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

Who Is Trustworthy

God is the God of righteousness, holiness, and truth.  There is nothing in the world that does more harm to human beings than unrighteousness, unholiness, and untruthfulness.  Jesus said it was "truth," when known, that would make people free (See John 8:32).  It wasn't a new thought with Jesus.  It was a thought rooted and grounded in the Old Testament.  It was a foundational thought with Moses as he prepared to die and to turn the reigns of leadership of Israel over to the next generation.

           

In his parting messages to the people Moses told them to pay attention to His prophets and to do what they called the people to do.  This raised the question of how to discern whether or not someone was really a prophet of God .  How would the people know a true prophet?  How do we know when someone is really speaking the truth of God?  It is easy to say words, but how do we know they are true words? 

           

For the people of Israel the test was somewhat simple.  If the words spoken by the so-called prophet did not come to pass, that person was determined to be a false prophet, and was not to be followed.  Sometimes it took a while to discern the truth because words were spoken and give opportunity to be fulfilled.

           

Moses said to Israel that God was going to "raise up a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen; you shall listen to him" (Deut. 18:15).  We Christians believe the One God raised up is no one less than Jesus, the Messiah. In John 12:49-50 Jesus said, ^"For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.”

           

The beautiful thing about Jesus is that He brings to us the Word of the Father.  In John 10:30 Jesus said, "The Father and I are one."  There is no discrepancy between the Son and the Father.  A holy, righteous, and truthful God came among us in Jesus the holy, righteous, and truthful Son.  He can be trusted.  You can build your life on Him.

HOPE

 

C. S. Lewis wrote, “Hope is one of the Theological virtues. This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next.”

Hope enables us to live fully alive in the present.  When one loses hope, death is not far behind. So it is the Psalmist wrote of hope when he spoke of God saying things like, "There is forgiveness with You…In His word do I hope…With the Lord there is lovingkindness, and with Him is abundant redemption" (Psalm 130).

The psalmist was in the place of pain and suffering, "the depths," he called it.  He knew he needed God, and he knew he didn't deserve God.  Still he prays, "Lord, hear my voice!"  From the depths he didn't run away from God but to God.  He didn't bail out on God, but opened his heart wide to God.  He didn't give up or give in; he simply embraced the God of his hope, and decided that the future rests with those who trust in God. 

Instead of throwing in the towel he turned to God with a dogged determination.  As a watchman late in the night waits for the morning light, the psalmist waited for God.  He may be in the depths tonight, but tonight is not Lord.  God is His Lord.  The last word hasn't yet been spoken.  "The depths," will not be the last chapter.  He will live tonight and tomorrow in the hopeful expectation that with God "is abundant redemption."  That is enough.  Rather, HE is enough.

And Word from the Lord was rare in those days, visions were infrequent (I Samuel 3:1). A sobering thought, isn't it? It was a somewhat quiet time in Israel, not too much going on, for good or ill. The silence of God, however, can depict a problem on the listening end of things; not always mind you, but it can indicate slothfulness in obedience and laziness in zeal for God.

In Israel's case the silence of God indicated a time of inner rebellion and what came to be a crying out to have a king like all the other kingdoms had. God wasn't enough for them. They wanted a king and a palace and all the trappings of a monarchy. God will give them that for which they seek, but in preparation for it, He comes into the story one quiet night and speaks; speaks of all things to a young child, a boy by the name of Samuel.

Three times, Samuel heard the voice but didn't know it was God's voice. Finally, his mentor, Eli, discerned that it must be God's voice, and he counseled the child to listen carefully again and that, if the voice should call him again, he should say, "Speak Lord, for Your servant is listening" (I Sam. 3:9).

And, that's what Samuel did. He said, "Speak, for Your servant is listening." That response opened the door for God to use Samuel for the rest of his life in wonderful and astounding ways. He anointed Saul as Israel's first king. When Saul forfeited his kingship because of rebellion, Samuel was the one who saw in David the man of God's choosing to be the next king, the king through whom the Messiah would eventually come.

It was when the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord that God entered into the story and called him. May God help us to be caught up in ministering and living for God so that in our day should he choose to call our name we will hear His voice and say from our heart of hearts, "Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening."

A Setting-Free God

We Christians believe Jesus is the Servant-Messiah. We believe Jesus is God’s response to the deepest needs of the human heart. In Jesus the deepest needs of our lives are met; they are met with a tenderness that leaves us stunned and amazed.

Isaiah says of the Servant, "A bruised reed He will not break and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish” (3). In the Servant God doesn’t push and shove. He doesn’t demand His pound of flesh. He doesn’t bark orders like a drill sergeant. He draws near and embraces. Isaiah 40:11 says, “Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, in His arm He will gather the lambs and carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.”

As Christians we believe our God is a setting-free God, but we also know that setting-free is a difficult business because we humans are a broken and damaged people who act strong but know we really aren’t, who look great but know we really aren’t as great as we look. This makes redemption a real challenge because in telling us the truth about ourselves and holding us accountable, God must not so handle us that we get lost in despair. If His goal is redemption He must come within our fractured lives and show us the way to healing and redemption.

So Jesus comes gently, quietly, lovingly to open the prison doors and the self-dug dungeons of our lives. The past does not have to control the future. The future can be defined by what God has done for us in Christ. The past may be awful; the future can be stamped with the glory of God. God says, “Now I declare new things” (Is. 42:9).

What new thing does God want to bring to pass in your life just because He loves you? Can you accept the fact that God accepts you? Will you receive a new future, one shaped and formed by amazing grace?

“It is good,” says the ancient poet, “to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant and praise is becoming” (Psalm 147:1). Why is it the poet reaches this conclusion? He answers the question himself when he says, “Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite” (vs. 5).

This would be enough but when one adds the personal concern of this God who is “Great,” it becomes amazing and magnificent. The Psalmist says of God that He “heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds….The Lord supports the afflicted; He brings down the wicked to the ground” (vs. 3-6).

God is not distant and removed from our lives. He is a God who draws near in our pain and heals broken hearts and wounded lives. He is Sovereign over all, and unites His own life with our lives with divine-size strength and understanding.

We live in a dangerous world where bad things happen everyday, senseless things that leave us bewildered and perplexed. It is the fruit of living in a broken and fallen world. Still, God does not abandon us. He comes to us in the baby of Bethlehem and inundates Himself into history, so that, in time, He will take our pain and suffering, our sins and humanity, and die upon a cross “for Adam’s helpless race.”

“Amazing love! How can it be?"

In our culture, at Christmas we exchange gifts, a wonderful expression of love. Yet, as Christians we really ought to jettison out of our communities any hint of a high jacked holiday. How might we go about this, though? Culture is a powerful presence and it takes some work to move it off center stage and onto something nice but not essential.

For four weeks followers of Jesus have journeyed through Advent. We’ve prayed and searched and hoped and looked forward to a time and place where the kingdom of God in all its glory will be the natural order of things. Celebrating Jesus’ birth into history helps us realize that God is in the midst but that there are miles to go before we sleep.

We think it unselfish to give gifts; and it is. Yet, perhaps we ought to recognize that Christmas isn’t about us and our unselfishness. Christmas is about the Self-giving, Self-sacrificing love of God for his creation, moving Him into the very fiber of what He created. Christmas is about what God gave to the world in the life of the Baby whose birth we choose to celebrate on December 25.

Look at what God has gifted us with in the life of this baby boy. Paul wrote, “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (I Cor. 1:30). Now these are some real gifts. The prophet, Isaiah, tells us this child is a “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace” (Is. 9:6). This drives home the point that God is the Giver of everything we most need.

May God help us to receive what He has given and to live and move and have our being in the depths of His amazing grace.

King David wanted to build God a house of worship. It made sense in a way. David knew that while He was living in a house of cedar that the ark of God was dwelling “within tent curtains” (see. 2 Samuel 7:2). This didn’t seem right to David, and he wanted to correct it.

It was a noble idea but it wasn’t God’s will for David. God wanted to do not a physical thing in David’s life but a deeply and profound spiritual thing. He would allow a temple to be built but that job would fall to David’s son, Solomon.

Then a tremendous role reversal takes place. God says to David, “The Lord also declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you”(2 Sam. 7:11). David is to be gifted with a house built by God. Of this house God says, “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:16).

God is doing something in the world that is not rooted and grounded in the things of the world. God is at work in the hearts and lives of people, a people who actually become His “Chosen Race,” His “royal Priesthood,” His “holy Nation,’ and “a people for God’s own possession” (I Pet. 2:9). The house that God builds is “a spiritual house” comprised of people who have come to Christ, “ a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God” (I Pet. 2:4-5).

This house is comprised of what the Bible calls, “living stones,” ordinary people who by an extraordinary and amazing Grace have received mercy so as to come alive in the very life of God. The good news in this is that you and I are invited to be that people.

Merry Christmas!

Did you know God is looking for a people in whom He can rejoice? In Isaiah 65:19 God says, “I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people.” He said this just after having challenged these very people, “Be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing” (vs. 18).

Our God is a rejoicing God. He calls His people to rejoice in what He creates, with the promise that He will rejoice in those people. Who are these people? They are the very people to whom earlier He had said, “Comfort, O comfort My people…Here is your God” (Is. 40:1, 9).

Our God is an up-close-and-personal-God. He is not aloof and disinterested. When we are taken through the hard times of life He does not forsake us; He draws near. Even when we can’t see Him, He is present, “like a shepherd” (Is. 40:11). When we are broken and hurt, fractured and wounded “in His arms He will gather His lambs and carry them in His bosom” (Is. 40:11).

God is so much with us that we can join the prayer of old and pray, “O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand” (Is. 65:8). God is with us in the everyday stuff of life--the good, the bad, and the ugly; and He is with us in grace to shape and form our lives in awesome ways we could never dream or imagine.

In the Advent season of waiting, longing, looking forward, and hoping, God Is With Us. Even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with us (see. Psalm 23:4). In the presence of powers that would seek our demise God invites us to a divine banquet. He is our shepherd anointing us with the oil of His Spirit so much so that our “cup overflows” (Ps. 23:5).

How do you perceive God? Is He hard and cruel and unbending? Some people think so. Yet, the Bible doesn’t present this picture of God. The Bible presents Him as one who is calling for wholeness and health and life and blessing. He works so as to remove all barriers to His “good and acceptable and perfect will” (see Rom. 12:2). He lives in His world in truthfulness and justice, and at the heart of all He does is redemption, love, forgiveness, and salvation from anything that would destroy His “good and acceptable and perfect will” from being realized in the lives of people.

We live in a world where “the grass withers, the flower fades.” It is a transient world and everything moves toward the day of its death. That seems to be a fatalistic way of seeing, but it really isn’t. In this transient and temporary world the eternal God of the universe has come. He hasn’t written off the world. Rather, He is here “with might” (see Isaiah 40: 8-10). He is present as a Shepherd taking care of His flock. God is not hard, cruel, and unbending. When He is present the word goes out, “Comfort, O comfort My people” (Is. 40:1).

God is present. This is the good news. He is here not to write off but to include. Are you broken at some point in your life? Your brokenness cannot deter God. Are you bruised by some past action? Your past cannot deter God. Do you feel helpless? Your helplessness cannot deter God.

Listen for the voice of God, and hear His Word. If you do you will discover “the glory of the Lord” (Is. 40:5). Could it be that God is wanting to say to you that your “warfare has ended” (Is. 40:2)? Is there something in your life God wants to clean out and jettison away so that His “good and acceptable and perfect will” might be done (Rom. 12:2)? Each of our has our own story. God is aware of it, and is present to speak His grace into our lives.

A wonderful hymn reminds us of the birth of Jesus. I love the hymn but there is something about it that doesn't set well. Some of the words are these:

All Your works declare Your glory;

All creation joins to sing.

Praise resounds as earth rejoices

In the birth of Christ, the King.[1]

To these words my heart says "Yes," but I know many people on the earth do not rejoice in Jesus birth. They want very little to do with Jesus, in fact. To them He is an inconvenience, an ancient relic too old for our world and too demanding to be taken seriously.

In the end, however, each of us must decide for ourselves what we shall do with the baby born in Bethlehem. Shall we ignore Him? Shall we let the story rest in peace and move on to what we perceive to be greater things? Shall we follow His life far beyond the manger to see where it takes us? Shall we fall before Him and call Him Lord? What shall we do with Jesus?

For one thing, we ought not to let others determine for us what we shall do with Jesus. Those of us, who fall before Him and call Him Lord, do it because we know He is the Lord. He is the best thing that has ever happened to us. He has spoken His peace into our lives and it has forever changed us for the good.

What shall we do with Jesus? Those of the earth may or may not rejoice; but we will rejoice. We will sing, "Joyful, joyful, we adore You, God of glory, Lord of light," and we do so with hearts set on fire by His life and light and joy. He has not dealt with us according to our sins and He has received us to Himself as the Messiah, Lord of lords and King of kings.

Joy to the world!

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[1] "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore You," words by Linda Lee Johnson, 1985, music by Ludwig van Beethoven, 1824, arr. By Edward Hodges, 1864

Never before has there been a more measurable spiritual search in the lives of the people in our culture than there is today. People are hungry for spiritual meaning and purpose. Life hits people hard at all levels of society and no one is exempt from the realities of life. People are searching.

People are looking for the truth about things. They're not looking for membership and institutions and "big brother" answers. They are looking for hope. People want meaning and purpose; and Jesus Christ, perhaps unbeknownst to them, is exactly what they are looking for.

The poet said,

Down in the human heart, crushed by the tempter,

Feelings lie buried that grace can restore.

Touched by a loving heart, wakened by kindness,

Chords that are broken will vibrate once more.[1]

People need a vital and living relationship with the God of all grace, not a rigid set of religious rules that take them from one set of bondage producing things into another set.

The apostle Paul says, "It was for freedom Christ has set us free" (Gal. 5:1). That's why the message of Jesus is powerful for today. Jesus takes people to the truth and then by that truth, sets them free.

I have a lot to be thankful for, and this truth is at the top of my list.

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[1]. Verse 3 of “Rescue the Perishing” by Fanny Crosby, 1869

I like the question, “What Can I do for my God?”. It personalizes for me the fact that I really do love God and I really do want to live for Him. This is a settled issue for me. What is fluid in my faith is the matter of being about living for God so that my love for Him will shine through in all I do.

As Christians we are about the vocation of living in response to the love of God embracing us through Jesus. We are loved. All the way to death and beyond Jesus acts on behalf of the love of God. We love because He first loved us. I John 4:10 says, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” Later John says, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome” (I John 5:3).

The love of God for us moves us to be faithful to His will and His ways; so, the question comes: In light of how much God loves me, what can I do for my God?” Jesus likens it to a taking of what has been given us, and then being stewards of that gift. In a parable he spoke of three different people, each of whom had received “talents,” one was given five, one was given two, and one was given one.

A talent was an economic term equaling about fifteen years worth of wages. Each person was entrusted with quite a large sum of money, but how they lived out their stewardship was not to be a comparative thing. Faithfulness was the issue. Be it five, two, or one talent, the amount of return on the investment wasn’t so much the issue as was the fact that the holder of the talent was faithful in the execution of the stewardship of what had been entrusted to him.

What can we do for our God just because we love Him?

One of the so-called seven deadly sins is slothfulness, the neglect to take care of something that one should do. It has been referred to as the failure to employ or make use of one's talents and gifts. It is a failure of heart and focus to do what one needs to do.

Jesus tells a story about ten virgins, five of who were wise (prudent) and five of who were foolish. They were all waiting to participate in a wedding feast. The bridegroom was late so the ladies had to make preparation for the late arrival. Five did so and five did not do so. When the bridegroom came, the five wise virgins were ready, but the five foolish virgins, having done nothing to prepare, were not allowed to enter into the feast. They had been slothful and unalert. They missed out on the celebration because they had refused to prepare themselves. They had no one to blame but themselves.

Jesus uses His story to tell His disciples that they needed to be on the alert because they really didn’t know, what He called, “the day nor the hour” (Matt. 25:13); and, neither do we. Jesus, the Bridegroom may return today before sundown or He may tarry a thousand years. We don’t know. What we do know is that between this moment and that moment we must live alertly, doing with our lives what it means to know the Bridegroom and be ready for the feast He is giving.

The apostle Paul speaks of how “the Lord will come just like a thief in the night” (I Thes. 5:2). His coming will catch us off guard, but it doesn’t have to catch us unaware.

Jesus wants His people to be ready at all times, ready to hear Him say, “I know you” (see Matt. 25:11-12).

What shall we do with our faith? Shall we turn it into a means of personal gratification whereby people will know how wonderful we are? Shall we mount a position high above others so that we can look down on them, ever reminding them of how far we have come and how holy we really are? Shall we live so as to revel in our humility, camouflaging our pride by going out of the way to look the part?

Silly questions? Maybe! Yet, these are the very kinds of things the Pharisees were doing at the time of Jesus; and, He didn’t embrace it in any way, shape, or form. In fact, Jesus took the silliness of those who would portend to be spokespersons for God, and spoke to those who truly loved God about what a relationship with God really looked like. What a difference it was, too.

Jesus calls us to a living of our lives whereby our Yes is simply Yes, and our No is simply No. Pride has no place. Showtime faith is disavowed. Seeking the place of honor is laughable. Hungering to be called “Great,” or “Wonderful” or “Remarkable,” is totally out of character.

Instead, in the way of Jesus “the greatest shall be…servant” (Matt. 23:11). We have one leader, and He is Jesus. The rest of us are blessed by grace to be a part of what He is doing in the world. Who of us gets the credit is not essential or even important. That all praise and glory and honor go to God is non-negotiable.

Let’s be so occupied with our relationship with Jesus that the only approval we ultimately seek is His. The world may or may not say to us, “Well done.” It matters not as long as on that day, which will mean more than any other day in history, we hear Jesus say, “Well done.” I really do want Him to say this to me. Don’t you?

Along time ago I made a decision based upon a growing conviction that I was a sinner standing in need of the grace and forgiveness of God. Looking back on that moment I have concluded time and time again through the years that my confessing I was a sinner and coming to Jesus in my condition was the best decision I ever made. A part of that decision has been a life time of seeking after God in my life, and a hungering to be what God would have me be. It has been one fantastic ride, and it is still underway.

Even at this late date in my journey I am still discovering that the person who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the path of sinners or sit in the seat of scoffers is blessed beyond a capacity to fully grasp it (See Psalm 1). The Psalm writer was correct through and through when he said of that blessed person, “His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night” (Ps. 1:2).

God is at work in this world and we followers of Christ are blessed to be involved in what God is doing. We are discovering every day that by a grace that never ceases to amaze us we are “like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields it fruit in it season and its leaf does not wither; and in what whatever he does, he prospers” (Ps. 1:3).

Life isn’t perfect for us because we still live in a broken world, but in that world God is doing in His people “far more abundantly beyond all that we could ever ask or think” (Eph. 3:20). Regardless as to what comes our way we know that God’s will is “good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12:2). His will can’t be improved on and, as we say where I come from, we are right smack dab in the middle of it.

Amen and keep the party going.

Jesus told some folks who were seeking His destruction that it was okay to render to Caesar the things that were Caesar’s. He took it a step further, however, and spoke to them of how they also were to render to God the things that are God’s. Seems fair and balanced on the surface, but it isn’t.

The fact of the matter is that God is the Creator of heaven and earth and of all that is in them. Caesar would have no place to strut his stuff if it were not for the Creative engineering of Almighty God. When Jesus took Caesar’s coin he was taking something that was developed from s substance that was created by God and then turned into something useful for Caesar.

We live in societies governed by some sort of “Caesar.” Jesus tells us to render to that Caesar what is his. However, the rendering is not a surrendering. We are not to surrender to Caesar for Caesar is not God. A few verses later, in Matthew 22:37, Jesus set the record straight. He said, “You shall love the Lord Your God with all Your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” We are not commanded to love Caesar with that kind of entirety, but simply to render to him what is his. God is the one to have first place in all things throughout our lives.

As the Church of Jesus we are to be good citizens but always remembering that our true “citizenship is in heaven” (Phil. 3:20). As citizens of the kingdom of heaven we stand as ambassadors of Christ in Caesar’s little kingdoms, and we lift up the cross there.