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But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ Acts 2:21
I remember hearing a story of an old preacher who stopped to pick up a hitchhiker along the road. Usually he didn’t do this but ‘something in his heart’ told him to stop. As he drove down the road with this dirty, long-haired, tattooed young man they passed a highway billboard with the message “Jesus Saves’ with no other explanation.
The young man remarked “WOW, Jesus must be thrifty”.
The story reminds me of at least two things in the walk of a believer.
One is that we guard carefully the terminology we use. The fact of the matter is, few people in our society see the need to be ‘saved’. We have done a good job of convincing people that ‘we are okay’. Rather than throwing all sorts of evangelism terms around and speaking our language as though everyone else will understand, it may be more profitable to spend time listening to and learning the language of the unbeliever. What struggles are they going through? What fears to they have? What makes them angry? How can a relationship with Jesus ‘save them’ from the frustrations they are enduring?
The second thing that this story reminds me is that sometimes the most unlikely people may show an interest in who Jesus is. Okay, maybe I’m reading too much into the imaginary story, but the last time you saw a homeless person, or a person who obviously looked as though they we not doing well, did you look at them with sympathy, disdain or as a chosen creation of our creator God.
Jesus hung out with the people we avoid. He struck up conversations with the people we look on with disgust. He sought out the people we shy away from. Were Jesus to return, I think we would pass on most of our churches and feel far more comfortable in a soup kitchen. He’d be less impressed with the country club atmosphere than he would the ‘aroma’s’ of the streets and alleys.
How can we, as a body of Christ reach out to those who know nothing about Jesus or see him as a thrifty guy? I live in a rural area of America. We have many in our small villages that live at a poverty level lower than some ghettos. Yet they are hidden from view. How can we find them? How can we reach out so that they can find the fulfilling relationship we cherish?
PRAYER: Father God, I am so thankful for the many blessings you have bestowed on us. I confess to you that too often I’m so concerned about my own comfort that I fail to see the pain of others. Empower me to see the needy. Enlighten me on how I can reach them for you. Amen.
This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow. Isaiah 48:17
“I told you so.”
Don’t you hate hearing those words? Perhaps they are the words of a friend or a parent or an employer. You thought you had a better idea. You were warned that your idea wouldn’t work. You went ahead anyway and did what you thought best.
If you had been right you’d be a hero right now. But you weren’t. In fact, your decision has made a huge mess for yourself as well as those around you. Now you have to suffer the consequences. Not only that, your decision is like a pebble dropped into a still pool. The ripple effect with affect your life and the life of others for a long time, maybe eternity. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.”
Whether your decision was personal (such as family, kids, lifestyle), or career oriented, there’s some good news for you. We human beings tend to make decisions that lean towards our own understanding and comfort level. Our finite minds aren’t always able to grasp the full impact of our decisions.
The good news is that there is redemption available to us. Redemption is defined as “the action of saving or being saved from sin, error, or evil.” The implication is that if you need redeeming it’s because of an action you are responsible for, or an action that is outside your control. In other words, whether the consequences are your fault or the fault of another you have hope.
Each of us have no doubt been told something by a parent or teacher and knowingly taken a different path because it looked better and easier to us. Even worse are those times when we knowingly go against what God has told us to do. We do so either intentionally, or in ignorance because we didn’t check with God before we acted.
We are redeemed. That’s the message God give us in Isaiah 48:17. The prophet reminds us that “This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.”
Another way of stating this verse might be to say this. “I know what’s best for you. I’ll teach you all you need to know. But WHEN you stray from me and take the wrong path, I’ll redeem you. When you focus on your own comfort rather than my glory, I’ll redeem you. When your actions cause turmoil for yourself and those around you, I’ll redeem you.
What a blessed promise we have of redemption through Jesus Christ. He alone frees us from everything that seeks to imprison us.
PRAYER: Father God. There are so many times I see my own comfort. So many times I take the path I think best even though I know it’s the wrong path to take. Thank you for Jesus. Thank you that he alone is my redemption from myself and the evil others plan for me. Amen.
“So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.” Galatians 5:1
I have a friend who’s been in and out of prison for what seems to be his whole life. He gets out of prison but it’s hard to stay ‘clean’ and soon he finds himself back behind bars. As he told me on one occasion, there seems to be a security behind bars that he can’t find anywhere else. It’s a security he can’t find in ‘freedom on the outside.’ So he serves his time, steps into freedom, tries to make a ‘go of it’ and fails, only to find himself in the familiar and ‘safe’ walls of prison.
Sound weird? It’s not. We do it all the time. Our human nature tends to steer us towards the things we are familiar with.
I see it on a far smaller scale when our family is on a road trip to some area we are unfamiliar with. When we look for a place to eat we tend to seek security in a place we are familiar with such as a name brand restaurant or fast food place. We do that because we have a pretty good idea of what to expect. They often have the same menu, the same table decorations, and predictable food quality.
One time we were traveling and decided that since we couldn’t find a familiar place to eat we’d choose a cute looking café on the side of the road. It was NOT a pleasant experience. The place was dirty but at least the food was bad!
Sometimes our churches are like that. Everything is the same wherever you go. Some of our churches follow tradition more closely than Scripture. They have the same worship format, sing the same songs, they even have the same decorations! You know exactly what to expect.
One of my favorite verses comes from Galatians 5:1. Paul says, “So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.”
I think, if Paul were here today, he’d explain that verse something like this. “Listen! We serve a creative God. We serve a God who doesn’t change in who he is but does things differently often. Don’t use your freedom to be stuck in a rut and do things the way you’ve always done. Live a little! Don’t stray from God’s ways, but don’t get so sucked into the way you’ve always done things that you become like stagnant water. Mountain streams are always fresh because they are always moving, always changing.
Freedom in Christ, by nature, fosters change in a positive way. So live life in freedom! Allow God’s creativity to flow through your lifestyle and more importantly, through your worship of him! Don’t live behind the bars of security, sameness and ‘we’ve always done it this way.’
PRAYER: Father God, I see your sunsets. I see your sunrises. I see the beauty and creativity of nature and am in awe of you. Help me to live free, to live creatively, while at the same time living a life that is pleasing to you. Thank you for the freedom to be creative! Amen.
“For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king.” 1 Peter 2:16-17
There are some that say the Bible is full of contradictions. I don’t personally believe that and many of the ‘difficulties’ that people have pointed out can be explained by a more thorough study of the text.
Having said that, there are plenty of dichotomies in the Christian life as taught by Jesus. For example:
- To be the greatest you must be the least;
- To gain everything you must lose everything;
- The poor are the powerful ones, not the rich;
- A true leader is a servant;
- The humble ones are the ones that will inherit the earth, not the controlling;
Maybe you can think of others as well. Statements made in scripture that go contrary to everything that is spoken of in society. God’s Kingdom is nothing compared to what we see around us. God’s Kingdom lifts up the downtrodden, encourages the discouraged, empowers the powerless and comforts the hurting.
Peter, one of Jesus’ followers tells us another dichotomy in regards to our freedom:
“For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king.” 1 Peter 2:16-17
Normally, we think of being free and being a slave as being on opposite ends of the spectrum. A slave has no rights, no hope for a future and no identity. He goes where he’s told, he does what he’s told. He has no choices.
A free man, on the other hand has the opportunity to do and be whatever he chooses. His identity is secure in who he is and what he does.
In yet another irony, Jesus teaches us that no one is truly free. Either you serve man or God. Either you choose to follow the desires of the flesh or the standards of God. Being enslaved to God gives you the rights to be called his child. Being enslaved to God empowers you to live free of the futile desires of the flesh. Being enslaved to God allows you to live in peace in the midst of the storm. Being enslaved to God frees you from the guilt of past mistakes.
Peter encourages us by reminding us that because of Jesus Christ, we are free to serve God. Service to God means we are loyal to all the teachings of Jesus. We are free to love those who reject God’s ways. We are free to be ourselves while at the same time showing grace and mercy to those without Christ. We are free to be examples to the world, to be Jesus in skin.
Live free today! Be free to show others around you the love and grace and forgiveness of Jesus.
PRAYER: Father God, it is so easy at times to feel insignificant in a world where wealth, power and status are worshiped. Forgive me for the times I let the voices of society make me feel insignificant. Empower me by your Spirit to live in the freedom of service to you. Amen.
“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” Romans 8:1-2
Can you imagine for a moment what it’s like to be on death row? Even worse, to know your day of execution is coming up? You’ve been found guilty of a crime and are about to pay the consequences through execution or physical death. You have no hope; no more appeals. You’ve most likely been forgotten by society. You are hopelessly alone.
I’m reminded of Barabbas, the prisoner that was set free instead of Jesus. What must it have been like for him to hear the crowd screaming ‘CRUCIFY HIM’! What must he have thought as he heard footsteps coming down the hall towards his cell after seeing the cross on the hillside from his window?
I can’t imagine the agony; the fear; the anger; the hopelessness! Every appeal had been used and failed. Every attempt at escape had been thwarted. Death literally was staring him in the face. He may have blinked back tears of anger and remorse just before he heard the guard say, “Ok. Get up. You’re out of here. You’re free. Never let us see your ugly face in Jerusalem again or next time you won’t be so lucky.”
All of life can really be summed up in two laws, the law of morality and the law of mortality. While science has made great strides in medicine, the death rate among humans is still 100%. So no matter what we accomplish in life, nothing will be good enough to keep us from death.
Morality suffers a similar fate. ‘Nobody is perfect’ is more than a cliché. It’s a fact of life. In an effort to ease the futility of trying to be perfect, some have tried to change God’s standards. Others have tried to ignore God’s rules or rationalize their behavior. But the Bible is clear that the wages of our sin is death — eternal separation from God.
King Solomon states in Ecclesiastes that he had everything he could possibly want by earthly standards yet found it was all meaningless until you turn to God.
A personal relationship with Jesus frees us from the law of death because we know that this body will someday fail, but our souls will go to be with him for eternity.
A personal relationship with Jesus frees us from the penalty of the law of sin, so we can know we are forgiven. Because of that, even though our physical bodies die, we are assured of life with him for eternity.
Live free today because of Jesus. Thank him for the freedom only he can give. Because of your relationship with him you are forever free from condemnation!
PRAYER: Lord Jesus. It’s often so easy to forget what a huge debt you paid for me on the cross. Thank you that I am no longer condemned. I lift up those around me who still suffer under the bondage of condemnation. I pray they too may find freedom in you. Amen.
