Jesus our life

…the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us…

1 John 1:2

Jesus not only brought eternal life, but is Himself, according to the apostle John, our eternal life. John heard Jesus. John saw Jesus. John lived and walked and worked alongside Jesus in the entirety of His earthly ministry. John heard Jesus proclaim “I am the resurrection and the life.” He heard Jesus announce “I give to them eternal life and they shall never perish”. He heard Jesus’ own declaration of why He came… “I am come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly.” Yes… Jesus is life!

Following Jesus, trusting Jesus, believing in Jesus… all are more than we ever experience right now in the moment. They are what we do, but they bring us life right now as well. And they have an impact we can barely stretch our minds to accept. Believing Jesus is life. We will know that life even beyond our eventual mortality. Jesus is our life forever. It is comforting and empowering to know that Jesus lives for me and with me for eternity!

Lord Jesus,

You are my life. And You lived on this earth, changing the course of humanity’s sinful trajectory forever by being our life. And forever I am living in You. I am in awe. I am beyond grateful!

Amen

King of Judgment

As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out I will be king over you.

Ezekiel 20:33

God knows all the wrong

that this world enjoys

His justice stands

as His wrath employs

against all sinners

He is the King of Judgment

God does not ignore

the sin around us

He sent His Son

to save and lead us

Yet even Jesus the Savior

is also King of Judgment

His wrath poured out

on His own Son

God’s justice satisfied

by death of the Holy One

we need not suffer

we have the King of Judgment

But a world that rejects

His gracious salvation

will abide in His wrath

face eternal damnation

Jesus judging with all authority

is the King of Judgment

God’s time… not our time

They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”

2 Peter 3:4

Peter is writing about people who scoff and reject the notion that Jesus will return to judge this earth. Interestingly, there were those in the immediate decades after Jesus’ ascension who heard from eyewitnesses to the teaching of Jesus and still offered their objections. It seemed “slow” to them that the return of Christ had not yet happened in their own lifetimes. They relied on a very naturalistic line of resistance: “Where is a promise that hasn’t seen even a bit of change in our lives? Everything around us just goes on as it has before.” They were comfortable in all the sameness. They scoffed at the notion that Jesus would come to hold anyone accountable in judgment when every day was a mirror of the day before.

Peter first dismisses their naturalistic uniformitarianism: God made everything from nothing by His Word. he can disrupt the cosmos and its order any time He pleases. God has also previously judged the world with a flood… a fact that their observations had completely ignored. God will choose to do the same again.

Peter than reminds these doubters that God’s timetable is vastly larger than our own. He is eternal. He is timeless. Neither a minute nor a millenium concern Him as significant. He isn’t pressured by time, neither is God diminished by the passing of time. He is not slow. But in grace God is patient, not wanting to see people perish in judgment. Instead, in His good time, God is urging them to repentance by His mercy (2 Peter 3:9).

Make no mistake… Jesus will return. But the timing is all God’s… not ours. Faith trusts God, believes God, and prepares to one day be face to face with our Savior.

Don’t follow your heart!

Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who are prophesying, and say to those who prophesy from their own hearts: ‘Hear the word of the LORD!’ Thus says the Lord GOD, Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!

Ezekiel 13:2-3

It is a very dangerous and deceptive thing to take the world’s appealing dreamy, Disney-esque advice and “follow your heart.” The false prophets of ancient Israel who were instrumental in turning God’s people away from obeying His covenant were giving popular messages, not from the voice of God, but from their own wicked hearts. They had not heard from God’s Holy Spirit, but shared words from their own spirits. Their hearts led them… and the nation… astray. Their heart-centered messages were attractive and inspirational, uplifting and “spiritual”, and led to destruction.

Scripture has some stern warnings about the inner workings of the heart (the center of emotion, will, and thoughts). In three words: It is wicked. Our hearts are born twisted. Our own souls are deceptive and destructive guides. We cannot trust our hearts. Instead, we must let God’s Word and God’s Spirit help us actively engage with our thoughts, feelings, and desires. Only then, in the light of God’s revelation, can our darker heart warp be revealed for what it really is.

• We must GUARD the heart. “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” Proverbs 4:23.
• We must GUIDE the heart. “Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way.” Proverbs 23:19
• We DO NOT FOLLOW the heart. “…they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart.” Jeremiah 3:17

God, Who searches and knows our hearts can help us follow His heart. And in Jesus, with obedience to God’s Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit, we can follow His way to find a new heart is remade in us. And one day our foolish, sinful flesh will be done away with. Until then we guard and guide our hearts following Jesus.

false teachers & their destiny

And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

2 Peter 2:2-3

A major theme of the book of 2 Peter is warning the church against false teachers. Here in these two verses we see some of their characteristics and get a glimpse of their future. What was true of the earliest expressions of a false gospel is still true today, so we should take note of what is being explained to us by Peter in this passage.

False teachers gather crowds. The text says many follow them. So we should not be shocked when large groups, big churches, entire denominations, or “successful” ministries are caught in the grip of a false gospel.

False teachers attract with sensuality. Moral ambiguity marks their efforts. They like being sexy. Their teaching is attractive because it appeals to the flesh. They make much of their appearances. Sex scandals follow what is false, sadly also defacing legitimate believers trying to be true with the gospel.

False teachers blaspheme God. Ultimately their selfish, ego-centered, lying ways deny God. Some even put themselves in the place of God.

False teachers are greedy. Money and worldly success are their real gods. They worship and exalt health and wealth and deny that Christians suffer and endure insisting on a “best life NOW” worldview. Whether their goal is a gold-plated basilica or a million dollar private jet, they flaunt greed. And their multi-million dollar ministry lifestyles steal the glory of Christ’s humble servant’s sacrifice.

False teachers exploit. They use people to get what they want. they have no ethics, blinded by sensuality, greed, and a denial of God. They are often criminal in their motives, plans, and actions.

False teachers speak false words. They lie… often knowingly in order to deceive. They use their charisma and charm to make lies sound so attractive. But they do not speak God’s truth.

False teachers are condemned. From God’s eternal past, hell is already burning for false prophets and teachers. It is not idle. Their doom is certain. And their destruction may begin in their own lifetimes by God’s sovereign justice. God will not be mocked by them. He has the last word… the truth… that puts false teachers eternally under His fiercest wrath.

in fury a warning

You shall be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and a horror, to the nations all around you, when I execute judgments on you in anger and fury, and with furious rebukes—I am the LORD; I have spoken…

Ezekiel 5:15

A commitment was despised

A covenant was broken

Worship was forgotten

Truth apostacized

God made a city a horror

for the watching nations

Fallen from privileged station

a city now broken and torn

Israel turned away

detestable idolatry

became their revelry

until God had His say

In fury judgment fell:

A third scattered

A third by pestilence dead

A third burning in hell

Jerusalem in mourning

Survivors just a few

Weeping at God’s rebuke

…all of it a warning

God will not be ignored

He will get the attention

of His people by destruction

He will be feared in the horror

In warning He spoke His Word

to rebel hearts God appealed

even as His fury was revealed

so all would know He is the LORD!

eight expressions of Christian character

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

2 Peter 1:5-7

This passage begins with faith and ends with love, demonstrating for us the well-rounded character that God wishes to produce in all believers. This is the life that Jesus brings to us. Here is the succinct list:

1). Faith. This is where it starts. We believe the gospel — that Jesus died and rose again to pay or sin debt and give us eternal life. And we keep believing it and applying His forgiveness and grace every day.

2. Virtue. This is moral excellence. It is the highest of standards.

3. Knowledge. This is more than a general mental assent. It is the all around general knowledge of Christian faith and doctrine. Christians are always learning… always seeking to know God’s truth.

4. Self-control. It means mastering desires, passions, and appetites in their proper God-designed and God-honoring expressions.

5. Steadfastness. This is patient endurance that is unswerving over time. Ultimately it is what the reformers noted as the perseverance of the saints.

6. Godliness. This is a holiness born from worship of God and respect for God.

7. Brotherly affection. Christians love those in the church… we know a deep affectionate connection to other believers in the Body of Christ.

8. Love. This is AGAPE love… that unique, sacrificial, celebrational love of Christian expression. We love like Jesus loves!

We should be careful to make sure we aren’t making these eight character traits just a legalistic check list. This is not an “in” or “out” list to judge each other. Rather, these eight virtues mark the continuous goal of our growth in Christ as we learn to forsake sin, change our beliefs and attitudes through the knowledge in scripture, applying it personally to our situation. We then trust God’s Spirit to change us so that we can live in these new, wonderful, expressive, Spirit-led, personally-applied, and Word-informed ways.

the prowling lion

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.

1 Peter 5:8-9

I’ve had a major misunderstanding about the application of this passage. Just today I placed these two verses in their broader context and realized I’ve been thinking about verse eight all wrong. I’ve always thought that the devil prowling like a lion seeking to devour believers was a warning to fight temptation. But that is not at all why the devil is on the hunt. It isn’t about making an individual believer sin. He has a much bigger appetite. 

Satan wants to take out more than just one believer with a temptation to sin. His intention: he wants to take out large swaths of churches by targeting leaders and congregations with persecution, false doctrine, anxiety, and wrong responses to suffering. The immediate context of the passage is that of local church elders and the entire congregation. The “your” in “your adversary” is plural. The reminder in verse 9 is the near universal experience of the church. The world system that is Satan’s prowling territory is totally his domain. And He is after Christ’s church that has invaded His territory!

Hence the call to clear-headed resistance to the devil’s schemes is made to the church. We must post a watch on doctrine, practice, and worldly philosophies… the charge of the elders to lead the congregation! These tactics of the prowling devil will erode us if we let our guard down. It’s why elders are needed to guard and protect from lies and feed the church the truth of scripture. And great teaching and leadership help all believers to resist the devil’s prowling attempts to attack faith, helping us all to stand firm together. We will suffer the devil’s hate until Jesus returns. But we must keep the prowling lion at bay… constantly on the watch… consistently firm in the truth!

Lord Jesus,

Keep us sober-minded. Keep us watchful. Keep us firm in faith. Keep us aware that though we suffer in this world, we can keep Satan from destroying us by our constant watchfulness and faith in You.

Amen

perspective for pastors

And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

1 Peter 5:4

This is an encouragement written to church elders. Leaders have intense responsibility. I’ve lived my life in service to Jesus and His church. It is a source of both joy and sorrow. A very wise man once told me very early in my ministry that as a pastor I needed to set my eyes on Jesus for my joy because some situation of hurt with people will ALWAYS be on the pastor’s heart. He was right. 

Shepherding isn’t about impressing people with a Sunday sermon perfectly on point. It isn’t about getting all my theological ducks in a row. It is however about getting into REAL LIFE with people that Jesus asks me to know and love. Together we face heartache, illness, death, loss, grief, and broken human experience looking to Jesus for our strength. And sometimes their choices absolutely break my heart. Tears, sweat, and prayer are daily experiences. There are very real joys, so don’t get me wrong. They are great. But the world is broken and we know it. Rarely does a pastor have a day not touched with at least a twinge of sorrow.

The call Peter makes in chapter five to church elders is serious work (1 Peter 5:1-7). We shepherd Christ’s church. We must lead, feed, guard, guide, and protect them. It is a constant effort. Ministry has no “off” switch. We must oversee the church. That higher perspective drives elders to be always in the Word seeking God’s will and ways, praying constantly. What I love about serving with the elders in my church is that we pray EVERY TIME we meet, substantially… for one another… for our church… for wisdom. That’s how we oversee. 

By the way, natural talents of an elder are inconsequential. Supernatural commitment is what is needed. We must however be willing. A servant’s heart drives pastors. Anything else leads to domineering abuse and/or financial robbery. We should be eager. Honestly, each day is a new day to impact eternity. And it is humbling, but pastors are examples. Good or bad, people see us, look at us, and may emulate us. We must set the example of Jesus before them.

Lord,

The pressure to lead Your flock is intense. The reward is precious. Protect pastors! Give them tender hearts of love. Weed out the bad ones from Your kingdom’s field! Encourage the tender shepherds to stay at it, especially in these contentious, opinionated, dangerous days. Give them sensitive and loving shepherd’s hearts and hands. Protect them so Your church thrives!

Amen

3 wrong views of Jesus

And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.” Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him.

John 7:12-13

Early in Jesus’ ministry story in the gospel of John, we see that Jesus is already a controversial figure. In Jerusalem at the Feast of Booths, there is an undercurrent of opinion swirling around Jesus. These opinions are not accurate. Jesus was judged. Jesus was misunderstood. These two verses show us three incorrect views of Jesus, still around today.

Jesus is a good man. This opinion, though looking quite positive at first glance, has problems at two levels. First, there is no definition of “good” to settle on. If we default then to human standards than this opinion falls short of the holiness of God. Jesus is not a good man… He is THE holy God. Being a good human by human terms isn’t good enough. Secondly, this option says nothing about faith in the deity of Jesus. It is thus limited and insufficient. It isn’t enough to think Jesus was generally a pretty decent guy. Yet many people today are content granting that view of Jesus. They think themselves generous. But this view, though safe in social circles, is really unbelief.

Jesus is a con man. There were those in Jerusalem who questioned the motives of the rabbi from Galilee. They saw him as deliberately stirring trouble and as a problem. He was leading people astray. He was a threat to both the Jewish religion and the fragile political structure under Rome. This view saw Jesus as a problem to be eliminated or solved. And many in our world feel the same about Him and His Church at the moment… Jesus is a problem. This view is being promoted aggressively against the gospel and has been for the history of the Christian faith.

Jesus is a threat. The reason the crowds feared the Jewish religious leaders was that those leaders were threatened by Jesus pointing out the inconsistencies and sins in their religious system. His call to individuals, being the friend of sinners, helping them find relationship with their Father in Heaven would topple a legalistic monopoly controlled by the religious leaders of Jesus’ day. And that threat would be what they would try to silence in killing Him. It would fail, and Jesus and His message would blossom and flourish beyond their rejection of Him.

above the flood

With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.

1 Peter 4:4-5

Christians live above the flood line. There really is a safe moral high ground in Jesus. It isn’t found in the good things we think we do though. Instead, it is rising firmly above a raging, murky flood of awful sin and it stands above it all because Christ is unstained by the filth of the world. In Christ, we rise above the flood.

And what is this flood of debauchery talked about in the text? It is made up of what the culture wants to do: living in “sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry” (1 Peter 4:3). And the world doesn’t like it when Christians won’t conform and join in such behaviors. But we know better. Nobody survives the muck of such a flood. We may be maligned for not swimming in the cesspool. But we know the end of such behaviors. 

God will hold every person to account for their choices. Did they choose to believe Jesus and find sins forgiven, rising above the flood? Or did the choose to slosh through the sewage flood of sinful debauchery this world offers up in rejection of Jesus? The same Jesus Who can save is also the One Who will judge. Everybody will answer to Him.

Christians should see the world for what it is. And we are overjoyed that Jesus lifts us above the flood. We live in the gospel, for the gospel, proclaiming the gospel so that Jesus Who is both Savior and Judge can lift even more above the flood!

together forever

And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

John 6:39

It is God’s will that all those who by faith believe Jesus is both Savior and Lord will be kept safe in Jesus. Jesus will keep us. He will lose no person who believes in Him because God the Father has given them to Him. God keeps us forever safe in Jesus. Jesus loses nobody.

There will be a future day of resurrection. All those who have died in Christ will be raised by Him. This is something Jesus Himself took as a solid fact. it is going to happen! And for those who have loved ones who have gone before them and died in Christ, this is an exciting hope. The older I get, the dearer this reunion looks. I’ll see my parents, my friends who have died, my family who in Christ now abide. We are in fact all going to live forever in Jesus! What a comfort and what a joy this hope brings.

God gives us eternal life in Christ. Jesus raises the dead to forever live in His presence together, never to know sorrow, loss, death, weakness, or pain again! That hope keeps me going with a joyful glimpse of what forever will be held dearly in my heart.

Returned

For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

1 Peter 2:25

Straying

I turned away,

followed my own way,

tried to “seize the day”…

but I was not OK.

I needed a Shepherd to save me.

I needed an Overseer to direct me.

Returning

I saw my need

and paid heed

to the One Who freed

and corrected indeed.

My Shepherd fed me.

My Overseer led me.

Restored

to be His alone

by His blood atoned

I’ve clung to the One

my heart has loved.

My Shepherd is my Lord.

My Overseer speaks His Word.

glory thief

How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

John 5:44

Jesus spoke these words to His opposition, the Jewish religious leaders who by this point in John’s gospel had clearly heard Jesus claim to be God. Jesus challenged their pious attempts at self-saving religion. He pointed out their selfish motivations. He told them that seeking approval from one another led them away from true faith and drove them far from God. They were glory thieves… stealing the worship and adoration that was God’s alone and partying in it among themselves.

And Jesus went on to say that their trust in the Law of Moses was self-condemning. Moses, on whom they had set their hope (John 5:45) would himself accuse them before the Father. They missed how the Law pointed to the Messiah, who stood right before them calling them to repent and believe.

Self righteousness makes glory thieves of all those who smugly fall for the lie that we can be good enough by our own efforts. I know I have struggled with it. In a way, it is easy to be a judgmental rule-keeper. Evangelical Christianity marries it with cultural responses to create systems where we get in our religious elitist groups, and even do battle with one another showing how sinful other groups of Christians are… while we are the only ones right! Yes it is easy to be deceived as a rule-keeper. 

It has happened to me. I’ve done it before. I’ve struggled with being proud, boastful, and tended to look down on others who weren’t climbing the same theological and Christian rule-keeping ladder as I was. I enjoyed getting attention. I patted myself on the back for my achievements and for being right. And all the while those things and actions became my false god. Such glory thievery is ultimately unfulfilling and unsuccessful. My ladder led up the wrong way. My proud heart had been deceived. Selfish piety had broken me and let me down. Only by repenting and acknowledging that Jesus alone is my only hope and glory can I truly seek God’s welcome into His Kingdom. If it isn’t Jesus alone doing all for me and in me, then I am just a wrong-headed glory thief.

No path away from God’s path is easy.

And those who escape the sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, few in number; and all the remnant of Judah, who came to the land of Egypt to live, shall know whose word will stand, mine or theirs.

Jeremiah 44:28

This was a chilling moment of reckoning. When God brought Babylon’s army against Judah, he spoke through His prophet Jeremiah urging the Jews of Jerusalem to go peacefully into exile, assuring them a remnant would survive to live prosperous lives in Babylon until the exile would complete. But instead, a substantial group of Jews fled to Egypt in desperate, direct disobedience to the message God had given.

There they thought themselves safe, choosing their ex patriot existence in Egypt over God’s plan in Babylon. But it wasn’t a better choice. It wound up much worse. Nebuchadnezzar’s forces marched against Egypt and humiliated Pharaoh’s forces. And the Jews who sought refuge there were caught in the conflict. Many died needlessly for their disobedience. A few of them were brought back to Judah as double exiles now. God had warned them not to take matters into their own hands. And they paid for their foolish, willful sins dearly.

It is better to obey God, even when He asks us to do the hardest things. He didn’t want the Jews running to Egypt. When they did, His judgment caught them even there. They rejected His promise of secure lives in Exile. They chose to take their security in their own hands. It was a destructive disaster.

And so, when I believe God is asking me to obey in hard things, to do the humble work of submitting to a circumstance He is bringing, even if it feels like a less than desirable experience, I should always accept it. The Word of God is true and must be obeyed.

dry grass & wilted flowers

“All flesh is like grass

and all its glory like the flower of grass.

The grass withers,

and the flower falls,

but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

1 Peter 1:24-25

God’s Word, as we reflect on what it is, brings much needed perspective. Peter knew that the believers to whom he wrote, enduring under persecution by what seemed an overwhelming power in Rome’s realm, needed to see the big picture. And so he quotes the Word of God (Isaiah 40:6-8) to remind them to cling to the enduring truth and power of God in His Word. They might suffer under Roman persecution just as the exiled Jews suffered in Babylon as Isaiah prophesied. But both those empires of men were simply fields of kingdom grass destined to wither and wilt. God’s Word… in particular the gospel… will always outlast every human effort offered against it.

Also, what was true of empires that are now just tattered ruins will also be true of each of our lives. We grow for a short green season. But we are all bound to fade, grow brittle, and wither with age just like the grass of the field. Our achievements flower briefly and then droop and die. Yet God’s Word always remains. He is forever faithful, strong, enduring, and stable. And His good news can carry us beyond the dried meadow of human temporary wilted flowers into the endless full bloom of worship, grace, life, and the glory of the Lord for eternity!

We are grass. All human achievement is a wildflower that fades in a brief eruption of outward display. Only God’s Word lasts forever. Only the saving gospel of Jesus Christ will have eternal impact and a true glory that never fades and lasts. This world is destined for dry, parched ground. May the good news instead keep my soul thriving to live today in the light of eternity that never loses its glory!

reflections on light

Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.

Ecclesiastes 11:7

Light is indeed sweet. I reflect on this verse even as sunrise is just minutes away in the eastern horizon. The Kansas sky is glowing with warm pink clouds to welcome the full light of another summer day. It is a day the Lord has made. Here are some random “light” thoughts in acrostic form:

L - LOVE in the the light of Christ brightens every day. It is the love of God in the saving work of Jesus that has enlightened all I do… and it forever will continue.

I - INTENTION. Once the full light of day is on the world, the apprehension inherent in darkness dissipates. The visibility that light brings allows intentional things to be done. So does the light of the gospel give direction and assurance in our dark days. We see what it is we must do in the glaring light of the glory of the gospel. And we must live by it. We must share the light with others.

G - GRACE is given with the light. In fact, the light of each day is a common grace of God… a good gift to all His creation. The light of His revealed Word is a grace to our souls.

H - HAPPINESS abounds when depressive darkness lifts in the light. As light brings with it a kind of joy in the morning, so the light of God’s revelation of Himself brings joyful worship to my soul.

T - TRUTH is clearly seen in the light that God gives. Every new morning when I open my Bible, read, reflect, and pray, I find a dawn of hope and my soul glories in God. It is because His truth thus directs my thinking. And that light is sweet and pleasant to my life!

Lord,

Thank You for saying “Let there be light” as Your first utterance over all things. It is sweet. It is pleasant. It is what I need all the time, every time. May Your sweet light brighten each day through the eternal joy Your bright presence always brings!

Amen

grieving in the tension of a difficult “now”

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:6-7

What is it that Peter says we rejoice in? It’s the fact that we are born again to a living hope… to an eternal inheritance kept for us that will be revealed to us in Jesus (1 Peter 1:3-5). That present salvation which confirms our future hope keeps us encouraged. And we need the encouragement because the “now” we live in will have us “grieved” by “various trials”. We have a born again, new life right now. Yet its ultimate expression is fulfilled in eternity with Jesus and this is the confident hope that must carry us. But truthfully, we should expect right now to still be hard. Right now the genuine nature of faith is being tested in us.

Living in the tension of a difficult “now” is the reality of Christian living day to day. We live in a fallen world still. It is an evil age. Christian faith and values shine in the darkness of this world and are not warmly received by it. Evil so twists the truth that God’s holiness and righteousness are regularly mocked. Life is cheapened by rampant selfishness and sin. What God values most for His people to know, this world frankly hates… and it demonizes those who only want there genuine faith to be shown. So we should not be surprised that we will continue to grieve through the trials of living in the present God-rejecting, Christless, Christian-hating, warring, death-dealing, evil age. It is what the Church has always been told to do.

So when my culture preaches a cultural narrative that glorifies immorality, minimizes innocent lives, and exalts selfish sin above life itself, I am not at all surprised. The gospel has to contrast against this to be the amazing good news that it is. A darker world makes a brighter good news in many ways. And no constructed human effort will change this truth… not laws …not amendments … not politics. We gotta keep preaching the gospel! Only reborn people remade by Jesus through gospel faith will truly change. For now we must faithfully lift up Jesus and grieve the tension of living in a difficult “now”.

What I Eat or Drink

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do.

Ecclesiastes 9:7

Blessings are many

that I often overlook.

There aren’t any

lies in Your book.

You tell me straight

to enjoy my life today.

Why should I wait

in sanctimonious delay?

There is bread to eat

always on my plate.

There is good drink

so I should not wait.

Eat up with gladness!

Drink with a merry heart!

God’s gifts repel sadness

and bless… doing their part.

The food that feeds me

comes from Your good hand.

The drink that pleases me

vinted in Your land.

God’s grace is abounding

at my table and cup.

Will I worship the astounding

Provider and look up?

It’s not just a meal.

It’s approved by my God.

I should really feel

His grace, mercy, and love.

As I go through this day now

Lord, make my heart grateful

for all the simple pleasures are how

You show Yourself faithful.

Whether I eat or drink

or whatever I do

may I glorify You as I think

how Your grace pours through.

Bridegroom or Judge?

Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

James 5:9

Sandwiched between encouragements to be patient, for Christ is returning, remembering how Old Testament prophets patiently proclaimed God’s Word amidst suffering, the church is issued this command not to “groan” against each other. It is a timely reminder that when pressures of persecution increase outside the church, Christians may be tempted to take it out on each other inside the church. We are losing when persecution turns us into a bickering Bride. We are to remain faithful, waiting for the coming of Jesus our Bridegroom for us. We were meant to experience joy together enduring the uncertainty and anxiety of this waiting time. If we fail and turn against each other, the joy of the groom’s arrival is replaced by the stern face of the Judge standing at the door.

Church fights are an ugly sign of disobedience and impatience. They show us at our worst, not at our best. They are bitter hearts in conflict when we should instead all together have better hearts gathered in anticipation of our Lord’s coming for us. God is compassionate and merciful even as our culture is not that way toward Christ’s church. Jesus wants to love His people, not discipline them for petty grumbling against one another.

Lord,

In these difficult days we feel the pressure of a world that hates You and rejects the love of God in Christ when the gospel is preached. Our world frankly exalts complaints and opinion-based conflicts as nearly a virtue. Keep us from adopting this sinful mindset! Help Your church to reject grumbling against one another. Keep us on task with the gospel, preaching it to one another and the lost. Keep us loving one another, not fighting with impatience. Keep us adoring You, looking for the return of the Bridegroom and may we not face the Judge at our door!

Amen

I need wisdom’s strength.

Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.

Ecclesiastes 7:19

I need wisdom’s strength because I live in challenging days where seeing options beyond evil and foolishness is a necessary skill for my soul’s survival. I need wisdom’s strength because my own thinking, left to devise from a twisted, sinful root, will always warp the truth and lead me selfishly, foolishly, in a way that will perish. I need wisdom’s strength because the way to endure these days is harder than it has ever been: Evil is now entrenched. And there are screaming enemies on both sides of me opposed to God’s truth trying to lead me away. I need wisdom to show me the best way.

Wisdom can only come from above me… from the Father of lights. Wisdom has to reach down to me… in the grace of Christ. Wisdom must resonate with the pleasant tones of truth, grace, and holiness because all of those are absent in this world. They sing a sweet chord and God must ring them! I need wisdom to come by God’s Word to me. I need to listen to what He says, do as He directs, believe as He instructs.

Ten voices in this world may speak with authority. Yet none have wisdom. They will be weak and they will fail me. I need One Voice. I need the wisdom of Your Word, Lord! I will apply myself to seeing what You have written, hearing what You have said, listening to what You are telling me, and obeying Your wisdom.