Can we make it?

After going through a hard time, have you ever had anyone say to you words like "How are you making it?" or "Are you going to make it?" Those questions are meant to be supportive and emphathetic. But the reality is that we really can't make it on our own. Roy Lessin in one of his essays observed the following: "God knew we could never buy our way to Him---the COST was too great. We could never earn our way to Him-- the TASK was too great. We could never will our way to Him--the COMMITMENT was to great. God knew we could never come to Him...SO HE CAME TO US!" Life has been crippled permanently by our sin. We must deal daily with the fall-out of our wayward journey. The pains and wrinkles that creep up on us are constant reminders that we are not making it. The sorrows & set-backs slam us into the reality of helplessness. We curse, twist our hands, slam our fists into the invisible wall of hopeless inevitability The world is falling apart around us to varying degrees everyday and in spite of what the therapists tell us about reaching deep within our being to find solutions, we know that we are not going to make it ultimately. Someone else outside our framework must reach in and pluck us out of our dilemma. Enter...the Christmas story. God coming in Christ to people who could not make it...that's us! Christ came for the express purpose of bringing glory to God by doing His will in the matter of our rescue from sin! We were not making it, and He lifted us up by his own might and power through his death on the cross. Can we make it? Accept the fact you cannot. Only when one comes to Christ can anyone make it! "When we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly" [Romans 5:6]. Think it through!

Can you escape worry?

Worry really is saying "I don't trust God." It is "sheep that have become suspicious of the Shepherd." Jesus declares in Matthew 6 that you cannot serve [give all your energy to] God and money...or clothes, or food, or drink.... Serving must be an expression of trust. The one to whom you are devoting your time and effort is one that you can rely on implicitly. James M. Boice used to say that when we worry we have allowed ourselves to overlook the way God takes care of the rest of his creation. Jesus says take a look at the birds or the length of the hours of your life, or the wild flowers out in the fields. Who takes responsibility for all that transpires in creation? God. Does it make sense that if God created us and saved us that He will not care for us? James Boice also made the following observation: "The future is in God's hands and will be managed perfectly by God whether you worry about it or not." The next time you worry ask yourself...hey, what happened to trust? Just who am I serving? Think it through!

Irrelevant?

When Moses informed God that he could not possibly be the one to confront Pharaoh on the mission of demanding the release of the Israelites, his reasons ranged from "they will not listen to me" to "I am not eloquent...I have [lit] a heavy mouth & a heavy tongue [Exodus 3-4]. It is rather humerous to listen to Moses debate God rather eloquently and then see him advance an argument to God that he was NOT eloquent. In your Bible I would ask you to write the word "irrelevant" next to Exodus 4:10. God's response was that He made Moses mouth and would teach him what to say. The reality was that Moses took too much on himself to believe that his eloquence was the key to the release of Israel from their slavery. It borders on subtle insanity to think that our gifts are the key ingredient to the success of any task or ministry for God. Repeatedly God told Moses throughout his preparatory period that it would be God's hand and God's power and God's sovereignty that would force Pharaoh's hand (Exodus 3:7-8; 3:16-17; 3:19-21; 4:11; 6:1; 6:5-8; 7:1;7:4-5). Moses only had to obey God's commands to deliver the message.
God warned Moses that Pharaoh would not listen (Exodus 7:4). If you were informed that what you would do and say in your ministry to God would not be observed to be successful, the temptation to quit would be overwhelming. It seems Moses wrestled with that...especially when the burdens increased upon his people as a result of the first unsuccessful attempt to secure their release from Pharaoh [Exodus 5]. But back to that "irrelevant" thing. In your Bible I would ask you to write the word "irrelevant" next to Exodus 7:4a. The issue is not whether the outcome is successful. It makes no difference whether Pharaoh listens or not. The issue is...do what God says. That is where we all, as believers, must live! Our productivity and our success lies not in what happens after the fact, but what happens before the fact...obedience to His word... His command. Let that word "irrelevant" resonate in your minds for a while, espeically when you are tempted to trust your own gifts and abilities as those ingredients necessary to make the difference. Think it through!

Will you have a Christmas "break-through?"

Most believers do not need convinced that Christ himself should dominate all of our Christmas gatherings and Christmas plans. Yet even believers can become easily preoccupied. After all getting together with family, exchanging gifts, eating a great meal, and laughing, sharing, recalling memories of former Christmas gatherings, and just that wonderful sense of being together is part of what makes Christmas for us. Let me just raise some simple questions that may help us keep on track this year:
Do we have presence or just presents?
Christ is consciously present among us when we are made aware of him through prayer & time in the Word of God. When during your family gathering do you intentionally make time to pray together & share the word together? Your children will long remember those "set aside" moments during all the family gatherings when Christ was brought to the center. We can have "presents" w/out the consciousness of His presence.
Do we sing or just sting?
How many times do you hear of families that avoid one another during the holidays or do not speak or communicate. Even if they are together, sooner or later an argument or harsh words erupt. As believers we must find a reason to sing, instead of looking for ways to sting one another. If Christ is "the reason for the season" then we must find ways to model his presence in our lives. In every crowd that Jesus joined in the New Testament, even with the hostile, he made a difference for good in that setting. Our preoccupation with Christ's presence in us humbles us and removes the arrogance in our hearts as to who is right or wrong in the strained relationships. After all Jesus came as the healer of human hearts! And if we can communicate that with grace the sting will be replaced with a song. But remember, the change begins first in my own heart.
Do we have inward or just outward joy?
What is it that brings the real smile to your face? Is it what you received or gave? Is it whether all treated you well, or that you were able to share with others? Does the joy come from the reality that Christ came and set you free to live as God intended for you to live? Or does the joy come only when all the pieces are put together to your liking? Can you enjoy the things that do not go as planned, realizing God may have another, better plan than the one you tried to put into place? The angels told the shepherds in Luke 2 that the message they brought to them was a message of great joy...is it that to you? Or do you need another stimulus to create inward joy? Outward joy without inward joy is a short-lived sham. Gratitude coupled with grace...ie knowing that all we have been given in Christ has come as a result of grace...nothing we deserved but all given freely by this incredible God in Christ ignites inward joy that spills over into the real thing outwardly.
SO...will you have a Christmas "break-through?" Think it through.

Can you sin without suffering?

J. Sidlow Baxter, a godly pastor from another generation said: "We cannot sin without suffering." Yet we live in a culture that takes issue with that statement. If I fail financially, I have the right to be bailed out. If I fail morally, I have the right to a fresh start...no strings. If I lose my job through carelessness or dishonesty, I have the right to another job of equal qualilty and benefits. But the Bible paints an entirely different scenerio. Over and over again in Scripture we are confronted with the reality of sin followed by suffering. Elisha's servant, Gehazi, can testify to the truth of the sin/suffering syndrome. He lied to Naaman regarding the reason for taking money from him, falsely representing Elisha the prophet. He lied to Elisha about his journey to ask for money from Naaman. He ended up with Naaman's leprosy [ II Kings 5]. Suffering follows sin.
In every city in America there are signs of sin followed by suffering. We have hospitals, clinics, de-tox centers, and funeral homes. There are crimes of violence, murder, as well as stealing, cheating, & embezzeling...all leading to the suffering of victims and their families.
When God planned redemption for sinners, the suffering of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross was a necessity. Christ took our place, suffering for our sins for He had none of his own. The only way that the suffering for sin can be mitigated is through Christ Himself. Christ must save me from my sins. He alone gives grace for the consequences of sins committed. He alone atones for and removes the guillt and condemnation that my sin rightly deserves. Thank God for the cross! Can you sin without suffering??? Think it through!

Can you sin without suffering?

It was a godly pastor of another generation who said: "We cannot sin without suffering" [J. Sidlow Baxter]. Yet this present culture seems to take issue with that idea. There is a pervasive notion that you can sin and avoid all or most of the consequences. In fact if I make a financial mistake, I have a right to expect someone to bail me out. If I make a moral mistake, I have a right to a fresh start...letting bygones be bygones.

Where is it all headed?

Election time raises hopes and creates frustrations. To believe that one man at the helm can turn the ship of state all by himself is not realistic. To ignore the power of one man's ideas is also foolish. With the dire economic crisis continuing to dog our steps, and the uncertainty of the election's outcome along with the "grasping at straws" to return the stock market to a healthy status so we can all breath a sigh of relief...you get the idea that no one really knows what to do and that this whole direction is rather out of our hands. I am amazed to find even believers who are on the edge of panic about their retirement, investment portfolios, and even their future job security. Yes, businesses are taking a hit. The future may look different than anything we have seen in our lifetimes. We may have to get by on less [although that is a relative term when we look at 2/3's of the rest of the world]. Credit may become harder to get [not a bad thing judging by the mess this mind-set of borrowing has brought to us]. I am not making light of the struggles and pain many are in right now. BUT...isn't this just exactly the way things are going to go if the prophecies of scripture are to come to pass? We are desperate for answers...God says a man of sin will arise with answers and gain a following that will usher in a time of great trial and tribulation on this earth. God is setting the stage. He is moving history like clockwork right down the path He has predicted and planned. So...is it a time to panic, to bewail? OR...is it a time to rejoice. This is our hour. We need to be sharing the Gospel as the hope for mankind. The reversal of the stock market will not hold a man when he enters the waters of eternity. My anchor must be in Christ alone and His unchanging word! We must choose to either live in panic or praise!! [ Read Revelation 18-19 & I Thessalonians 5:1-11] Where is it all headed? Think it through.