Grace for the Race

“And my people will be filled with my bounty,” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 31:14)

Just as our cars need to be filled with fuel to keep running, you and I must be filled with God’s grace (fuel), His bounty, in order to keep doing what He has called us to do.

So . . . are you filled with the bounty of the Lord? Or do you feel a bit like you are running on empty?

Notice in the verse above from the prophet Jeremiah that the word “my” appears twice; these two words are as encouraging as they are equipping. God is making a promise to “my people” . . . the people whom He sought, caught, and bought with His precious blood. These are the people He has claimed as His own.

Is that you today? It is if you have believed the Gospel and received the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior . . . if you have placed your trust in Christ alone, by grace alone, through faith alone, for the glory of God alone . . . if you recognize that you cannot save yourself and have, by God’s grace, transferred your trust from yourself to your Savior . . . if these phrases describe you, you are part of God’s “my.”

God also speaks of “my bounty.” He is not referring to a bounty of the world, rooted in power, position, prosperity, pleasure, or prestige. Rather, God’s bounty is rooted in God Himself. When God says, “my people” He is saying we are His portion. When God says, “my bounty” God is saying He is our portion. He is satisfied with us and we are to be satisfied in Him. It is in Him that we find everything we need. God is our Faithful “Filling Station,” and you can be fully assured that He will never take a day off or run out of the fuel we need to do what He has called us to do.

Think about it this way: God has promised to fill us with His bounty. If His bounty will not satisfy us, what will? We all run to things smaller than God to find our filling from time to time. But if we are honest, we would freely admit that we are left more empty after our worldly wandering than we were before. No matter how many times we go to the wells of this world, we are never filled to satisfaction, and each time we try to get filled apart from God, it takes more and more to reach the previous level of filling.

May this year be different than last year! May we rest in God’s first “my,” knowing that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39). And may we rest in God’s second “my,” knowing that our God has promised to meet our every need in the glorious riches of Christ Jesus. There is only one Faithful Filling Station—and He is our Faithful Savior!

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

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)

In looking back over 2016, we can all reflect on many times and circumstances when we were simply not at our best—times when we were not “firing on all cylinders”—times, perhaps, when the wheels came off the track for a bit. In our verse today, the apostle Paul gives us some insight into producing better results this year. Let’s take a look.

Forgetting what is behind – We are to learn from the past, but not live in the past. If anyone could have been paralyzed by his past, it was Paul. As Saul, he persecuted the early church, putting many Christians into prison and even some to death. Paul frankly acknowledged that he had guarded the clothes of those who stoned godly Stephen to death, giving his full approval to the killing (Acts 22:20). Saul had many failures in his past that, had he dwelt on them, could have frozen him into inactivity, preventing him from advancing into his future. God’s grace in Paul’s life allowed him to treat the past as a school—to learn from it but not live in it.

Straining toward what is ahead – After learning from his past, Paul leaned into his future. His focus was on where he was going—where God was calling him to serve—not where he had been. And as he was moving forward, Paul did so with a sense of urgency (“straining” ahead) because the day is short and the night is coming when no one will work (John 9:4). Paul’s forward focus was filled with a holy zeal to do the Lord’s work.

I press on –Paul did not take a casual approach to accomplishing his goals and the work God had set before him. The best way I can describe this phrase, “press on,” is to call to mind the picture a basketball team running a “full-court-press,” where every player on one team is closely covering (pressing) every player on the other team. This is intense, aggressive activity of the highest order.

So . . . is the press on in your life today? If not, why not? What are you waiting for? God has called you into an incredible future filled with unlimited possibilities. It is true that everything you do for His glory will be done because of His grace. And yet you have a role to play, and that role can be summed up in the three phrases we’ve looked at today: Forget what is behind . . . Strain toward what is ahead . . . and Press on!

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

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.  (Proverbs 3:7-8)

The new year is a time of “New Year’s Resolutions,” and for many, improving their health is high on the list. From beginning a new exercise routine to eating a healthier diet, health is one of those high priority items. How about you? What are you resolving to do in 2017 as it relates to your health—to add years to your life and life to your years? Remember, in order to be all God is calling you to be in this New Year, you will need the physical vitality to actually do it!

Today’s passage from Proverbs talks about a health that is created by holy living, not by membership in a health club. And the key that will unlock that door of holy health is found in the word humility. To be “wise in your own eyes” is to be self-sufficient and self-reliant—the exact opposite of the spirit of humility. Self-sufficiency attacks both our advances in holiness and our advances in health, because self-sufficiency makes us sick from the inside out.

So how can you and I resolve to enjoy a year of good health in 2017? By living in a spirit of HUMILITY! When we humble ourselves before the Lord, we submit and surrender to His plan for our lives. To be sure, that includes engaging in consistent exercise, getting adequate rest, and taking in the proper nutrition. Putting these practices into place gives us the best opportunity for achieving the physical health and vitality we need to do all God is calling us to do. But there is another essential component that we must not miss: Humbling ourselves with the “fear of the Lord” will strengthen us to “shun evil” and stay on the course of holy living that God has called us to.

Make no mistake, physical health and spiritual health go hand in hand. Here is another Scripture verse that I pray will encourage you to pursuing a year of good health—both physically and spiritually.

Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (1 Timothy 4:8)

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

On Wednesday we took a look back at all God did in your life throughout 2016. Today we will take a look ahead at all you hope God will do throughout 2017.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  (1 Peter 1:3)

Now, if that doesn’t light the fire of your faith as you prepare to head into the new year, your wood is wet! We could spend all of 2017 unpacking this verse and never plumb the depths of its gloriously empowering truth. Since my purpose is to encourage you to look ahead with positive anticipation to all God will do both in you and through you during 2017, let’s meditate on and marinate in the words, “a living hope.”

Throughout the entire epistle of 1 Peter, hope is the foundation upon which Peter builds to encourage and exhort persecuted and bewildered Christians to stand fast in their faith. And how did He do this? By encouraging Christians to look beyond their circumstances in life and to focus on Christ and all the spiritual blessings promised in Him. Let’s take a brief look.

Great Mercy

As you begin this New Year, launch out with the understanding that your right standing with God is rooted in God’s grace, not your good works . . . God’s great mercy, not your meager merit. God is the One who saves. He begins the process; He advances the process; and He completes the process through His mercy and grace. Great mercy should give you great motivation to advance confidently in the direction God is calling you to go this New Year.

New Birth

Building on God’s great mercy, Peter reminded his readers that we must be born again into a new relationship with God. Think about it this way: we played no role in our natural birth and we play no role in our supernatural birth. It is all a gift of God. And remember that before our new birth we were on the road to hell, with absolutely nothing to look forward to. But our new birth changes all of this by giving us our next category . . .

A Living Hope

The Bible makes it clear that the hope God gives is not some kind of wishful thinking; it is certain. It is guaranteed! It is rooted in our relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. Peter could have just used the word hope and we could have gleaned all that was needed to understand God’s great work in our lives. But he adds the word living to hope, which raises the bar. Why? Because our living hope is rooted in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. The grave could not hold Jesus. Death could not keep Him. Jesus overcame the grave and became the Death of death.

As you get ready to embark on a new year, remember that all of your God-honoring dreams and God-glorifying desires are rooted in a living hope, because they are rooted in the living Christ. Because He lives you live, and that makes your hope alive and well in the Almighty.

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

It’s that time of the year again. It is time to look back on all that God has done in your life throughout 2016. On Friday we will look ahead with positive anticipation for all you hope He will do in the New Year.

Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57)

Make no mistake, if you are reading this right now, regardless of all that you went through during this past year, you actually did go through it, and God has given you the victory. Now, I recognize that it might not have felt like victory at the time. The Bible does not say that all things are good; Scripture assures the Christian that God causes all things ultimately to work together for the good of those who love God.

To be sure, there is a lot of bad that happens in the lives of the children of God. But our God is faithful through every season of life and has promised to give us the victory in Christ. And if you have placed your trust in Jesus Christ for your eternal salvation, that is exactly what God has done for you, right up through this moment in 2016.

Prayerfully consider this question: how would you catalogue some of your victories? Perhaps you are a student and you can see the victories God has given you academically, athletically, and/or relationally. Maybe you can recall a victory or two in your professional life. How about some victories in your personal life? God has been working in your life—not only daily, but moment by moment. Without a doubt, God has met you in your place of need, or you would not be reading this right now. Perhaps God has met you in your place of wants too.

Did you know that God has answered every one of your prayers? To some He said YES; to others He said NO; and to still others, He said WAIT. God has been on the move in your life, guiding you every step of the way. He has not only been for you and with you, but He has been in you. He has encouraged you, empowered you, and equipped you to do all that He called you to do. Remember, God does not call the equipped; none of us are equipped to do anything God has called us to do. But God does equip the called. God equipped Moses to lead the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt. God equipped David to slay the giant Goliath. God equipped Mary to be the mother of Jesus. And God equipped you to do everything He called you to throughout this year.

So before we look ahead on Friday, I encourage you to pause for a moment and prayerfully consider all that God has done in your life in 2016. It may not have been the year you wanted or were expecting. But it was the year God ordained for you, and He did it for two very important reasons:

For God’s glory

and

For the good of all others.

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

As a child, the day after Christmas was always the saddest day of the year for me. It seemed that a year filled with anticipation had ended almost as soon as it started. It wouldn’t be long before all the decorations would be put away and I would be back at school . . . counting down the days until next Christmas!

Today, I am a whole lot older and a little bit wiser. I’ve learned that Christmas is more than a single day to look forward to each year. Instead of living each day looking forward to that day, I live in the spirit of that day looking forward to each day. I live in the light of the truth Mary knew months before that first Christmas day:

Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me—holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” (Luke 1:46-55)

The Magnificat—or the Song of Mary, as it has also been called—should be the confession of all our lives. Mary sang the praises of her God because she knew who He was and what He had done for her. The eyes of her heart were fixed on her God and not on her circumstances.

You will remember Mary was not yet married to Joseph and was yet going to be with child. To be unwed and pregnant was not a good combination in that day. Mary would face shame and bitter accusation from all those she knew. Even Joseph wanted to remove her from his life. Total rejection was on the horizon for Mary, yet her response was to sing praises to her God.

So what does all this have to do with the day after Christmas? Everything! Mary kept her focus on the Giver of all her gifts, and that allowed her to rise above the challenges of daily living. When we do as she did—when we fix the eyes of our hearts on Jesus—we too can rise above the challenges of daily living and no longer be affected by the circumstances of life.

It really comes down to focus: what are we focused on? As a child, I was focused on Christmas day, not the Christ of Christmas. The event had me focused on the gifts I would be getting; the Emmanuel now has me focused on the Giver of every gift I have been given.

Regardless of where this finds you today, the key to joyful living is not only to keep Christ in Christmas, but in every day of the year. When He sits upon the throne of our lives, we begin living for something bigger than ourselves. Life becomes about the Savior rather than the self. Make no mistake, I still joyfully celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ on December 25, but now I experience the joy and power of His life, death, and resurrection every day of the year.

Now what? The “what” is one word: Jesus!

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

We are just two days away from celebrating of the birth of our blessed Redeemer. During this final week before Christmas, we’ve been looking at the prophetic utterances contained in Isaiah 9:6, which presents three of the many promises that Christmas has kept. On Monday we looked at our first promise: a child who would be born and a Son given. On Wednesday we saw how the government will be upon His omnipotent shoulders. Today, in our final installment, let’s discover the promise in His names.

Promise #3

He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

He will be called Wonderful Counselor

We all know what a “counselor” is and does. Here we see the ultimate Counselor, who was Truth incarnate. Even His enemies continually testified to the power in His counsel. The temple guards who had been sent to apprehend Jesus admitted, “No one ever spoke the way this man does” (John 7:46). Even the spies who had been tasked with trapping Jesus with His own words fell silent when He commanded, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” (Luke 20:25). Jesus is the cosmic Counselor who always speaks the truth and nothing but the truth, shining the light of truth into a world filled with darkness.

He will be called Mighty God

The gospel of John opens with these words: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). Jesus is the Mighty God who was “in the beginning” God and will forever be! He is “the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God” (1 Timothy 1:17). Jesus not only gives us eternal truth through His wonderful counsel, He also provides us with the ability to live it out. Jesus is the Mighty God who is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him (Hebrews 7:25). He will strengthen His people and protect them from the Evil One.

He will be called Everlasting Father

Here we see the promise of eternal care, because Jesus is our Everlasting Father. Jesus is the eternal, timeless, self-existent One; “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17). From eternity past to eternity future, all those who, by grace through faith, place their trust in Jesus Christ have been in the care of our Everlasting Father. He has loved us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). Never was there a time when we were not loved or cared for!

He will be called Prince of Peace

Make no mistake, peace is not just the absence of war. True peace is the presence of Jesus Christ, our Prince of Peace. The promise of His coming government will be one of absolute peace and justice. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, our world has been marked by turmoil and trouble, wars and rumors of wars. But when Jesus returns to consummate His kingdom, we will experience the peace that passes all understanding. On the night of His birth, a multitude of the heavenly host proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14).

It is my prayer that these precious promises we have unwrapped this week will both encourage and strengthen you throughout this Christmas season, regardless of where this finds you . . . whether this is a season of great joy or great sorrow. Remember, God never breaks His promises, and that means you can take Him at His Word. Let these and countless other promises rekindle in you a Christmas joy unlike anything you have ever experienced in the past.

May you and all those you love have a very merry Christmas!

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

We’re in the middle of a series that eagerly anticipates the celebration of the birth of our blessed Redeemer. We’re looking at just three of the many promises Christmas has kept, all three of which are contained in just one verse of sacred Scripture. On Monday we looked at our first promise: a child who would be born and a Son given. Today I want to encourage you with the next promise . . .

Promise #2

. . . And the government will be on his shoulders. (Isaiah 9:6)

Here we find one of those “already” and “not yet” aspects of the kingdom of God. In His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension, our Lord Jesus Christ has ushered in the kingdom of God. Sin, Satan, and death have been defeated. But, as has been well said, the old dragon has been slain, but his tail still swishes! The victory has certainly been won, but it has not yet been fully realized and consummated. That will not happen until Jesus returns as the King of kings and Lord of lords, and then every government will rest upon His shoulders.

There is a time coming when Jesus will reign over a literal, earthly kingdom from sea to shining sea. Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord; all governments will submit and surrender to His Lordship. And of His rule and reign there shall be no end!

In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. (Daniel 2:44)

The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. (Zechariah 14:9)

Remember, unlike every kingdom of this world that uses force to establish its rule and reign, the kingdom of Christ is built upon faith. To catch a glimpse of just how different His kingdom is from every other kingdom in this world, we need look no further than the incredible names that follow this promise. And we will do just that on Friday.

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

This week, as we look forward to celebrating the birth of our blessed Savior, I would like to encourage you with just three of the many promises that Christmas has kept. I’m confident that these three promises—all three found in one verse from Isaiah’s majestic prophecy—will encourage you and strengthen your walk with Christ.

Promise #1

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given . . . (Isaiah 9:6)

Way back in the third chapter of Genesis, God made a promise to send a Savior into this world who will ultimately crush the head of the serpent and redeem His people from sin and death. But this Savior would be a very special Child born . . . and a Son given!

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. (Genesis 3:15)

You see, in that promise God made, the Redeemer would come from the “seed” of the woman and not the seed of the man. It would be a supernatural conception, accomplished by the power of the Most High God, and that conception would fulfill our first promise of this week. Even though He was conceived by the Spirit of God, Jesus was a child born just like any other—as a helpless infant, who needed the loving care and protection of His parents.

But Jesus was so much more than just a babe born in a manger! Jesus was fully man. He was the fulfillment of every man in the Old Testament who pointed to the perfect Man. Jesus is the last Adam, the better Moses, the greater David; He is the Prophet who makes God known, the Great High Priest, the King of kings!

But, as Isaiah wrote, this Child born was also a Son given. Jesus was fully man, yes, but He is also fully God, and as God’s only begotten Son, He was not “born.” He was given, as the second person of the eternal Trinity, to complete God’s perfect plan for the redemption of the world. This Son given was with the Father and the Holy Spirit from eternity past. He is the great “I Am,” who is dependent on no one or nothing for His existence. He had no beginning and He will have no end. He is eternally co-equal in the God-head. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last. He is Lord!

It is my heartfelt prayer that, as Christmas Day draws near, this promise will encourage you to praise God for such an indescribable gift . . . a child born and a Son given . . . Immanuel – “God with us.”

Look for our second promise on Wednesday.

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

Oh, what a word of encouragement I have for you today! It is found in the answer to this question: “If you are out in a field or valley, far away from a water supply, how do you get water without rain?” The answer is found in the Old Testament:

This is what the Lord says: “I will fill this valley with pools of water. For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord.” (2 Kings 3:16-17)

Second Kings recounts the dire circumstances confronting three armies that were suffering from severe thirst, with no relief in sight, until the Lord God Omnipotent intervened. Without sending any wind or rain, God supplied all the water that was needed by both man and beast.

Mark this well, beloved: our God is not dependent upon ordinary means to meet extraordinary needs. Our God is in the business of meeting every need of His people. But He meets those needs in His way and in His timing, and He is never dependent upon the natural way by which we would expect those needs to be met.

Here is another way to look at this truth and be encouraged. We are never to look at what would be called secondary causes—rain for water—because behind the rain is the Righteous Rainmaker of the Universe. Our God needs no means to meet our needs. He simply wills what we need into existence whenever He sees fit. To be sure, God is pleased to use ordinary means to meet our needs, and frequently this is the way He does it. But when supernatural pathways are in His plans, we are called to look beyond the secondary causes and see the First and Faithful Cause: the sovereign Creator of the universe.

If our God can bring us water without rain, He can bring healing without medicine and doctors. To be sure, God uses the most advanced medical treatments available to man. But there are times when medicine falls short but our God brings the cure. The doctors are bewildered, but the believer is strengthened in belief, seeing the truth of Scripture born out: with God all things are possible! Our God is not confined to answering our prayers in the way we expect it or in the way He has done in the past. He will always meet us in our place of deepest need, but it will always be in His way . . . and often that will be an unexpected way!

We can all think back to times of prayers that were not answered in the ways we expected. Water quenched our thirst, yet there was no rain. A financial obligation was met, yet there was no money. Healing was achieved, yet there was no medical pathway to recovery. Wherever there is lack in your life right now, know this: your loving heavenly Father can bring you abundance in unexpected ways. God is not dependent upon anyone or anything to accomplish His purposes in your life. Look to Him and Him alone, and you will soon be standing knee-deep in streams of water . . . with no rain in sight!

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