What Are You Looking At?

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The Fear Test

How do you know if you’re moving in fear? Let me tell you something that is helping me tremendously.

2 Timothy 1:7 says – God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control. People love that verse when they’re anxious about something, or afraid they’ll suffer needlessly, when they need courage, or when they feel alone. And it says God has given you the Holy Spirit to lead you away from fear and into faith. Amen.

Now, notice that the Spirit leads you from fear into faith through power, love, and self-control. And the verse puts self-control after power and love. And this is the test that helps you see if you’re actually being led by the Spirit or not. Because you can be bold, and passionate, but if your actions are dominated by your impulses, you’re not being led by the Spirit. You’re moving backward into fear.

And you move forward by having faith in what this verse teaches.  

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The Stress Test

Too often, our traumas and tragedies define us rather than refine us. And we live in defeat and thrive on drama. Instead of passing from victim to victor. And if you want to get unstuck, if you don’t want to stay a victim, but rather, become a victor, you have to pass the stress test.

Stress comes to us all. It can be life changing, one way or the other, when it starts with some kind of traumatic event, crisis, situation, or season of life. And you don’t want to stay in the place of post-traumatic stress without experiencing post-traumatic growth. Romans 8:28-29 tells you that God is working all things together for your good, to make you more like Jesus. And that means dealing with stress can be the instrument of your growth in God’s grace. Romans 5:1-5, James 1:2-4, and so much of the biblical narrative illustrates and proves this point, that stress can become a strategic inflection point used by God to grow your faith, and give you a victory that you might not yet understand. And in a way that you cannot as yet see.  

You don’t have to fossilize in your failures and frustrations. God is not done with you yet. What seems to be falling apart, can actually be God bringing new things together. What you may consider limitations do not have to be liabilities. They can be liberties. They can set you free from yourself.

Over the years of my life, I’ve made many mistakes and left many situations in a bad way. Because of that, there would be people who, if they saw this, would say, “No way, not that guy, don’t listen to him. You don’t know what that guy was like. What that guy did.” Well, I don’t have to deny what that guy was like, or what that guy did, to say that I’m not that guy anymore. And you know what, I’ve never really been just that guy… I’m God’s guy.

Hebrews 11:6 says – And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Faith will act on the fact of who God is and what he says you should do. And pleasing God means drawing near to God under pressure rather than retreating to your old self. You keep walking away from Babylon and keep walking toward Jerusalem. You move into new growth by applying your faith. And that means your faith grows as you act on the fact that God will reward you as you reengage instead of retreat.

And that trauma can come in the form, not only of tragedy, but also of triumph. Sometimes the issue is that you think you’ve achieved the growth because you had the triumph. But the goal isn’t your triumph as much as the goal is God himself, your relationship with him, and your character becoming more like his. That is what the real victory is, the growth of your faith. And this victory isn’t about you conquering the world, it’s about the world not conquering you. 

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Fear God, Trust God, Love God

Our church is studying prophecy and the end times. And there are a lot of differences and variations between and even within the orthodox positions. And each viewpoint has a solid grounding in scripture. Yet each one seems to bring up more questions than answers. 

However, this kind of study isn’t an exercise in futility, but humility. Because all of this uncertainty teaches us, and grounds us, and strengthens us in the main thing we need to be certain of. God himself.

You see, even if God tells us the future, and writes it down for us, we still can’t fully discern all the details of it. We just know the basics of it. And we know we can trust him in it and with it. This is the way that it is, not only with prophecy, and eschatology, but our own personal lives and the lives of our loved ones and church family and everything else. Fear God, trust God, love God; that’s the answer to all our questions. Amen.

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The Foolproof Formula for Failure

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Looking for Hope

1 Peter 3:15 says always be ready to give a reason for your hope to anyone who asks. But if you don’t seem very hopeful why would anybody ask?

And if we’re always supposed to be ready to give the reason for our hope, doesn’t that mean we’re always supposed to be hopeful? 

So, the question you need to ask yourself is, where am I looking for my hope? 

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What Kind of Slave Are You?

If you’re not a Christian, you’re a slave. But if you are a Christian, you’re still a slave. Just a different kind of slave.

Romans 6:17-18 says that Christians can thank God, because they were once slaves of sin, but now, they have been set free from sin and have become slaves of righteousness.

And Hebrews 2:14-15 says that the death of Jesus delivers Christians from being slaves to the Devil and the fear of death. 

So, you can be a slave of sin, the Devil, and the fear of death. Or you can be a slave of righteousness, Jesus, and eternal life.

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Jesus is my Everything

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The Invasion

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Wehn Your Feelings Fail You

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Responding to God’s Training

Titus 2:11-12 says that the grace that saves us also trains us, in godliness, righteousness, and self-control. Godliness is about your relation to God. Righteousness is about your relation to others. Self-control is about your relation to self. But you have to apply your faith if you want grace to work. You see, grace is opposed to merit. But grace is not opposed to effort. You are saved by grace through faith. And you grow by grace through faith. You have to work to grow through God’s training.

Titus 2:13-14 says Jesus set us free from having to live in sin and become eager to do good works, while we eagerly await the hope of Jesus’ return. Grace sets us free from having to work for our salvation. But when it comes to sanctification, grace doesn’t set us free from work. Grace sets us free to work. God is training you. But how are you responding to his training? Apply your faith, do the work, and you’ll grow in grace.     

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People Don’t Want Proof

People say that if they had proof, they’d believe in Jesus. But that’s not true. Because people can have an open mind and still have a hard heart.

Jesus fed 5000 with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. But later, his disciples wondered how he would feed 4000 people, even though there were 7 loaves of bread and more fish.

A big crowd saw Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. But the religious leaders didn’t care. Instead, they plotted to kill both Lazarus and Jesus. And the big crowd followed Jesus into Jerusalem, shouting his praises. Yet, just a few days later, they started shouting curses.

Jesus told the story of a rich man in hell, who wanted someone to go back and warn his family. Jesus said if they didn’t believe the Bible, they wouldn’t believe even if they saw someone come back from the dead. And Jesus did come back from the dead, and people still don’t believe. Why? Because people don’t need proof, they need repentance and faith. They need to be born again. And they don’t want proof; they want their sin.     

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Switching Your Words

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The Only Way to Please God

What about people who do good things, but don’t believe in God? Hebrews 11:6 says – without faith it is impossible to please God. Faith is what pleases God. It involves both the inner motivation and the outer manifestation. In other words, faith takes action on a heartfelt desire to please God. But Romans 8:7 says that human nature is hostile to God. Romans 8:8 says that unbelievers cannot please God. Romans 8:9 says that unbelievers don’t have the Spirit of God. So, unsaved people can do good things by God’s common grace. And they can have good motives, in the sense of wanting to help people and make the world a better place. But they cannot be consciously dependent on God’s grace and desiring God’s glory. And so, at their heart level, they do not desire to please God. An idea of God may be motivating their life. But without the Spirit of God, the One True God isn’t in their life. Faith in Jesus is what pleases God. 

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Push You Down

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Are You Ready to Be Nobody?

If you want to have true, lasting, godly impact, and be rewarded by Jesus for it, in eternity, you must kill your longing for personal distinction. Aim for faithfulness, not fame. God rewards according to your heart, not people’s opinions.  Hudson Taylor said – A little thing is a little thing, but faithfulness to a little thing is a big thing.

Are you ready to be nobody in this world, if you’re somebody to God?  What kind of distinction do you need to be truly satisfied in God? Pray that God would grant you to seek your commendation from him. Instead of trying to make your name great, make Jesus look great. Stop trying to make a name for yourself. Jesus has made a name for you. The Bible calls it Christian. 

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Christianity, Jesus, You

Christianity and salvation are about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who became a sinless man to pay the penalty of your sin and give you the reward of his righteousness. On the cross, God treated Jesus as if he lived your life so that he could treat you as if you lived his life. He takes the burden of what you’ve done and gives you the blessing of what he’s done. He takes your guilt, your shame, and your punishment. And he gives you his joy, his peace, and his presence. He died in this life to give you eternal life. He rose from the dead to prove it. And so, if you give him the right to your life, he gives you the right to his life.

Here’s what I say to that…Jesus, I trust in who you are and what you’ve done to save my soul. I give myself to you. Forgive my sins, and grant me eternal life. Amen. 

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Don’t Be Afraid to Be Small

In John 13, we see Jesus wash his disciples’ feet. And he asked them if they understood what he had done. Vs.13-17 say – You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. To be like Jesus as he washed feet means more than just duplicating the physical act. It means being dedicated to humble service. Not afraid to stoop down. Not afraid to get your hands dirty. Not afraid to seem like less. Not afraid to be small.

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Yes, some sins are worse

All sins matter. But not all sins are the same. Every sin is ultimately an offense against God, and so it requires nothing less than the sacrificial death of the sinless Son of God to make atonement for it. Still, while every sin is heinous, they are not all equally heinous. Some do more damage, and are worse for you and others. Angrily running over my mailbox is not as bad as angrily running over me. When Jesus said that to even look at a woman with lust is adultery, he wasn’t saying you might as well go ahead and do it. The sin in your heart is bad, but to add the act adds more sin. And Jesus talked about some committing greater sin. There’s a difference in degree, a difference in progression, and a difference in consequences. The person struggling with sin is leaving God’s table and eating the world’s food. The person who defiantly stays in the sin is having the devil over for dinner every night, with a permanent place at the table.

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Jesus Changes Who You Are

People were waving palm branches as a sign of deliverance and victory as Jesus entered Jerusalem. But just five days later, when some realized he had a different agenda than theirs, they changed their minds about Jesus, and changed their cry from “Hosanna!” to “Crucify him!” And those palm branches turned into the cross.

What the people wanted was deliverance from the bondage of Rome. What the people needed was deliverance from the bondage of sin. They wanted political freedom and prosperity. But Jesus did not come to save us from our social situation. He came to save us from our sinful situation.

People want Jesus on their own terms. But you can’t dictate terms to Jesus. He is the conquering King, who dictates terms to you. And his terms are surrender! Jesus can save you, because he has conquered sin, death, and hell. And when you’re saved, it’s because he has conquered you! Yes, Jesus will take you as you are. But then he changes who you are!

 

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Are People Better Off?

Are people better off having been with you? This is more than simply making sure that you don’t negatively affect people. This is also about positively affecting people. And that includes modeling repentance when you’ve done it wrong. Can people grow if they take your examples? Do you affect people in a godly way? This is not just about avoiding certain things around certain people. This is also about whether or not your life teaches others how to properly process, prioritize, and proportion actions, decisions, responses, and situations. 

In other words, does your life teach prudence? Does what you do model and teach others how to live a godly life? Teaching prudence is not teaching avoidance; it is teaching the timely and appropriate application of wisdom. Knowledge is what to do. Wisdom is how to do it. Prudence is when to do it. Even though we won’t do this perfectly, we can do this purposely. And that is how you help people learn to discern, and to repent, and to grow. 

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Facing Grief

Recently, I went on a painful journey. Me, my two brothers, my nephew, one of my uncles, and one of my cousins, went to West Virgina, to place the ashes of my mom and my dad up on a hill, where seven generations of our family are. This is what they wanted. And as much as I was grateful to fulfill their wishes, I was also full of grief.

Everyone must face grief. And avoiding it only postpones an inevitable meeting. Grief will eventually find you and you’ll have to face it. So, learning to face grief is important for your life.  

My parents were Christians. And so, I can face the waves of grief with more than sentiment and memories. I know I will see them again, and forever.  As 1 Thessalonians 4:13 says, we do grieve, but not as those with no hope. We grieve with hope. So, I can face grief with faith, and as Charles Spurgeon said, I can kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages. 

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Healing a Hateful Heart

People who say they are Christians but who hate other Christians are deceived. They aren’t really Christians.

1 John 2:9 says – The one who says he is in the light but still hates his fellow Christian is still in the darkness. 1 John 3:15 says – Everyone who hates his fellow Christian is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 1 John 4:20 says – If anyone says “I love God” and yet hates his fellow Christian, he is a liar, because the one who does not love his fellow Christian whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.

And people who verbally abuse other people aren’t acting like Christians. 1 Peter 2:23 says that when Jesus was reviled, he did not revile in return. 

You can fool yourself, but you can’t hide a hateful heart. When you revile other people, you reveal your heart. But if you will confess your hateful sin, God’s love will heal your hateful heart.   

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Demons Believe in Jesus

Romans 10:9 says “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”. So why aren’t the demons saved? Because the demons confess that Jesus is Lord. Mark 3:11 says whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." And the demons know for a fact that Jesus is risen from the dead. They were there.

James 2:19 says the demons believe in God and shudder in fear. Demons know, believe, feel, and fear the truth. So why aren’t the demons saved? Because they know Jesus IS Lord, but they don’t seek to honor, love, obey, serve, or worship Jesus AS Lord. You see, you can have your intellect filled with the truth, and you can have your emotions stirred by the truth, but are your actions motivated and moving towards faithfully trusting the truth? Are you different than the demons?

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If the Bible isn’t True

If the Bible isn’t true, then Christianity isn’t true. And Jesus isn’t true. Why? Because Jesus treated the Bible as if it was true. Jesus said the OT was all about him. He referred to the OT scriptures a lot. And the NT is filled with Jesus’ own words. So, if the Bible isn’t true then Jesus isn’t true.

Now, a person doesn’t have to believe the Bible is true before they can be saved, but the Bible has to be true for them to be saved. Think about someone who doesn’t even know there is a Bible. But then a preacher comes, and that person receives Jesus and is saved. That new convert came to faith through preaching about the Jesus we find in the Bible.

You can experience something without knowing how to describe it. For example, a newborn baby is alive, breathing, crying, and eating, before that baby knows how to describe any of that. So, a new convert may not have known it, but they were believing in the truth of the Bible when it comes to Jesus. And Jesus believed the Bible was true. And he taught it. 

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I Can Read Your Mind

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The Ultimate Injustice

Is it right to suffer consequences for doing wrong? Most people say yes. Still, you might think your finite sins don’t deserve an infinite punishment. But sin is much worse than you might think. Because you’ve committed the ultimate injustice. You see, humans and their value are finite, but God and his value are infinite. And the Bible teaches that ultimately, you’ve sinned against God. But your finite worth cannot pay for sins against the ultimate worth of an infinite God. So, this means your guilt never goes away. And eternal punishment DOES fit the ultimate crime.

Why do you need Jesus? Because only God can pay for sins against God. Jesus is God, and his perfection will be the standard he’ll judge you by. But he can also be your savior. On the cross, he sacrificed himself to pay for your sins and buy your forgiveness. Place your faith in who he is and what he’s done, and you’ll be saved. Otherwise, your punishment will fit your crime. 

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God’s Prescription for Impurity

Ephesians chapter 5, vs.3-4 are talking about getting rid of immorality, impurity, greed, and a filthy mouth. And the end of vs.4 tells you how. It says that you put off impurity by putting on thanksgiving.

Immorality, impurity, and greed are connected. You lust after immoral and impure things because your heart is greedy for more than you have. And what’s in your heart will fill your mind and come out of your mouth. Lust means I want more, and I want it right now. What can you do about it?

Well, when you’re greedy for unclean things, you need to clean your heart with the opposite of greed. And gratitude is the opposite of greed. When you focus on thankfulness, it begins to limit greed’s influence in your life. And as gratitude becomes the regular pattern of your life, greed is replaced, and those sinful patterns are destroyed. Thankfulness is God’s remedy. It has the power to change the greedy lust gripping your heart. Amen. 

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Your Divine Valentine

A Valentine may play a love song for you, but God gives you the sweetest love song in the universe. Zephaniah 3:17 says The Lord your God…will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.

A Valentine may give you flowers, but God sent you the most beautiful rose of all, Jesus. Song of Solomon 2:1 says I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.

A Valentine may bring you chocolate, but God provides you with something even sweeter, His Word. Psalm 119:103 says How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

A Valentine may take you out to dinner, but God has invited you to the most amazing feast ever given. Revelation 19:9 says Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Happy Valentine’s Day

 

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Facing Your Fears

What is your greatest fear? And what are you afraid to face? Well, I may be facing something overwhelming, something I don’t understand, or can’t control. But I have a promise from God that he will face it with me. Hebrews 13:5 quotes Joshua 1:5 when it quotes God, saying – I will never leave you nor forsake you. And Hebrews 13:6 quotes Psalm 118:6 when it says – So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” 

When life says, “You don’t have the strength”, the omnipotent God of all power says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” When life says, “You don’t know where you’re going”, the omnipresent God who sees everything says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” And when life says, “You don’t know what to do”, the omniscient God who knows all things says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Knowing God is with me is how I face my fears with faith. 

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I'm Not Afraid

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Touch Your Heart

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How Humble Are You?

Most people are aware that pride can be a very dangerous thing. But how many people are aware when they are full of pride?

Galatians 6:3 says if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. And Romans 12:3 says not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think. But how can you know if you’re thinking more highly of yourself than you ought to think?

Here is a test for you…The more highly you think of yourself, the more easily offended you are. Because Philippians 2:3 says in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Therefore, the prouder you are, the more easily offended you are. The humbler you are, the less easily offended you’ll be.  

So, can you pass the humility test? Because it comes down to this: Who do you think you are? 

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What You Want or What You Need

What you want and what you need don’t have to be mutually exclusive things. The sanctified life isn’t “whatever will be will be.” And the satisfied life is not about having to choose between want and need. This is about what you really need becoming what you really want.

You see, what you need is Jesus, whether he gives you what you want or what you feel like you need. Jesus in the center. Jesus as the aim. Jesus as the focus. Jesus as the goal. Whatever else is going on. It’s not, “Jesus give me this,” but “Jesus give me you, as I go for this, or go through this.” And “Jesus, if you’re not in it, I don’t want it.” That is how you can have spiritual stability in rough waters. And that is how you learn to trust him. John Newton wrote Amazing Grace, and he also wrote “Begone, Unbelief!”, in which he said, “With Christ in the vessel, I smile at the storm.” 

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Your Last Tears

Today marks one year since my mom passed away. And I haven’t cried about it like I did those first few months. But last night, I did. Because this old 1970’s TV show showed up in my YouTube feed. And I remembered how, after we moved my parents into our home, we would watch reruns of that show after supper. We laughed in the 1970’s, and laughed again at the reruns in the 2020’s. And the thought of all that laughing made me cry.

Revelation 21:4 says that when we get to heaven, Jesus will wipe away every tear from our eyes. The reason we enter heaven with tears is because of the tears in this life. But if you receive Jesus as your Savior, those tears of sorrow will be your last tears. And only tears of joy will remain. But if you don’t receive Jesus as your Savior, your last tears will last forever. You’ll only have sorrow, and no joy. Which will your last tears be? 

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