It's Not About What Is Given

John 12:3 Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 

What would we give in exchange for what we have been given? It is interesting that Mary used something that had the value of a year's salary to anoint Jesus. What was amazing was not the amount of what the oil was worth. What was amazing was that Jesus had not yet given His life for any of them or us at the time that Mary did this. Think about that for a moment. Sadly, today there are many who do not give anything and use all kinds of excuses as to why they do not give. However, I would like us to understand something about what Mary did in giving what she gave. The point is not really about what she gave or how much it was worth. The point is that what she gave, she gave as an act of worship. Again, I remind us all that what she gave, she gave before Jesus went to the cross for us. My point being that today we are enjoying the outcome of what Jesus did for us on Calvary. We enjoy a salvation that was freely given to us by faith. Yet, we have such a difficult time being the living sacrifices we are called to be. We grumble and complain when the Lord puts it on our hearts to give, whining about what we will have to give up or potentially lose. We hold on to our time, which we waste on things that have no heavenly worth. We sell out our talents and abilities to the world for the sake of gaining the dollar, but respond that we have to "pray about it" when we are asked to use those same talents and abilities to serve God in the local church. How would our thinking change if we saw the giving of our time, talents, resources, and treasures, as an act of worship toward Jesus? Would it change how much we would be willing to give? Would it change us from a whinny giver to a cheerful giver? Does not our Heavenly Father deserve the best of us and what we have, since He gave us what was most valuable and precious to Him; His only begotten Son? Let us ponder that the next time we try to put a tight grip on whatever it is God puts on our hearts to give for His glory. Whatever it might be, let us give it as an act of worship for the One who gave us much more than any of us deserve; because it's not about what is given, but about the heart with which it is given...a heart of worship.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

We Cannot Fool God

Joel 2:12-13 “Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm. 

The tearing of clothes and pouring the dust of the earth over one's head was an outward show of mourning, and possibly repentance, depending on the circumstance. However, in these verses, God is trying to warn the people of Israel that He is more interested in what is in their hearts, than what they show outwardly. The previous warning in this chapter is a warning of what is to come in the Day of the Lord, the Tribulation Period. God desires that none should perish and wants to see true repentance from His people, before it is too late. It is not enough to say words that sound good. It is not enough to weep, mourn, and fast, without a change of heart. God is not interested in our outward acts of contrition. He sees beyond our outward actions and expressions and goes right to the heart. If we truly want to experience God's forgiveness, then it begins with a repentance that comes from deep within. Only then will our outward expressions of contrition be in sync with what is happening inwardly; and only then will the lost receive salvation, and the true born again follower of Christ experience true forgiveness. We cannot fool the God who sees the heart with the outward facades we use to fool men.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

Our Circumstances and Our Hope

John 11:43 Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”

A seemingly hopeless situation completely turned into a lifetime of hope. The reality of this life is that we will face many situations and circumstances that appear to be completely unresolvable and hopeless. However, those situations only seem that way when Jesus is left out of the equation. Although we are never guaranteed that a circumstance will end in a way that makes us feel that it was for our good; God promised that He would work ALL things together for good (Romans 8:28). That ultimate good will be that we will be more like Christ when it is all said and done (Romans 8:29). When the bottom falls out of life, we must never forget that there is still One who is holding things together. So even when we feel like something did not turn out the way we hoped it would, we can still hold on to the hope that one day when we are with Jesus, all things will be good; and these things that we allow to stress us and cause us anxiety will not matter in light of eternity, and in light of all that the Lord has in store for us. Our hope is not in this life, our circumstances, or how they turn out. Our hope is always in our Living Hope; our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

Lord, If Only...

John 11:21 & 32 Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." (32) Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

Have you ever found yourself saying, "Lord, but if only..."? I know I have. What are we saying to God when we say, "Lord, but if only..."? What we are saying, without saying it out loud, is, "Lord, if only You had shown up on my timetable and done things in a way that better suited me." "Lord, if only You had answered my prayers exactly as I requested, this situation would not have been as painful for me as You allowed it to be." When we see the situation with Lazarus, we know that Jesus' ultimate goal was to glorify the Father to the utmost. His delay, and the miracle that followed, accomplished glorifying the Father, giving further proof that He is the giver of Life, and as frosting on the cake, strengthened Mary's, Martha's, and Lazarus' faith. When I find myself saying, "Lord, if only You had...", I have to stop and ask, "Who do I think I am to dictate how the Lord will answer my prayers?" "Who am I to think that I should endure less pain in this world, when Jesus endured the unthinkable for me; and yet He was completely innocent?" The next time we are tempted to say, "Lord, if only You had...", we need to stop and ask ourselves, "When did my ways and thoughts become God's ways and thoughts; and when did I become a god who knows better than the only God who is Omniscient, Omni-present and All-powerful?" When life hits us the hardest, know that as a born again follower of Jesus, He is already with us, walking with us, fully aware of what is needed, and fully aware of what He needs to do and when He needs to do it, for the glory of His Name alone.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

Consecration or Desecration

Revelation 11:1 Then I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there."

Reading a book about the Book of Revelation, the author explained something that I was not aware of. The word "temple" that is used in this verse is not in reference to the entire temple structure. The word used in the Greek refers to the portion of the temple that is the Holy of Holies. What makes this point interesting is that it is the same word that Jesus used to describe His own body in John 2:21, and is also the same word the Apostle Paul used to describe our bodies, as temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3 & 6; 2 Corinthians 6), and the church, as a body of believers (Ephesians 2). It caused me to think of Antiochus Epiphanes, who desecrated the temple in 168 and 170 B.C. by dedicating it to Jupiter. A foreshadow of what the Antichrist would do, during the coming Tribulation period, when he will declare himself to be God, in the temple, and orders men to worship him as God. The reason I bring up these two men, specifically, is because we are no different. "What do you mean?!" Well, stop and think about how often we have done things to, and with, our bodies that desecrate the place God had labeled His Temple, His dwelling place? Think about the times we have put something, or someone, including ourselves, on the throne of our lives? Those times when we decided that our way was best, and in our pride, refused to give the Lord and His Spirit the rightful place on the throne of our lives. Every time we use God's Holy of Holies for our pleasure, and to satisfy our own desires, we desecrate it. Every time we become unequally yoked with the world and unbelievers, we desecrate His Holy Temple. Every time we crown ourselves lords and kings of our own lives, and choose to pridefully sit on His throne, we desecrate the place where God chose to dwell most intimately with us. May God forgive us, and may we always stop and prayerfully, and fearfully, consider that what we choose to do next will either be an act of consecration (worship) or an act of desecration. I pray we choose consecration.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

Our Pain and His Glory

John 11:4 When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Isaiah 55:8 reminds us that God's ways and thoughts are not our ways and thoughts. It is often this conflict in ways and thinking that oftentimes leaves us baffled and feeling as if God does not care or does not love us anymore. The enemy knows how to use our circumstances to make us think and believe that God has forsaken us when we are experiencing our greatest pain. Yet, how we feel during those moments often completely contradicts the truth found in the pages of God's Word. In this instance, God's greatest glory would come out of Lazarus' family's pain. However, note that their pain only lasted for a moment. What we do not often think about is that although Jesus raised Lazurus from the dead, one day in the future, Lazarus would experience physical death one more time. In spite of that, let us stop and consider what Mary's and Martha's faith would be like, knowing that Jesus had already demonstrated His power over death. They already believed that they would be resurrected in the last days, but this one act would not only glorify God, but also help them to stand in the strength of their faith, knowing that regardless of how dire the circumstances; in the end, there will be life eternal with their Messiah. Today, we may suffer great pain and suffer circumstances that seem unbearable, but if we know Jesus as our Lord and Savior, the end for us is only the beginning. Our life here is short, like a vapor, in comparison to eternity with Jesus. Be encouraged in the fact that our suffering is only for a short time, and if God allows it, His ultimate goal will always be His glory; even if we do not see it. Our pain will always work out for good and for the glory of God.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

Jesus Is Never Late

John 11:3-7 Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”

How often have we cried out to the Lord during times of desperation? How often did we feel like God was either not hearing our prayers or just was not going to answer "this time"? We see from these verses that Jesus knew about Lazarus' situation, as it was told to Him; yet, He chose to stay where He was for a couple of more days. God chose to point out in this chapter that Mary, Lazarus' sister, was the same Mary who anointed Jesus with oil and wiped His feet with her hair. In other words, the request came from someone who believed in Him and worshiped Him. In spite of this, Jesus still delayed His journey. The message was even one of an attempt to cause Jesus to come quickly, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." The fact of the matter is that Jesus knew exactly when He needed to be there to fulfill Mary's request. There will be times when we cry out to the Lord during heavy suffering. The Lord's delay in answering is only a delay based on His timing, not ours. Jesus had a greater purpose in not healing Lazarus. He had already healed many. This time, He would glorify God by raising Lazarus from the dead; which would be a greater miracle, and prove that He was greater than death and the One who gives life. When it was all said and done, He would demonstrate that He arrived and answered Mary's prayer just in time. Regardless of what we go through in life, God is never later in answering our prayers. When circumstances seem dire and hopeless because God does not seem to want to answer, know that the Lord does not operate on our timetable. Our feeble attempts at coaxing Him to answer according to our will does not deter Him from answering in accordance with His will. His timing is ALWAYS perfect, and Jesus is NEVER late.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).

No Safer Place To Be

John 10:27-30 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.”

What is our greatest need, at this very moment? I am afraid that many would begin to name the many earthly things that are thought to be needed by many of us. However, our greatest need, whether we are a Christian or not, is Jesus. It is He who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The only way for us to have access to the Father is by Him and Him alone. Our Great Shepherd desires that we, His sheep, recognize His voice from among the many voices that seek to get our attention and distract us from following Him. In Jesus alone, we have the security we need. He is the One who leads us on the path that was set for us, even before we were conceived. The wonderful thing about following Him is that He never forsakes us on that path. He provides what we need along the way, and all He asks is that we focus first on His Kingdom and that we prove our love for Him by obeying His commandments. All the way, as we walk with Him, He assures us that we are safe in His hands. He will not lose a single one that belongs to Him because we have been sealed by the Holy Spirit, who also indwells us. He and His Father are one, and no one, absolutely no one, can snatch us out of His hands. No matter the circumstance, the challenge, or the trial, the Shepherd speaks to us and wants us to safely follow Him along the way. There is no safer place to be than to be in the center of God's will, following the voice of our Faithful and Great Shepherd.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Romans 10:13).