Category Archives: General

It was the sixteenth-century Polish astronomer Nicolai Copernicus who proved that the theory of an Earth-centered universe, which had been taught by Aristotle and Ptolemy, was not accurate. Copernicus proposed and proved that the Sun, not the Earth, was the center of our solar system.

A “Copernican moment,” then, is when we realize we are not the center of the universe, but rather, the Son of God is. Instead of everything revolving around me, everything revolves around Him.

By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.  (Psalm 33:6-9)

Everything in all of creation, including you and me, is under the rule and reign of the Lord Jesus Christ. A Christian Copernican moment is a great grace of God! To realize the truth that we are not the center of the universe frees us to live for the One who is. It also frees those around us to live according to His purpose, rather than ours.

Our first parents, Adam and Eve, were created by God to live for God, which meant God was the center of their universe. God was to sit upon the throne of their lives. They were to find their identity in God. They were to find their purpose through God. Tragically, our first parents chose to remove God from the center of their universe and put themselves there.

You know the rest of the story. Man was never meant to be what only God can be—the center of all things. Only when we center our lives on Jesus do we begin recapturing the humanity lost when our first parents turned away from God. We simply cannot know who we truly are apart from God being our center and the focal point of life.

You see, life is not about the expansion of our own little kingdom, which is exactly what Adam and Eve sought to do in the Garden of Eden. Life is about the expansion of God’s BIG kingdom, which means that all of life—our work, our families, our dreams, our goals, our agendas, our recreation, everything—is to be centered on the Lord Jesus Christ.

By him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. (Colossians 1:16)

It is my prayer that you will start this day and every day after with a Christian Copernican moment that keeps Jesus at the center of every aspect of your life.

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

Most Christians have heard about the power of prayer, but I have found that far too few have heard about the power of praise. Have you? Your answer to this question can be determined by the confession of your life as it relates to praising God. Everything in the created order—including you—was created by God as a hymn of praise to His glorious name.

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD. (Psalm 150:6)

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. (Hebrews 13:15)

It’s easy to praise God for a glorious sunset, a gracious providence, a good gift, or a generous blessing. But do we praise our God simply for being our God . . . the only One who is worthy of our continual praise?

Great is the LORD, and most worthy of praise . . . (Psalm 48:1)

Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. (Psalm 96:4)

Great is our God, who is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, who was and is and is to come. So now, beyond the fact that we have been commanded to praise God, who is wholly worthy of our praise as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, let me share with you some other reasons for praising God that we might easily overlook:

• Praising God pleases Him
• Praising God points others to Him
• Praising God proves His presence
• Praising God purges our pride
• Praising God proclaims our love
• Praising God protects us from Satan’s power
• Praising God produces more praise for God

Because Jesus was the final sacrifice for all those who would, by grace through faith, trust in Him for eternal life, the only sacrifice left for us to offer is a sacrifice of praise. Awe and reverence for our Redeemer is the mark of a sacrifice of praise, and it produces a peace that passes all earthly understanding within those who are doing the praising.

You see, because we are made in the image of God, we were made for praising God. And the more our lives are marked by praise, the more we connect with our humanity. Adam and Eve denied their humanity when they turned away from God and leaned toward the serpent. But now, even though the image of God in us is marred by sin, we can still connect at the deepest level of our humanity when we praise the One who created us to glorify His name.

Plug into the power of praise and let it light up your life, both for God’s glory and the good of others!

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

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Husbands . . . have you made the call to the florist yet?

As the thoughts of so many will be fixed on love tomorrow, I’d like to devote one more day to focusing on the Lord’s Love Letter to us. On Monday we examined God’s love from the perspective of God is Father; Wednesday’s article exulted in the truth that God is Faithful. Today, let us give thanks and praise because God is Forgiving.

God Is Forgiving

He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14)

The one thing everyone needs is forgiveness, and our Faithful Father God is willing to provide it to us through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. It’s almost unfathomable to think of God in hot pursuit of rebels on the run from Him—not to punish them but to restore them—but that is exactly the picture the Bible paints for us in the aftermath of the first sin in the Garden of Eden.

God had told Adam clearly and directly: “You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die” (Genesis 2:17). When Adam and Eve turned away from God and violated His command, the Lord had every right to utterly destroy them both and start over. These two traitors had, in essence, given God the back of their hand and taken up fellowship with Satan!

But God didn’t destroy our first parents; this takes us back to the theme of Wednesday’s blog—God’s eternal covenant. Our Faithful God was not caught off-guard by the fall in the Garden; we know that because we’ve read Hebrews 13:20, which reveals that the promise of sending Jesus had been established in the eternal covenant. And because God is Faithful to keep all of His promises, He chased after Adam and Eve—not to do away with them, but to tell them of the promised Redeemer (Genesis 3:15).

Christian, did it ever occur to you that He chased after us too? We must remember that God not only forgave us when we were first brought into relationship with Jesus; He forgives us every day, moment by moment.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

We are not only sinners by nature; we are also sinners by habit. Yet our God is faithful and just and He forgives all our sins. We need never fear going to our Father in heaven and telling Him how badly we’ve failed. God is faithful to forgive, because every sin you will ever commit has already been forgiven in Christ! They all were nailed to the cross. When Jesus uttered His great victory cry, “It is finished” (John 19:20), He was announcing to you that you had been released from the penalty of sin forever!

As you consider God’s amazing grace and love, there is one other thing to remember: when God forgives, He forgets. He will never dredge our sins back up to remind us about them and make us feel sorrow all over again.

I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. (Isaiah 43:25)

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Regardless of how you may observe the day, never forget the Lord’s Love Letter, written just for you by your Faithful, Forgiving Father in heaven. Now that’s a love letter worth reading over and over again!

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

With Valentine’s Day approaching, many of us are thinking of love. I thought this was the perfect time for us to focus on the Lord’s Love Letter to us. On Monday we examined God’s love from the perspective of God is Father. Today let us rejoice in the truth that God is Faithful.

God is Faithful

The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy. They are steadfast forever and ever, done in faithfulness and uprightness. He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever—holy and awesome is his name. (Psalm 11:7-9)

God is our Faithful Father. When you read the word covenant in the passage above, what should come to mind is the fact that God has chosen to relate to His children by way of covenant—a solemn promise which God guarantees by His Word. When God makes a promise, He keeps it! And He has promised to relate to us—personally, intimately, and faithfully.

Part of the covenant that God ordained forever is that the redemption He has provided for His people was determined in the eternal counsel of the Triune God.

May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep . . .(Hebrews 13:20)

Do you see the power in that text . . . the virtually indescribable grace and love? You were always in the heart of your faithful heavenly Father. There was never a time when you were not a child of the Most High God, thanks to the promised cross work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When Mary, the mother of our Lord, was found to be with child, her betrothed husband, Joseph, thought to divorce her. Joseph naturally assumed that Mary had been unfaithful. But God sent an angel to reassure Joseph that he should take Mary as his wife. And part of the angel’s message to Joseph was this:

[Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)

Did you catch that? “He will save his people.” That’s you! God determined before the creation of the world that you would be saved, and He is faithful to you, from everlasting to everlasting, because every one of His promises is “Yes” and “Amen” in Jesus Christ.

God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. (1 Corinthians 1:9)

To be sure, we all go through seasons where God seems distant and heaven is silent. The key to getting through these times is trusting God even when we cannot trace Him. We must cling to His promise never to leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). I often remind our congregation that when we feel distant from God, we must understand that it was we who moved, not God.

Yet even when our thoughts and actions take us away from God, we can still rest in the truth penned by the apostle Paul: “If we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself” (2 Timothy 2:13).

Wow! To know that God’s faithfulness to us does not depend upon our faithfulness to Him, but rather on His eternal, unchanging promise, that is a truth that truly sets us free to rest in the arms of our Faithful Father in heaven.

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

As we approach Valentine’s Day, a day that encourages so many people to focus on love, we have a wonderful opportunity to tell others about the Lord’s Love Letter to us. We will look at the Lord’s Love Letter under three headings: God is Father, God is Faithful, and God is Forgiving.

God is Father

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. (Ephesians 3:14-15)

As hard as it is to believe, the God who created everything in the cosmos created you to be His child . . . and He promises to be your Father. That’s right; the Creator God who spoke the sun into existence also knit you together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13). He is as powerful as He is personal when it comes to His relationship with you.

You see, God created you out of His good pleasure. He didn’t need to create you—He wasn’t lonely or bored—He simply wanted to create you and enjoy an intimate, personal relationship with you. You are the apple of the Almighty’s eye; before you existed physically, you existed in the mind and heart of God your Father.

The word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” (Jeremiah 1:4-5)

Marinate on the Scriptures you see here for a moment and feel the immensity of the love your heavenly Father has for you! Ephesians 1:4-5 tells us that God “chose us in [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.” Did you see that? God loved you—you—from before the beginning of time!

Sadly, I counsel men and women who grew up in environments where they were told they were not wanted. They were told that they were “an accident.” Well, there are those who were not wanted or planned for by their earthly parents, but no one is an accident. There are no “accidents” with the Almighty. Everyone ever born was known and set apart for a specific purpose before they were formed in the womb by God the Father. David exulted that “All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16).

Think about it this way: the One who made heaven His throne and earth His footstool also made you His precious child. But He did it at incredible cost. He loved you—you—so much that He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, as an atoning sacrifice to take your place on a cross and pay the penalty for your sins—all of your sins—so that you would have eternal life. As sinners, we desperately needed a Savior, and that is exactly what we have in Jesus Christ. When we, by faith, confess Him as Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we enter into a forever relationship with our Father in heaven.

Oh, one final thing. Go to the end of your Bible right now and read the last verse, which is Revelation 22:21. Now imagine that these words, which are not actually written on the page, are written on your heart . . .

I Love you,

Your Father in heaven.

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

What do you think of when you hear the phrase “cover-up”? Most of us immediately think of some government agency trying to hide its wrongdoing from us by manipulating the truth or hiding information in order to avoid being found out. But did you know there is a cosmic cover-up? In a word, it is LOVE!

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.  (1 Peter 4:8)

Peter is telling us that the cosmic cover-up is LOVE. Now, when you read this verse in its context, you’ll see that it is highly unlikely that Peter is pointing to the love of God in Christ Jesus that covers our sins with the blood of the Lamb. No, Peter is instructing us in the love we are to have for one another that will, by God’s cosmic grace, cover a multitude of sins.

Notice that Peter is talking about sin—not a mistake or a misstep, but sin. So, the first truth we must absorb is that we sin against each other. That’s fairly easy for most of us to take in; it gets a little more uncomfortable when we move on to the next level of understanding: Because we are sinners, love can—and often does—mean confronting someone in that love.

But there’s an even deeper layer to this truth! I believe that Peter’s major point is that a Christ-like love will refuse to bring up the past in order to bury someone in the present. If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that when God forgives our sins, He removes them as far from us as the east is from the west; He promises to remember them no more and He will not remind us of them ever again. Satan, on the other hand, is constantly trying to remind us of our sin, and frequently others will try to remind us as well . . . but God never will.

The love Peter is talking about is a love that forgives as God forgave us, refusing to remind others of their past actions, even those that were hurtful to us. It is a love that “keeps no record of wrongs,” as Paul wrote in the famous “Love Chapter,” 1 Corinthians 13. It is a love that gives—freely and without reservation—the same kind of grace to others that we have received from God.

The key is to remember how God chooses to deal with us and to intentionally choose to deal with others in the same way. Love will cover a multitude of the messed-up things that others have done to us.

Now, let me be clear that this does not mean that we are to accept any kind of behavior others deliver to us. If, for example, you have a friend who is prone to exaggeration or even outright lies, you should lovingly confront that person. If they persist in this behavior, and refuse to change their sinful behavior, you should avoid them. Continue to pray for them, yes, and continue to love them, but move forward without them. There are times when biblical love must be as tough as it is tender. (Our Lord spoke directly and specifically about how to confront a Christian brother or sister who is engaging in sin in Matthew 18:15-17.)

But in order to be effective in applying the cosmic cover-up to the lives of others, we must always consider Christ’s cosmic cover-up in our own lives. Remember, in the Lord’s Prayer, we ask our heavenly Father to “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.” If we are sincere when we pray that prayer, we will love as Christ loves and forgive as Christ forgives . . . regardless of the cost.

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

Far too many churches today are more concerned about filling seats than transforming lives. Listening to their watered-down Gospel messages confirms this sad fact. But as the wise Teacher of Ecclesiastes says, “There is nothing new under the son.” Nearly two millennia ago, Paul wrote to his young protégé Timothy:

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. (2 Timothy 4:2-3)

To be sure, we all develop “itching ears” from time to time. We want to hear what we want to hear! We know the truths of the Gospel and the demands of being a disciple of Christ, but there are times when we are tempted seek a “second opinion” from a secondary source that will tell us something our itching ears want to hear. Without the whole truth of God’s Word, however, those who have been satisfied with hearing what their itching ears wanted to hear will find it difficult to weather the tests and trials that will inevitably come their way.

But this is not for you! The preaching and teaching of the whole counsel of God prepares us for the troubles that have been promised to us (John 16:33) and also teaches us how to rightly respond during times of great joy and prosperity. When we know what is coming we can better prepare for its arrival. As a pastor, I meet far too many who have been surprised by storms and shipwrecked by suffering. I’ve also met those who have become so self-infatuated because of their personal or professional successes that their lives have gone completely off the rails. In either case, because these men and women did not hear the whole of God’s truth, they were ill-equipped to endure the times of testing that came their way.

Sadly, I long ago lost count of how many times these miserable souls have told me that some well-meaning counselor had told them that they just needed to have more faith . . . when what we all really need is more pure preaching of the Word of God! Only the truths of Scripture prepare us for the challenge of daily living. Sacred Scripture—the whole of God’s magnificent metanarrative—is the only foundation upon which to build a life that can withstand any storm.

The writer of Hebrews assures us that “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:19). Regardless of the reason for the storm—our own sin or foolish behavior, the wrongdoing of others, the snares of Satan, or God’s fatherly discipline—the Word of God is an immovable anchor in the midst of that storm. Jesus assures us,

Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. (Matthew 7:24-26)

Remember, no matter what the circumstance, if you have placed your trust in the death of Christ on your behalf you can be certain that God is working all things for your good and His glory. Sometimes He is simply getting our attention. Sometimes He is purifying us from all unrighteousness. And at other times he is using adversity to prepare us for ministry to others. But His ultimate purpose is to conform us to the image and likeness of His beloved Son.

So . . . instead of seeking to satisfy our itching ears, let us instead seek out the pure preaching of God’s Word— the whole counsel of God. That is what will meet us in our place of deepest need—not only daily, but moment by moment.

Got an itch? Scratch it with Scripture!

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

When was the last time you thought about the chains you are wearing? As Christians, we have only two options when it comes to being in chains: the first is to be chained to Christ; the second is to be chained to circumstance. The first option leads to freedom, joy, and faithfulness; the second leads to fear, dread, and unbelief. British author and philosopher James Allen aptly noted that “Circumstance does not make the man, it reveals him.”

So . . . what have your circumstances been revealing about you lately? The apostle Paul wrote:

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances . . . (Philippians 4:11)

Did you ever wonder how Paul could possibly be content while he was chained in a prison? It was because he only saw himself chained to Christ, not his circumstances. Paul’s circumstances continually revealed more and more of what he was: a prisoner in chains for Christ. He knew that Jesus had ordained his chains and he wore them for two reasons . . . Paul’s good and God’s glory.

Paul knew that, in spite of changing circumstances, God never changes. Paul could count on his God and trust in Him even when he could not trace Him. Paul drew comfort from this truth. The officials could put him in chains, but they could never chain the Word of God! God’s Word is living and active, and it accomplishes exactly what He desires; Paul was in the business of declaring that Word everywhere he went.

Let me ask you a question: when you squeeze an orange, what do you get? Orange juice, of course. When you are squeezed, what do those around you get? If you are chained to Christ, they will get only what Christ has put in you. But if you are chained to circumstance, there is no telling what they will get . . . but it will probably something not at all Christlike!

I know it is easy to feel chained to difficult circumstances in life. Yet the only way to rise above those circumstances is to focus on your Redeemer. The only way to be unchained to circumstance is to be chained to Christ.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. (Psalm 46:1-3)

You and I will be able to say what the psalmist says here—that God is our refuge, our strength, and our ever-present help in times of trouble—when we chain ourselves to Him rather than the circumstances of life. Remember, He who is in you and with you is infinitely greater than anything that comes up against you!

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

We have all heard the phrase “red tape” used as a metaphor for the way a bureaucracy—particularly a government bureaucracy—slows and even prevents things from getting done. Bureaucratic red tape obstructs measurable and meaningful forward progress. Currently, returning war veterans are running into red tape that obstructs their access to much-needed, well-deserved benefits for their service to our nation.

Well, in God’s economy, there is NO red tape to keep us away from getting anything and everything we need from the Sovereign Lord of all the universe.

Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)

Through [Christ Jesus] we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. (Ephesians 2:18)

In [Christ Jesus] and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. (Ephesians 3:12)

Our Redeemer has removed any and all obstructions that would impede our access to the throne of grace. In the Old Testament, only the High Priest could have access to God. But through the blood of the Lamb of God, we may now come boldly before the throne of grace, knowing that we are both invited and welcomed . . . without having to go through any red tape.

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

Our Redeemer will not allow any barriers to keep us from receiving mercy and finding the grace we need. The road to heaven has been paved by our Prince, who has bridged the impassable gap between God and man by His atoning death on the cross. Here is what we need to remember, especially in those times when the storm winds are blowing:

Full and immediate access is available to every child of God . . . and that includes you!

There is no one to stand in our way, impede our progress, or make us jump through holy hoops when we need a little “alone time” with God. Jesus assured us that we need only to ask to receive . . . seek to find . . . knock to find that the door shall be opened (Matthew 7:7).

So . . . what is keeping you from asking, seeking, and knocking today? Don’t let the red tape that this world strings up in front of you hinder your progress in accessing the world to come. God will never put you on hold, break for lunch, or close down for holidays. No red tape means 24/7 access to heaven!

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

Ever since Adam and Eve’s ruinous fall in the Garden of Eden, everyone comes into this world in a state of sinful brokenness. But let me share a powerful word of comfort from the Psalms:

[The Lord] heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (Psalm 147:3)

God had every right to leave broken humanity in their ruined condition, but He did not. In the eternal counsel of the Triune God, even as Adam and Eve crouched trembling before the Lord God in their pathetic fig leaf garments, Jesus was on the way to heal the brokenhearted and to bind up their wounds.

The author of Hebrews exalted “[T]he God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep” (Hebrews 13:20). See that it is an eternal covenant; the Triune God established before time began (2 Timothy 1:9) that He would not leave you in your sin and despair. Jesus was on the way to heal your broken heart and bind up your wounds . . . millennia before you were born!

I cannot imagine anything more comforting than that truth! So many in the world dimly believe that if there even is a God, He is some distant deity who does not care a bit about creation or the people who inhabit it. Today’s verse shows us just how personal our God truly is. He desires to be in an intimate, loving, caring, relationship with you, and through that relationship He heals your broken heart and binds up your wounds. Yes, you were born broken . . . but you are indeed blessed!

How personal does God get with His people? He knows the number of hairs on your head (Matthew 10:30). He has your name written on His heart through the blood of the eternal covenant (Ephesians 1:4-5). If God calls each star by name (Psalm 147:4), it is staggering to think just how personal He wants to be with His people . . . and that includes you!

So regardless of where this message finds you today, hold fast to the absolute truth that Jesus is in the business of healing broken hearts and binding up wounds:

• Marriage wounds
• Parenting wounds
• Relationship wounds
• Friendship wounds
• Financial wounds
• Health wounds
• School wounds

The list of healings that our loving Lord will provide could fill entire volumes. Whatever grief or wound you may be suffering from today, Jesus is the “healing balm of Gilead” (Jeremiah 8:22). He will bind you up and heal you and bless you in ways that only He can.

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