The Distance God's Love Will Go

I Peter 3:19 is intriguing.  It tells us that in the time between Good Friday and Easter Sunday Jesus went to the people who had been unreceptive to God during the time of Noah and the building of Ark.  He preached to them there.  We don't know what He said or the purpose of his presence there.  Maybe we're not supposed to know.  Maybe we're suppose to read the story and marvel at the grace of God, and the distance He will go to invite people into His grace.    

At any rate, we do see at least two things.  First, God doesn't write people off but will go the distance to do everything possible to draw them to Himself.  Maybe that's why John Newton called it "Amazing Grace."  Secondly, we see the work of grace in the lives of people who do respond to Jesus.  As the Ark saved Noah and His family so baptism into Christ saves you and me. 

  

It is impossible to think of Jesus correctly without seeing in Him the One who "died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God" (I Pet. 3:16).  It is impossible to think of Jesus correctly without seeing Him alive because of the resurrection (I Pet. 3:21).  It is impossible to think of Jesus correctly without seeing Him "at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him" (I Pet. 3:22).

  

Our world is in such a mess and is in such great need of a Savior that we dare not proclaim Jesus to be less than He is.  It is no time to be politically correct.  People need to know that sin is their greatest enemy, that death is in their future, and that only God's grace can save them.      

Proclaim it from the mountaintop, "Jesus Is Lord." 

Promises, Promises, Promises

Over the years I’ve heard people say things like, “God is good; all the time God is good.”  I agree, hook, line, and sinker.  I would like to add another affirmation, however.  “God is faithful; all the time God is faithful.” 

Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”  In a troubling world where truth is becoming more and more blurred, God speaks the truth.  He does not lie.  He has nothing of which to repent.  In Jesus he has fleshed out the meaning of truthfulness so much so that Jesus said of Himself, “I am the truth” (John 14:6).

Perhaps this is why the apostle Paul spoke to the early church about the faithfulness of God.  He speaks a word and it is sealed. It can be counted on.  His promises are valid and we can building our lives on them.

In Jesus “as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes” (2 Cor. 1:20).  Isn’t that an interesting way of articulating a profound truth?  God has given us promises and those promises are the foundation of our lives in Jesus.  The apostle Peter said that God “has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature…” (2 Pet. 1:4).

God is with us day by day, in every way, always being true to His Word and consistent with His promises. We may be inundated with the harsh realities of life, but God is faithful.  We may be knocked to the ground because of the hard blows of life, but God is faithful.  We may question the inconsistencies of life in a dangerous world and  the ways of evil people who would prey upon the innocent, but God is faithful.

Our problem is never God.  Our problems are rooted in a world system that refuses to embrace the God who is faithful.  Let that cycle be broken in the Church where Jesus is Lord.

Intentional Faithfulness

 Athletes know the value of discipline, self-control, and pursing goals.  Followers of Jesus Christ ought to know the value of these things, also. In I Corinthians 9:26 Paul says, "I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air." 

Purpose, methodology, drive, design, practice, wisdom, all these are a part of an athlete mastering his or her sport.  They are a part, also, for those who have come to Jesus Christ, trusted in Him for the salvation of God, and are seeking to live the abundant and eternal life graciously bestowed on them by God.

How important is this kind of focus?  Paul thought it was very important.  In Corinthians 10:12 he counseled the early church, "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall."  We Christians are not invincible and invulnerable, and we are quite capable of being distracted or, worse yet, thinking that we are better than we really are.  So, let him who thinks he stands take heed! 

Let's take our faith seriously, and embrace a lifestyle that draws us closer and closer to the heart of the God who has entered into our story so that He may draw closer to us.  If Jesus is all we say He is, may our love for Him move us to practice the kind of lifestyle that will enhance His life in us and deepen the relationship we have with Him.           

Today, let's be intentional in our walk with Christ.  We have trusted in Him; now let's live out the meaning of that trust.

What Can I Do For My God Today?

The apostle Paul said to the early church, “I have a stewardship entrusted to me” (I Cor. 9:17).  With that clarity in mind he stepped into the history of the Church and became an evangelistic and Church planting voice, with implications still being realized even at this late date.

So committed to that “stewardship” was Paul that he said, “I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it” (I Cor. 9:23).  He defined himself by the presence of God in his life, and any action that was inconsistent with God’s presence was jettisoned away. His heart beat to introduce people to Jesus Christ. 

But, we’re not Paul.  God has not called us to shake the foundations of the world as He seemed to do in Paul.  Or has he?  Could it be that in our own sphere of influence we, too, can truthfully say, “I have a stewardship entrusted to me”?  I may not be Paul, but I am me.  The Holy Spirit dwells in me, and calls me to Himself.  Isn’t that true for all of us who have dared trust in Jesus Christ?

Is it not true that even in our limited sphere of influence God calls us to “do all things for the sake of the gospel”?  Isn’t it true that God has so impacted our lives by His grace that it is unthinkable we should do anything that would not elevate that grace in our world? 

The Gospel song says, “Living for Jesus—O what rest!  Pleasing my Savior, I am blest.  Only to live for Him alone, Doing His will till life is done!”  So, we say, along with Paul, I do all things for sake of the gospel.”[1]

What can I do for my God today?

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[1] “Living For Jesus,” by Charles F. Weigle, 1903; verse 2