God Cares for His Children

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

The 1st letter of Peter contains instructions and promises for every believer in Christ Jesus, those have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God by the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirt to obey Jesus Christ and to be sprinkled with His blood (1 Peter 1:1-2). If you are a recipient of this unmerited grace and favor, I invite you to take a moment to meditate on some of the truths and promises contained in these verses:

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7

1. Humble yourself - Submit yourself to God. Bring your mind, thoughts, opinions, beliefs, and will under the Truth that is of God and from God. Ask yourself, “Do the words I speak agree with Scripture? Do the thoughts I think conform to the truth that’s found in God’s Word?” If not, I need to repent and humble myself before God. God is truth; His Word is truth. And I must submit my mind, heart, and will that is fallen and corrupt to the God who is - to the Creator who has revealed Himself in His Word and in Christ Jesus.
2. God’s mighty hand - God is mighty - all powerful. He will accomplish all His will, both decreed and declared. He will accomplish all His purposes - those He has revealed to us in His Word as well as the plans that are known only to Him. Nothing will stop God from accomplishing His will. (Job 42:2) He will not fail to bring all His promises to pass.
3. Our sure exaltation - God’s plan is to redeem His people - those whom He’s predestined, called, and justified. He will save, sanctify, and glorify them in Christ. Our exaltation will be a glorious demonstration before all created beings of His mighty power to save and deliver His people - all for His glory! Just as He delivered the nation of Israel from Egypt, so shall He deliver True Israel from the curse of sin. One day we will be glorified with Christ and forever freed from the presence of sin, within and without.
4. At the proper time - God’s timing for all that He has planned to bring to pass is perfect and right. Wait upon the Lord, your redemption is nigh. Trust and obey. Stand firm in the faith. At the right time, God will finally deliver us.
5. Cast your anxiety on Him - God knows we are but dust and are subject to doubts, worries, fears, anxieties, and temptations. And yet, He is patient and longsuffering. He tenderly bears with us as our loving Father, gently guiding and discipling us in love that is everlasting. Tell Him about your worries and troubles. Take everything to the Lord in prayer. Tell Him again and again if you have to. He hears us and knows the words we speak before they reach our tongues. (Psalm 139:4)
6. He cares for you - He cares. He cares. He cares! And He is loving and mighty enough to do something about it. The answer may not come in the way you expected; no, God often leads His children through trials, adversities, and persecutions. It is through much tribulation that we enter the Kingdom of God. For those who would truly follow Christ, the way is the cross. We must die daily and be willing to lose all if only we may still have Christ. God knows exactly what we really need - more than we do. Trust Him. He cares for you.

Why Do We Die?

Recently, I read a news story about a man who drowned in the middle of Lake Tahoe. The events surrounding the tragedy were so disturbing that I found myself contemplating what must have happened to bring it about and what it must have felt like to be this unfortunate man. 

The calamity was discovered when an empty ski boat, still in gear, ran ashore, prompting police to launch an investigation into this puzzling incident. On the boat they found a cell phone with video footage that helped them piece together the bizarre chain of events that had resulted in this abandoned boat making its way back to land.

Apparently, the man who had rented the boat positioned his phone to video himself jumping and playing in the water not realizing that he had accidentally left the boat slightly in gear until it was too late. According to the police, the video shows the man diving into the water and splashing around, however the scene becomes increasingly morbid as the boat slowly pulls away from this man who cannot swim fast enough to catch it.

Tragedies like this cause me to stop and think. They force me to contemplate my own mortality. They compel me to look beyond this life and ponder what awaits each of us beyond the grave. They constrain me to consider God: who He is and why He would allow such a disturbing demise. Thankfully, God has spoken on these topics.

In chapter 13 of Luke’s gospel, some of the people bring up a horrific event, recounting how Pilate had slaughtered some Galileans, mixing their own blood with the sacrifices they had been making. Perhaps they wondered why a good God would allow these good worshipers to be destined to such a fate. Or maybe they wondered if possibly the Galileans might have done something to deserve punishment from God at the hands of Pilate. Jesus, however, does not answer these questions directly, but shows them they are asking the wrong questions. He does not praise any goodness in the Galileans that would suggest injustice on God’s behalf for allowing them to perish in such a way. He also does not reveal some deplorable sin of the Galileans that would cause us to agree in judgement, “Yes, they deserved it.” 

So how does Jesus respond? He answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Jesus is challenging their presuppositions by essentially asking, “Do you think it is unjust that God allowed these Galileans to be killed? Don’t you agree that all sinners, including you, deserve death?” He uses this opportunity to make us consider why we die in the first place. Yes, we will all die. And those who suffer what we might consider an untimely death are no more or less deserving of death than we are. If we fancy ourselves to be good, moral people, we might think we are entitled to a long life with a peaceful passing. We certainly don’t think we deserve to fall victim to a wicked man’s outrage or to succumb to some unfathomable freak accident. When tragedies strike, our hearts cry out, “It’s not right! It’s not fair!” But our hearts are deceitfully wicked, especially when we think God is somehow unjust or unfair for allowing people to suffer and die. 

God has told us why we die. Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death. We are paid a wage for what we do. Our rebellion against God has earned us the death penalty. So it really doesn’t matter so much as to when we die or how we die; we need to understand WHY we die. This is what Jesus is bringing to our attention. He then strengthens his message by offering an example of another event we might be tempted to shrug off as “wrong place, wrong time.” Jesus continues, “Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who live in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Now is Jesus saying that if we repent we won’t die? Yes and No. He’s obviously not saying that if we repent we won’t ever die physically. Rather, he is calling us to a repentance that leads to true life, eternal life. You see, there is a second death that is far worse than the physical death we are all too familiar with and will all face. This final, eternal, irrevocable death of ultimate and continual perishing awaits each one of us if we refuse to believe Jesus and repent. (See Rev. 20)

God is not unjust for allowing and even sovereignly decreeing each of our impending deaths. We deserve death. All of us. Why? Because each of us have broken God’s moral law which is revealed to each of us through our own conscience and more explicitly expressed through the Ten Commandments. Yahweh God is the Sovereign Creator God and it is His prerogative and absolute right to establish the law for His creatures, decree the punishment for breaking it, and serve justice upon those who defy it. When we defy God’s law, we defy God himself, for His moral law is an expression of who He is. How have we broken His law? We have lied. We have lusted. We have hated. We have envied. We have slandered. We have deceived. We have failed to love God and have served ourselves; and we know what we do is wrong. 

Did you know that God not only tells us what sin is and that we are all guilty, but He also tells us why we love sin in the first place? It is because we, all mankind, have been condemned in Adam, the first created human being. When Adam fell from grace through his deliberate disobedience, we all fell in him and through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men (Romans 5). Mankind is now born guilty, condemned under God’s curse with our human nature utterly defiled. The Bible says we are slaves to sin and children of wrath. We are spiritually dead in transgressions and sins. We love the darkness rather than the light because our deeds are wicked. You may say, “but God sees my heart!” Yes he does. Our hearts lie open before him like a book and this is what He sees: 

None is righteous, no, not one;

    no one understands;

    no one seeks for God.

All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;

    no one does good,

    not even one.

Their throat is an open grave;

    they use their tongues to deceive.

The venom of asps is under their lips.

    Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.

Their feet are swift to shed blood;

    in their paths are ruin and misery,

and the way of peace they have not known.

    There is no fear of God before their eyes.  (Romans 3:10-18)

Perhaps you might be thinking, “This still seems unfair. Why am I under this curse for something Adam did?” I would argue that we are again asking the wrong question. We are assuming that God does not have the right over His creation to do as He pleases. God is the sovereign Creator of the universe. This is His world and we are His creation. God told Adam that if he ate the forbidden fruit he would die. When Adam rebelled, choosing to trust in his own wisdom over God’s, he deserved immediate death. If God wished to exercise His perfect justice in that moment, He could have put an end to Adam and Eve and destroyed the human race right then and there. If God were to have done that, you and I wouldn’t even exist now to question His justice and righteousness. But what did God do? He showed Adam and Eve mercy by allowing them (and all people who would come from them) to continue to exist; and He promised to send a Redeemer who would deliver His people from this curse and set them free from the slavery of sin! Adam, our earthly father, was our representative and in God’s perfect knowledge, He knows each of us would have rebelled just as Adam did if we had been given the same opportunity. So now, because of the justly deserved curse of God, we are all born physically alive but spiritually dead. We need to be brought back to spiritual life, to be born again. But just like our physical birth, we have no power or control to do this for ourselves. We are entirely at the mercy of the Almighty God. It is a terrifying thing to stand before a Holy God and His perfect law, naked and condemned, without hope and without excuse. Unless God chooses to show us mercy, we are utterly lost. Which brings me back to thinking about the young man in the lake.

I imagine him excited to enjoy his day on the water and then coming up with the idea to video and share his experience with his friends on social media. He sets up his phone and dives in the water. At what point does he perceive the dreadfulness of his situation? Perhaps after a few minutes of splashing around he realizes he is farther away from the boat than he’d like to be. So he begins to swim. When does he realize that it’s not him who got too far away but that the boat is leaving him? As the boat pulls away faster than he can swim, surely he must have tried with all his strength and might to reach it. But he can’t swim fast enough. It is just not physically possible. Ultimately, he had to recognize the futility of his efforts. The panic sets in deeper as he watches the distance between himself and the boat grow increasingly larger, leaving him stranded. He is helpless. He is hopeless. He is ruined. With the water beginning to engulf him, oh the doom and despair he must have felt!

It is to this place of utter helplessness and hopelessness that the gospel of Jesus Christ must first bring us. To rightly grasp the weight of the glorious gospel, the good news, we must first come to understand the reality of our desperate situation. It could be said that we are that man left in the middle of the lake and the boat represents anything we’ve done that we are counting on to justify ourselves before God. Perhaps it’s a prayer we once said. Or the many good things we think we’ve done. Or the bad things we’ve not done. Maybe it’s our belief in God, our biblical wisdom, or our efforts to be obedient. We might just be banking on the idea that God esteems us above other evil people by comparison. It could even be an idol, a false Jesus even, whom we’ve created in our own minds and who speaks words to our hearts that though they are contrary to The Word, they are words we like better. Whatever you are trusting in to commend yourself to God, if it is something that has been generated from yourself, you need to know that boat will not save you. It will leave you stranded and damned. Why? Because if you will escape the second death and earn eternal life and everlasting favor with God, you must be holy, as He is holy. You must be perfect, as He is perfect. You must be righteous, as He is righteous. You must not fail to keep the entirety of God’s law perfectly. Do you see that if the boat represents something you have done to justify yourself before God, then it must be your own sinless perfection. The boat, therefore, actually represents the perfect law of God. Trying to reach God through your own works are as futile as the man’s efforts to try to catch the boat. They are useless. We can’t attain unto it. No matter how hard we try, we will never be able to reach the boat. The perfect law of God and the obedience He requires is a burden we are unable to bear because it condemns us and we are condemned already. We don’t enter this world neutral with God, rather we are conceived in iniquity. Who can live up to the perfect righteousness of the most Holy God? We are guilty, we know it, and death is our just sentence. I pray you will see the boat leaving you.

Our only hope is to throw ourselves before the mercy of God. And praise God, He is merciful! He has not left us without hope. This is the grace of God, this is the mercy of God: Jesus Christ. God has allowed a substitute to take the punishment of death we have earned and deserved. He has allowed a substitute to live a life of perfect obedience in our place. And not only has He allowed a substitute, He has provided one. But only one. God has supplied a Spotless Lamb without blemish, the perfect Lamb of God, His one and only eternal Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus endured the wrath of God and received the penalty of death in our place. Because God punished the sins of His people through the death of Christ on the cross, we have been forgiven. Our sin debt has been paid and our slates have been wiped clean! And if that weren’t enough, Jesus was bodily resurrected as proof that God accepted this perfect, complete, once-for-all sacrifice which provided full atonement for every single person that had been given to Christ before the foundation of the world. And here’s grace upon grace: not only have God’s elect been saved from eternal condemnation, not only have His people been delivered from the spiritual death that once held us captive, God has bestowed upon His sheep the righteousness of Christ whereby God has adopted us as sons and daughters and made us joint heirs with Christ! The people of God, true Israel, are freely given everything that Christ earned when all we ever earned was everlasting damnation and eternal death. Eternal life has been given to the bride of Christ - a never-ending life spent knowing God, serving God, worshiping God, loving God, and enjoying God.

How does one receive this merciful gift of grace? By faith. This salvation from God is freely given to all who repent and believe. Repentance is agreeing with God that what He says is sin, is sin. It is turning from our sin, renouncing our sin, hating our sin, forsaking our sin, and turning to God, to Christ, for spiritual cleansing. It is trusting in every word He has spoken which has been preserved for us in the Holy Scriptures; for God cannot lie. Believing this gospel of Jesus Christ doesn’t make it true. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true, therefore, we who have received mercy, believe.

If anyone rejects this glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, they will be left in that place where the boat left the man: without hope and without salvation. I implore you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He is the only Savior. Believe Jesus.

Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. (Luke 13:4-5)

The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. (Mark 1:15)

I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. (Luke 5:32)

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:16-21)

Spiritual Food

We all know that we cannot live if we stop eating. In fact, when someone is really sick to the point where they cannot eat, we know their end is near if we do not give them nourishment. Just as our physical bodies perish so easily without food, our spiritual souls will perish if we are not given the food that gives us spiritual life.

Jesus, quoting the Word of God given to Moses, said, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matt. 4:4)

Not only is Jesus affirming the Old Testament Scriptures as the Word of God, something he did continually throughout his ministry on earth, he is teaching us something extremely important. If we do not have spiritual food - every word that comes from the mouth of God - we will not live. Our eternal life is dependent on the Word of God. 

Eternal life does not just mean we will exist forever. There is also eternal death. Eternal life is KNOWING GOD. Jesus tells us this in John 17:3: “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

How can we know God if we do not read, hear, listen to, and study His Word? It is in His Word - the Holy Scriptures - where we are taught everything we need to know about who we are and who God is in this earthly life. Eternity will be spent knowing God, more and more, never reaching the end or fullness of our infinite, Most Holy God. For those whom God redeems, eternal life begins now, in this life. Don’t fool yourself if you think you have life while you neglect, despise, or ignore God’s Word. 

In God’s Word we also learn that Jesus is the Word - the Word made flesh. Jesus is also the Bread of Life. You cannot follow the true Jesus apart from God’s true Word. There is so much feasting to be done in the Word of God! We must hunger for it, delight ourselves in it, and feed upon it. When you open your Bible, you must humble yourself before God, acknowledging that every word of it comes from the mouth of God and you have come to be taught.

“Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord, and whom you teach out of your law” (Psalm 94:12)

“The earth, O Lord, is full of your steadfast love; teach me your statutes!” (Psalm 119:64)

Coronavirus 2020: A Biblical Perspective

In light of all that is going on in the world, in our country, and in our state, many people are going through very difficult and dark times whether it be physically, financially or both. The coronavirus pandemic has brought enormous changes to our daily lives, habits, and freedoms and many people are experiencing not only great anxiety and fear concerning the future, but are looking to God and asking, “Why?” When we examine our world, in present times and past times, and consider the numerous wars, sicknesses, diseases, deaths and so many other evils, there is something within us that cries out “This is not how it should be!”

These are troubled times indeed, but God, in His Word, has given us answers. He has told us that we will go through difficult times and He not only tells us the purpose for it, but He gives His children hope for the future. But to understand these things, we need to go back to His Word to remind ourselves of the beginning and why He created us.

In the beginning, God created a perfect world and made two sinless human beings in His own image, Adam and Eve. He provided all their needs and gave them a beautiful environment to live in. He gave them only one command, to not eat the fruit of one tree in the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God warned Adam that if he was to eat this forbidden fruit, he would die. God had given Adam the ability and freedom to choose what was right and pleasing to his Creator, however, Adam chose to exalt himself above God by trusting and following his own wisdom. Adam was the representative head of the entire human race and his decision to sin against God is the same decision that each one of us would have made if given the opportunity.

Even though God had promised death to Adam and Eve for breaking this command, He showed them mercy. Instead of immediate death, they were banished from the garden and allowed to live for a period of time. However,  Adam and Eve would eventually die, as we all will. The Bible says, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12)

Adam’s rebellion brought the human race and the entire creation under a curse. The reason we live in this fallen world full of evil, wars, sickness, and death, is because of sin. Perhaps you think, “That’s not fair!” You’re right! “Fair” would have been immediate death for Adam and Eve, resulting in the extinction of the human race. That would have been just. The very fact that you’re alive to even question the justice of God proves His great mercy.

Consider the mercy and grace of God in how He provides for us - everything that we don’t deserve: the food we eat, the water we drink, the rain for the crops, the air we breath, bodies that heal, medicines that cure, rivers to fish in, mountains to explore, families to love…the list is infinite, for EVERY good thing is a gift from God. Yet, how many people truly recognize His kindness and mercy that He shows to all people on a daily basis? We should be so grateful and thankful, praising God continually, but instead we get angry and even curse God when life isn’t going the way we think it ought.

Something else happened when Adam fell from God’s grace and sin entered the world. Not only did Adam eventually die physically, he immediately died spiritually. He was cut-off from perfect communion with his Creator. Adam’s sin spread to the entire human race so that we are born with a sin nature that is inherent to our very being. David writes in Psalm 51:5 “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.” He’s not talking about his mother’s sin or the way he was conceived. He’s talking about the sin nature he was born with. Psalm 58:3 says, “The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies.” We are enemies of God from birth, and apart from God’s mercy, we will remain in this state.

We are not sinners because we sin, we sin because we are sinners; and because we are sinners, we are also cut-off from our Creator. We are cut-off from fellowship with God because He is holy and we are not. We are all corrupt and have failed to obey and honor God perfectly as He has commanded and as He deserves. When asked which is the greatest commandment in the Law, Jesus replied, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” None of us have kept these commandments perfectly. We fail to worship and serve God. We put ourselves before others and God. We lie. We steal. We covet. We are guilty. Our sin has separated us from God.

For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;

     evil may not dwell with You.

The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes;

     You hate all evildoers.

You destroy those who speak lies;

     the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. (Psalm 5:4-6)

Not only are we separated in our relationship with God, but God’s wrath and just punishment is deserved by all. 

Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. (Romans 2:3-5)

God’s wrath is deserved by all and it is coming soon. The “great and terrible” Day of the Lord is coming when God will judge all people. All will stand before His throne and He will pay them the wages their sin has earned. This is terrible news for mankind. While we go about our days, living our lives for ourselves, following our passions and desires and not giving thought to tomorrow or what eternity will bring, we are storing up wrath for ourselves.

Is there anything we can do? Is there any hope for us? The answer to the first question is “NO.” The answer to the second is, “Praise the LORD, YES!” No, there is nothing we can do to remedy our situation. There is no act of penance. There is no offering or sacrifice we can give. There is no amount of pleading with God for mercy. There are no satisfactory acts of kindness or good works we can present to appease the God we have offended. No prayer will save us. No baptism will save us. No church or denomination will save us. No walk down an aisle will save us. No commitment to God will save us. There is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING we can do to save ourselves from the just wrath of God and eternal punishment in hell.

So where is the hope? Our hope lies in the mercy of God. God’s plan from the foundation of the world has been to demonstrate His glory to His creation. This is why we have been created. His plan for this creation is to show all mankind His power, His love, His mercy, His goodness, His holiness, His justice, and even His perfect, righteous wrath. His plan has always been to provide a Savior who would eradicate sin from the hearts of His people and from this cursed world by creating new heavens and a new earth.

This is the good news! God has sent a Savior: His only begotten Son, born of a virgin and therefore free from corruption of Adam’s original sin. Jesus Christ, whose birth, life, and death, were prophesied hundreds of times in the Old Testament, fulfilled ALL of these prophesies. The Bible teaches that Jesus is the eternal, uncreated, Son of God, the second person in the Holy Trinity with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. God the Son added a human nature to His divine nature at His incarnation. He entered into His creation to bring us light, to bring us to the Father, and to show us the way of reconciliation and restoration to God. Jesus lived a sinless, righteous life, pleasing to the Father. He lived the life we could never live. He offered his life as a sacrifice for sin. While He hung on the Roman cross, God poured out His holy wrath on the Son who became the substitute for sinners. Jesus was raised back to life on the third day - proving God’s acceptance of the Son’s sacrifice, proclaiming Jesus’ victory over death, and prefiguring the resurrection of all God’s redeemed. This is the promise and hope God has given to sinners: God has placed the sin of His people upon His Son and has poured out His wrath upon His Son who died in the place of sinners. The wrath of God has been satisfied in Christ’s blood that was shed on the cross. Anyone who recognizes their sin and turns from it (repents) and trusts in Christ alone for their salvation will be saved! Believe and be saved!

We can only be saved by faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Through faith we are justified. Not only is Christ our substitute in death, He is our substitute in life. He died in our place and lived in our place. His death was our death and His life, our life, when we are in Christ. Our sin was imputed (credited) to Him and His righteous life is imputed to us. All of this is the free gift of God. What love! What mercy! What kindness!

Do you believe this? If you do, then know that even your belief, faith, and trust are not the result of your own inherent wisdom or goodness. For even the faith to believe the good news of the gospel is a gift from God. That is why our only hope lies in God’s mercy, for there is NOTHING we can do in and of ourselves to merit or earn His mercy and forgiveness.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:4-9)

So what does this good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ have to do with our current situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic? This plague is in the complete control of Almighty God and He is using it to accomplish His just and good purposes.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

He is using this situation to bring His people to stronger faith and reliance on Him. He is using it to call sinners to repent and trust in Christ. He is also using it to judge the wicked. God’s word tells us that we are in the last days and that we’ve been in the last days ever since Christ’s first coming. We have been promised that there will be trials and tribulations. The prophetic book of Revelation uses symbolism to show us what these end times will be like and what will happen between Christ’s first and second coming. Revelation shows us not a chronological order of events that will unfold, but a series of visions that explain the same events in a given time period but each from a different vantage point. Over and over, we see that as Jesus is reigning now on the throne; he is directing all of human history to its decreed end. He is breaking the seals and opening the scroll and is sovereign over all the happenings of this earth.

Nations and kingdoms rise and fall, all as God has purposed. Wars, earthquakes, plagues, and famines destroy the wicked, and yet God’s children are preserved through it, for even in death, they have victory!

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;

     we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35-39)

The only hope that any of us have is found in Jesus Christ, the only Savior. One day you will pass from this life to the next. One day, this earth will pass away as well. These times we live in are temporary, but God is building His eternal kingdom even now. 

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20)

The Immutable Plan of God

“For I am the LORD, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.” Malachi 3:6

Immutable. This is an attribute of God that only He possesses. It means -  He does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. On the other hand, we (and all created things) are always changing. We grow older day by day. Our bodies wear out and die. Our knowledge changes. Our opinions change. Our feelings change. Our plans change. Our ideas change. Our circumstances change. But God does not change. 

God, the creator of time, is outside of time. He is eternal. He is the great I AM, without beginning or end, therefore He does not age. He cannot cease to be, nor can He die. He is life and the source of all life. God does not grow in wisdom, as He is the only all wise and the source of all wisdom. God does not change his thoughts, opinions, ideas or plans. All circumstances are under His absolute, sovereign control. What a mighty God! To you alone, Oh God, be all glory and honor and praise!

Great is the patience of God! God told His rebellious people through the prophet Malachi that they were not consumed because HE DOES NOT CHANGE. Despite the way Israel had despised His name, despite the way they had profaned His sanctuary, despite the way they had dealt treacherously with each other, He did not consume them in immediate judgment. His promise to send the Messiah from the seed of Abraham would not be derailed by their rebellion.

Nothing can thwart God’s glorious plan of redemption! The Father’s plan from eternity past to call into eternal glory a redeemed people for His Son has been unfolding from creation to the present. Even now, Christ is building His Kingdom. The Holy Spirit is bringing the dead to life. He is giving sight to the blind. As the gospel is preached, the sheep hear the voice of their Shepherd. Throughout all of history and up to this day, God has endured with much patience the iniquity of fallen humanity. His just judgment has not yet been unleashed. He will not consume this world with judgment and fire until all His children have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. But dare not think His seeming delay is indicative of His changed plans, for no scheme of man or devil shall dismantle God’s intent to display His glory before all of creation.

The Lord will bring His mighty purposes to pass. In the last chapter of Malachi, God gives a sobering promise. “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” The words of the prophet Malachi would be the last words God spoke to Israel before the Messiah was to come. It is no wonder that Israel did not recognize Jesus, for they were waiting for a mighty Messiah to come in power and judgement. Jesus, the suffering servant, was not recognized. Israel was looking for a conquering King.

But be assured, just as Jesus has come once to seek and save the lost, He is coming again, but this time to judge the world in righteousness. “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of his Father with His angels, and then repay every man according to his deeds.” (Matthew 16:27) Think about that. Every thought, word, and deed will be judged by the all-knowing God of creation. How will your soul fare on that Great Day? Perhaps you’re counting on your good deeds to save you. But just as the guilt of a serial criminal cannot be cleared by any amount of “good” behavior, the same is true of the good deeds of all sinners. They are useless and powerless to sway the wrath of the Holy God. We have all sinned against God, for every act of disobedience is a direct assault on God.

Who will be able to stand on the great Day of the Lord? But God, being rich in mercy, has provided a shelter from the wrath that is to come. Jesus, the spotless lamb of God, took the wrath of God upon the cross for ALL who will believe and trust in Him, for ALL who will follow and obey the Lord Jesus. This unsurpassable gift has been given by the grace of God; it cannot be earned. All who will receive this gospel by faith are given the Holy Spirit who works in our lives to turn our hearts away from sin and back to God. Have you surrendered to the authority of King Jesus? Is Jesus the meaning of your life? Is He your all and everything? Are you living under the authority of His Word or do you presume to rule over it? Have you found delight in His Word and in Him? These things are what he commands of anyone who would dare to call themselves His disciple. Christ’s invitation to deny yourself, pick up your cross, and follow Him is being extended even now. Run to Christ! He will not turn any away. He alone is the only way unto salvation.  Jesus demands that we repent and believe this gospel, for He is coming quickly.

Charla's Testimony

My Testimony

How the Lord Brought Me to a Saving Knowledge of Himself

I was raised in a home that believed in God and professed Christ as the Savior. My parents were regular church attenders, and by default, I was too. As I grew up, the person who had the biggest spiritual influence in my life was my Grandma Ladee. It wasn’t her obsession with bible studies or keeping prayer journals that made an impact on me; it was the active, living relationship she had with Jesus. When she spoke about him, it was as if he was her closest friend and she really KNEW him. She helped create a desire in me to know him too.  She helped me understand and believe that there is One True God who is living and real and I could know him.

When I was around 7 years old, I “accepted” Jesus as my savior. I walked down the aisle one Sunday morning, my “decision” was announced to the church and shortly thereafter I was baptized. Growing up in a traditional Southern Baptist church, that’s the typical path many kids follow. We were told that in order to go to heaven, we needed to ask Jesus into our hearts. In my church, this “decision” was recognized in several ways including standing at the back of the church with the preacher and shaking everyone’s hand, being baptized as part of a special ceremony in the worship service, and joining the rest of the congregation in the participation of the Lord’s supper. Along with the promise of heaven and the avoidance of hell, these are things that quite possibly entice a child to make a “decision” to “accept” Christ and, unfortunately, none of them have anything to do with a revelation of the desperate situation of being a sinner in the hands of a holy God. Looking back, I don’t remember a struggle to believe, or a wrestling within my soul. I certainly didn’t understand the gravity of sin except that I knew I did not want to go to hell. Counting the cost and true repentance were not part of my childhood “decision,” but I grew up in an environment where people believed that repeating “the sinner’s prayer” would most assuredly save someone, especially if they were really sincere when they said it. I suspect many people today are still clinging to faith in a past prayer or experience as their hope for eternal life.

Throughout my high school & college years, I seldom doubted my salvation. I considered myself a Christian and believed that if I died, I would go to heaven. Why? Because I had accepted Christ as my Savior and I had prayed and asked him to save me which I believed was the work necessary for salvation. If I did experience doubts, I would just pray again to make sure he heard me when I asked him into my heart. My assurance of my salvation was based on what I had done – my prayer and my decision, although sometimes I would wonder why living like a Christian was so difficult. I didn’t have a strong desire to read the Bible, but I knew that I ought to. I would go through periods in my life when I would read my bible or a devotional, but many times, I would neglect my relationship with Christ altogether. You see, while I had the head knowledge that I was supposed to follow God and be obedient to his commands, my true motivations revolved around self-centered interests and pleasures. Honestly, I was much more interested in the exciting things the world had to offer. 

Also, during this time, I led a double life. If I was around my family or church friends, I behaved in a way to be accepted and approved by them, but around the worldly crowd, I was completely different. Sinning didn’t grieve me. Lying, drunkenness, disobeying my parents, blaspheming God’s name, inappropriate conversations, immodesty and lustful thoughts and actions only bothered me if I got in trouble. Even though I felt guilt about some of these things, I would ignore the authority of my conscience and the written commands of God and purposefully pursue them. I held on to the idea that my “sinner’s prayer” and even my baptism were proof that I was saved and that I was one of God’s children. 

Even though I attended a Christian college, I was still drawn to sin. I joined the “wild” sorority and continued to pursue my own selfish dreams and goals. Everything in my life revolved around me: I was the center of my universe. God was on the back burner of my life and I certainly wasn’t pursuing Christ. Granted, I prayed when I needed something. Sometimes I would even pray, asking God to forgive me and help me to do better. I even “rededicated” my life to Christ a few times! But my concern wasn’t about the sins I was committing against God, it was that my actions and behaviors didn’t line up with the Christian image. In retrospect, I have to admit that I never experienced the authentic, spiritual rebirth that comes from God when HE regenerates a sinner, when HE transfers someone from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. I was trying to live like a Christian without the transforming heart change that makes the effort not only possible but pleasing and acceptable to God. All my efforts to live a Christian life were external, not produced by the Holy Spirit’s work of regeneration.

When I was 27, I met my husband. We were both professing Christians and even though we agreed in our desires for a Christian marriage, a Christian home and a Christian family, I can’t say that I wanted Christ. Towards the end of 2010, something happened to our family. The Lord convicted Jeremy, who was bitter over his father’s death and running from God, and Jeremy surrendered his life to God’s leading and call to preach. As Jeremy began to submit to the Lord, he began to lead our family spiritually. Our conversations changed and many times I thought the level of his commitment to Christ and His Word was a bit too radical. In actuality, I just wanted the benefits of being a Christian but I didn’t want to surrender all my plans for our life and future to the will of God. Complete surrender was a frightening thought. During this time, we also changed churches which means the sermons and messages changed: no more topical, life-application, man-centered, seeker-friendly messages! We began listening to expository, biblical preaching centered around the truth of Scripture, the pre-eminence of Christ and the holiness of God. I began hearing words I’d never heard or understood before – words such as atonement, justification, propitiation, sanctification, and regeneration. Even though I resisted at first, I slowly came to realize that my understanding of salvation and the gospel were completely shallow and unbiblical.

Previously, I thought I was saved because I had said a prayer and because I had accepted Jesus as my savior. At some point during this time, God opened my eyes to the beauty of His gospel. He showed me how detestable my sin really was. God showed me that my behaviors and even my “good intentions” or “good works” were evil because the motives that produced them were evil or sinful (self-serving), and no matter how hard I would try to conform to the religious image of the “Model Christian,” my real problem was that on my own, I would never be able to conform to the image of Christ. My desires to be good or look good flowed out of selfish and self-righteous motives, not out of a grateful heart that longed to please and obey my Father. God gave me a godly sorrow for all my sins, not only my past sins, but the stubborn sins that still often plague my heart: pride, selfishness, and ingratitude. I also learned the biblical truths about salvation. I am only saved because of Christ’s finished work on the cross. The entirety of my own actual sins was placed on Christ as he voluntarily endured the wrath of God in my stead while he hung on the cross. I am saved because God chose me for Himself before the foundations of the world and He sent his Son to ransom me and to redeem me. His act of grace and mercy was not because of anything I had done, nor was it because of his foreknowledge of any future actions or “decision” on my part. The Bible records, “There is none who seek after God” and “You did not choose me, but I chose you.” (Romans 3:11 & John 15:16). I have done nothing to deserve or merit salvation. Not only is salvation a gift from God, but so is the faith and repentance necessary for salvation. Salvation is completely, entirely and wholly a work of God. He shall receive ALL the glory for the salvation of his people! “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) When I came to understand that salvation is 100% the work of God and not 99% God’s work and 1% man’s effort as some have erroneously suggested, my entire understanding of my relationship with Christ changed. I owe him EVERYTHING. There is nothing about my life that belongs to me but all to him I owe! I don’t know the exact point in time when I was born again, all I know is at some point during these past six or seven years, God opened my spiritual eyes to the power and beauty of His glorious gospel.

About a year and a half ago, God again stripped me of my pride and showed me the glorious beauty of the cross. I had been having political discussions with several Christian friends who just didn’t see things the same way I did. I just couldn’t understand how they could support a certain presidential candidate. To me, the choice was so clear and biblical: if the choice is two evils, pick neither! But they insisted that picking the “lesser” of two evils was morally justifiable. I argued that supporting neither candidate was the “holier” choice and that sovereign God should be trusted with the results. “How can we have the same Holy Spirit guiding our lives and yet come to such different opinions?”, I wondered. I even began to consider the idea that perhaps they weren’t truly saved. Maybe they were just pretend Christians. As I thought about these things, a question popped into my mind: Well, Charla, how do you know YOU are saved?

So, I thought about it for a while. Well, I know I’m not saved by a prayer, of course. And then I began to tell the Lord why I knew I was saved. I began to justify myself to God by telling him, “I am saved because I know it is a work you have done. I believe what your word says. I know I am a sinner. I know Jesus lived a sinless life. I know he was my substitute. I know he died for my sins. I believe he was raised on the third day. I even understand the doctrines of grace, such as total depravity, unconditional election, and limited atonement.”  And as I began to unload all my incredible theological wisdom before God, in my spirit there was simply, “No.” Immediately, I became desperate and undone. “No? No? Then I have nothing. What can I say? How can I be sure I am saved?” And it was at that moment that I saw with my spiritual eyes – Christ crucified: Christ hanging on the cross for ME, Christ spilling out his blood for ME, Christ drinking the cup of God’s wrath for ME, Christ giving his life for ME. Christ is the reason. Christ is my assurance. Christ accomplished my salvation, then and there on the cross – a finished work! The gospel was so clear and so glorious that I literally covered my mouth with my hand and gasped. When I was looking to my own wisdom and giving myself credit for my assurance, God showed me the beauty of the cross. He showed me that Christ alone gets the glory. He gets the glory for saving me and keeping me. My confidence is in Christ alone and not in my wisdom or understanding of His truth.

Over the past seven years, God has created in my heart a desire to know him, a desire to follow him, and a desire to love him. I truly am a new creation! I am not who I once was. I am being sanctified and the Holy Spirit convicts me daily of that residual sin that is still at war in my flesh and by his grace, he helps me to crucify my flesh, pick up my cross and follow him. Even though I’m not sure when that moment of regeneration took place in my spirit, I do know when I was truly saved: around 2000 years ago, Christ shed his blood on the cross to pay the debt for my sins and three days later, he defeated death with his resurrection. The finished work of my salvation was accomplished then, and that is the most important date to me! Although I was baptized when I was 7 years old, I wasn’t actually born again at that time. Today, I followed my Lord’s command and was biblically baptized by my pastor and husband as a true believer and follower of Jesus Christ.

Soli Deo Gloria!

For the Glory of God Alone!

Rhetoric, Heresy, Blasphemy or Truth?

(A response concerning some of the underlying themes of many posts & comments made in reaction to Trump's victory in the 2016 Presidential Election by a Christ follower who decided to vote third-party.)  

Rhetoric – The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the use of figures of speech and other compositional techniques.

Heresy -  Belief or opinion contrary to orthodox religious (especially Christian) doctrine.

Blasphemy – the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things, profane talk

Truth - "The  sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever." Psalms 119:160

1.     “America is God’s Country.” Well, yes. But not any more than Germany, China, Uganda or Iraq. There is an unspoken comparative in this statement which is false. Psalm 24:1

2.     “America is God’s chosen nation.” In the Old Testament, Israel was God’s chosen nation through whom he would bring his PROMISE, although not all descendants of Abraham would receive God’s PROMISE. Despite the fact that “The PROMISE” and its meaning could be an entire thesis in and of itself, it can be briefly, but not entirely, defined as: JESUS CHRIST - the promised messiah that would give salvation to God’s chosen individuals as well as the inheritance of His eternal kingdom.  The salvation offered in Jesus Christ is salvation from the wrath of God which is rightly and justly due all mankind. All mankind stands under God’s wrath, BUT Jesus delivers his chosen bride from wrath. Romans 9:6-8, Galatians 3:15-29, John 3:36, Romans 1:18, 1 Thessalonians 1: 4 & 10

3.     “If God be for us, who can be against us. Romans 8:31” But who is the “us” in this scripture? We must read the entire chapter: those who are IN Christ Jesus (v.1), those in whom the Spirt of God dwells (v.9), those who are led by the Spirit (v.14), and those whom he foreknew, predestined, called, justified and glorified (v.29-30). We must stop using this verse out of context in a way that redefines “us” in the original text. "Us" is not the USA nor the Republican Party nor the Democratic Party nor any other group of individuals who are not brought together through the blood of Jesus Christ.

4.     “Christ’s blood is being poured out over the states, turning them red.” (I read this several times in reference to watching the unfolding of 2016 electoral votes map of the U.S.A.) This is a dangerous – do I daresay heretical? - statement. We must not abuse, manipulate, twist or redefine the gospel of JESUS CHRIST! We must not profane or make light of the precious blood of Jesus. Jesus Christ freely offered his life on the cross where his blood was poured out. But for whom did he offer his life? His bride! His blood is not a blanket that was poured out to cover the sins of our country, America. He poured out his blood to pay the punishment for the sins of God’s elect, those given by God to Jesus Christ. Titus 1:1-4, 2 Timothy 2:10-13, Isaiah 61:10, Revelation 21:1-8, John 3, John 17:6-9, Hebrews 9:11-14

5.     2 Chronicles 7:13-14 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” The Lord is speaking to Solomon in this passage. God’s purpose is to forgive his penitent people (not an entire country). He desires authentic, heartfelt repentance from the individual person who has been called by his name (humble themselves, pray, seek, turn). “Heal their land” refers to deliverance of the Israelites from drought, pestilence and the return of the exiles to their rightful home. For the elect, this includes the restoration of God’s people to a right relationship with Him.

6.     “To God be the glory because ‘my’ candidate won.” God is glorified regardless of the outcome of any election, and all outcomes fall under his authority. His glory may not be perceived in our limited frame of reference, but His eternal glory WILL prevail and He does everything for His glory. I submit there are children of God, sons of the promise, on both sides of the aisle in this election. It is offensive to look to the outcome of any election - from either perspective- and declare that its outcome proves God agrees with YOU. In whom or what shall we boast? To what or whom do we look and proclaim glory? Are you glorying in a shallow earthly victory while looking at fellow brothers and sisters in Christ and saying, "God is on MY side?" It is time to reject political sides and the presumption that God is choosing sides. WE need to get on God's side. We need to run under the cover of Christ and get on the side of the gospel. The GOSPEL is the power of God unto salvation. And it is ONLY the gospel that will save the citizens who call America their country. Romans 1:16, Romans 13:1, Isaiah 42:8, Isaiah 48:11, Jude 1:24-25; Philippians 2:9-11, Galatians 6:14