Mark 12:30

Mark 12:30 says this:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.

In this verse we are commanded to love in four ways: Heart, Soul, Mind, & Strength. I'm not sure if that's something I've ever really considered. It's a popular verse that we hear read at church or sang in a song, and it seems empowering. But have you ever stopped to think about what that demands of us? I know I haven't. This four-fold love is not a Sunday morning "likeness" of God. It's not accepting God as Savior and living life unchanged. This extreme love is more than all that, it's accepting God as the Savior and LORD of your life. Making Him Lord means giving Him control, which means our lives should be permanently changed (for the better).

This love goes beyond an emotion felt by a boyfriend and girlfriend, beyond what's felt between the closest of spouses, and yes even beyond the bond of a mother and child. This love isn't just an emotion or bond, it's a lifestyle. Loving the Lord in this way is a daily way of conducting your life. Who you live for displaces who you love. Do you live for yourself? If so you will let yourself down, trust me I've done it. Do you live for another person? If so, they are human, they will let you down. But if you live for Christ, I assure you, He will never ever let you down. Love Him in all that you do, and live for Him in all that you do.

Bro. Austin

Don't fear control you!

“I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, “This is his wife.” Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.”  

Genesis 12:11b-13

            

              Fear can cause us to do some dumb things. Think of all the things that you have done because of fear. I remember in elementary school being terribly afraid of somebody, and they told me to run up a metal slide. So, I ran up that slide. Seven stitches later, I came home. Here in this passage of scripture, we see where Abram did something dumb, because he was afraid of the Egyptians. First of all we see in verses 10-13 that he didn't trust God. This always confuses me. God had just spoke to him, and made a covenant with Abram. Now Abram is going to Egypt because of a famine. God promised that He would protect Abram and his family. Fear made Abram say to his wife, “Say you are sister, so that I will live.”

           

              Fear causes us to do dumb things. Abram and his family get into Egypt and do exactly what Abram petitioned his wife to do. When they were in Egypt, Pharaoh gave many gifts to Abram because of his wife. But after a while God sent a terrible plague on Pharaoh’s household. When Pharaoh found out who Abram’s wife was, he rebuked Abram. Then Pharaoh sent them away with an armed escort.

           

              Fear caused Abram to doubt the protection of God. Does fear cause you to doubt not only the protection of God, but maybe even God in general? We have to learn from Abram’s mistake here. Don’t let fear control you. Let God guide you.

Bro. Michael

Nailing Our Record to the Cross

"By canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross" (Col. 2:14). 

This is, without exception, the most vivid description of God's salvation work of justification through Jesus. The author of It Is Well With My Soul captured it well:

"My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!"

According to Paul here, God canceled our record of debt with its binding legal demands and nailed it to the cross. In causing Him to be nailed to the cross, God has provided for the full cancellation of the debt of obedience that we had incurred. Christ took upon Himself the penalty that we were under because of our disobedience, and His death fully satisfied God’s necessary demand for due punishment of that disobedience.

Our debt for sin has been paid in full; our sins are swept away and forgotten by God! What a glorious thought. You did not cancel your own debt, God did. You did not nail your own debt to the cross, God did. Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9), and He is fully deserving of your devotion and whole-hearted worship now and forever.

Do you treat Christ's justifying death as a simple, uncostly achievement or is it worth everything to you?

Bro. Brandon

God's Greatest Plus Sign: Part 3

The Cross has been a major symbol for Christians for centuries. I like to think of the Cross as "God Greatest Plus Sign." Over the next few weeks we'll look at what has been "added unto us" due to this great plus sign we call the cross.

God's Greatest Plus Sign
Things Added Unto Us Because of the Cross

Over the last two weeks we went over how God has added unto us Power, Redemption, Wisdom, & Eternal Life through the cross. Today let's discuss another.

5. The Holy Spirit
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." - John 14:26 NKJV

When Jesus left the disciples He promised them a Helper, the Holy Spirit. He is there to guide us and teach us. The Holy Spirit is a wonderfully powerful tool for Believers in that He is always with us, He is God, and He can give us strength. Paul said in his letter to the Philippians that we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.

Without the cross, without Christ bridging the gap between humanity and God we would have no connection to the Father through the Holy Spirit.

Disclaimer: These gifts or things added to us because of the Cross are offered to everyone. However not everyone will receive these because it takes faith. You must admit that you are a sinner [imperfect], believe that God sent His Son to die for the forgiveness of your sins. Believe that Jesus rose from the dead, and confess Christ as your Savior and Lord of your life. If you can do this then you can rest assured that you have all these promises from God and more.

Grounded in Christ,

Bro. Austin

I Saw Visions from God...

Please read the first chapter of Ezekiel.

Ezekiel is known for many things, but he is especially prominent as a prophet of hope. He was alive during the time of Jeremiah, but his work takes on a somewhat different tone than that of Jeremiah. Ezekiel focuses on the exiles in Babylon – the first three chapters tell of his preparation for that work. After describing how he prepares himself, Ezekiel delivers messages of reprobation – that is, of God punishing the nation of Israel – then he brings the Israelites hope by foretelling their eventual Restoration. He clearly understood the necessity for a righteous reprobation, but he also realized that God intended to lift His people up. After reading through Ezekiel, this can be seen if one looks back at the first verse. Ezekiel says “As I was among the captives by the river of Chebar…the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.” It’s obvious how clearly he understood God’s intent for the Israelites.

Ezekiel’s life as a prophet begins with visions of God, even before the voice of the Lord summons him to do work for him. The specifics of the beautiful symbolism in the first chapter of Ezekiel is not to be ignored, but for the purpose of this brief devotion, we will put them on a back burner to be reviewed and picked apart another day. The main thing I want to draw your attention to in this reading is that, at a time when the nation of Israel was staring down the barrel of an extremely bleak future, God revealed himself to Ezekiel in stunning, mystical images that could only have brought life and warmth into the heart of Israel. While God could’ve presented himself before Ezekiel and Israel in a simple and easily understood way, he chose striking, vivid, and colorful imagery. Why? He wanted to get Israel’s attention. The Lord desired that Israel gaze upon His splendor with wonderment and fear, yet at the same time He wanted them to feel comfort in knowing that the Lord who sent this powerful vision would rescue them in their time of need.

Following the reading of the first chapter of Ezekiel, one might think that we deserve such visions or that such visions would help us when we are walking down a dark, hostile road like the Israelites were during their captivity, but this is simply not so. Everything that was revealed to Ezekiel in the vision in all its striking beauty was still mystical and concealed by the veil of symbolism. We, on the other hand, can see everything clearly through Jesus Christ, the Son of God’s love. To see God’s glory in the life of Jesus is to see the righteousness of God’s judgment and the hope that comes with knowing that we serve a just and fair Lord. We can be assured through Christ that the love of God will ultimately save us in a final victory if we diligently "fight the good fight". The next time that you are struggling and you desire to see a sign from God that everything will be okay, or you need to be reminded of what He desires from you, just take a few moments to review the life of Jesus Christ and be uplifted by the aura of hope that emanates from the word of God. 

Thanks for reading,

Ethan