Are You In Right Standing With God?

Romans 6:16 NLT

Don't you realize that whatever you choose to obey becomes your master? You can choose sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God and receive his approval.

Our conscience will tell us right and wrong. We can ignore the warnings or heed them. Even those that have not known God or His Word have some idea of right and wrong. However, the more we decide to do the things we should not, the less likely any warning will stir us back to the correct path. We are warned that our hearts can be hardened and we can be left to our own devices.

Ephesians 5:5-7 NLT

You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is really an idolater who worships the things of this world. 6 Don't be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the terrible anger of God comes upon all those who disobey him. 7 Don't participate in the things these people do.

What we desire can become an idol for us. It blocks our view of knowing the right thing to do because all we want is the idol. In our culture this can be anything from a thing, person, and more likely some idea. Don’t get bent out of shape when life is not going your way in achieving what you think is best. We don’t always know what is best. This is why all Christians that accepted Christ are sent the Holy Spirit to be a helper and a counselor. Be sure you are paying attention to Him.

For some Christians, they think this means they should avoid the sinner. Jesus did not avoid the sinner because God’s love is there for anyone who will receive it. What we are not to do is turn from God and go into a lifestyle that is contrary to what God is telling us to live. We truly have more freedom and peace living God’s way. Christians should be doing their best to show the world God’s love and then we can show them how God’s way is better. If you don’t first do it with love, which is God’s way, they will not want to turn from the darkness blinding them to God.

Ephesians 5:15-20 NLT

So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. 16 Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these evil days. 17 Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. 18 Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you. 19 Then you will sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, making music to the Lord in your hearts. 20 And you will always give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I have trouble with this all the time. I’m not perfect, but I can’t use that as an excuse. I make mistakes, but do my best to learn from them. I also am learning a great deal about my weaknesses, so in those I can let God be my strength. He works best through our weaknesses, which I find miraculous. It’s so contrary to the way we are taught to think in Western culture, but I’ve learned a lot more from any mistake I made than having done something right the first time. God’s grace and power pick me up and help me to try again to get it right.

Thank God for His power that helps you get through the trials of life.

Be An Overcomer

Last week I talked about how fear is the opposite of love and faith. We were made to succeed with God on our side.

John 16:33 NLT

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world." 

We will see many trials in our lives. Some of the trials are due to our own ignorance or bad choices and others we have absolutely no control over. All of them can be overcome with a feeling of peace if we follow Jesus. He is the ultimate overcomer of the world.

I have peace as I deal with multiple sclerosis on a daily basis. I know that God is working in me little by little due to this disability. Sure He can heal it any time and I wouldn’t mind. However, I’m also not going to complain about it still being here today. It does give me something to overcome and learn a great deal of patience and other things. Okay, some days I need to retreat so I don’t lash out incorrectly due to hurting too much. Despite this ailment, I know God is on my side and Jesus is right there helping me overcome.

Rom 5:3-5 NLT

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us — they help us learn to endure. 4 And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. 5 And this expectation will not disappoint us. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

That is what I rely on. I will keep doing what God is directing me to do even if I might take longer due to my disability. I’m still here so I know God has further purposes for me before He takes me home. Even on the bad days I’m trying to be the proper servant and not letting fear of not accomplishing things get in the way. Fear is a show stopper even for the perfectly healthy.

In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus tells us the parable of the talents. The lord goes away after giving each servant talents to invest while he is gone. Two of the servants manage to double their money. They don’t react in fear because they know the blessing they will get if they can do a good job or even try. Now the servant who only got one talent reacted in fear. The lord definitely thought he could do something or he never would have given him a talent in the first place. The two that did the job correctly got rewarded with more. What happened to the fearful servant who hid the money in a hole in the ground where it couldn’t even make interest?

Matt 25:24-30 NKJV

Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.' 

26 But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. 

Don’t be the servant that does nothing due to being afraid. No matter what life throws at you keep on walking with Jesus. You will finish the journey as an overcomer rather than an outcast that loses everything due to fear.

What Are You Afraid Of?

Proverbs 29:25 NLT

Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the LORD means safety.

Most of our fears can be alleviated with facts, even fears of dealing with certain people because of how they have treated us in the past. If we take the time to ask why they treat us that way, we will get more facts and understanding about their view of it. Of course, it may lead to more confrontation, but if you don’t let them know it bothers you, they have no reason to change what they are doing.

Psalms 27:1 NLT

The LORD is my light and my salvation — so why should I be afraid?

The LORD is my fortress, protecting me from danger — so why should I tremble?

I know I have fears to deal with. Some of them are only based on what I have perceived, not on the facts. But I feel like the psalmist because I have God on my side and I should feel able to deal with fear.

2 Timothy 1:7 NLT

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

As a believer of Jesus Christ you have the power through His grace to deal with life. You know you are loved by Him and if you love Him, you know how to love the world as He does despite all the wrong in it. So having this power and love, you can acquire self-discipline that dumbfounds the world as you deal with your fears and in turn learn how to help others with their fears. If we hide from certain people we can never show them God’s love. We are to go out into the world proclaiming Him and we can’t do that if we fear people.

1 John 4:18 NLT

Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.

The kind of love God has and teaches us to have expels this fear. People will know where we stand with God based on how we react to the world. Are we showing it love or fear?

Isaiah 35:4 NLT

Say to those with fearful hearts, "Be strong, and do not fear, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you."

If you are a Christian, the enemy is not the people around you. It is Satan who is doing his best to influence this world while he still has the chance before God comes to finish the war He will win. The enemy is the spirit of darkness keeping people in fear instead of going to the light of God to learn what true love and power is.

If you are scared of anything, hand it over to God and ask Him to help you overcome it. He loves you and wants you to have the power to live life His way without fear.

God's Grace is Sufficient

Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

Grace is not something we can earn from God. It is a free gift we must be willing to accept in faith.

Eph 1:7-10 NLT

He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom through the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. 9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. 10 And this is his plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ — everything in heaven and on earth.

Through His grace we can acquire everything we need to live life according to His plan. He will not force us into His plan, but living by it will change your life greatly for the better. I have found I can deal with far greater trials in my life than I ever had thanks to accepting Christ into my life. His wisdom and understanding surpasses anything this world can offer, and I’ve only managed to understand a little as I work on my relationship with Christ. That relationship is what our work is to be, not proving ourselves.

Gal 5:4 NLT

For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God's grace.

We are not to do it ourselves. The power to do what God wills for our lives comes from His grace. You must put down your efforts and take the gift of grace. His grace is where the power comes from to endure anything for Him.

2 Cor 12:8-10 NLT

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. 9 Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 10 That’s why I take pleasure in any weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Paul had a “thorn in the side” that he asked to be removed. In the end God let him know that His grace was sufficient. Through our weaknesses we can find strength in God. He can work through our weaknesses to show the world who He is.

I understand this feeling of Paul’s because I have multiple sclerosis and know how pain can stop you in your tracks. Despite feeling worse, I know it is in God’s hands and I keep on writing as best I can so you all can learn who God is. It is even helping me deepen my own understanding so I stick to God through everything.

Eph 6:24 NLT

May God's grace be eternally upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ.

If you love Jesus, you can have God’s grace on you eternally. Do you love Jesus? Then follow His will for your life and keep working on your relationship with Him. His grace will empower you to do so.

Meditate on God and His Word

Psalms 63:6 NLT

I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night.

This is what we should be doing when life is keeping us awake at night. Put your attention on God instead of your problems. Remember all the promises He has already filled knowing that the ones not yet fulfilled will come at exactly the right time.

Many of the things that keep us awake are things we can’t change. We can only change our point of view about them by learning to see them the way God does.

Psalms 1:1-2 NKJV

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.

I shared attributes of God one at a time to allow for each nugget of truth to sink in. We cannot expect to want to follow God if we don’t know Him. Once we want to follow Him, we won’t know how to do so if we do not meditate on His word. Learning to do as He says is the way to live a fulfilled life no matter what the world might throw at us. God is not changing and never will, but the world changes all the time. I plan on standing firm with an unchanging God. The world is a fickle mistress.

Joshua 1:8-9 NLT

Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Now there is a promise to grab onto and never let go of. People will not always be here. Material things all fade away or break over time. God never changes and if we take the time to have a relationship with Him, He will always be with us wherever we go. We have to reach out and make the effort to connect. Meditate on the Word to know what to do and how to do it per God’s plan. He is not silent. He is always there.

Gal 2:16 NLT

6 And yet we Jewish Christians know that we become right with God, not by doing what the law commands, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be accepted by God because of our faith in Christ — and not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be saved by obeying the law."  

Remember this, God told us, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments (John 14:15).” We should be motivated to follow His Laws not because we are trying to earn something or to get our ticket to heaven, but simply because we love Him and want to please Him.

Phillipians 4:8 NKJV

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things.

Stick to knowing what God finds as good, not what the world says. Do not neglect digging into His Word and reaching out to Him for understanding. He loves you and will help you. Let Him do so.

God of Hope

I did not have a full sense of hope before I accepted Christ. I hoped in a lot of things that proved temporary or did not fulfill a need like I thought. A hole remained within and nothing I learned in school could tell me what fit there. Actually schooling only made it worse because we supposedly randomly happened out of a sludge pool and may have evolved from apes. None of it explained why we were here and without a true purpose it is easy to flounder around.

God provided the hole inside, which is Jesus sized. It’s where we plug into Him and He can indwell us via the Holy Spirit. It’s this full relationship that can give us hope, which the world can never duplicate. I would have loved to known the Lord much better in my childhood instead of finally knowing Him in my thirties.

Psalms 71:5 NLT

O Lord, you alone are my hope. I've trusted you, O LORD, from childhood.

Now we can not only have hope, but confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul prays for this when he is writing to the Romans.

Romans 15:13 NLT

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Once we understand where this hope comes from, we realize we should also obey what God tells us. He did not make His regulations and laws to punish us. He made them so we could understand how to live and relate to everyone as He would. The following psalmist wanted to be sure that God’s word was never snatched from him or he would lose his hope.

Psalms 119:43 NLT

Do not snatch your word of truth from me, for your regulations are my only hope.

We can reach the point where we can rejoice over problems and trials. I get hung up on this though I’ve seen Him work things out in the most interesting ways right on time for myself and others. A lot of times we get stuck in our problem box and can’t see all the help outside it and the hope we could have. Realize we need God and grab onto Him for He will not disappoint.

Romans 5:3-5 NLT

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Ephesians 1:18 NLT

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

God is calling all of us if we will listen. What are you waiting for? The true and confident hope you want in life is waiting with Him.

God is Knowledge

There are a lot of things to know in this world. We could know a lot and be considered smart enough to go on Jeopardy, but are we wise enough to use our knowledge properly? The true knowledge comes from God and His Spirit will lead us into understanding it so we can use it wisely.

Isaiah 11:2 NKJV

The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him,

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The Spirit of counsel and might,

The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

Our fear of the Lord should be of awe and great respect. We should not be responding because we are afraid He’ll punish us. Sure, if we don’t accept what He says, at some point we will see the final judgment and be on the wrong side. However, God loves us and wants us all to understand and know who He really is. He has all the knowledge we need to lead lives that will be far more fulfilling than what we could do on our own. We will know how to live righteously and not destructively in sin. We will know how to operate in love rather than selfishness.

Romans 3:19-20 NLT

Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

The NKJV says, “by the law is the knowledge of sin,” for the ending of verse 20. The Law is there so man will know what God considers sinful. Without this knowledge we would never understand that we need Jesus Christ as a Savior. There are no excuses left once we know God’s law. It lays out where we went wrong; pointing at how most of us have broke the laws. If you lied, then you are a liar. If you took something you did not have permission to have no matter how small, you are a thief. If you never admitted a wrong you did so it could be reconciled, you are still a sinner under that law for those things. There are no excuses. There is nothing we can say to justify ourselves to a truly righteous and good God.

Even when we learn that Jesus is the way, the only way, to God, we want to rebel. Our Western culture is trained to make us believe there are many ways to heaven, that we are all gods. It’s to the point that if someone believes something that is obviously false, many will say, “Good for you.” What’s good about being obviously wrong? Nothing. If we don’t point out the truth and help people see it, we aren’t helping that person at all.

I’m definitely not the spokesperson for Jesus that will reach everyone. I could not even figure out the right way to tell a six-year-old something the other day because my brain wanted to work on the wrong intellectual level. However, it doesn’t stop me from letting people know what I believe and trying to make them think on the knowledge of God. I can’t make you believe. That will have to be your choice based upon the facts you learn. I can’t make you have a relationship with anyone you don’t want to, including God. However, He is definitely waiting for you to acknowledge Him and to start a full relationship. I know He won’t let you down like anyone else might.

Seek to know the truth even if it gets presented in the worse package ever. Take the time to digest it all and not take it just because so-and-so said so. A real belief is one worth dying for.