SEVENTY TIMES SEVEN

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” Colossians 3:13

      There are many times when someone does or says something that offends or hurts us in the course of our life.  The regenerate soul is to forgive just as it has been forgiven. It is your obligation as a believer in Christ to forgive, whether they receive your forgiveness or not.  How often are you to forgive another?  According to Christ, an infinite number of times.  In Matthew 18:22, Peter asks Jesus how many times he must forgive a brother.  He asks if 7 times if sufficient?  Jesus answers, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Now for the literal mind that is 490 times, but the message Jesus is conveying by his answer is an infinite or eternal amount of times, just as the Father has forgiven you.

      If you ever have a time when you cannot bring yourself to forgive someone for a misdeed or indiscretion against you, consider what it would be like if God decided he didn’t feel like forgiving you.  Although consequences follow our actions, there is nothing that God will not forgive.  It should be the same with us, but that can be extremely difficult at times. We’ve all had someone in our lives that we felt we couldn’t forgive.  It takes a spirit of love and mercy to see past the flaw in the individual into their heart.  It is a Christ-like characteristic that I speak of and one that is accessible to us all.

     Looking past our own emotions and focusing on Christ and the forgiveness He offers is one of the keys to our forgiving others.  It’s never about us.  We are unimportant in this case.  God can heal our wounds if asked.  The one who has wronged you is in need of your forgiveness whether they know it or not.  It is a very liberating thing to the one doing the forgiving and the one being forgiven.  Holding on to anger hurts no one but you, for the one you have anger towards may be completely unaware of it.  Free yourself from the bondage of bitterness, anger and hate and forgive as you have been forgiven, unconditionally and eternally.  Until Christ’s return, walk with the King and be a blessing!

ALWAYS THANKFUL

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

     Thessalonica, founded in 300 BC, was the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia. It was roughly 90 miles west of Philippi.  Scholars refer to this city as “important, populous and wicked”, having several cults that performed pagan rites and sex orgies with regularity.  The believers there were in small part converted Jews, but largely God-fearing Greeks who had come to know Christ through Paul’s teaching and preaching.  Paul’s letter is general teaching on the persecution of believers and sexual ethics. 

      The phrase I would like to hone in on today is “give thanks in all circumstances”.   As believers in God who are called to be Christ to a lost and dying world, we face many trying circumstances. Some are caused by our ethical and moral standards, which are diametrically opposed to those of the world.  Some are simply life’s normal situations that arise daily.  It can be very difficult to be thankful in all circumstances, yet this is God’s will for us.  God causes or allows all things that take place in this world.  He does this for purposes we do not comprehend.  If we truly trust that God always has our best interests at heart, and we should, then instead of grumbling or complaining about our circumstances, ask God what lesson He wants us to learn from it.  Our spiritual growth is supremely important to us and to God. 

     Each day has lessons in patience, humility and compassion, to name a few, if we look for them.  We are to seek to sharpen our spiritual gifts and part of that is to rejoice in the name of the Lord as a matter of course, pray regarding all things and give thanks for any and all circumstances we find ourselves in for this is one way the world will see Christ in us.  Until Christ returns, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource:  The Reformation Study Bible.

HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

“What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.”  James 4:14

         It seems to me that the world takes life way too frivolously.  One never knows when their time on this earth is up.  Think about James illustration.  Mist.  Here one moment, gone the next.  We like to think of ourselves as something much more than mist or a speck of sand on the world’s beaches.  In reality, our impact is pretty small, unless we are doing heaven’s business.  Anything done for the King has eternal ramifications. 

            If our life were so seemingly insignificant compared to the whole of life, why would God give us a second thought.  First of all, He created us for His good pleasure.  Secondly, being His child we are deeply and intimately loved without condition. We may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but to God we have infinite value.  While it’s true that we are here today and gone tomorrow, the eternity that we have chosen through forgiveness that was sought and received shall by its very definition last forever.  We mustn’t become arrogant of our spiritual standing, for a haughty spirit is unacceptable to the Lord (Proverbs 16:18).  We are to proceed through life with a humble spirit, emblematic of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and not think more of ourselves than we ought.  We are nothing without the Lord.  Christ is the vine; we are the branches that draw our strength from that vine (John 15:5).

          Knowing all this about ourselves, we need to have a healthy opinion of just exactly who we are in Christ.  We are His prized possession.  We were worth dying for; His blood paid for our sin.  That’s the value we have.  No one else in existence could have ever done what Christ willingly did for us all.  Embrace that truth, live like Christ and know your heavenly inheritance is assured.  Until Christ’s return, walk with the King and be a blessing!

PRAYING THROUGH

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

         Prayer is the medicine that calms our fears. Faith and trust allows us to pray believing.  So why do we fret so even after we pray?  Sight is a wonderful gift, but it can be our worst enemy as well.  Far too many times we allow the circumstances that we see with our own eyes to dampen any faith and trust in God we may have.  The Lord is more than aware of any situation we might find ourselves in.  He has either caused or allowed it to take place.  Perhaps it’s a lesson we need to learn regarding trust.  When we lay any and all prayer requests at the feet of God, He has designed it so that a tranquil spirit will reside within us. 

            What about people who have anxiety disorders?  Theirs is a whole different deal.  I suffer from that very thing and can tell you first hand that your mind makes a situation seem far worse than it is.  Your pupils dilate, your heart races and all you want to do is get yourself out of that situation.  For me many times it is tied to not having control of a situation.  It’s very difficult for people with this issue to focus on the Lord at a time like that.  Praying or reading scripture definitely helps, as you would assume it would.  God has compassion on those who have difficulty coping with life’s major stresses, even the ones our own mind manufactures.  This verse applies to all walks of life, even those who have claustrophobic issues and difficulty dealing with stress.

            For those who struggle with their faith and have difficulty trusting that things will be all right, God offers a heavenly peace that the world knows nothing of.  It’s your heart and mind He will guard with the very spirit that now resides within you.  You can trust the Lord to always have your very best interests at heart.  If things don’t happen to go the way you’d like, trust that God knows what He’s doing and the answer isn’t necessarily no, but simply not yet.  Until Christ returns, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource:  The Reformation Study Bible.

WHOLEHEARTED DEVOTION

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.”  2 Chronicles 6:14

            This is how King Solomon started his prayer of dedication at the opening of the New Temple in Jerusalem.  His words touch on both sides of God’s covenant relationship with his chosen people.  God keeps his end of the covenant and his people walk in it with all their heart. To disobey any part of God’s Law would invite divine retribution (Deuteronomy 7:9-12 & 30:15-20). Being perfect in every way, there was never any question as to whether God would honor his covenant.  The question has always been would his people serve Him with total dedication?  To this very day the question remains the same.

            In God there is no shadow of turning (James 1:17), no variableness.  He always remains the same. He is the only constant in a sea of inconsistency.  There should never be any question as to whether God can be trusted or counted on to do what He has promised in His word to do.  His character bears out the familiar phrase “God said it, I believe and that settles it.”  The variable in all this is our earnest and wholehearted obedience to His word.  We live under God’s umbrella of grace.  The Law is no longer enforced, therefore we are no longer bound by it, but our obedience causes us to follow it as a natural part of living a Christ-like life.

            God’s undeserved favor gives us the freedom to live as we choose with the understanding that salvation should have ignited our “want to” regarding serving the One who saved us from our sins.  This is glorious news to the believer.  We are saved from our own natural tendency to do the wrong thing and now strive to live each day for our Lord & Savior.  Never lose sight of who you truly are in Christ.  Live for Him because you can, not because you feel you have to.  Until Christ returns, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource:  The Reformation Study Bible.

ACCORDING TO HIS WILL

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15

         There is a key phrase that a lot of people choose to ignore in these two verses. That phrase is “according to his will”. There reasoning appears to be that a loving God wouldn’t deny them anything their heart desires.  They point to Psalm 37:4 and claim what they consider to be a promise, that God will give you the desires of your heart.  They miss the previous part of the verse that states the stipulation of the second part; “delight yourself in the Lord”. 

         Believe it or not, Christianity isn’t all about “me”.  It’s about who God is, who we are prior to knowing Him, what He did for us and how we are to respond.  A grateful heart, once forgiven, desires to line up with God’s will, understanding that He knows us and our hearts motivation far better than we ever could.  Therefore, if we submit our will to His we will have a far greater tendency to ask things that line up with His will.  Do you see my point?  It’s not all about acquiring things.  It’s about seeking, then knowing His will for us and asking for the things He already knows we need to accomplish that which He desires us to do for the kingdom.

       “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)  The “things” are those items we are in need of.  God never shortchanges his children.  On that we can totally rely.  Until Christ returns, walk with the King and be a blessing!

SEEK GOD EARNESTLY

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”  Hebrews 11:6

            There is one word in this verse that defines what a true Christian is more than any other.  It’s the word earnestly.  Believing in God’s existence is not enough.  The demons in hell believe and tremble in fear at the sound of His name (James 2:19).  Many people too numerous to count will be sorely astonished and amazed when the last day comes and their name is not counted among the redeemed.  It takes more than belief; it takes earnest faith.  One must make it his or her sincere intent to know Christ and by extension God, so that they can begin to fully understand who He is and who we are in Him.  We are His children.  We are His delight.  He created us for His own good pleasure.  God desires that we know Him even as we are known by Him. 

            To earnestly seek God is to determine in your heart that you will search for the deeper nuances of His character so as to more completely comprehend the bigger picture of what this whole Christian life is all about.  Think about it.  Why is Jesus Christ the only name used as a curse?  Not Buddha, not Mohammed, only Jesus.  It’s to cheapen the value of His name. Think about why Christians are the ones being martyred and not Hindus or Buddhists or Jehovah’s Witness or Mormons, only Christians.  What is it about Christianity that makes us living targets in this world?  It’s no different then it was in Jesus world.  He was targeted by of all people the religious leaders.  He posed a threat to their pious little world of rules and restrictive regulations.  Today, Christ poses a threat to the world’s system of ignorant ambivalence. 

            Christ is returning for those who have diligently sought to live for Him, not for those who play church.  Make yourself ready.  The King is coming.  Is He coming for you?  Until Christ’s return, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource:  American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language