Grace for the Race

You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. (Psalm 139:2-4)

There are many ways to describe the Bible, but perhaps the best way is to say that the Bible is God’s love letter to His people. From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible recounts God’s relentless pursuit of rebels on the run away from Him. When we understand that we are fully known and truly loved, we can come before the throne of grace with no fear . . . no doubt . . . no hesitation. There is nothing that God does not know about us — including the number of hairs on our heads and the myriad number of times we have turned away from Him — yet we still have an open invitation to come to Him because He loves us and will never turn His back on us.

The devil is relentless in his attempts to deceive us. He wants us to believe we have strayed too far away from God and are beyond the reach of His forgiveness. When those ugly thoughts begin to circulate in our minds, we must immediately look to Calvary’s hill. When Jesus went to the cross to pay the penalty for our sins — all our sins — He cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30). Here is the best way I know how to explain the full impact our Lord’s triumphant shout:

“Debt paid! Atonement made! Sinner saved!”

Let me be clear; God did NOT say, “Your sins are no big deal.” They are a very big deal; the sin debt we incurred was such a cosmically gargantuan deal that it required a supreme payment . . . and that payment was made and fully executed on the cross.  

“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Our loving Lord did not wait for us to get cleaned up. He did not wait for us to get our act together. He died in our place so that we can be in relationship with Him.

Try to imagine for a moment having Someone know everything about you — even the very darkest, ugliest thoughts that you don’t share with anyone — and yet that Someone still fully, unconditionally, and truly loves you! Christian, you have that Someone, and His name is Jesus Christ. The next time you are feeling unloved, undervalued, and unseen, remember that God is love . . . and He has poured out His love on you. “Come to me,” He says to you tenderly, “all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

You are fully known and truly loved — today, tomorrow, and forevermore. Let that truth set you free to rest in His love and to love your neighbor as yourself.

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

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” (Luke 15:2)

We have much to be thankful for when we consider our salvation. We who deserved it not at all received it by grace, through faith, and we received it from the holy, perfect, and undefiled Son of the Most High God. To be sure, that alone is too much to fully comprehend, even if we thought of nothing else for the rest of our lives.

But there is something that strikes an even sweeter cord of Christ’s cosmic condescension: “This man welcomes sinners!” Think about “THIS MAN” for a few moments, and I think you will agree.

• THIS MAN who is the eternal God!
• THIS MAN who created all things!
• THIS MAN who sits at the right hand of the Father!
• THIS MAN before whom angels worship with veiled faces!
• THIS MAN who was and is and is to come!
• THIS MAN who is the Alpha and Omega!

The list could fill volumes.  Jesus is beyond human comprehension, yet our verse today takes us higher still: “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Let’s take a look at the cosmic condescension of this truth.

#1. He Welcomes Sinners . . .

Jesus’ willingness to mingle with sinners incensed the Pharisees and religious leaders. The driving force in their lives was to remain “clean and undefiled.” According to the Old Testament prescriptions in the Law regarding ritual cleansing; the first step was to stay clear of contact with sinners. The problem was that the Pharisees had perverted the Law by seeing themselves as “clean and undefiled” because of what they did, rather than seeing themselves as “unclean and defiled” because of who they were: sinners in need of a Savior.   

#2. And Eats With Them!

 In the minds of the Pharisees and religious leaders, it was bad for Jesus to welcome sinners, but it was beyond their comprehension why He would actually break bread with them. Eating was a very symbolic act in the ancient world; it meant fellowship and friendship. It was an obvious sign of relationship. The Pharisees and religious leaders simply could not imagine why Jesus would engage in such an intimate act with people whom they considered to be defiled.

What cosmic condescension from our Lord Jesus Christ! Not only did He welcome sinners, people just like you and me, but He offered table fellowship as well. Jesus allowed His reputation to be ruined in the eyes of the “up and in” simply to save the “down and out.” That’s you and me. And that’s also a call for you and me to refuse to stay clear of those who are in desperate need of Christ. We are to love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

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

For God so loved . . . you! (John 3:16)

I have a word of encouragement for you today that can be found in two simple yet profound words: So loved! Think about this for a moment; writing his gospel under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the apostle John could find no better word than “so” to describe the depth of God’s love for you. So regardless of where this finds you today, remember that you are “so loved” by your God. 

“So” truly seems to be the best of all words, because who among us could come close to defining just how loved we are by God? Words cannot describe the kind of love our God has for us in Christ Jesus.  When we lived in sin and cared not for the things of God . . . we were so loved. When we were rebels on the run away from God instead of toward Him . . . we were so loved. When God sent His only beloved Son to take our place on a cross so that our sins could be forgiven . . . we were so loved. When God turned away from His beloved Son as He cried out from that cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” . . . we were so loved. Truly, there is no human definition that adequately describes what it means to be “so loved” by God.

This should be both an encouragement and a comfort for you today. Perhaps you are in a season of struggle. Maybe Satan has been sowing seeds of discouragement in the garden of your mind. Could it be that you have been doubting the security of your place in God’s family of faith?  Regardless of your difficulty or distress, let me exhort you to meditate on and marinate in the truth that the apostle John penned for you 2000 years ago: you are so loved by God — deeply and eternally — right now, right where this finds you. 

I pray that you will live this day and all the days God gives you in light of this truth. Whether the road ahead is filled with jagged potholes of painful providences or is running straight and smooth because of the tender mercies of God, remember that you are “so loved!” Now, that’s a truth that is designed to set you free to be all God is calling you to be.

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

Now I am ready to visit you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. (2 Corinthians 12:14)

When Jesus came into this world, He turned it upside down. The first became last and the last became first. It was better to give than to receive, and better still to forgive than to get even. And Jesus Himself, who had been sitting on the throne of heaven from all eternity, took off His outer garments, wrapped a towel around His waist, took a basin of water, and washed His disciples’ feet. These are just a few examples of our Lord’s “upside-down” teaching.

Sadly, in less than 2,000 years, far too many in the present-day church have turned the world back “right side-up” . . . and that is not the direction we ought to be going in!

When I share this concept with people at our church, they often ask me how they can know for sure if they are in the world Jesus turned upside down or in the world so many have steered back in the wrong direction. It’s actually easy to tell; just answer this question: What do you seek after most in life ? God ? Or the good gifts He gives you?

Now, I am not talking about what we all do from time to time — shifting our focus onto the stuff of life rather than keeping our eyes fixed on our Savior. What I am talking about is identifying the driving force in our lives. What is it that gets us up early and keeps us up late? It is time we spend with God and deepening our understanding of Him? Or is it time we can spend with the good gifts He has given to us and acquiring more of them?

Reread 2 Corinthians 12:14, our verse for today. The apostle Paul was making his third missionary journey to Corinth, and look at where his focus was. The love that Paul had for Jesus poured out into the lives of those he ministered to, and because of this, Paul could say, “What I want is not your possessions but you!” 

Clearly this is a reflection of the heart of this great apostle. His world had been turned upside down by Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, and he chose to live in that new world every day after that, “forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead” (Philippians 3:13). Paul never focused on the many good gifts God had given him; indeed, he said he considered the things of this world “rubbish” (Philippians 3:8). He was always and in every way focused solely on God. He wanted more and more of his relationship with God, and because of this burning desire deep within his heart, he focused far more on people than he did their possessions. 

May that be the confession of our lives as we strive to live in the upside-down world where we become a servant to all and a slave to our Savior. At this level of living, we will be able to say to God each day, what Paul was able to say . . .

“I WANT YOU . . . NOT WHAT IS YOURS!“

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

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. (1 Peter 4:12-13)

We’ve all heard the phrase, “You are the hands and feet of Jesus.” This, of course, is an exhortation to Christians to live as ambassadors of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because Jesus is no longer in this world today, but rather seated at the right hand of God the Father, we are to be His hands and His feet. Let’s look at little more carefully at what this metaphor truly means. 

Almost exclusively, when someone speaks of being the hands and feet of Jesus, they are referring to serving others: Serve the poor and the marginalized . . . Serve a cup of cold water to those who thirst . . . Serve within some ministry within the church . . . Serve those who are sick or in prison. We serve as our Lord and Savior served because He did not come to be served, but to serve others (Mark 10:45).

But I have a question for you: When was the last time you heard this metaphor being used in relation to suffering? Make no mistake: The hands and feet of our Lord Jesus Christ both served and suffered.

In the apostle Paul’s second letter to his disciple Timothy, Paul made it crystal clear what Christians should expect to experience in this life, “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). Suffering for the saints of God comes in a variety of forms: from storms of sickness to relationship rejections to public persecution. The list is virtually endless. Waves of challenge have been promised, and we shouldn’t be surprised when they crash over our lives. This is the deepest meaning of being the hands and feet of Jesus. 

Perhaps the best way to prepare ourselves for this reality is to keep in view how the hands and feet of our Lord were pierced for our transgressions. Jesus was nailed to our cross with our nails and died our death, that we might be made the children of God and live forevermore. Christian, you were the joy set before our Lord as He suffered and died in our place (Hebrews 12:2). As the hands and feet of Jesus, let us advance in this life through seasons of both serving and suffering, trusting that “This slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17 ESV).    

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

He saw and believed. (John 20:8)

It was the first Easter morning. Mary Magdalene went to the tomb, saw the stone had been removed, and went running to Peter and John. When she told them someone had taken the Lord out of the tomb, the two apostles raced to see for themselves. John got to the tomb first and looked in, but Peter went straight into the tomb and saw the strips of linen lying there. Then John entered the tomb, and we read the words of our verse today: “He saw and believed.” 

John didn’t see what he thought he would see: the dead body of his Lord.  John saw nothing there except the discarded burial cloths; when he saw, the Scriptures tell us, he believed. This was indeed a time when nothing was something!  Why?  Because for the very first time, the disciple whom Jesus loved was seeing through the eyes of faith. Only when we are looking through the eyes of faith can we see nothing and it becomes something. John saw that the tomb was empty on that first Easter morning, and, by faith, he believed that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead, just as He had said He would do.

In the natural we see so little. For the most part, we live by the phrase, “Seeing is believing!”  If we don’t see something, we don’t believe. By nature, we are all just like Thomas, who said, “Unless I see the nail marks in [Jesus’] hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe” (John 20:25). Well, John saw nothing and believed, because John was looking beyond the fleshly veil. John was looking though the eyes of faith, and the eyes of faith are able to see the invisible.

Some 800 years earlier, the armies of Aram surrounded the city of Dothan; when the servant of the prophet Elisha saw them, he was terrified. What he saw was real and true. The city was surrounded by the enemy, but the servant was only looking in the natural. Elisha prayed that the Lord would empower his servant to see through the eyes of faith, and when he did, “He saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:17). The servant learned a very valuable lesson that day when Elisha assured him that “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 

Only when we are looking through the eyes of faith will we begin to see all that God is doing in our lives. God has surrounded you with legions of angels led by the Lion from the tribe of Judah, and He has promised to protect and provide for your every need. Do not fear what you may be seeing through your physical eyes, for they see only a tiny portion of what is actually going on around you. Ask God to open your eyes of faith, and you will begin seeing God’s hand in everything that is happening in your life. At that level of living, seeing nothing is indeed something! 

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

“Is not my word like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:29)

It would put us at a great disadvantage to see the Bible only as a book designed to bring cosmic comfort to the soul. To be sure, this is one of the things the Word of God does in the lives of all those who read it. But as we read the words of the prophet Jeremiah, the Bible also strikes its blow like a holy hammer, breaking a rock in pieces. And what is that rock?  It is the rock of self-righteousness and sinful pride embedded in our own hearts.

The problem in too many pulpits today is that the preacher is more concerned with pleasing man than he is with pleasing God. Messages designed to tickle the ears and minister to felt needs are dominating the landscape. But when the whole counsel of God is preached, it comes with a holy hammer that chisels away at our sinful pride and self-righteousness, forming the image of our Lord Jesus Christ as time passes.

There are many false prophets who preach, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace (Jeremiah 6:14). The natural man craves this false peace, for his greatest goal in life is to feel happy. But God desires so much more for His people! In God’s perfect plan for our imperfect lives, holiness — not happiness — is the path God intends for us to travel. And the pathway leading to holiness is not lined with peace, but persecution.

Here is a phrase I learned many years ago that I have repeated from the pulpit on many occasions: As a minister of the Good News of Jesus Christ, God has called me to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. The Christian life is not designed to be lived safely within a zone of comfort, for comfort is not conducive to conformity to Christ.    

Note well: The Bible’s blow is the believer’s blessing. Comfort must be mixed with challenge . . . peace must be mixed with pain. The Bible often uses sports metaphors to describe the life of the disciple of Christ. The runner will not reach his or her goal of winning the race without the discipline necessary to push through the pain and discomfort of training. The Word of God is designed to train us up in the way we should go, and that way is marked by weeping as much as it is marked by rejoicing — if not more so! 

When was the last time the Word caused you to weep? When was the last time you felt the Bible’s blow hammering away at the old nature within? Remember, Jesus said it would be the truth that would set you free (John 8:32), and that truth is designed to turn your life inside out and upside down as God reshapes and redesigns His image in you.

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

I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand.  Remember my chains.  Grace be with you. (Colossians 4:18)

There are a variety of ways to define the word “memorial,” but for our purpose today, this one is best: Serving to help people remember some person — namely, Jesus Christ! For the Christian, there are three ways to memorialize our Master:

• With our speech
• In our service
• Through our suffering

Years of serving as a pastor and walking through the details of life with countless Christians whom God has given me the privilege of ministering to have convinced me that the true strength of our devotion to our Master is not displayed by our speech or our service, but in our sufferings. Think of the great apostle Paul and the magnificent memorials regarding his Master that he left behind for all the world to read and remember. Paul gave many powerful speeches and sermons; he left some magnificent miracles; but above it all, Paul left us countless chains, the chains of his imprisonment. His suffering surpassed everything else. Listen to these words from Paul:

Are they servants of Christ? I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, from bandits, from my fellow Jews, and Gentiles. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.  (2 Corinthians 11:23-27)

To be sure, there are many ways to measure the depths of Paul’s devotion to Jesus, but nothing plumbs the depths of his suffering. And the same is true for every disciple of Christ, including you and me. Now, in our cultural context today, it may or may not mean the kind of physical suffering that the apostle Paul endured. We may not be shipwrecked or pelted with rocks like Paul, but as we memorialize our Master, we may very well be shunned. We may not be beaten with rods or in danger from rivers, but we can expect rejection. 

I will never forget something that one of my spiritual fathers, Dr. R. C. Sproul, said during a seminary class: “Tommy, when you are out in the world preaching the Gospel of Christ, if some people are not angry with you, one of two things has happened: Either they don’t understand what you are preaching or you are not preaching it!” The Gospel either attracts or repels, and it is our responsibility to share it with others, leaving the results to God.

So what memorials have you left regarding your devotion to Jesus? May God give us the strength to refuse to shrink back when our memorial comes in the form of suffering.

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

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

You must be born again. (John 3:7)

Every year our graduating high school students head off to college in search of a degree that will help open doors of opportunity in their chosen field. Some pick a particular path and pursue it until completion. Others make course corrections along the way until they find where they fit. But did you know that there is a degree available to everyone that transcends those from every college or university? It’s a B.A. from the College of Christ – Born Again!

Our text for today comes from the classic passage in the New Testament that recounts when Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader, came to Jesus under the cover of darkness and asked some deep questions. During that encounter, Jesus uttered those famous words, “You must be born again.” Nicodemus responded in a way that made it clear he didn’t understand what Jesus was talking about: “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” (John 3:4).

“You are Israel’s teacher,” Jesus said, “and do you not understand these things?” If Nicodemus did not understand what “born again” meant, he definitely did not understand why it was necessary. Let’s take a look at both of these issues.    

The phrase “born again” means to be born from above by the Almighty. In the College of Christ, everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah and trusts in His life, death, and resurrection is born again from above. Here are a few passages of Scripture that define this Divine Degree.

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-18)

He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.  (Titus 3:5)

Now that we have a basic understanding of the meaning of “born again,” we need to know why it is necessary. 

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.  (Ephesians 2:1)

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:23-24)

Of all the degrees we might pursue through higher education, the only one that truly matters, the “highest” one of all, the summum bonum, comes from the College of Christ. But here is the greatest news of all: Unlike every other degree, which must be earned through your financial commitment and disciplined effort, your B.A. from the College of Christ is not earned, but bestowed on us by the grace of God alone, through faith in Jesus Christ alone, for the glory of God alone. That is the most important degree in the world – your B.A. – Born Again!

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

The next day Paul and Barnabas left for Derbe. They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra. (Acts 14:20-21)

The apostle Paul and his companion Barnabas were sent by God to Lystra to preach the good news of the Gospel.  While there, they healed a man who had been crippled from birth. The crowds believed “the gods” had come down from heaven in the likeness of Paul and Barnabas, calling Barnabas Zeus and Paul Hermes. Paul and Barnabas were aghast at this and quickly corrected their misunderstanding. But while they were there, some of the Jews arrived from Antioch and stirred up the crowds to stone Paul; they dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead. He was not! We read that “When the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city” (Acts 14:8-20).

The next day, Paul and Barnabas left for Derbe to preach and teach. Then something very strange happened: They went back to Lystra. Why? Because God had called them back to learn the lessons of Lystra. I want to share two of those lessons that God ordained for Paul and Barnabas to learn.

Lesson #1 — Learn from every defeat

We don’t often learn much when the sky is blue, the clouds are fleecy, and the sun is brightly shining. More often than not, God’s deep teachings are only absorbed on the other side of a devastating defeat. So we must seek to find the lesson in every defeat, letting the pain shape and mold us into the person God is calling us to be.

Lesson #2 — Return to some defeats

There are times when God calls us to return to a defeat because He intends to turn that defeat into a divine victory. This is not an easy thing for the natural man to do. When we are defeated, we would rather learn the lesson and get on with life. But sometimes God has determined to take us above and beyond a lesson and turn defeat into a divine victory. That is what God did for Paul and Barnabas, but they needed to be thinking supernaturally rather than naturally. 

Think back to the last time God determined that you needed to return to some particular defeat, rather than simply learn from it: A heated argument with a loved one . . . a broken relationship that needs to be made whole . . . a stronghold that has a stranglehold on you. God has ordained that the lesson alone will not lift you high enough; rather, you must return to rise above the defeat in order to receive the victory.

Return with a humble heart. Return with a contrite character. Return, despite the threat of a “second stoning,” knowing that God is with you every step of the way, just like He was with Paul and Barnabas. 

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