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Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. Romans 13:10
It’s the difference between religion and relationship. It’s the difference between peaceful living and stress. It’s the difference between holiness and sinfulness. It’s the difference between abuse and encouragement. It’s the difference between prison and freedom. It’s the difference between fear and courage. It’s the difference between defeat and confidence. It’s love.
Love excites us, brings peace into our lives, cures us of the addiction to sin, encourages us, frees us to be ourselves, gives us courage to survive attack and confidence to use the gifts we have to better the world around us.
In the Old Testament God gave his people all sorts of rules and regulations to show them how to live lives free of all the bad stuff life throws our way. Never forget, when He created Adam and Eve in the garden, He never intended that they be separated from Him. Their sin in the garden destroyed everything. God created us in His image to enjoy life, to enjoy love, to enjoy each other.
The Bible says Adam and Eve were naked and unashamed. That wasn’t just physical nakedness; it was emotional and spiritual nakedness as well. The underlying power of their lives was love, the love of the creator-God to them and their love for Him in return.
Then ‘sin’ got in the way. Sin is really just another way of saying ‘getting what I want in my way’. When sin entered, our relationship with God, ourselves and others was forever changed. There was only one thing that could rescue us from the emptiness and pain of life: LOVE.
True love, Godly love never ever hurts. Period. There are so many things that get in our way, that keep love from showing itself. People get in the way by abusing us for their own selfish purposes. Our past keeps us from enjoying the forgiveness that only Jesus offers. Religion keeps us from enjoying the freedom of enjoying all that God has given us. None of these things are powered by love.
Jesus didn’t come into the world to condemn us or to accuse us or to remind us of all our faults. That job is reserved for religion. Jesus came to love us, just as we are, where we are, regardless of our propensity to rebel against Him.
Don’t try to truly love your neighbor or your enemy until you have learned how to love God and yourself. It won’t happen. Only when we are completely enveloped by a love for God and ourselves will love flow to those around us. When that happens, when we learn to love God and ourselves, love for the other people in our lives, even those who hate us and hurt us, will be a natural result, not a forced action.
PRAYER: Father. I thank you today for your unconditional, unending and undeserved love. I confess to you that the love I’ve learned in life hasn’t been all that great. It’s brought pain, shame, guilt and remorse. I need to learn to love you and myself so I can be free to love others. I’ve hurt so many people in my life and now I resolve to love them your way through the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.
I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will guide him and restore comfort to him. Isaiah 57:18
The prophet Isaiah was called by God to minister to a people who never seemed to get the ‘living for God’ thing right. Their history with Him wasn’t stellar by any means. Even though God blessed them time and time again they refused to see Him as the source of their success. Any time something came along that looked better than God’s ways they followed it. They were stubborn, rebellious people who didn’t seem to care what God said.
Not only did they have a hard time following God’s ways, they blamed God when they didn’t get their own way. If God didn’t get them what they wanted they’d find a god that did. It may be money, new relationships, or stealing from other people. The bottom line was God’s people weren’t very godly after all. The people chose religion over relationship but that didn’t satisfy them so they found other things to soothe their pain.
Isaiah came before the people with a message straight from God. It was a simple message: “I know your name.” Things really haven’t changed much since Isaiah was prophet. We all still struggle with our spiritual walk. We try to live for God but are pulled in so many other directions that we lose sight of His way. People fail us, or abuse us, so we find others who will treat us well. We find comfort in drugs and/or alcohol but that is only a temporary fix to our pain. We try religion but religion is demanding and often doesn’t seem relevant to our pain. We get tired of trying and failing and trying and failing again. When we continue to fail like that it’s easy to just give up. We may decide God doesn’t exist or care. We may decide we are just too hopeless of a case and try to go it alone because there is no way He’ll accept us.
None of that is true. Isaiah 57:18 tells us that God knows who we are from the very beginning. He knows our name. He’s seen what we are like from the inside out. We humans tend to determine who we are and who others are by what we see on the outside. We associate a certain kind of behavior, looks and attitudes by what we see on the outside because we are limited by our humanity.
Our name gives people the framework for who we are. If I say I saw ‘Mary Jones’ today, and you know Mary, then in your mind you can relate all you know about Mary by that name. The same is true to a much larger degree with God. He knows who you are from the inside out. He doesn’t just know what you do, He knows the real reason you do it.
Not only does God know you better than anyone else, including yourself, He loves you. He wants to heal you. The Bible refers to our sin nature as a disease. It’s a disease we are born with and one we can’t heal ourselves. We seek all sorts of ‘medication’ to deal with it like relationships, chemicals, and religion, but nothing works. The only thing that will heal you is forgiveness by God through Jesus Christ.
If you are sick, you don’t say, “As soon as I get better I need to get to the doctor.” That’s a ridiculous idea. When you are sick you go to the one that can heal. Jesus not only heals you, He understands why you fail, comforts you in your pain and wants to help you learn to have a full, rich relationship with Him.
God knows your name. He knows who you are and exactly why you are the way you are. He’s real, powerful and loving. Through His Son Jesus, He can help soothe the pain you are in regardless of what you have done.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus, I’m so thankful that you know me. Other people think they know me, but even my best friends only know what they see on the inside. I praise you for knowing me from the inside out and understanding my pain. Forgive me of the mistakes I’ve made. Heal my wounds that run deep. Comfort me with your loving forgiveness. In Your Name I pray, Amen.
For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Hebrews 4:1
Maybe it’s a guy thing, but I have the tendency to hesitate to ask for help. It doesn’t matter how heavy the object is to lift or how hard the task is, if there is any way I can do it on my own I’ll do it! I’ve had plenty of sore backs and pulled muscles to prove it!
The ridiculous part about being driven to do things by ourselves is that it often causes physical pain, frustration and even damage to people and property. Still each of us is inclined to risk our physical and emotional health to do things on our own.
Sometimes we do that because we see the need for help as a sign of weakness. Sometimes we do it ourselves because we have that ‘pride thing’ going on inside us that says: (1) My way is the best way; and (2) No one can do it as well as I can!
What is true for us in the physical realm can also be true in the spiritual realm. In fact the two intersect in some ways. Those of us that are Christ-followers agree that we are sinners and willingly rest on God’s promise of forgiveness and grace for our eternal lives. However, for some reason, if we aren’t careful we think that once we receive this ‘free gift’ of grace we need to work hard to keep it or earn it.
We do this by taking responsibility to make sure our job is right, our kids are healthy and responsible, or homes are fancy and well kept, we have all the right toys and latest gadgets. We even work hard to make sure our ministry or church is stronger, larger and has more technology than the people across the street. Not all of these things are bad unless they become the sole reason for our existence. When they become all we live for then frustration sets in because we can’t possible achieve all we want!
Jesus says, in Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Jesus isn’t necessarily talking about physical rest here. He’s telling all of us who are spiritually tired and emotionally spent that we can come to Him for rest. He wants to comfort us and encourage us when we are struggling to keep afloat.
One of the mysteries of our human existence is that when we are at peace with ourselves on the inside, the things that bring stress on the outside aren’t as powerful. When I allow Jesus to completely control my thoughts, my attitudes and my feelings about people, places and things I have the strength to endure the attacks that are thrown at me.
God’s rest is both present and eternal. His rest gives us freedom to live life to the fullest while we are here on earth. When we rely on God’s power nothing that comes our way brings complete despair. This is true whether the circumstances we face are a result of our own failures or the attacks of others.
God’s rest is also eternal. As Christ-followers we have a hope that reassures us that no matter how bad things are now, someday all the pain and frustrations will be gone. Our physical lives will end, but will usher in an eternal life of peace, happiness and health, all in the presence of God Himself!
PRAYER: Father God. I’m tired. I’m tired physically, emotionally and spiritually. The things that are happening around me have taken away the joy I thought I was supposed to have in you. I confess that I’ve been struggling at my spiritual life all alone and not accepting the help you have promised. Forgive me for trying to do it alone. Empower me by your Holy Spirit to accept your comfort, your power and your help to make it through the daily grind that seems to pull me down. Thank you for your understanding and your rest. Amen.
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1
We are free because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Those who are Christ-followers hold this truth as the foundation of our faith and the motivation for all that we say and do. Our faith is based solely on Jesus Christ.
The entire book of Galatians can be summed up in one word. Freedom. Grace gives us the freedom we need to face the sometimes seemingly insurmountable obstacles in our way on this journey we call life.
Along with those obstacles come intentional or unintentional attempts by the enemy to rip the freedom we have in Jesus from our hands. He is a cunning enemy. He uses circumstances, people and even religion to try to enslave us. When it works we can find ourselves in more bondage than we were in before we came to Jesus.
Paul gives us a two word battle plan to protect our freedom. He tells the Galatian Church, and us, to STAND FIRM! That’s it. Stand. And while you are standing, stand firm. Immovable. Resolute. Unwavering.
Normally we think of defending our freedom in terms of warfare. It’s either fight or flight. We fight like a cornered animal if need be and run like a scared rabbit if necessary. As Christ followers all we need to do is stand. Jesus fought the battle on the cross and in the grave. He won! It’s over. Signed, sealed and delivered. Done. Period.
Standing isn’t normally considered a position of warfare. But standing in the face of adversity takes courage, strength and trust. A story is told of a neighborhood bully known to pick on dogs in the area. The ‘bully’ was a big old tomcat. In his wisdom he’d learned that dogs could only go as far as their chain or fence would allow them to come. He would walk just outside the perimeter of the chain or fence and stand. The dogs would come running until they reached the ‘end of their rope’ and come to a sudden, painful stop. The tomcat simply stood because he knew he was in no danger.
As Christ-followers we can stand in the face of adversity because we know we are free. We stand outside the perimeter of the enemy. He can’t hurt us any longer. We can trust our Savior to see us through and protect us.
Ask the Father to help you stand firm in the battle before you. Develop the faith-muscle you need to be unwavering using the PAS method.
P – Pray. The single most formidable weapon we have as Christ-followers is to pray. God is there and wants to hear your heart.
A– Accountability. Surround yourselves with people who are truly interested in encouraging your gifts, building you up and guiding you according to God’s word. Religion enslaves you. Relationship with Jesus frees you.
S – Scripture. God’s word is His letter to you. In it he holds the keys to how you can stand firm in Him. Read it daily. Study it with your accountability group. Take it with you into battle as you would a shield and weapon. It is not outdated. It is relevant for today.
PRAYER: Holy Father, I thank you for the freedom I have in Jesus Christ. I pray that you would remove the guilt and shame of past mistakes. I invite your Holy Spirit to enter into my life and guide, protect and strengthen me to stand in the midst of the obstacles that are before me. Empower me to stand firm in You. Amen.
Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love. Psalm 48:9
True worship comes from the heart. It isn’t about the songs we sing, the instruments we play or the type of service or religious tradition that we follow. Psalm 48 is a praise song Old Testament style. The writers of the Psalm recount the various victories that Israel had over their enemies. These victories didn’t come because Israel was a strong and powerful nation. These victories came because Israel served a strong and powerful God.
Jesus told the woman at the well that worship isn’t about a Temple, building or activity. Worship is about what is going on inside of you and where you are in the journey of life. Paul tells us more about worship when he says, “we are temples of God because the His Holy Spirit lives within us.” We no longer have to travel to a particular spot to engage in a specific activity for a predetermined amount of time.
Worship is also personal. Even though we can gather as a group to worship, it’s really about what is going on in our heart the counts. You can sing and perform worship songs in church and not really worship. You can stand or sit quietly in church and be in a deep state of worship!
Worship is about meditating on God’s great love. Do that now. As you read this verse again, think of what it means to have God’s unfailing love available to you.
God’s love is available to you during those times of financial distress when you realize that you aren’t going to make it. You may be in the process of losing everything, yet in the midst of that meditate on the fact that even though you don’t understand the ‘why’ you know God loves you and will see you through.
God’s love is available in your grief. He knows the pain of losing a loved one. As a father He watched His only Son be brutally murdered even though He was completely innocent.
God’s love is available when friends fail you. Jesus knew that pain. Every one of his closest friends turned their backs on Him when He needed them most. But He loved them just the same.
God’s love is available when relationships you counted on for a lifetime of fulfillment come to a brutal end.
Take time today to meditate in a quiet place, away from distractions. Ask the Father to meet you there. Focus your mind on the good things He has done for you. Trust Him to complete the good work He has begun.
PRAYER: Father God. There are so many distractions in life. I confess to you that my worship of you has been superficial for the most part. I’ve let so many things interfere with really meeting with you. Some of those things are good things like church activities and bible studies and helping the poor. Some are things that are sinful. All of them have kept me from really knowing and understanding you. In this quiet moment please give me one thing I can focus on about your love as I travel through the day. In the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 