Children of God

 

One of my favorite writers/pastors is Paul David Tripp.  I love what he says in his book, New Morning Mercies: "It's important to acknowledge that God has not just forgiven you (and that is a wonderful thing), but He has also given you a brand-new identity.  If you're God's child, you are now a son or a daughter of the King of kings and the Lord of lords."  

John says in his gospel, John 1:12-13, "Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become CHILDREN OF GOD - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God."  John also goes on to say in his letter, 1 John 3:1, "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called CHILDREN OF GOD!  And that is what we are!"  As Christ followers, we need to who we are in Christ Jesus.  Yes, we are forgiven of sin and free from the penalty and the bondage of sin.  However, we are more than forgiven; we are CHILDREN OF GOD!  When we repent of our sin and believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are changed from the inside out.  We are given new life.  We are moved from death to life by Almighty God.  God first loved us!  God so loved us!  Through God's amazing grace found in Christ Jesus, you and I can be CHILDREN OF GOD.

We need to remember this truth each and every day: we are CHILDREN OF GOD, and that is what we are!  Satan is our enemy, and he wants to steal, kill, and destroy us.  He will use anything and everything he can to distract us from the truth of God's Word.  Satan does not want us to know God; Satan does not want us to trust God; Satan does not want us to walk in confidence and hope.  One way, I believe, Satan attacks us is with identity.  If we are not careful, we will use people, places, jobs, and more as our identity.  One thing I have learned in this life is that all of these things will somehow and in some way let us down.  No one is perfect.  No place is perfect.  No job is perfect.  Only God is perfect.  And as Christ followers, God is our Father.  Our Father's love is perfect.  His perfect love casts out all fear.  We need to remind ourselves of these valuable truths each and every day, so that we can walk in confidence and hope!  We don't have to walk in fear or doubt or confusion or dread; we are CHILDREN OF GOD!  We can walk in the confidence that God is our Father who loves us.  We can walk in the hope of Christ Jesus's perfect life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection.  Let's keep reminding each other today and every day as we move forward: we are CHILDREN OF GOD, and that is what we are!!!  That is our identity now and forever!!!

Your Testimony Matters!

Your testimony matters!  Don't let the enemy or anyone ever tell you that your testimony does not matter or is not important or is not valued.  The Bible tells us that our testimonies do matter, our testimonies are important, and our testimonies are valued!  

I love Psalm 66, especially the passage found in verses 16-20.  Psalm 66:16-20 says, "Come and hear, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.  I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue.  If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and has heard my prayer.  Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!"  I love the Psalmists words: "Let me tell you what he has done for me."  In the book of Genesis, we see that the testimony matters; it is important and has value.  In Genesis 45, after learning that their brother was still alive and that God's sovereignty was on full display, the sons of Jacob returned from Egypt to their father.  When they told him that Joseph was still alive and that he was ruler of all of Egypt, Jacob was stunned and did not believe them.  His sons continue to tell him the truth; they shared their testimony of how good God was to them.  Genesis 45:27-28 says, "But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.  And Israel said, 'I am convinced!  My son Joseph is still alive.  I will go and see him before I die.'"  He experienced revival from the hand of God through the testimony of his sons.

In John 4, Jesus has a life-changing conversation with the woman at the well.  The disciples were surprised and confused as to why Jesus was talking to her.  Jesus knew what He was doing.  John 4:28-29 says, "Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did.  Could this be the Messiah?'  They came out of the town and made their way toward him.  And John 4:39 tells us this important truth about the woman's testimony: "Many of the Samaritans from that town believe in him because of the woman's testimony, 'He told me everything I ever did.'"  In Luke 8, Jesus restores a demon-possessed man.  Luke 8:38-39 says, "The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 'Return home and tell how much God has done for you.'  So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.

Your testimony matters!  Your testimony is important and has value!  If this were not so, why would Jesus show us this and tell us this in Scripture?  The words that Jesus used with the demon-possessed man, I believe, are the words Jesus is telling us today: "Return home and tell how much God has done for you."  Our testimonies may be different, but our testimonies should always have the same goal: telling others about the goodness of God.  As we see in Psalm 66:16, there really is an easy way to get started.  Just say these words and see what God will do: "Let me tell you what he has done for me!"

My Hope, My Confidence is in the Sovereign Lord!

I know that there has been so much said on media and social media about the events that took place over last few days.  I'm sure there will be much more said in the days ahead.  I have been reading God's Word and praying about all that has taken place, not just the last few days but also what has been happening for a long time in our country and in our world.  God's Word reminds us that we are all sinners.  God's Word remind us that the wages of sin is death.  Sin separates us from God, and sin separates us from one another.  Sin ushers in division and destruction and death.

I love the words found in Psalm 71:1-6... 1 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame.  2 In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me; turn your ear to me and save me.  3 Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.  4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel.  5 For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.  6 From birth I have relied on you; you brought me forth from my mother's womb.  I will ever praise you.

I don't have a lot of answers to the problems in our world, especially in our own country today, but I know what I can do today and in the days ahead: I can PRAY, REPENT, and LOVE.  I can pray to my Sovereign Lord and know that He hears me.  I can repent of my sin and know that God will forgive me and purify me of all unrighteousness. I can love God and love people.  Yes, I can do these things.  These are choices I can make today and each and every day the Lord gives me.  As I have reflected over the past few days, I have come to a couple of conclusions.  It seems to me that we have longed for the PRESENTS of this world in our lives more than we have longed for the PRESENCE of God in our lives.  It seems to me that we have settled for discipleship that comes from the WORLD rather than discipleship that comes from the WORD of God.  

Psalm 71:14 goes on to say, "14 As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more."  That is my prayer today.  Lord, thank You for being my hope and for always being my hope.  Lord, help me to praise you more and more, regardless of the circumstances.  Thank You, Sovereign Lord, for Your life, death, and resurrection!  Thank You, Sovereign Lord, for the victory that I can stand in and rely on each and every day of my life on this earth.  Thank You, Sovereign Lord, for kingdom citizenship that will never spoil, fade, or perish.  I am Yours, and You are mine!  Yes, I will praise you more and more!  Amen.

Wednesday in the Word - 1.6.2021

The Father of Compassion and God of All Comfort

 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.  For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ." - 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

My hands are shaking as I write these words.  My hands are shaking because my heart is broken.  However, I cling to God's Word that is right and true, His words found in Psalm 34:18... "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."  When I learned of Luke Letlow's passing, my heart was broken.  My spirit was crushed.  I immediately cried out to God.  I cried out on behalf of Luke's wife and children, his mom and dad and brothers, and his friends.  God hears our cries.  God knows our hearts.  God is the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort.  I felt it in that moment, and I continue to feel it now.

I was 21 years old and the student pastor at Start Baptist Church.  My wife and I loved the students whom God allowed us and called us to serve, and it was special because it was my home church in my hometown of Start, Louisiana.  We had some incredible times together in student ministry.  We shared many laughs, many tears, and much more together over quite a few years.  Luke was always a leader.  Luke was a young man who loved people because he loved God.  The love of God flowed through his words and his actions.  I remember the times of going into senior adults' homes and videoing them as they told their stories.  Luke and Bradley would ask questions, and we would all just sit and listen to people pour out their hearts to us.  I remember the lock-ins at the church and the sleepovers at my house.  I remember the summer camps, the Vacation Bible Schools, and the Johnny's Pizza or Pizza Hut on Sunday nights.  I remember the camping and fishing trips.  I remember the senior trip when Marty and I took a few of our guys to Houston; that was an incredible time.  I remember calling him and talking to him about going to Ouachita Christian to coach basketball and teach English.  He was excited for me and my family.  I remember talking about how my Dodgers were better than his Astros year after year.  I remember calling him to congratulate him on his Astros beating my Dodgers in the World Series.  Yes, I remember all of those things.  But more than anything, I remember Luke.  Luke embraced the love of God in his life, and he became a vessel of God's love to everyone, especially me.  Luke, you made a deep and profound impact upon my life.  I thank God for you and for all the times we shared together in this life.  I thank God for the true faith you lived out loud.  Today, I am praying that the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort overwhelm Julia and the children, Mr. Johnny and Mrs. Dianne, Paul, Matt, Bradley, and many more who loved Luke and shared life with him.  Today, I am praying that the hope of Jesus Christ that Luke embraced in this life and is now living fully with Him is the hope we all will cling to and embrace.  Jesus is our hope.  Let's all continue to be vessels of prayer and hope for Luke's family today and in the days ahead, and may God continued to be glorified through His faithful servant.  Amen.