Category Archives: General

“Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:42)

When Jesus came to visit Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, the sisters were busily engaged in preparing to receive their Lord and His disciples. Luke recorded that when Jesus arrived, Mary knew it was time to put her doing down and sit at the feet of her Lord. Martha, on the other hand, was distracted by all the work to be done, giving us much-needed insight into her heart — and our own hearts as well. Martha had lost sight of her Savior because she shifted her focus to her service. In serving her Lord, she was actually serving herself, which provides a stark warning to you and me today: Even service to our Savior can become self-serving!

We can get so busy doing stuff for our Savior that we neglect to spend time with our Savior. Martha was encumbered by all of her doing and frustrated that Mary had stopped helping with the preparations. Finally, Martha snapped, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself?” (Luke 10:40).

Jesus’ response amounted to a gentle rebuke.

“‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.'” (Luke 10:41-42)

In the ancient cultural context, when a name was repeated, it was a sign of relationship, friendship, and intimacy. Jesus was not upset with Martha, even though Martha seemed a bit upset with Him. In essence Jesus was saying to Martha, “I appreciate all that you are doing to make preparations for our visit. Hospitality is a good thing, and we are to show it to everyone. But if we are not careful, our hospitality may cease being about those we are serving, because we are actually serving ourselves.”

I can personally testify to this truth in my life as a pastor. There have been too many times when my service has been self-serving. I was feeling good about myself, not striving to empty myself to make someone else feel good. We are not immune to self-service, even when we are serving our Savior.

How is it with you? Are you more like Martha? Or Mary? I believe that if we truly love our Lord, we all have a bit of both of them in us. We want to serve to the best of our ability, but we also need to know there is a time for serving . . . and a time for sitting. Our Lord is telling us directly that it is better for us to sit at His feet and absorb His love, grace, and truth, than to stay busy simply for the sake of being busy.

Have you chosen what is better? May this “better choice” be the confession of our lives!

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

Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else? (Matthew 11:3)

Most Bible students have heard of “Doubting Thomas,” the disciple who was not present on that first Easter evening when Jesus presented Himself to the other disciples. Thomas rejected the reports that Jesus had risen from the dead, saying flatly, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it” (John 20:25). When Jesus presented Himself a week later to Thomas, his doubts disappeared and he believed . . . and worshiped.

But there is another doubter described in the New Testament: John the Baptist. John, who preached the Gospel so powerfully and fearlessly, had rebuked King Herod for marrying his sister-in-law. The unrepentant Herod was furious and cast John into prison. As John languished in his cell, perhaps rightly suspecting that he would not leave that cell alive, doubt began to set in as to whether Jesus really was the promised Messiah.

Why would John doubt? Well, if Jesus truly was the Messiah, why was John in prison? John had been boldly preaching the good news of the Gospel and baptizing new believers in the name of Jesus. Surely the real Messiah would want John to continue his ministry and would have the power to keep John out of prison, carrying on the work of the Kingdom. It would have made no sense to John that he was behind bars if Jesus really was the promised King of kings and Lord of lords.

The truth is, much of life does not make sense to us. Isaiah recorded these words: “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts'” (55:8-9). The expectation of the Jewish people when the promised Messiah came was that He would vanquish all of the enemies of God’s people and return Israel to her former power and prominence. At the time of Christ, the nation of Israel was a conquered nation, chafing under the rule and reign of Rome. John couldn’t understand why he would be in a Roman prison if Jesus was the One who was promised to set the people of Israel free.

So John sent his disciples to ask Jesus the question recorded in Matthew 11:3, and our loving Lord gently responded —

Go back and report to John what you hear and see. The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. (Matthew 11:4)

All the miracles Jesus cited were signs that pointed to the reality that Jesus was the Messiah. You see, what so many in that day simply could not understand was that Israel’s greatest adversary was not Rome; their most terrible enemies were sin, Satan, and death. Jesus had come to destroy the works of the devil, not the wrongdoing of Rome. He came first as a suffering Servant to pay the penalty for our sin. He will come again, however, this time as our conquering King, who will put all His enemies under His feet.

But what about John? Was Jesus disappointed that John was doubting? Was He angry that John had actually sent disciples to question Him? How would Jesus respond to John’s faltering faith?

“I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist.” (Matthew 11:11)

Jesus received John’s question with kindness and words of reassurance; He receives our doubts too. He answered John’s question graciously, and He will answer us in the very same way. Sometimes we face storms in this life that cause us to doubt. When that happens, we must do exactly what John did: take our doubts directly to Jesus. Jesus will not be disappointed by our doubts, and He will not disregard our doubts. Rather, Jesus will encourage us with His unconditional love to carry on, even in the face of doubt.

“Take heart!” He tells us. “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And thanks to His atoning death, burial, and supernatural resurrection, so will we.

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

Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:39)

The deepest desire of every human heart is to experience a love that will last. However, it is a sad but inescapable truth that if we live long enough, we will lose everyone we love. But there is a love that nothing in this world can ever take away from us, and that is the love of God in Christ Jesus.

History has demonstrated that most of mankind’s miseries come from feeling unloved. All the way back in the Garden of Eden, the devil convinced Adam and Eve that God did not really love them because He would not give them everything. The serpent pointed to the one prohibition that God had given them — “Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” — to plant the suspicion that God did not have their best interest in mind. If God had really loved them, Adam and Eve supposed, He would not restrict their freedom to do whatever they wanted. So, having been convinced at the deepest level of their hearts that God did not truly love them, Adam and Eve chose to rebel against God, and we have been rebelling ever since . . . and feeling the exact same way: unloved.

But this is not for you! Today’s verse makes it crystal clear that we are indeed loved by God, and that love is as personal as it is permanent. Notice how Paul framed out this truth as he was writing to a church that would soon be suffering unimaginable persecution because they were followers of Jesus Christ.

I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39)

As a pastor and a theologian, I simply cannot find a more comforting verse in all of sacred Scripture. Why? It’s easy to imagine that we are unloved when storm winds begin to blow; we start to wonder if God has abandoned us. But the apostle Paul asserts that is impossible, because greater is the power that is at work within us than any power that can ever come against us. And that power is love.

Paul was reminding his readers then and now that no matter what comes up against us, from persecution to illness to even death itself, we have a love that will last forever. When this truth seizes us, we will feel a supernatural security in the face of any trial or tragedy that comes our way, knowing that nothing can loosen the grip of our Lord’s love for us.

Does the life you are currently living reflect your belief in this truth? Paul declared that “We are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). Because we are in Christ, we are the objects of a love that will never falter, fade, or fail, no matter what comes against us. That truth frees us from fear and doubt and empowers us to live lives of faith, no matter what challenges may confront us, because God’s love for us is as unconquerable as it is unending. He meets the deepest desire of our hearts; his banner over us is love (Song of Solomon 2:4).

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

I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. (1 Corinthians 4:3)

How do you see yourself? For centuries, traditional cultures believed that high self-esteem was the reason for most of the trouble in the world. The Greek word hubris – meaning unhealthy pride or too high a view of oneself – was often used as the identifier for this problem. But today’s western culture sees this issue through a completely different set of lenses, and we are told that the reason for most of the trouble in the world today is caused by low self-esteem.

Regardless of where today’s message finds you, whether your self-esteem is “high” or “low,” the Gospel is the key to maintaining the right supernatural self-regard. Paul wrote that he cared not how he was judged by others, and even went so far as to disregard his own opinion of himself. The apostle cared only about the opinion of the Omniscient One. The verdict about Paul’s life was to be delivered from above, and he rested in the reality of that truth. The Gospel does not encourage us to think more highly of ourselves, nor does it encourage us to think less of ourselves. Rather, the Gospel is rooted in thinking of ourselves less because we are thinking more and more of our Savior.   

Supernatural self-regard says, ‘I don’t care what you think of me, and I don’t even care what I think of myself,” because the verdict is already in: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). Paul knew that he was justified (declared righteous) in the eyes of God because of what Jesus Christ had done for him. Paul did not need to prove himself to anyone, because he knew he was fully accepted in the Beloved.

Paul clearly had a puffed view of himself prior to meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus; he was a “Hebrew of Hebrews and in regard to the law, a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). After Jesus saved him, it would have been easy for Paul to sink into dismally low self-esteem because of how he had persecuted, imprisoned, and even killed Christians. But Paul understood the Gospel and lived with what I call supernatural self-regard.

How is it with you? Are you driven by the opinion of others? Are you driven by your own opinion? Jesus sits on the throne of the entire universe as the King of kings, Lord of lords, and Judge of all things. The verdict is in and court is adjourned. You have been loved with an everlasting love; you are the “apple of His eye,” as David wrote in Psalm 17:8. Paul and David were both great sinners in need of an even greater Savior, and they both had supernatural self-regard because they kept their eyes on God.

What about you?

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

The Lord gives you the bread of adversity. (Isaiah 30:20)

Today I would like to briefly unpack the holy and hopeful truth set forth by the prophet Isaiah regarding the believer’s bread. I don’t know about you, but I love bread. One of my cherished childhood memories is the tantalizing smell of baking bread in our kitchen as Mom prepared one of the main staples of our dining room table. Bread held a special place in the Boland home, and it holds a special place in Scripture too.

In the Old Testament, God used a loaf of barley bread as an image of Gideon and his men routing the Midianites in battle. In the New Testament, Jesus likens bread to the giving of the Holy Spirit (John 6:32). Probably the most powerful bread metaphor in the Bible is Jesus’ reference to Himself as the Bread of Life (John 6:35). Our Lord also used the imagery of bread in a negative way: he used the idea of leavened bread to highlight the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Matthew 16:6).

As I say, I love bread . . . but I’m not so crazy about adversity! So why would God give His people “the bread of adversity”? There are several reasons. In the time of Isaiah, the people of God had engaged in wicked, willful rebellion against God by relying on Egypt and Pharaoh for their sustenance and safety (Isaiah 20:2). Because our God is a jealous God and will tolerate no rival, He gave “the bread of affliction” (Deuteronomy 16:3) to draw His people back to Him and cause them to depend on nothing smaller than God.

Our great and gracious God gives us the Bread of Life; He gives us the bread of adversity as well. The writer of of the epistle to the Hebrews put it this way —

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. (Hebrews 12:7-8)

Think about it this way: If a father refuses to discipline his children, does he truly love them and want the best for them? Of course not! When we see the wheels coming off the track in the lives of our children, we step in with the appropriate discipline to provide the necessary course correction. How much more will our Father in heaven do for us?

A few verses later in the Hebrews passage, we read, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful” (Hebrews 12:11). No one likes to be disciplined. But God’s discipline is not a sign of His displeasure, but rather an indication of His deep and abiding love for us.

Remember, God’s ultimate goal in the lives of His children is Christlikeness (Romans 8:29). In order for God to conform us into the image and likeness of His beloved Son, the Bread of Life, we will often need to partake of the believer’s bread of adversity. God loves you so much that He sent His Son to die on a cross for you, and because of that amazing love, He will not always give you what you want. But He will always give you what you need . . . and often we need to taste the believer’s bread.

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

From him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen. (Romans 11:36)

After carefully laying out eleven chapters that systematically explain all that God has done for the believer, Paul concluded this section of his magnificent epistle to the Christians in Rome with one of the most pregnant passages in all of Scripture, a passage that makes it crystal clear that all of life is to be lived for the glory of God. Romans 11:36 explains that this is because we owe God everything for all that we are and all that we have. There is nothing we have that He has not graciously given to us (1 Corinthians 4:7), and the more we have, the more we are in debt to the One who has given it to us.

Let’s look at this glorious verse more closely.

• From Him

Here Paul is telling us that God is the source of all things. As the Creator, He is the first cause of all things in the universe from the very beginning; all things were created with God’s stamp of approval on them as “very good” (Genesis 1:31).

• Through Him

Paul builds on the fact that God is the source of all things by making it clear that God is also the Sustainer of all things. God is not, as some have suggested, a distant deity who created all things and then departed from the scene, allowing things to unfold as they may. God is personally present and actively involved in every detail of life every day, sustaining all things by His powerful Word (Hebrews 1:3) .

• To Him

Paul’s letter makes it clear that God not only is the source and sustainer of all things in the universe, He is working everything according to His perfect plan and purpose to expand the cause of His kingdom (Ephesians 1:11).

Finally, after telling us that all things are from Him, through Him, and to Him, Paul finished his holy hymn with one of the most remarkable statements of worship contained within the Word of God: “To him be the glory forever!” Every one of us exists in a state of divine debt, which is the greatest debt we can ever owe. As I said earlier, the more we have, the more we are in debt to the One who has given it to us.

I don’t know where this message finds you today. Perhaps you are in a season of plenty or a season of want. Maybe you are in a season of serenity or a season of struggle. But regardless of where this finds you, if you have Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have everything, and so we echo Paul and exult, “To him be the glory forever! Amen.”

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

Wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. (Proverbs 2:10)

Throughout the book of Proverbs, we are confronted by “forks in the road” time and time again. Each “fork” splits into two different, distinct paths. One path leads to wisdom; the other leads to folly.

Proverbs addresses a variety of important topics throughout its 31 chapters, but no matter what topic of truth is being presented, the reader is still faced with that fork, which, when rightly chosen, will make all the difference in the world in how your life will turn out.

Proverbs does not just provide wisdom for the art of godly living; it offers strength for the weak, comfort for the challenged, counsel for the confused, hope for the hurting, and light in times of darkness. In short, it is written for people just like you and me. Learning and applying the truths contained within Proverbs takes us from where we currently are to the place God is calling us to be . . . the place where we choose the right fork in the road.

In Proverbs 2, we are given a string of action words which, when followed, will lead us to pick the right road. In verses 1 through 4, God instructs us to —

• Accept my words . . .
• Store up my commands . . .
• Turn your ear to wisdom . . .
• Apply your heart to understanding . . .
• Call out for insight . . .
• Cry aloud for understanding . . .
• Look for wisdom as for silver . . .
• Search for it as for hidden treasure . . .

We can sum up all these nuggets of wisdom in a single word: discipline. The Christian life must be marked by discipline if we are to grow and mature in our faith. Rarely do we drift into right decisions. Only through a self-disciplined approach will we begin living a life of wisdom rather than folly. Yes, it is all of grace, but that grace must be appropriated by the believer. We are to seek wisdom as if we were searching for silver or hidden treasure.

Remember, wisdom is far more than simply avoiding the path of folly and sin. Wisdom is advancing in the direction God is calling us to go, and each time we come to a fork in the road, if we will look to Jesus we will be better able to choose the faithful fork of wisdom and live a life that brings glory to God and good to others, including ourselves.

The great baseball player Yogi Berra once quipped, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” I would quickly add that we must be sure that the fork we choose is the one leading to wisdom. When you do, you can rest in the promise that wisdom will enter your heart and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.

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

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (James 1:2)

The very first thing we need to embrace about the idea of joy’s job in this world is the fact that joy does indeed have a job to do. Notice that James did not wonder “if” you will face trials, but rather assured us that trials are part of the Christian life. As I have said here many times, trials are promised to the disciple of Jesus.

Once we understand that trials are an inevitable part our lives, we must learn how we are to profit from them, because just as trials have been promised to us, so too has the profit that we are to receive from them. Please note that James was not suggesting that we live according to the mantra of the popular 1980s pop song, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.” Trials are never easy, and we are not to pretend to “be happy” when storm winds blow our way. You see, joy is a far bigger word than happy. Joy is a state of mind that rises above mere feelings; joy is an “inside job” performed in the heart of the believer, because we know that our God is good . . . and His goodness includes painful providences, which He delivers into our lives for our ultimate good and for His glory.

Joy is a peaceful, settled confidence that God is in control of all things, from our greatest joys to the storm winds that blow our way. God ordained the storm. He is in the storm with us, and it is in His presence through the Holy Spirit that we are able to receive joy’s job in our lives.

What is the job that joy does? James provided the answer; joy’s job is to produce perseverance in us (James 1:2). Trials are used by God to challenge our faith in order to grow and mature us in our walk with Jesus. James went on to say that our trials are actually “good and perfects” gifts from God to us (James 1:17), gifts designed to accomplish God’s greatest goal for every one of His children: Christlikeness.

When the apostle Paul wrote that “God works all things for the good of those who live him” (Romans 8:28), he was not in any way suggesting that all things are good. Some trials are very, very bad. But Paul was assuring us that God will take even the bad things and work them together for our good. Like Paul, James did not suggest that all trials are good and therefore we should be happy about them. What James was saying is that all our trials are producing good from the hand of God and thus should be received with joy.

One final point on the job that joy performs in our lives. Even in the midst of unimaginable trials that cause us to despair, our grief is part of our joy, because we know that God is using even this as part of the process of making us like Jesus. So the disciple of Christ doesn’t wait for the trial to be over to consider it all joy. Rather, we consider it all joy while we are in the middle of the storm, because we have chosen to consider it all joy because Jesus is with us and using our trials to make us more and more like Him.

Remember these words from the psalmist, “Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). To be sure, there will be weeping in this life, but we need only stay close to God in order to experience the joy of the Lord, which is our strength.

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

Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism, but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.” (Acts 10:34)

Peter understood that one of the greatest obstacles to overcome in expanding the cause of the Kingdom of Christ was rooted in the ages-old conflict between Jews and Gentiles. Most of the early converts to Christianity came from the God-fearing Jewish nation. Many of these Jews abhorred the “godless” Gentiles and had a hard time accepting them into the family of faith. And so the Holy Spirit prompted Peter to make it clear that God is no respecter of persons.

One of the very first things I learned as a young Christian is that the ground is level at the foot of the cross. At the time of invitation after each sermon, I often use that phrase to remind our congregation that anyone can be saved. I am living proof of that biblical truth.

The old hymn put it this way:

The ground is level at the foot of the cross. Anyone may come, for there is no cost. Rich man or poor man, bonded or free, the ground was leveled that day at Calvary.

When Jesus Christ was nailed to that cross and died in our place, He paid the penalty for our sins — every one of our sins. In doing so, Jesus satisfied the wrath and judgment of God, leveling the ground at Calvary, making a way to salvation for anyone who, by grace alone, trusts in Christ alone for eternal life. Here are just a few examples from the life and ministry of Jesus of just how level the ground is at the foot of the cross. All these were loved and welcomed by their Redeemer:

• Despised tax collectors (Mark 2:15)
• The shunned Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well (John 4:29)
• An unwanted prostitute (Luke 7:47)
• Perhaps the most widely hated and feared person of that time, a Roman centurion (Matthew 8:5)

To be sure, Jesus was and is a friend of sinners and faithful to forgive all those who surrender control of their lives to Him. For all those willing to abandon their self-salvation projects and trust in the Savior alone, the ground was truly leveled on Good Friday at Calvary. God does not save based on status. God does not save based on success. He does not save based on significance. It is all of grace. Showing favoritism is as inconsistent with God’s character as it is antithetical to the amazing grace of the Gospel message.

Is there anyone that you believe might be beyond the reach of our Redeemer? Is there anyone you would not be willing to evangelize because you think they are just too bad to receive the Good News? Remember, showing favoritism is a sin (James 2:9), and the best way to keep from committing that sin is to remember that Jesus leveled the ground upon which you are standing today, the ground you will be standing on tomorrow, and your footing forevermore.

As the Lord said to Isaiah —

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;
and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. . .
Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live. (Isaiah 55:1, 3)

ALL who are thirsty may come. Go tell that message to a lost and hurting world that desperately needs to hear it!

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

Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith. Your request is granted.” (Matthew 15:28)

This woman of great faith is found in a gospel account that is as strange as it is sublime. A Canaanite woman came to Jesus, begging Him to help her demon-possessed daughter. She came to Jesus looking for help, as so many others had done throughout His ministry . . . but Jesus did not say a word to her at first. The disciples took this as a sign that Jesus wanted nothing to do with her, and they urged Him to send her away (Matthew 15:23).

Like I said, strange . . . but also sublime.

[Jesus] answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him, “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” “Yes, Lord,” she said, “But even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” (Matthew 15:24-27)

It is important to know something about the use of this word “dog” in this first-century cultural context. The Jewish people would commonly use the term to describe the Gentiles, because that is what they considered these pagan, people to be: godless “dogs” that were unworthy to receive any mercy or blessing from the hand of God. Jesus, however, when He used the the term “dogs,” was not being insensitive or unkind. He was simply contrasting the current Jewish attitude of contempt toward this non-Jewish woman with His own attitude, which was one of love and compassion.

Notice that the woman, far from being put off by Jesus’ use of this word, replied in kind, content to accept the designation as long as she could receive whatever blessing Jesus would bestow. I am reminded of the tax collector, who “would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner'” (Luke 18:13). The Canaanite woman had a faith that did not falter, even in the face of the disapproving disciples and a seemingly disinterested Savior.

I believe Jesus was making a very important point to you and me in the way he interacted with this woman. He gave the appearance of having no interest at all in her, but Jesus was actually giving this woman the opportunity to stretch her faith – to keep praying, to keep seeking the solution to her problem, and to trust in the unwavering goodness of God.

I need to ask you an important question: When was the last time you were confronted with “the sound of silence” from your Savior? Have you been asking but not receiving any response? Let this strange, sublime story of the faith of the Canaanite woman both encourage you and challenge you to never give in and never stop asking and seeking whatever “crumbs” you desire from our loving Lord. And regardless of the answer you ultimately receive from Jesus, you can be sure that He is growing and maturing you to develop a faith that refuses to falter.

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