So What!

 

Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or peril, or sword? But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35, 37-39.

If there is a Bible verse which gives us the courage to say “so what” when things go wrong, this is it. Great or small, there is nothing in life that can remove us from the love of God. The Bible is full of stories of people who made mistakes, who God loved and redeemed. From Moses who argued with God that he could not lead the people of Israel to the promised land (Exodus 3-4) to the Apostle Paul who held the coats of the men who stoned Stephen (Acts 8:54-60), God has revealed His unchanging and compromising love. His desire is for us to declare Jesus to be Lord, Master and Savior of our lives, and to bask in His unconditional love.

Hallelujah!

Chosen and Appointed

 

Jesus said, “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another.”

John 15:16-17

We are chosen, not because we are perfect but because God loves us. We are to go and do the will of God. What is the will of God? It is that we love one another. Once we embrace this truth, serving others becomes second nature and we freely offer prayer for the sick and the needy and for those who rejoice. We become willing to step out in faith and extend help to those around us.

We are chosen and we will bear the fruit of God’s love spread to those around us.

Everyone Is Welcome

 

Opening his mouth Peter said, “I most certainly understand that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him.”

Acts 10:34-35.

The disciples of Jesus were all Jews, and had been taught that they alone were the people of God. They believed that by obeying the laws of the Old Testament they were working their way to heaven. Jesus taught the disciples that the old rules no long applied, because everyone was under a new covenant; the covenant of grace.

Today, there is civil and religious unrest around the world. We need not to label those embroiled in conflicts as enemies of the faith, but rather to pray that they will come to a place where they recognize Jesus as their Savior. Peace comes when the hearts of men are changed, both ours and theirs. 

God does not ration His grace.

Get Holy, Get A Better Life

 

Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix all your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be Holy, for I am Holy.”

1 Peter 1:14-1

People sometimes say they don’t want to be Christians because they will have to give up too much – meaning give up their sinful lifestyles which they know are sinful, even if those lifestyles cause pain to them.  What they don’t realize is that there is so much to gain from becoming a Christian, that the old lifestyle is not missed. Once we make up our minds to change, the rest comes easy.

It is easier to be holy than to be sinful.

Jesus Came For Everyone

 

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

Romans 1:16-17

The early Christians had a magnificent revelation from God that salvation through Jesus was for everyone. Jesus, the Messiah, did not come as a political leader as the Jews expected, but as a spiritual leader who broke the barrier of sin which separated man from God.

The power of the Gospel is that through Jesus, God extends His forgiveness and love to everyone. No one is too good or too bad. We are all candidates for forgiveness.

All we have to do is ask Jesus to come into our lives, forgive us and to declare Jesus to be our Lord, Master and Savior and we are forgiven.

When we have faith, God does the rest.

Not Exactly What We Plan

 

When we entered Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him. After three days Paul called together those who were the leading men of the Jews, and when they came together, he began saying to them, “Brethren, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.”

Acts 28:16-17

The Apostle Paul traveled all over the Mediterranean area preaching the gospel, but what he really wanted was to go to Rome. He did get to go to Rome, but not as he had planned – he went as a prisoner, arrested for preaching the gospel. It was not smooth sailing; the journey included a shipwreck. Paul got his wish. He preached as a prisoner. He was released when his jailers could find no grounds to hold him, and he preached to large crowds in Rome.

Sometimes God’s plan for our success is not exactly what we plan. We need not lose heart, but to be confident that the best plan is God’s plan.

Happy, Happy

 

A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.

Proverbs 17:22

For some unknown reason, happy people are out of style. I first observed this several years ago when I worked at a small business populated by sad people. I do not know why they were sad. They had good paying jobs in nice offices, nice families, boats, houses and leisure time to enjoy all their stuff. Yet, everyday they arrived at work looking like their world had collapsed.

I tend to lean the other way. I am generally happy and when things are really awful, I get funny. I say things which make people laugh. So, even if things are crappy, all this joy tumbles out. I do not know why. All I can think is that my faith in God, keeps the blues away. He has said, “… I will not leave you or forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5)

How can we be anything but confident and happy, knowing that?