My Trust Is The LORD

Psalm 40:4 Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

How happy is the person whose trust is the Lord! Who are we trusting today, ourselves, our money, our material things, or the world and its system? If our trust is in anything or anyone other than the Lord, I can honestly say, without a shadow of a doubt, that we lack happiness. I can say that because if we are trusting in that which is so uncertain, then our happiness is dependent on our circumstances and how these people or things play into our circumstances. If we are trusting in that which is imperfect, and can fail us at any given moment, then for sure misery will come. However, when we put out trust in the One who hears and answers our prayers, the One who can deliver is from sin and the troubles of this world, and set us upon the Rock, who is Jesus; then we are most blessed. He is the only One who can put a new song of praise in our mouths, even in the midst of life's storms. No one can match the wonderful works which the Lord has done in the world, or in us. So what have we to offer in return? Does He desire sacrifice and offerings? Verse 6 tells us that He does not. What He desires is obedience to His Word, to His commands. This, my brothers and sisters, is the ultimate act of love toward our Savior, for what He has done. Jesus Himself said in John 14:15, "If you love Me, keep My commandments." So today, let us prove our trust in, and love for, the Lord, by living in obedience to His Word. In the end, I guarantee that we will be able to say, "I am truly blessed because my trust is the LORD."

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Love...

John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

Love...it is always interesting to hear the different opinions about what people say love is. Well, if we want to know what love truly is, we have to go to the One who is Love...our God, Savior, and Lord, Jesus Christ (1 John 4:8, 16). If we take a moment to observe how God loves, we will see that love is not just a feeling. The Bible tells us that not only is God love, but He also loves us. However, God's love was not, and is not, a love of inaction. He did not merely sit in Heaven and announce that He loved us. His love was one of action. It moved Him to leave Heaven and come to dwell among us. It moved Him to come, live among us, and ultimately die for us. God expressed His love in His actions. His love is an active love. Today, because God so loved us, we can be saved from eternal punishment in Hell and the Lake of Fire, and be with the Lord for all of eternity. His love will move Him to chasten us when we need it, because He is a Jealous God, who desires the best for us. In all that God has done, is doing, and will do or allow, He shows us how much He loves us. We may not always see or understand God's love for us, because His ways are not our ways; but the one thing we can be sure of, regardless of circumstances, is that God loves us. He proved it beyond a shadow of a doubt, on a cruel, but loving, cross on Calvary.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Don't Wait...It's Real!

Luke 16:22-23 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

So many today dismiss the truth that Hell exists and is a real place. I am not talking about unbelievers. I am talking about people who claim to know Jesus, and claim to believe the Word of God. Did you know that during His earthly ministry Jesus spoke more about Hell than He did about Heaven? If Jesus gave more attention to that place of punishment, should we not also pay attention? Today, I would like us to hear from one who is there, who became an evangelizing believer (though much too late), and who tried to send a warning to his own family. Note that the first thing he experienced was torment (v. 23). However, it was not just a simple torment, but a threefold torment. First, he is experiencing physical pain (v. 23), the flames of Hell are real, yet he is not being consumed. Second, he is experiencing thirst (v. 24). A thirst so intense that he requested, not a glass of water, but a drop of water from the tip of Lazarus' finger; yes, the same Lazarus whose suffering he ignored while they both lived. Third, he is now in Hell thinking of how he missed the opportunity to make a simple decision that would have taken him to be in the bosom of Abraham, alongside Lazarus (v. 25). This is what it is like for those who have already died without Jesus, and what it will be like for those who die without Him today, and going forward. What is even more sorrowful is that once someone ends up in Hell, there is absolutely no escape (v. 26). This man, who was an unbeliever in life, is now a sorry believer who requested that Abraham send Lazarus to testify at his father's house, so that his five brothers would not perish (v. 27). It was much too late to be the believer and evangelist he should have been while still alive. It truly is sad that we do not hear many messages today about the reality of Hell and the Lake of Fire. We satisfy ourselves by merely warning of eternal condemnation, or being eternally separated from God; and for fear of offense, we shy away from telling people that if they reject Jesus, they will end up in Hell, and eventually the Lake of Fire. If you have any doubt of this truth, these are God's own Word in Revelation 20:13-15, "The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades (Hell) delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." Let us not wait until it is too late to tell others (family, friends, and others we claim to love) that they need Jesus, because once they are gone, so is all hope of us telling them, and all hope of them not being lost in eternal punishment.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Acknowledge It for What It Is

Psalms 38:1-4 O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your wrath, nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure! For Your arrows pierce me deeply, and Your hand presses me down. There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your anger, nor any health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

How do we respond to sin in our lives? Are we truly broken over what we do, when we sin against God? Note that I did not say, "When we sin against others." Why? Well, because when we sin, we are primarily sinning against God. Joseph had the right perspective when he ran from Potiphar's wife, in that he responded to her this way, "How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" It seems that the majority of the time when we acknowledge God as the One we sinned against, it is only when we feel the weight of the consequences. As followers of Jesus who claim to love God, we need to feel, and respond, to the weight of our sin immediately, and not wait until the consequences show up. We need to truly mourn our sin. We need to acknowledge our sin for what it is, and call it what it is from God's perspective. We also need to realize that when God chastens us, He does it in love, for our own good and benefit, and for the sake of drawing us closer to Him. His discipline may not seem "joyful for the present, but painful"; however, Hebrews 12 reminds us that the end result of God's chastening will "afterward yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it" (Hebrews 12:11). Today, let us come before the Lord, in true repentance and confession, acknowledging that our sin is against Him; and asking Him to forgive us, as He promised He would (1 John 1:8-10). Let us ask Him to cleanse us today, so that we can draw near to Him and walk in purity of heart, in the power of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Focus and Do Not Fret

Psalms 37:7-8 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret— it only causes harm.

I could just copy and paste Psalms 37 right here and be done with what needs to be said today. It never ceases to amaze me how God's Word transcends time, and addresses the issues and events that are taking place, and unfolding, right before our eyes. The very first two verses of this Psalm read, "Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb." I know that it can be very difficult to stand by and watch the evil, and corruption, that is happening around us. However, when that is what we focus on, it is far too easy to get sucked into useless rants, fits of anger, and put in position to ruin our testimony for the Lord. Instead, the Lord tells us to trust in Him, and do good. Rather than focus on the evildoers and their actions, God says, "Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." If we are going to resist the evil that exists in this world, we must do it at the Throne of God. We must fight this fight, on our knees. This fight is not a fight against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6). Therefore, it must be fought in the spiritual realm...in prayer. What the world needs right now, what our country needs right now, is the body of Christ, the church, to be on its knees, praying, reading and studying the Word of God, speaking the truth in love, witnessing to the lost, and being doers of the Word, not just hearers. God has already promised that evildoers will not succeed; they will perish. All we have to do is open His Word and read how this all ends. In the meantime, if we are looking for real change for the better, we need to begin with self. So today, rather than fret over what evil men are doing, focus on the LORD, and what we are called to do, as followers of Jesus.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

For Whose Pleasure?

Revelation 4:11 “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and for Your pleasure they are and were created.”

Did you catch that? "For Your pleasure they are and were created." Yes, for God's pleasure we were created. A wonderful scene is described for us in this chapter of the Book of Revelation. As the Lord is being worshipped in His Throne Room, those who are bowing down are giving praise to the Creator of all things, to include us. Note that we were created for His pleasure. The word "pleasure" means, "Of what God wishes to be done by us, commands, or precepts". In essence, we were created for God's purposes. He separated us unto Himself, in Christ, to use for His will and plans. Can we honestly look at our lives and say that we are living life for God's pleasure, or purpose, or would we have to admit that we are living for our own selfish pleasure? 2 Corinthians 6:17 clearly commands, "Therefore, 'Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord, do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.'" This is in respect to not being unequally yoked to the unsaved. We were not created to live a life of selfishness. We were created to serve the Lord, for His glory. Ephesians 2:10 tells us, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Today, will we live for God's holy purpose, take up our cross and follow Him, or will we continue to walk in "self" and selfishness?

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Stop, Pray, Respond

Psalms 35:12-16 They reward me evil for good, to the sorrow of my soul. But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting; and my prayer would return to my own heart. I paced about as though he were my friend or brother; I bowed down heavily, as one who mourns for his mother. But in my adversity they rejoiced and gathered together; attackers gathered against me, and I did not know it; they tore at me and did not cease; with ungodly mockers at feasts they gnashed at me with their teeth.

Here is a sad reality about life and earthly relationships; if we expect that people will never betray us, or will never fail us, then we have set unrealistic expectations. The fact of the matter is that we live in a fallen world, filled with imperfect people, self included, who are not exempt from falling short in some way. The truth is that we will be greatly disappointed if we think that everyone we are kind to, and care for, will return the same kindness. Family has betrayed family, and friends have betrayed friends. People will slander, lie, and do whatever it takes to get ahead in life, or gain the world's riches. Yes brothers and sisters, this is the world we live in. So we should not be surprised when this happens to us. I say all this to remind us all that regardless of how the world behaves toward us, we are to respond to them as the Lord has commanded. We are to love our enemies, and pray for those who spitefully use us (Matthew 5:44). Will this be an easy thing to do? No, it will not. Is it possible? Yes, with Christ, and the Holy Spirit working in and through us, it is absolutely possible. Romans 12 tells us to bless those who persecute us, "bless and do not curse". It then goes on to tell us, "Repay no one evil for evil." We are to live peaceably with all men, if it is possible, as much as it depends on us. The reality of life on earth is that we will all experience this to some degree, at some point, in our walk with Jesus. However, we must always remember that no matter what others do to us, God is always faithful, and never betrays us. On the contrary, not only is He always faithful, but He helps us to remain faithful in our responses to those who betray us; if we willing to humbly submit ourselves to Him. Before we respond to other people's unkind actions or words, we must step back, pray, and ask Jesus to help us respond in a way that will bring Him the most glory.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 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 Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).