Authentic vs. Phony Faith

 Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. (Hebrews 9:28)

The question before us all is: Are we included in the “many” whose sins Christ bore? And will we be saved at his second coming? 

The answer of Hebrews 9:28 is, “Yes,” if we are “eagerly waiting for him.” We can know that our sins are taken away and that we will be safe in the judgment, if we trust Christ in such a way that it makes us eager for his coming.

There is a phony faith that claims to believe in Christ, but is only a fire insurance policy. Phony faith “believes” only to escape hell. It has no real desire for Christ. In fact, it would prefer if he did not come, so that we can have as much of this world’s pleasures as possible. This shows that a heart is not with Christ, but with the world.

So, the issue for us is: Do we eagerly long for the coming of Christ? Or do we want him to stay away, while our love affair with the world runs its course? That is the question that tests the authenticity of faith.

Let us be like the Corinthians as we “wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:7), and like the Philippians whose “citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20).

That’s the issue for us. Do we love his appearing? Or do we love the world and hope that his appearing will not interrupt our plans? Eternity hangs on this question.

ENTERING GOD'S REST!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SATURDAY MAY 27, 2023.

SUBJECT : ENTERING GOD'S REST!

Memory verse: "For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it." (Hebrews 4 vs 2.)

READ: Hebrews 4 vs 1 - 10:

4:1: Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. 

4:2: For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.

4:3: For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: "So I swore in My wrath, 'They shall not enter My rest'" although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

4:4: For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: "And God rested on the seventh day from all His works";

4:5: And again in this place: "They shall not enter My rest."

4:6: Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience,

4:7: Again He designates a certain day, saying to David, "Today," after such a long time, as it had been said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts."

4:8: For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day.

4:9: There remains therefore a rest for the people of God.

4:10: For he who entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

INTIMATION:

Why are there many Christians but only a few share testimonies of the goodness of God? In a typical Sunday service in a large church, attendance might be five thousand worshipers, and the testifiers might be as few as two people. The reason is "unbelief." Many Christians do not believe completely that God will do what He says He will do. 

The Bible says that, when people hear God's Word but do not believe it, "the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Many of the Christians in our churches today, do not know Christ personally. They know a great deal about Christ, but do not have a personal relationship with Him, and do not combine their knowledge with faith. Consequently, when a problem shows up in their lives, they will be overwhelmed by the difficulties of the present moment, and allow that to overshadow the reality of God's promise. 

They turn back on the promises of God, and doubt that God would fulfill His promises. Although the works were finished from the foundation of the world, only those who believe do enter that rest (do obtain His promised blessings). God even swore in His anger that the unbelieving hearts would not enter His rest (Psalm 95 vs 11). 

The major conditions that keeps us from God's ultimate blessings ("entering His rest" include: (1) Not worshipping or submitting to Him. (2) Hardening our hearts, especially to sin. (3) Trying God's patience because of stubborn doubts. (4) Ungrateful hearts—not being thankful. In the passage we read today, the Bible warns us not to harden our hearts, but to reject the glamour of sin and anything else that would lead us away from God.

For the Christians that believe, the apostle Paul has a word for them in First Thessalonians 2 vs 13, "For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe."

God wants us to enter His rest; to be at peace with Him now, and rest eternally with Him later. He offers the opportunity to enter His ultimate place of rest, that is, invites us to come to Christ. To enter His rest, you must believe that God has this relationship in mind for you: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope”  (Jeremiah 29 vs 11). The relationship is not subject to your creating it; it is already in place, and you must trust in Christ for it; and you must determine to obey Him. 

We do not need to wait for the next life to enjoy God's rest and peace; we may have it daily now! Our daily rest in the Lord here on earth will one day end with death, but will become an eternal rest in the place that Christ is preparing for us. Jesus said, "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know" (John 14 vs 1 - 4). 

You will never miss Christ and God’s rest, in Jesus’ Name. Declare today to totally commit yourself to Christ and be assured of eternal rest in Him. Since it is possible to lose our rest through disobedience and unbelief, every Christian must be in fear lest he turn from the security of God’s grace. The choice is yours.

Prayer: Abba Father, You have said it, I believe it, and that settles it. In Christ Jesus I have rest round about, and in Him I live, and move, and have my being. Give me the grace for raw obedience to Christ that I will not lose my rest through disobedience, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Strength to Wait with Patience

 

May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy. (Colossians 1:11)

“Strengthened” is the right word. The apostle Paul prayed for the church at Colossae, that they would be “strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience” (Colossians 1:11). Patience is the evidence of an inner strength.

Impatient people are weak, and therefore dependent on external supports — like schedules that go just right and circumstances that support their fragile hearts. Their outbursts of oaths and threats and harsh criticisms of the culprits who crossed their plans do not sound weak. But that noise is all a camouflage of weakness. Patience demands tremendous inner strength.

For the Christian, this strength comes from God. That is why Paul is praying for the Colossians. He is asking God to empower them for the patient endurance that the Christian life requires. But when he says that the strength of patience is “according to [God’s] glorious might” he doesn’t just mean that it takes divine power to make a person patient. He means that faith in this “glorious might” is the channel through which the power for patience comes.

Patience is indeed a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), but the Holy Spirit empowers (with all his fruit) through “hearing with faith” (Galatians 3:5). Therefore Paul is praying that God would connect us with the “glorious might” that empowers patience. And that connection is faith.

SILENCE IS EXPENSIVE IN CHRISTIANITY!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY MAY 26, 2023.

SUBJECT: SILENCE IS EXPENSIVE IN CHRISTIANITY!

Memory verse: "Do not let me be ashamed, O LORD; for I have called upon You: let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.” (Psalm 31 vs 17.)

READ: Romans 10 vs 8 - 10; Second Corinthians 4 vs 13:

Romans 10:8: But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith, which we preach):

10:9: that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

10:10: For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Second Corinthians 4:13: And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I believed and therefore I spoke," we also believe and therefore speak.

INTIMATION:

People say silence is golden, and it can certainly be so. But in Christendom it is certainly very expensive, and most times costs Christians the things they wanted from God. In Christianity confession is greatly required, in whatever form it is made; either confession of guilt or acknowledgement of faith.

Unfortunately, in our society the word "confession" has come to have mainly a negative, rather than a positive, meaning. Today we usually associate confession with guilt. People who have committed crimes "confess" them. And some denominations stress negative confession; confession of sins, faults, shortcomings, weaknesses, and failures. Even according to most dictionary definitions, confession carries with it the idea of guilt. 

The confession of admitting guilt or acknowledging our sins to God is also necessary for forgiveness of sin and restoration of fellowship with God. In First John 1 vs 9, the Bible says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." The directive to do that is for us to get right with God and to continue our fellowship with Him.

However, the definition that should be emphasized, one which also is in the secular dictionary, is "the acknowledgment of a belief." Christians are followers of Christ, that means the acknowledgment of His saving power. The confession of our belief—our faith—is the confession of God's Word. Hearing God's Word, claiming it for your own, saying His promise is for you, and receiving the results of that promise are the orderly and direct steps along the pathway to God.

The Scripture in Hebrews 4 vs 14 - 16 says, "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest  who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Prayer is our approach to God, and we are to come boldly. God's mercy to us when we come is assured, provided we hold fast to our confession of faith and believe in Him. 

We get what we say because God honors His Word, and His Word says in Mark 11 vs 23,  ‘....whoever says.....and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.’ That is an awesome promise from God. But most people keep missing it because they are not holding fast to their confession. In the morning they will pray and believe God for divine healing, and in the afternoon, they are already confessing that they are sick. Instead of thanking God for answered prayer in faith, they are not sure yet. How then can they receive when their confession is double and in opposite direction.

The Scripture says, "Can two walk together, except they are agreed?" (Amos 3 vs 3).

When you can't hold fast to your confession, you are not agreeing with God, and it is difficult to walk together with Him. A double minded person is a doubter, unstable in all his ways (James 1 vs 8). And the Bible says that "He who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord." (James 1 vs 6 - 7.) 

What you confess you possess. If it is a negative confession, the results will be negative. If it is a positive confession, the result will be Godward. Many people spoil their confession by wavering between the positive "Yes" and faltering "No" to the Word of God. When your heart gives a positive "Yes" to the Word, positive results will begin to occur in your life.

T. L. Osborn, the world renowned missionary and evangelist once said that the Bible truth of the effect of the positive confession of the Word of God was the great springboard to his whole ministry around the world. He said knowing what you do about the confession of the Word of God makes you a man richly blessed by God.

Fortunately for us, however, God does not wait until we have gone through all those steps, as if we were working for some kind of permit, license, or diploma. At our very first turning toward Him—our Heavenly Father, He stretches out His hand and draws us steadfastly along the way. While we are still in the babyhood of faith, He is urging us toward the positive confession of His place in every area of our lives. He will never draw away from us. If we falter or waver, however, He gives us back the choice, and we may lose ground in our spiritual progress.

Engage therefore, the power in spoken words, and keep on confessing positively, "For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12 vs 37.) I encourage you today start confessing positively, and make the Word of God your bedrock for living; confess the Word and hold fast to your confession, and your life will begin to experience strange blessings of God.

Prayer: Abba Father, forever Your Word is settled in heaven. O Lord, give me the grace to speak Your Word in faith at all times because I believe, and I will receive my confession because I have no doubt in my heart that You will do what You says You will do, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God’s Design in Detours

 

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17)

Have you ever wondered what God is doing while you are looking in the wrong place for something you lost and needed very badly? He knows exactly where it is, and yet he is letting you look in the wrong place.

I once needed a quote for a new edition of my book Desiring God. I knew I had read it in Richard Wurmbrand. I thought it was in his devotional book, Reaching Toward the Heights. I could almost see it on the right hand side of the facing pages. But I couldn’t find it.

But while I was looking, I was riveted on his devotional for November 30. As I read it, I said, “This is why the Lord let me keep looking for my quote in the ‘wrong’ place.” Here was a story that illustrated perfectly that nothing is wasted that we do in the name of Jesus — nothing, not even looking for a quote in the wrong place. Here’s what I read:

In a home for retarded children, Catherine was nurtured twenty years. The child had been [mentally handicapped] from the beginning, and had never spoken a word, but only vegetated. She either gazed quietly at the walls or made distorted movements. To eat, to drink, to sleep, were her whole life. She seemed not to participate at all in what happened around her. A leg had to be amputated. The staff wished Cathy well and hoped that the Lord would soon take her to Himself.

One day the doctor called the director to come quickly. Catherine was dying. When both entered the room, they could not believe their senses. Catherine was singing Christian hymns she had heard and had picked up, just those suitable for death beds. She repeated over and over again the German song, “Where does the soul find its fatherland, its rest?” She sang for half an hour with transfigured face, then she passed away quietly. (Taken from The Best Is Still to Come, Wuppertal: Sonne und Shild)

Is anything that is done in the name of Christ really wasted?

My frustrated, futile search for what I thought I needed was not wasted. Singing to this disabled child was not wasted. And your agonizing, unplanned detour is not a waste — not if you look to the Lord for his unexpected work, and do everything in his name (Colossians 3:17).

SERVE DILIGENTLY!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY MAY 25, 2023.

SUBJECT: SERVE DILIGENTLY! 

Memory verse: "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9 vs 10.)

READ: Colossians 3 vs 22 - 4 vs 1: 

3:22: Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers; but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. 

3:23: And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 

3:24: knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

3:25: But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

4:1: Masters give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

INTIMATION: 

To serve is; to work for; to labor in behalf of; to exert one's self continuously or statedly for the benefit of; to do service for; to be in the employment of, as an inferior, domestic, serf, slave, hired assistant, official helper, etc.; specifically, in a religious sense, to obey and worship. Diligent service is characterized by care and perseverance in carrying out tasks.

Christians should serve with diligence in everything they do (Romans 12 vs 11). When the Christian is working for his living, therefore, he is working on behalf of the Lord. When one becomes a Christian, his attitude changes concerning his work in making a living. As a Christian, he goes to work every day for the Lord and he works to earn a living to support his own necessities (Acts 20 vs 34).

Since the Creation, God has given us work to do. If we could regard our work as an act of worship or service to God, such attitude would take some of the drudgery and boredom out of it. We should be diligent, and could work without complaining or resentment if we would treat our job problems as the cost of discipleship.

Employees should work for their employers as they would for Christ. With such an attitude of servitude they are doing the will of God. When one is giving service to others according to his social obligations, he must render such as he would serve God. The purpose of the employee is to make sure that his employer is successful. In this way, the employee protects his job and provides for his family.

Can you be trusted to do your best, even when the boss is not around? Do you work hard and with enthusiasm? Do you treat your employees as people, not as machines? Employers should pay fair wages and treat their employees justly. Leaders should take care of their volunteers and not abuse them. If you have responsibility over others, make sure you do what is just and fair. Remember that no matter whom you work for, and no matter who works for you, the One you ultimately should want to please is your Father in heaven. You are accountable to Him.

Employers, on the other hand, should pay fair wages and treat their employees justly. Apostle Paul’s instructions, in the Scriptures we read today, encourage responsibility and integrity on the job. Christian employees should do their jobs as if Jesus Christ were their supervisor. And Christian employers should treat their employees fairly and with respect. Employees should not manifest an arrogant or defiant attitude in carrying out their duties. Their service to their employers should not to be from a hypocritical spirit, but from a sincere attitude of service. Their sincerity in service would reap consideration from their employers. They are to give their service to their employers as they would serve the Lord.

There are instances where employee’s good attitude and work may not be recognized and rewarded by the employer. However, God does recognize such and will eventually reward such in eternal glory. The work of an employee on the job is working for the Lord, for the Lord has ordained that one should provide for his own sustenance.

Christian employers must not extract performance out of their employees through threats. They must remember they have the Lord as their Master, before whom they will eventually give account. They must deal with their employees as they would have the Lord deal with them. 

In fact, one would conclude that an employee in today’s economic structure should treat his employer with even greater servitude in view of the fact that he has freedom to quit the job. In all things, the Christian employee must remember that it is his responsibility to make his employer successful. If through responsible conduct he does not, he will be out of job, and subsequently bring shame on the name of Jesus. 

Employees should carry out their duties with a sincere heart. If they give grudging service, such will bring harshness upon them by their masters. Their service should be motivated out of a heart that fears God. In the Old Testament, the fear of God was in reference to one’s obedience to God. Those who feared God obeyed His commandments. 

Both employees and employers who do wrong to their masters and employers will reap what they sow. Both should work in view of the fact that all men will stand in judgement before God. But the believer works for that which is beyond this life. His work is not in vein, therefore, because his works will be following to eternity. (First Corinthians 15 vs 58; Revelation 14 vs 13). 

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to offer my service diligently at all times knowing that in every service I am serving You the Lord as my works follow me to eternity, and Your reward is with You to give to everyone according to his works, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Bedrock of Your Assurance

 

God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit. (2 Thessalonians 2:13)

The Bible speaks of our election — God’s choosing us — in Christ before the foundation of the earth (Ephesians 1:4) before we had done anything good or evil (Romans 9:11). Therefore, our election is unconditional in the strictest sense. Neither our faith nor our obedience is the basis of it. It is free and utterly undeserved.

On the other hand, dozens of passages in the Bible speak of our final salvation (as opposed to our election in eternity past) as conditional upon a changed heart and life. So, the question arises, How can I have the assurance that I will persevere in the faith and holiness necessary for inheriting eternal life?

The answer is that assurance is rooted in our election. Second Peter 1:10 says, “Be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.” Divine election is the foundation of God’s commitment to save me, and therefore that he will undertake to work in me by sanctifying grace what his electing grace has begun.

This is the meaning of the new covenant. Everyone who believes in Jesus is a secure beneficiary of the new covenant, because Jesus said in Luke 22:20, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” That is, by my blood I secure the new covenant for all who are mine.

In the new covenant God does not merely command obedience; he gives it. “The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). “I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:27; cf. 11:20). Those are new covenant promises.

Election is God’s eternal commitment to do this for his people. So, election guarantees that those whom God justifies by faith he will most assuredly glorify (Romans 8:30). This means that he will unfailingly work in us all the conditions laid down for glorification.

Election is the final ground of assurance because, since it is God’s commitment to save, it is also God’s commitment to enable all that is necessary for salvation.