Free To Forgive

                One of the many blessings of being in Christ is the peace of mind that comes from knowing that our sins (which are many) have been forgiven in Him.  Paul’s introduction to his letter to the church in Ephesus is a dramatic expression of a Christian who is awed with this wonderful gift that God bestows on every believer.  What love God has shown us!  How blessed we are to have this privilege!  As in the credit card commercial: “Priceless!”

            Now we can live the way God created us to live - as people who are striving for righteousness.  So, do you live like a forgiven person?  Are you expressing this blessed reality by imitating the life that Jesus portrayed?  In Ephesians 4:25-32, we’re given quite a lengthy list of attitudes that have no place in the lives of people striving for righteousness.  Some are obvious and pose no problem to many Christians.  But, if we’re honest, we will all agree that there are some attitudes in Paul’s list that are very difficult to overcome.

            Fortunately, the life of righteousness is really summed up by the apostle with the closing statement of this list:  “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you”.  Wonderful!  I have the privilege of being to others what God has been to me - kind, loving and forgiving.

            But now comes the real test.  Are we offering this same gift to those around us or do we think that forgiveness is only for us (or for those we decide are worthy of it)?  Like Peter asks of Jesus in Matthew 18, do we wonder if there is a limit to whom we extend our forgiveness?  According to Jesus, there can be no end to forgiveness.  In fact, the Scriptures point out two realities about our forgiving others: (1) If forgiveness ends, our relationships end, and (2) if God forgives (as He promises to), we have no choice - we HAVE TO forgive.

Note the following from Corrie ten Boom:

            Years after her experience in a Nazi concentration camp, Corrie ten Boom (Holocaust survivor) found herself standing face to face with one of the most cruel and heartless German guards she had met while in the camps. This man had humiliated and degraded both her and her sister, jeering at them and visually “raping” them as they stood in the delousing shower.

            Now he stood before her with an outstretched hand, asking, “Will you forgive me?”

            Corrie said: “I stood there with coldness clutching at my heart, but I know that the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. I prayed, ‘Jesus, help me!’ Woodenly, mechanically I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me and I experienced an incredible thing. The current started in my shoulder, raced down into my arm and sprang into our clutched hands. Then this warm reconciliation seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. ‘I forgive you, brother,’ I cried with my whole heart. For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard, the former prisoner. I have never known the love of God so intensely as I did in that moment!

            When we forgive we set a prisoner free – ourselves!

(The Hiding Place (Washington Depot: Chosen Books, 1971), 215-216.)

            Would you like to be free from feelings of anger and hatred?  Do you comprehend what God was doing for you with Jesus on the cross?  Learn to forgive others the same way He has forgiven you.  No one can live a life “Holy to the Lord” until the joy and relief of forgiving others becomes a constant habit.

Doug

Keep Growing

    Too many today just want to do enough to get by.  They don’t want to put in too much effort and “waste their lives away” with details.  I would estimate that more than half of the students in my college class are only interested in getting an “average” grade just so they can pass and get on with “more important / useful” subjects.  It seems their aim in life is to be “average” so they can expend most of their time on what they consider to be fun, advantageous, or appealing to their personal cravings.

     The following, borrowed from an old bulletin article, states my feelings on “being average” perfectly:

            “Average means ‘run-of-the-mill; mediocre; a non-entity, or insignificant.’

            Being ‘average’ is to take up space for no purpose; to take a trip through life, but never pay the fare; no return of interest for God’s investment in you.

            Being ‘average’ is to pass one’s life away with time, rather than to pass one’s time away with life.  It’s to kill time, rather than to work it to death.

            To be ‘average’ is to be forgotten once you pass from this life.  The successful are remembered because they tried; but the ‘average,’ the silent majority, is forgotten because they ‘didn’t want to.’

            To be ‘average’ is to commit a great crime against yourself and against humanity.

            There is one thing good about being ‘average’ and ‘alive.’  We still have time to repent.”

Adapted from Ferman Carpenter

     I believe whole-heartedly that God did NOT create any of us to be “average.”  The commands to “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28) bear this out implicitly.  So many Scriptures urge God’s people to keep growing in their faith and avoid becoming stagnant (average).  Peter’s NT letters go a long way toward informing us of Satan’s desire to “eat” those who are not being watchful (being average) and to insist on our need to continue adding to (building / growing) our faith (1 Peter 5:8; 2 Peter 1:3-9).

     Fight the urges Satan plants in your mind to “take it easy” or to “take a break and be average.”  That kind of thinking is fatal to your soul.  Keep moving; a moving target is harder to hit.  Keep growing; God will become dearer and His power stronger the more you get to know Him.  Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus; He will get you through life’s chaos.  Strive to be above-average and show everyone around you how a disciple of Christ overcomes the world (1 John 5:4-5) rather than just doing enough to get by.

Doug

Our Source of Strength

     I’ve heard stories about people who, in moments of crisis, are able to muster an amount of super-human strength.  A man is able to lift a car off of someone stuck underneath it.  Workmen tunnel through rock to rescue those trapped inside a collapsed mine shaft.  A soldier carries a wounded comrade for miles to a field hospital.

     Where does this extraordinary strength come from?  Why can’t we use it more often for ordinary problems of life?  Can you imagine the great things we would be able to do if we could just tap into this resource at will? 

     The Bible tells us often that we do have access to a tremendous amount of strength every moment of every day.  But it isn’t where we would usually look for it.  It doesn’t reside within us.  There is a divine power that is graciously given to us by God.  And it is available to all of those who are in Christ.  Because it is only for those who are housing God’s Spirit (see Acts 2:38; Romans 8:9-11; 2 Corinthians 6:19-20).

     Sin and fear blind our minds from being able to see and appreciate the sheer power afforded us by the Holy Spirit: sin, because we have been distracted from focusing on our true goal - Jesus (Hebrews 12:3); and fear, because we don’t fully understand or appreciate God’s forgiveness nor His desire to surround us with His constant presence.  But for those who are being transformed into the likeness of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18), getting rid of our sin and overcoming fear by faith, we have at our disposal an abundant power to do extraordinary things (see Philippians 4:13).

     Our problem is in understanding what the source of this great power is.  When we think that it is something we have to accomplish and provide, we fail.  However, when we acknowledge that our ability to do anything in life comes only by the grace of God and any good thing we are able to accomplish comes through His Spirit motivating us, then we have enormous power to succeed beyond all expectations. 

     This is why we are to do all things to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).  He ensures our success especially when we are hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down (2 Corinthians 4:7-9).  Our success at anything in life is only possible when He is the source of our strength.

Doug

The Living Word

What would you consider to be the most powerful thing in the world?  A Mack truck?  The atom bomb?  How about the AIDS virus, or a volcano blast, or an earthquake, or a tsunami?  While I would agree with you on the awesome magnitude of all of these things, I have to say that I know of something much stronger than all of the above put together.
The most powerful thing in the world is . . . words.

Spoken or written, the things we say have supreme power.  Words can build or destroy.  They can send nations to war or ensure peace.  They can make others into enemies or friends.  They can condemn or save.  It all depends on how we use them (James 3:3-12).

It is no wonder, then, that God chose words to reveal Himself and His laws to man.  The Bible, rightly called God’s Word, is a storehouse of absolute power.  In it we learn how the universe came into being, why we were created and how God has brought about our redemption from sin (Notice how John calls Jesus The Word – John 1).  And though many people refuse to listen to God’s Word, the basic principles for proper living which are contained in its pages cannot be improved upon or substituted without serious consequences.  

Yet many people never enjoy the tremendous power of God’s Word that is right within their grasp.  Even those who have learned and read it most of their lives are still defeated by Satan’s distractions and distortions.  Why is that?  Because just knowing what God says is not enough.  The power of God’s Word is in its application to our everyday lives (James 1:22).  

The Gospel has the power of salvation, but only when it is obeyed (Romans 1:16).  God’s Spirit helps us through our trials with life, but only when we humble ourselves and follow Him completely (Romans 8:31).  His “Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105), but only when I willingly live according to its principles.

Our world is falling apart because people think they can improve upon God’s Word.  What they fail to realize is that you can’t improve upon perfection.  And the only thing in the universe that is continually being proved true and perfect is the Word of God; the power to live life to its fullest.

Get to know God and His Word.  Make it a daily part of your life.  Practice its principles and share them with others.  This is the only way to make life successful (Joshua 1:7).

Doug

Jonah: the Reluctant Servant

            I grew up in a full house; four older sisters and one younger brother.  And we all had assigned jobs to do.  My job was to cut the lawn, shovel the snow, and (because I was youngest) feed the cat and keep the litter box cleaned.  I hated that last assignment.  I remember trying to pass it off on my brother, but it didn’t work.  I considered running away, but realized that I would be the one suffering. The only thing to do was to endure it.

            So, you could say that I understand a little bit about how Jonah felt when God gave him the assignment he wrote about in the Old Testament.  He hated the people of Nineveh.  They were nasty, evil people.  And they were not part of God’s chosen family.  The last thing he wanted was for God to forgive them.  Therefore, he decided to run away. 

            Far from being a cute children’s story, the lessons we learn from Jonah’s struggle to obey God are still very practical in our modern day, adult lives.  For example, Jonah thought that if he could get away from Canaan, he would be free from having to obey.  Three days being confined in the belly of a huge fish taught him otherwise.  But don’t we tend to put boundaries on God?  Do you think He only dwells in church buildings (Acts 17:24)?  Or that He only looks in on His people on Sundays?  No . . . God is boundless.  He is everywhere you are - at all times.

            Jonah also teaches us that our God is a very gracious God.  The Ninevites were an extremely evil and barbaric people.  Yet, when they repented, God forgave them.  This kind of amazing grace tends to put us to shame doesn’t it?  Does this tell us something about how God feels toward those we would consider outsiders or worthless or contemptible?  (see Luke 9:49-50)

            Most importantly, this story teaches us the necessity of obeying God’s will.  God did not ask Jonah what he thought of the idea.  He didn’t even ask him if he wanted to do it.  God wanted it done, and He wanted Jonah to do it.  He also calls many of us today to help others and serve in various ways.  But if we refuse to obey, especially when we have chosen to dislike the one who can use our help, God finds a way to make us rethink our commitment and readjust our attitude.

            I hope you don’t have to spend time in a “fish’s belly” before you are willing to obey God.  There are so many searching for the blessedness of being in Christ. You can help lead them to take advantage of it. And after all, life is so much easier (and less stressful) when you can say, “Here am I.  Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8).

Doug