grace

Jesus Is A Happy Man

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ Leave a comment

Do you know that Christ is happy in his exalted state in heaven?

Every day, if that is how time is measured in heaven, he looks around and sees the results of his death on the cross for his people.

First, he sees the conversion and the salvation of sinners.

Second, he looks over the amazing expanse of heaven and sees it populated with the people he died and shed his blood for.

Third, he looks down on our world and sees so many coming into faith, taking baby steps in grace, others advancing in their faith, and still others strong as warriors in their faith, and this brings pleasure to his soul.

Fourth, he sees those arriving in heaven, having finished the race, and he rejoices!

Jesus is fully satisfied with his own sacrifice!

And if he’s satisfied, so is God the Father, and the Holy Spirit.

They rejoice together!

There is joy in heaven over you!

How To Be A Recovering Pharisee

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ 3 Comments

Are you fussy, small-thinking, so engrossed in following the rules that your heart is brittle?

Of course not! Nobody wants to admit to that.

The truth is you and I are like that. It’s called Pharisaism and it’s a real problem. In some people it’s obvious, in others not so much, but all of us are affected by it.

6 Symptoms Of A Pharisee

1. Pharisaism is subtle. You don’t notice it so you don’t do anything to kill it.

2. It’s self-righteousness. Thinking better than other people.

3. It’s contempt for others who don’t live up to your standards. Looking down on others who aren’t as good as you.

4. It’s wrong priorities. Majoring on the minor details while missing the big picture of God’s grace and love in the gospel.

5. It’s not having a tender conscience. Being religious is more important than loving God.

6. It’s loving to tell others how to live. Then jumping all over them when they fail.

If you see yourself in these descriptions, you’re not alone! And you’ll want to know what to do about it.

3 Things That Won’t Help A Bit

1. You can’t learn your way out of it.

2. A good scolding won’t do it.

3. Being threatened until you quake won’t help either.

These three are aspects of the law and the law does not change the heart.

The solution lies elsewhere – in the gospel.

4 Ways To Fight Pharisaism With The Gospel

1. The Gospel tells us how bad we were. How much did Jesus suffer on the cross? His sufferings were infinite. Why did He suffer so much? Because He died in our place. What does this mean? It means our sin is infinite. ‘Sins’ can be counted—I lied once, stole twice, committed adultery three times. But ‘sin’, that native rejection of God, defies all calculation. The Gospel means we are thoroughly bad—not decent people in need of a hand, but sinners in need of a Savior!

2. The gospel tells us how needy we are still are. Where did Jesus go after dying on the cross and rising from the dead? He went to heaven. What’s he doing there? Hebrews 7:25 says he’s gone there to—

Make intercession for us.

He’s there praying for us. Why do you pray for someone? You pray for him because he needs something. This is why Jesus never stops praying for us, because we’re always in need. Now, it’s hard to square being in constant need with being proud of yourself or looking down on others, whose needs are no more than your own. The gospel means we are deeply and always dependent on God’s grace, and believing that will keep you from being a Pharisee.

3. The gospel reminds you that Jesus laid down His life as a ransom for many. That means you’ve got to love and respect your brothers and sisters in Christ, and let Jesus be the Lord of their consciences! Counsel them? Of course, but nitpick and micromanage them? No, not if the gospel has gotten into your heart.

4. The gospel saves you from being a Pharisee by telling you:

God loves you as you are, and thus you don’t have to pretend to be better than you are, and you don’t have to hunger for the praise of men.

That’s freedom!


Why IsThe Good News Really Good News?

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If it’s been a while since you’ve read the book of Romans, I recommend a re-read. Especially chapter 1, although the entire book will change your life.

Verses 1 through 7 is one large, explosive sentence that will rock your world.

Paul, who wrote the book, calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ. Where was his self-esteem?

He was called to be an apostle (a sent-one). Who called him? God did. Paul didn’t appoint himself like so many do today.

Paul was set apart for the gospel of God. That was his job description. He didn’t have to forge a career path, or construct a vision for his ministry.

And what gospel was this that Paul was set apart for?

The same gospel that the prophets preached in the Old Testament concerning Christ, the Messiah. This gospel was not a new message for New Testament people, but an ancient message promised to God’s people from Genesis all the way through to Revelation.

Jesus Christ was both God and man. His human lineage came from David and his identity as the Son of God was declared according to the Spirit when Jesus was resurrected from the dead.

It was this gospel that Paul was commissioned to preach to the Gentiles.

Have you been called to belong to Jesus Christ? Has God revealed his Christ to you as the solution to your sins and separation from God?

If the answer is no, re-read Romans 1: 1-7. Then pray this prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank you for paying my debt, bearing my punishment on the cross and offering me forgiveness and new life. Knowing that you have been raised from the dead, I turn from my sins and receive you as my Lord. Amen.

If the answer is yes, you do know him as your Lord, know this: it is God who loved you to this. It is God who called you to be a saint (set-apart one).

This was God’s idea, not yours!

Go out and tell someone!

Leave me a comment if you prayed to receive Jesus today.

How To Get Rid of Yourself

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ 4 Comments

Is your self-image on the floor? You don’t like yourself and you’re certain others don’t either? You work yourself into a frenzy trying to be popular and liked, but you only fail. Is there any hope for you?

There’s good news for you. You’re not hopeless. There is a way to a healthy self-image but it’s not what you might think.

The pundits and psychologists will be happy to give you a list of rules (or a formula) for how to fix yourself. It goes like this:

1. exercise

2. eat right

3. only spend time with positive people

4. read or listen to inspirational teachers

5. do something for others

6. believe in yourself

That last one is particularly difficult if you don’t like yourself.

Have you seen a common theme with the all this?

It’s all about self.

Whenever you turn into yourself, you’ll have trouble. That’s because there are no answers there.

The rules don’t hold the answers either. Neither do the pundits and the therapists. They’ll either drive you to despair because you can’t live up to their recommendations, or to pride because you do live up to them and you feel superior to others. Either path is full of self.

The answer lies in the gospel.

The gospel doesn’t lie to you. It agrees with you. You are messed up. In fact you’re a sinner!

But the gospel doesn’t leave you there.

It tells you to repent and acknowledge that your whole life needs fixing. Why? Because it’s not God-centered.

Jesus came into the world to clean up the mess, die on the cross to pay for your sins, to fill you with his Spirit, and to take you to heaven.

What does this do for you?

It humbles you.  It makes you grateful to God. Now you can love him and serve others out of that gratitude.

You still might be asking, “But when all my sins and failures come back to haunt me again, how can I maintain a healthy self-image?”

You don’t need to feel better about yourself!

You don’t need to feel worse about yourself!

What the gospel does is get you off of yourself!

You are a new creature in Christ, your life in now hid with him in heaven. That’s your new image.

You no longer have to live a self-centered life.

Jesus rescued you from that treadmill.

Go out and shout for joy!

How To Handle Being Single

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ Leave a comment

There is a lot of advice out there for singles who are lonely and wish they had a spouse.

Some of it goes like this:

1. stop wanting to be married and then God will give it to you

2. devote yourself to God and you’ll be so exhausted doing kingdom work you won’t have time to think about it

3. lower your expectations of a perfect spouse

Have you noticed what’s missing?

The gospel.

How does the gospel apply to singleness?

In every way.

1. Jesus was single. He understands.

2. You are not alone. Jesus is closer to you than a husband.

3. You’re really not single. Romans 7:4 says you are married to Christ.

One day, in the resurrection, there will be the marriage supper of the Lamb. Now that’s a destination wedding if there ever was one!

And you are the bride!

So if you think you’re missing out, you’re not.

You will have a wedding. And a party that far exceeds your wildest imagination!

Happy Easter!

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ Leave a comment

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”  2 Corinthians 5:21

“When you become aware of your sin and frightened by it, you must not allow the sin to remain in your conscience.  This would  only lead to despair. Rather, just as your awareness of sin flowed to you from Christ, so you must pour your sin back on him to free your conscience.

“So be careful you don’t become like the misguided people who allow their sin to bite at them and eat at their hearts.  They strive to rid themselves of this sin by running around doing good works.  But you have a way to get rid of your sins.  You throw yours sins on Christ when you firmly believe that Christ’s wounds and suffering carried and paid for your sins.

“As Isaiah said, ‘The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.’  (Isaiah 53:6) Peter said Christ himself ‘bore our sins in his body on the tree’ (I Peter 2:24). And Paul said,  ‘God made him who had no sin to be sin for us.’

(2 Corinthians 5:21)

“You must rely on these and similar verses with your whole heart.  The more your conscience torments you, the more you must rely on them.   For if you you don’t do this and try to quiet your conscience through your own sorrow and penance, you will never find peace of mind and will finally despair in the end.  If you try to deal with sin in your conscience, let it remain there, and continue to look at it in your heart, your sins will become too strong for you.  They will seem to live forever.  But, when you think of your sins being on Christ and boldly believe that he conquered them through his resurrection, then they are quite dead and gone.  Sin can’t remain on Christ.  His resurrection swallowed up sin.” –  Martin Luther

Happy Easter!

How To Stop Digging Your Own Grave

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ Leave a comment

I read C. H. Spurgeon’s devotional entry this morning in Morning and Evening. (If you don’t have a copy, buy one. It will make your soul smile.)

It was so stunning I am paraphrasing it here:

For he has made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. – 2 Corinthians 5:21

Why are you depressed?

Are you flogging yourself over your sins and failures?

Look to Jesus and remember you are complete in him. You are in God’s sight as perfect as if you had never sinned; actually more than that, the Lord your Righteousness has wrapped you in his perfection, which is none other that the perfection of God himself.

You have learned to hate sin, but you have also learned than your sin is not yours anymore – it was placed upon Christ at the cross.

Your acceptance is not in yourself but in Christ. God completely accepts you today as he will when you stand before his throne in the last day. There you will be free of all corruption, as you are now. Grab a hold of this truth – you are perfect in Christ.

(http://www.amazon.com/Morning-Evening-Charles-Haddon-Spurgeon/dp/0883684101/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333576818&sr=8-1)

 

How Not To Miss Out On Life

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ 3 Comments

How often do we let things agitate and disturb our peace?

For me, the answer is everyday. A headache, lack of sleep, a nasty remark, pressure, anxiety…the list is endless.

In John 13, Jesus had just told his disciples that he was getting ready to die and leave them. Chapter 14 opens with their state of mind upon hearing those words.

“Let not your hearts be troubled.” Clearly they were agitated and distressed by the news of his leaving them.

How did Jesus comfort them then?

He didn’t say work harder, believe more, or pray more fervently. What he said was, “Believe in God; believe also in me.”

In other words, “Trust me.”

Then he reminded them he was going away in order to get the house ready for when he came to take them home, so they could all be together with him.

Sounds like a party to me.

But then Thomas (he of a literal mind) asked the question I would have asked: “Where are you going and how do I get there?”

The answer: Jesus was Thomas’ ticket home. Nobody gets through the door without him.

Another way of saying this is:

Jesus is the head of the family and you need him to get in.

And the way in is by remembering that Jesus is your life. Don’t look for it in work, relationships, hobbies, ministry, or your devotions.

This is true for this life and the next.

So if Jesus has given you everything you need, you can rest in his care. He already fixed your greatest need – your sin.

He’s not going to drop the ball now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Better Than Botox

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ Leave a comment

You’re fixed.

You probably didn’t even know it.

That’s because you spend your life checking your spiritual pulse to see how you’re doing.

I do it. We all do it.

It goes like this:

Morning devotions? Check.

Prayed for family, friends and colleagues? Check.

Finished your bible study for the week? Check.

Attended church and helped usher? Check.

And when you fail, what happens? You feel guilty. Check.

You get the point.

You even do it with your personal stuff.

Did you go to the gym today? Check…er…no.

Did you eat your fruits and veggies for the day? Check. Well, maybe not. I hate spinach.

Did you drink eight glasses of water today? No, but I did have two caramel frapuccinos.

The truth is God loves you with or without a gym schedule.

Your biggest problem is not your weight, your hair color, or that bagel and cream cheese you just gobbled down behind closed doors.

It’s your sin, which separates you from God.

That’s your biggest problem and he fixed it for you.

And you didn’t even ask.

God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, into the world, to live a perfect life of obedience  in accordance to the Law, not for his own sake because he was already perfect, but in your place. And then, he died on the cross in your place to pay the price for your sins to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

God forgives you because of Jesus.

You are a new person in Christ.

Isn’t that the best make-over you’ve ever heard of?

Leave Your Status at the Door

~ godisnotlikeyou ~ 6 Comments

In continuing with the theme of God’s kingdom, it is here that we can live status-free.

The world jostles for position all the time. It starts in the family. There’s a favorite aunt, or a special cousin. There are the relatives nobody likes, and there are others that everybody adores.

Then there’s school. The cool, the popular, and the geeks.

College is no better. Ivy league vs. state universities. Private vs. community colleges. Yale sounds better than Berkeley, Stanford more elitist than Cal State.

Once you get into the work force, you quickly slam into the status levels there. It’s called management and labor. The two great divides.

The only place on earth where this isn’t true is in God’s kingdom. There we have one head – Jesus. The rest of us are all brothers and sisters. We came into the kingdom on the same playing field – through the cross. We stay in the kingdom through no merit of our own, but solely on the merits of Christ and what he has done for us.

There is no room for posturing, snobbery, or reputation.

But there is plenty of room for compassion, love and service to one another.

Next time you’re tempted to elevate or belittle yourself – both are sin – remember that your life is defined by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He’s the ruler of the universe. You can rub shoulders with him!