In The Light

1 John 1

5 This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

It is my desire to live in the Light of Jesus always. I still struggle with my own personal darkness, and must confess my sin to my Lord every day. I also must ask for the strength and courage to live the way Jesus wants me to live. It does indeed take strength and courage to do so. I am a sinner saved by Grace. I cannot do this on my own, nor do I want to try to do so. I simply want to live in such a manner as to bring God the glory, and to bring people to a saving relationship with Jesus.

Daily Refresher

2 Peter 3

1 This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory.

We all need a refresher course, and speaking for myself, I need it daily. That is why it is so important for me to be in God’s Word every day. I need that daily reminder of Who God is. I need that refresher on why I am loved so much by the Creator of Heaven and Earth. I need to be recharged so that I can withstand the attacks of satan. Without this daily time with the Word, my thinking starts stinking. I get distracted, discouraged, and disturbed. I praise my God for the ability to daily read the Bible so that I can be reminded of Whose I am and who I am. May Jesus be glorified in my life today.

Refresher

2 Peter 3

1 This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory.

We all need a refresher course, and speaking for myself, I need it daily. That is why it is so important for me to be in God’s Word every day. I need that daily reminder of Who God is. I need that refresher on why I am loved so much by the Creator of Heaven and Earth. I need to be recharged so that I can withstand the attacks of satan. Without this daily time with the Word, my thinking starts stinking. I get distracted, discouraged, and disturbed. I praise my God for the ability to daily read the Bible so that I can be reminded of Whose I am and who I am. May Jesus be glorified in my life today.

Washed Pig

2 Peter 2

20 And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before. 21 It would be better if they had never known the way to righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life. 22 They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”

Peter makes it clear in this passage that people who follow Christ can indeed turn from that way of living and go back to their sinful lifestyle. While salvation is a free gift from God, it is one we must accept daily. It is a gift that must be first and foremost in our lives, it cannot be like oh so many Christmas gifts in our past that get put up on a shelf to collect dust, or get lost in a sea of other “meaningless gifts.” Living for Christ is something to be done every single moment of every single day of our lives. To do any less is to simply be a “washed pig.”

Proper Response

2 Peter 1

3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.

8 The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins.

A few things jump out at me this morning from this passage: 1) God provides us with everything we need to live a godly life. 2) The natural response to this provision is a succession of attitudes from faith to love for everyone. 3) Without this proper response, we are not productive or useful for God but instead are short sided or blind, forgetting that we have been cleansed from our sins. Lord, keep me focused on Jesus, and may my life reflect the provisions You have given me. May my love for everyone be evident, and may Jesus be glorified always!

Use Your Gifts!

1 Peter 4

10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 11 Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.

This is my favorite “Spiritual Gifts” passage in the Scriptures. It is not one usually cited by those discussing Spiritual Gifts, but the message Peter has for us all here is simple: God has given each of us Spiritual Gifts. Use them for His Kingdom. I am grateful for the gifts He so richly has bestowed upon me, and it is my desire to bring Him glory, honor, and praise every single day of my life. May His gifts shine through me, and may I get out of the way so that Jesus is lifted up, drawing all people to Him.

It Is In The Word

1 Peter 3

18 Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.

19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison—20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. 21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I wanted to keep this passage in its context so I could simply say that it amazes me how people can claim that baptism has nothing to do with salvation. Peter gives a perfect explanation as to the saving properties of baptism: not water removing dirt from the body, but a response to God from a clean conscience, effective because of the resurrection of Christ. For those who claim to be followers of Christ yet deny that baptism is essential to salvation, I simply say: read the Word, and stop lying about what God wants from His people!

Proper Living

1 Peter 2

11 Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. 12 Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.

Living properly includes loving others as Christ loves them. It includes putting the wants of others above your needs. It entails behaving in such a way as to attract others to Christ. I have a long way to go achieve these goals, but I am blessed to be surrounded by family and loved ones in Christ who keep me focused and balanced. On this day of Thanksgiving, I simply want to praise God for the abundant blessings showered upon me. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am the most blessed man on this planet. May those blessings overflow to folks around me, so that they may experience the love of Christ that dwells in me daily.

I Know Better

1 Peter 1

13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

As a follower of Christ for the past couple of decades, I SHOULD be more clear in my thinking and much better at self-control than I was earlier in my walk. I cannot always say that this is the case, but it certainly is my desire. As Peter reminds me in this passage: “Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.” But, I DO know better now. It is up to me to live as an obedient child of God, being holy because God is Holy. I know better, so I SHOULD live better.

Inheritance

1 Peter 1

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

I am so looking forward to the day when I receive my inheritance from the Lord. Meanwhile, there is much work left to be done, and I need to get at it. Keeping my focus on Christ inspires me to keep on going, especially when the going gets tough!

Fattened

James 5

5 You have spent your years on earth in luxury, satisfying your every desire. You have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter.

After yesterday’s sermon, I am doubly convicted by this passage from James. I know that I am rich materially. I like to think about the fact that I am rich spiritually, but I way too often ignore the fact that by the standards of the majority of the people who inhabit this planet, I am filthy rich. May I be even more inclined to use the material blessings I have for the glory of God. Yeah, in many ways I do pretty good in this regard, and in so many other ways, I simply live a life satisfying my every desire, fattened up for the day of slaughter. Forgive me, O God. May I repent of this sin and live accordingly.

Ought To

James 4

17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

Scott, you KNOW what you ought to do. You have no excuse for NOT doing it. Live so that Jesus is glorified and so that everyone with whom you interact is drawn to Jesus. Period. To do any less is to sin. Ask for the forgiveness you need to start this day, and live for Jesus. That is all.

First Allegiance

Proverbs 28

2 When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily.

But wise and knowledgeable leaders bring stability.

Now HERE is a word for the United States of America in 2011. I think this proverb speaks for itself. I am praying that Christians in this country wake up before America falls. However, if America falls, I will still praise my Lord Jesus because my first allegiance is to Him.

Just Do It

James 1

22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

Again, I cannot help but think about many who darken the doors of church buildings on Sunday mornings. They come, they are fed God’s Word, and they leave with nothing having been changed in their lives. They still live for themselves, having been fooled by the god of this world that they can “play church” and everything will be alright. “Playing church” does not save anyone. Following Christ is a 24/7 endeavor to be worked out in fear and trembling. I know that I have been set free from sin by Christ Jesus. I also know that I can easily fall back into that bondage. Lord, help me to listen to Your Word, and then to do what it says! Help me to live for my Lord Jesus every day.

Great Joy

James 1

2 Dear brothers, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

I have a LONG way to go before I am perfect and complete. I know that there is much in the way of patience I must learn. I prayed for patience many years ago, and God continues to provide opportunities for me to endure and have great joy. May I be found worthy of the test, and may God be glorified by my actions and reactions always. I know that this is not always the case right now, so I also know that I still have much to learn, as my endurance has a chance to grow!

Living the Message

Ezekiel 33

31 So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but they have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hearts seek only after money. 32You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don’t act on it!

I know that Ezekiel is prophesying about the people of Israel in this passage, but man does it ever sound like the Church in America today! How many Sunday mornings have I had people tell me how much they “enjoyed” the message or “enjoyed” the worship service. Really? Is the message from God something we should only enjoy? No, it is something we should LIVE! The question I always want to ask, is, “what difference will today’s message make in your life?” That is the question I ask myself each Lord’s Day. If God’s Word does not bring about change in our lives then we are either already in heaven, or we are simply pretending to be sincere. Since we aren’t yet in heaven, well...

Living In Peace

Hebrews 12

14 Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.

This is an interesting command from Scripture. Work at living in peace with everyone. In living a holy life, we will, by definition, be at odds with those who live pagan lifestyles. However, we who follow Christ must live in such a way as to attract the pagans to Christ, not to repel them from Him. Too many Christians fail in this regard. We cannot expect pagans to live like Christians, because they are NOT Christians. Why is it that so many Christians get this confused? Why do we expect pagans to act morally? Why do we “fight” when we should love? May I work at living a holy life so that others will see Jesus at work in my life, and be attracted to Him. I desire to live in such a manner as to bring glory and honor to Jesus, and to draw others to Him always.

Needing to be Sharpened

Proverbs 27

17 As iron sharpens iron,

so a friend sharpens a friend.

I am in need of some sharpening this morning. feeling rather blue and quite dull, actually. I know that all will work out, but I have played a role in a situation that could have easily been avoided. I forgot about youthful enthusiasm and assumed a matrix that hasn’t quite fully kicked in yet, and now I have placed several of my brothers in a less-than-desirable position. I should have known better, thought things through a little more, and reminded myself (and others) of the “no surprises” rule of communication. Yes, I am in need of being sharpened today.

Public Proclamation

Psalm 111

1 Praise the Lord!

I will thank the Lord with all my heart
as I meet with his godly people.
2 How amazing are the deeds of the Lord!
All who delight in him should ponder them.
3 Everything he does reveals his glory and majesty.
His righteousness never fails.
4 He causes us to remember his wonderful works.
How gracious and merciful is our Lord!

I am so privileged to meet with my brothers and sisters in Christ this morning to Celebrate Jesus. I do not want to EVER take this weekly gathering for granted, because there are many on this planet who gather to celebrate Jesus at great personal peril. Many who must do so in secret. In the United States of America at this point in our history, it is perfectly legal for us to gather to proclaim the glory of God in a corporate setting. Should that legality change, I will still proclaim God’s glory, and I will still meet with others to do so. God’s righteousness never fails, and my need to publicly remember His wonderful works will never end.

Nomads

Hebrews 11

13 All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. 14 Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. 15 If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. 16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

The roll call for the Hall of Faith has started, and then the writer reminds us that these Old Testament Heroes of the Faith all had one very important thing in common: they died still believing what God had promised them, even though they hadn’t received it, having only seen it from a distance. How pitiful it is for me to have doubts when I have been shown the full Promise of God through the person of Jesus! Instead, may I emulate these Old Testament Heroes, remembering that I am a nomad on this earth. This is NOT my home, nor my homeland. I long for the day when I am in the very presence of God, just as these Old Testament Heroes longed for that day, and are now experiencing it.

Encouraged

Hebrews 10

23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Meeting together with other believers on a regular basis is crucial if I am to hold tightly without wavering to the hope I affirm. I know that God can be trusted to keep His promise, but I also know that I am easily distracted by the things of this world. I am easily led astray by my own desires. I need the encouragement of brothers and sisters in Christ to hang in there. I love the fact that I not only get to meet with the body of believers known as Vero Christian Church each Lord’s Day, but that I am involved in small groups, praise team, and a couple of different mentoring situations. Having these sprinkled throughout my week keeps me on track, and keeps me encouraged. I praise God for these people and these times of meeting together. I wish everyone had such times of meeting throughout their week as well. The body of Christ would be greatly strengthened by such meetings.

Your Love O Lord

Psalm 108

1 My heart is confident in you, O God;

no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart!

2 Wake up, lyre and harp!

I will wake the dawn with my song.

3 I will thank you, Lord, among all the people.

I will sing your praises among the nations.

4 For your unfailing love is higher than the heavens.

Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens.

May your glory shine over all the earth.

I have spent a good part of the day talking with folks who are in the midst of marital problems, family disintegration, and severe spiritual attack. God has placed me in a position to “be there” for these folks. Not that I have any words of wisdom for them, but I am there for them. I have had the privilege of praying for four different situations today, and in each of these situations, folks are straying from God, while others are hanging on for dear life. I am praying that God’s Almighty Hand intervenes in each situation; that people turn their hearts toward Him. Meanwhile, I praise God that He allows me to approach Him on behalf of these dear ones. I am so thankful for the lovingkindness God showers upon me each day. His love reaches to the heavens, and His faithfulness stretches to the clouds. May that love and faithfulness cover the folks with whom I am spoken and prayed for today.

Speak Out

Psalm 107

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!

His faithful love endures forever.

2 Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out!

Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies.

Has God redeemed me from my enemies? Of course! So, how could I dare to keep silent? To do so would be to heap insults upon my Redeemer! I will gladly let everyone know that my Redeemer lives, and that He loves me. I will loudly proclaim that Jesus is the Christ, and I will live my life in such a manner that there is no mistaking this fact.

Focus

Ezekiel 18

 23 “Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign Lord. Of course not! I want them to turn from their and live. 24 However, if righteous people turn from their righteous behavior and start doing sinful things and act like other sinners, should they be allowed to live? No, of course not! All their righteous acts will be forgotten, and they will die for their sins.”

God does not desire than anyone would perish, but that all would come to Jesus and have eternal life. God also does not wish anyone who has once tasted eternal life through Christ to turn their back on that free gift of salvation. Alas, both scenarios play out in the lives of humans daily. Lord, help me to guide others to Christ, and to keep them focused on Christ always. May my focus be laser sharp, and may Jesus be the only One on Whom I focus.

If We Had Any Sense

Hebrews 8

6 But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises.

We have a better promise than the one God gave to the children of Israel under the Old Covenant. That promise is salvation through Jesus. The Old Covenant never promised eternal life, only a chance to look forward to the coming of Messiah. Since Messiah came in the person of Jesus, we now have a New Covenant through Him that does promise eternal life. How could we be anything less than grateful? If we had any sense about us, we couldn’t be.

Challenge of Gratitude

Psalm 106

1 Praise the Lord!

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
2 Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?
Who can ever praise him enough?
3 There is joy for those who deal justly with others
and always do what is right.

When I truly take stock of my life, I have nothing but gratitude for the blessings God so freely pours upon me. The challenge of gratitude for me is to not get caught up in the minutia of day-to-day living; not to get bogged down by details that may not go the way I think they should, but rather I must remember the great sacrifice Jesus made on my behalf. I must remember the blessings He pours out on me every day. I must be reminded that the only logical response to these gifts of mercy, grace, and eternal life is gratitude!

Rebellious People

Ezekiel 12

1 Again a message came to me from the Lord: 2 “Son of man, you live among rebels who have eyes but refuse to see. They have ears but refuse to hear. For they are a rebellious people.”

This could be said of God’s people today in many cases. Those who claim to follow Christ yet refuse to see the clear mandates of Scripture, those who want to be called Christians, but live lives of anything but love for their fellow man...well, they are a people with eyes that refuse to see, and ears that refuse to hear. Father, may I NOT be counted among those people. Please, continue opening my eyes and ears to Your Word daily, and help me to live my life accordingly.

Get Them Grounded

Hebrews 6

4 For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come—6 and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame.

This is perhaps one of the saddest passages in all of scripture. It points out to me our great need to get folks firmly grounded in the Word of God, so that they will not choose to turn their backs on Him and crucify Jesus all over again. We are not doing a great job in that area with adults at VCC. Lord,may the things I learned yesterday and those I learn today, help me to be able to help reverse that trend at VCC.

Beyond the Milk

Hebrews 5

11 There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

We leave today for ReChurch. I am so excite that three of our four elders, all three of the staff, and one other key leader at our church are going on this trip. I am not saying that these guys are still on the milk by any stretch, but there are changes I am hoping for to come as a result of this trip. For all seven of us. Be with us, Lord.

Surrendered

Ezekiel 4

12 Prepare and eat this food as you would barley cakes. While all the people are watching, bake it over a fire using dried human dung as fuel and then eat the bread.” 13 Then the Lord said, “This is how Israel will eat defiled bread in the Gentile lands to which I will banish them!”

14 Then I said, “O Sovereign Lord, must I be defiled by using human dung? For I have never been defiled before. From the time I was a child until now I have never eaten any animal that died of sickness or was killed by other animals. I have never eaten any meat forbidden by the law.”

15 “All right,” the Lord said. “You may bake your bread with cow dung instead of human dung.”

All I can say is praise God that I am not an Old Testament prophet. Having said that, I must also be willing to do whatever God wants, whenever He wants, however He wants, and wherever He wants. May my life be totally surrendered to Him always.

Overwhelmed

Hebrews 3

1 And so, dear brothers and sisters who belong to God and are partners with those called to heaven, think carefully about this Jesus whom we declare to be God’s messenger and High Priest. 2 For he was faithful to God, who appointed him, just as Moses served faithfully when he was entrusted with God’s entire house.

3 But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself. 4 For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God.

5 Moses was certainly faithful in God’s house as a servant. His work was an illustration of the truths God would reveal later. 6 But Christ, as the Son, is in charge of God’s entire house. And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ.

I am overwhelmed when I think of the glory and majesty of my Lord Jesus. I am even more overwhelmed by the thought of being God’s house! Did you catch that? Of course, there is that HUGE qualifier laid in there: IF. We are God’s house IF we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ. Well, Jesus is the ONLY One in Whom I have my hope and confidence placed. Lord, keep me focused on You daily.