Monthly Archives: July 2014

Far too many in the church today mistakenly believe that the adversity they are currently facing is a sign of God’s abandonment. NOT TRUE! Regardless of the reason for the adversity, God has not abandoned His children, and in the end it will prove to be for their good and His glory.

Think of all the adversity the children of Israel experienced shortly after their divine deliverance from over four hundred years of captivity in Egypt. They experienced the adversity of an army of angry Egyptians thundering up behind them, with the Red Sea blocking their only means of escape. God led His children through the Red Sea—they passed through on dry ground—and annihilated the Egyptians. Israel experienced the adversity of hunger; God provided manna from heaven. They experienced the adversity of thirst; God provided water from the rock.

Adversity did not equal abandonment for the Israelites. God was with them in every adversity they faced, teaching them to call out to Him in every circumstance. One of the most important lessons you and should take away from the Exodus is that, despite the difficulties they faced, God could and indeed did bless them every step of the way into the Promised Land.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.(Proverbs 3:5-6)

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”(Hebrews 13:5)

Adversity has been promised from the Almighty. But in every adversity we will see that our God is with us. Not only does adversity not equal abandonment, but adversity is actually a stepping stone upon which we advance in the direction of God’s call in our lives. Peter exhorted us to remember that adversity has come “so that your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:7).

So . . . what adversity have you been facing lately?

• Trouble at the office?
• Difficulties in your marriage?
• Tough times at school?
• Struggles in your singleness?
• Prodigals in your parenting?

Adversity and hardships are designed by God to humble us and strengthen us. Trials remind us to depend more on our Savior than on ourselves. Remember, some blessings in life can only be found on the other side of adversity. Keep on keeping on, knowing that Jesus is with you every step of the way. Adversity does not equal abandonment; it’s the necessary precursor of blessing!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Today we celebrate American Independence Day, commemorating the day the Continental Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The American colonists had legally separated themselves from the authority of the British Crown on July 2, but the Declaration formally laid out the reasons for the colonists’ separation from England.

As important as this day is in the life of our great nation for our independence, I pray we will be reminded to declare our utter dependence upon God . . . and not only this day, but every day on this side of heaven.

Jesus spoke of our need to recognize our dependence on Him:

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:1-5)

As a pastor, I often meet Christians who believe our dependence began after Adam and Eve sinned against God. They are mistaken! Before Adam and Eve’s dreadful act of cosmic treason in the Garden of Eden, they were totally dependent upon God for everything! Their divine design was one of utter dependence upon Omnipotence. They were made by God for God, and they were never to live a single moment independent from God. Self-reliance and self-rule were never a part of their divine design; rather, it was the fruit of their terrible rebellion against God, when they greedily grasped for autonomous rule apart from their Creator and Sustainer.

The serpent spun his slick lies and convinced Adam and Eve to seek their independence from God and live above and apart from the One who created them and was sustaining them. Tragically, they immediately found out just how dependent they were upon God! Only now they were dependent upon God for His mercy and forgiveness, which they received in the promise of a Savior.

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel….And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. (Genesis 3:15, 21)

God would have been totally justified to strike our rebellious parents dead right on the spot to satisfy His holy justice . . . but He did not. What God’s justice required—payment for in full for their sin and ours—God’s grace provided for in the giving of His precious Son, Jesus Christ. Adam and Eve were dependent upon God for life prior to sin and they were dependent upon God for life after their awful sin through God’s grace and the cross work of Christ.

When was the last time you considered just how dependent you are on God? Most people immediately reflect back on a season of struggle, suffering, or sorrow and how dependent they were upon God to get through it. But what about the times in life when the sun is shining, the sky is blue, and the clouds are fleecy? We have a tendency to forget about our dependence upon God in seasons of plenty and prosperity.

Regardless of where this finds message you, your next breath is dependent upon God. The next beat of your heart is dependent upon God. Your hearing, eyesight, and the circulation of your blood are dependent upon God. If God were not upholding you right now, life as you know it would cease. This is true, not only for every person who has ever lived, but for everything that was ever created. Everything in the cosmos was created by God, for God, and is totally dependent upon God. The universe exists as a holy hymn for His glory. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands: (Psalm 19:1).

So on this Independence Day, let us all be reminded of our total and utter dependence upon God, “For in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

The Bible makes it clear that the person who is most aware of his or her dependence upon God is the one who is most often pursuing God through prayer. The more you feel your need for Him, the more time you spend in prayer to Him. If your prayer life is short or shallow, you can be assured your sense of dependency upon God is short-circuited.

Scripture is full of examples of saints who were sold out in pursuing God through prayer. The model, of course, is our Master, who was in constant communion with His Father in heaven. Here is one of my all-time favorite verses:

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1:35)

“Prayer for God’s help” John Piper says, “is one way that God preserves and manifests the dependence of his people on his grace and power. The necessity of prayer is a constant reminder and display of our dependence on God for everything, so that he gets the glory when we get the help.” Dependence is a good thing, when we place our dependence upon God, and our prayer life is one of the best indicators of just how deeply we sense and show our dependence. Our Lord modeled it for us, and we are to continue in daily, heartfelt prayer and supplication.

What better time than now, as we Americans celebrate Independence Day, to declare and celebrate our utter dependence upon the righteous, self-sacrificial, and benevolent rule of our Gracious God!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Do you know the last command in the Bible? It is found, as you might expect, in the last book in the Bible.

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. (Revelation 22:17)

Oh, what comfort can be found in this final command in sacred Scripture: “COME!” Are you thirsty? “COME” and quench your thirst with the water of life. What great encouragement is in this command from Christ!

And notice the qualifications set forth for those who are to come: Whoever is thirsty! Here we find our Lord Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, offering living water to replace the bitter water of our broken lives . . . the bitter water of selfish ambition . . . the bitter water of self-righteousness . . . the bitter water of self-centeredness . . . the bitter water of sin and self-rule.

To be sure, this world offers water that spills out from broken cisterns, but it will never—never—deliver what it promises. We are always left thirstier than when we started and totally unsatisfied. Dare not to slake your thirst with anything smaller than Jesus! Our Lord explained this to the Samaritan woman who had come to fill her water jug from Jacob’s well:

Everyone who drinks [from this well] will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. (John 4:13-14)

Scripture invites us to drink our fill from the Fount of every blessing to all those who thirst. Do you thirst . . .

ü  For truth? Drink in the Scriptures!

ü  For peace? Drink from the Prince of Peace!

ü  For a forgiving heart? Drink from the Fount of Forgiveness!

ü  For unconditional love for others? Drink from the Well of Limitless Love!

Only Jesus can slake your every thirst. Remember, the Bible promises that those who hunger and thirst after righteousness will be filled (Matthew 5:6).

One last thought: Do you recall the cost of all the bitter water you sipped on over the years? They were costly, right? You paid in ruined relationships, shattered dreams, and separation from God. Well, this glorious invitation to drink in the water of life comes without cost! There is nothing you must do—nothing you can do—to “earn” the opportunity to drink from the living waters. That cost was borne by Him who paid in full the staggering cost of sin for all those who will simply trust in His atoning work on their behalf.

Thirsty Christian . . . Come! Come and drink! Come and drink freely and fully!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!