age,” Matthew 28:20b, NIV. Hebrews 13:5, NIV, admonishes: Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Nehemiah preached, “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). To have Christ in your heart is to have joy and strength.

As Christians, we should seek to renew our joy daily through prayer and Bible study. Also, as Christians, our joy should be seen on our faces. Proverbs 15:13 tells us a happy heart makes for a cheerful face and verse 15 of the same chapter says the cheerful heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 17:22 says a cheerful heart is good medicine.

Most important of all, as Christians, we should share our joy with others. A great testimony and witness of Christ in your life is your joy and happiness. 1 Peter 3:15 says that we should always be ready to give others an explanation of the hope we have in our own lives. If those around us see that we are happy and full of hope, they will want to know the secret to our happiness. Always be prepared to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with them.

God Bless!

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” - Romans 15:13, NIV (AMEN!!)

Every Knee Should Bow

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
   and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
   in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
   to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11, NIV

God is Sovereign—fully in control of all things and circumstances. Nothing happens apart from the knowledge of our Lord. He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent; all-powerful, all-knowing, and ever-present. He is the Uncreated One; He is Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.

To envision just a small part of the greatness of God is to remember when we speak of the Eternal One, eternity does not include only the future but indeed includes all time—all the future plus all the past merged together into a continuum of time. If we truly knew anything of the holiness of the Lord at all—if we truly comprehended the magnificence of the Lord, we would all be in a perpetual state of worship and awe—every knee bowed and every tongue confessing and glorifying God.

Sadly, however, that is not the case. How many times in the course of a day do you hear the Lord’s name spoken in vain? How often do you hear the Lord’s name being used to curse someone? Even among those of us who are believers we often use the name of our Lord too casually.

Can you remember the last time you took a moment to ponder the greatness of God? Do you ever consider that when you go to the Father in prayer, you are petitioning the Creator? As a Christian have you contemplated the unfathomable power of the Holy Spirit residing within you?

God desires an intimate relationship with each of us. He invites you to know Him personally. Have you accepted that invitation? If not, do so today. Say, “Yes”, to all that Jesus offers and “No” to all sin (and the world) offers. Begin now spending time with and pondering the greatness of our God. Begin now to honor our great and awesome God; honor His qualities, character, and attributes. Begin now to learn and grow spiritually and faithfully in the grace and mercy of our Lord. Begin now to enjoy the abundant life that an intimate relationship with Almighty God offers.

He is the One worthy of all our honor, glory, and praise:

 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14, NIV (AMEN!!)

God Bless!

Rescue the Perishing

He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Luke 10:2, NIV

Recently I was listening to a podcast sermon on prayer by Dr. Adrian Rogers. One point made by Dr. Rogers was that we spend more time praying for sick saints—trying to keep them out of heaven—than we do praying for lost souls to get to heaven. The point was well taken with me.

I examined my own prayers and considered how much more time I spend praying for the sick versus the time I spend praying for the lost…the lost of my community…the lost of the world. I admit I was convicted to make immediate changes in my prayers.

People around us are dying; lost in sin; every day, every moment. Our hearts should be breaking for lost souls—those we can reach out and touch and those whom we have never seen. Pray for the lost. Pray that the hold Satan has upon them will be loosed and defeated; pray that the Lord will draw them to Him; pray the Lord will give the lost ears for the Gospel and believing, repentant, hearts. Pray for workers to go and tell those on foreign soils where you are unable to go yourself and do whatever you can to help support them, financially and prayerfully.

In 1869, Fanny Crosby wrote the hymn, “Rescue the Perishing”. Those great old lyrics are no less true today—our work as Christians is not yet finished. We are to tell a lost and dying world of Jesus; duty demands it. Strength for our labor the Lord will provide. AND…Jesus is merciful, Jesus will save. Amen!

God Bless!

Does Your Face Glow?

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD. Exodus 34:29, NIV

Exodus 34:29 tells us the face of Moses was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. Now, fast forward a few thousand years to Acts 6 and the early church to read of another man with a radiant glow to his face—this man’s name was Stephen. A man who according to verse 8 was a man full of God’s grace and power and when brought before the Sanhedrin on false charges, verse 15 says those looking intently at Stephen, “saw that his face was like the face of an angel”.

From time to time we hear people remark about a person’s outer glow. Likely you would agree one’s outer glow is directly related to the amount of their inner glow. Is it possible for us as Christians today to obtain and maintain a radiant glow? We can and we should!

You will never be called a friend of God or a man full of God’s grace and power without an intimate relationship with the Lord. As Christians our top priority is love and obedience to our Sovereign God. Obedience follows loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind, Matthew 22:27.

Through love of God and obedience to Him we learn to trust Him more. The more we learn to trust God, the more He reveals Himself to us. As we trust Him more and learn more of His blessed character, the more we love Him and the more obedient we are to Him. A circle of love!

How does this happen? It happens through study of His word, through prayer, fasting…in other words, through commitment to Him. Are you committed to a true, close, relationship with God? Are you a friend of God? Is your face radiant because you’ve spent so much time speaking with God? Do you have the face of angel? Let your light shine!!

“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” Revelation 4:11, NIV

AMEN!

God Bless!