Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” asked the men. “He is not here, but he has risen! Remember how he spoke to you when he was still in Galilee, saying, ‘It is necessary that the Son of Man be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and rise on the third day’? And they remembered his words.” Luke 24:5-8 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Jesus defeated the curse of death.”

All this month we’ve been considering how it is that Jesus changed everything with respect to the manner in which people are able to relate to God. We’ve seen first that Jesus was God in a human body. While He was here, He spoke the words of God to us and He showed us who God is and what He is like, and He did it in ways that we can understand and relate to.

We also learned that when He died upon the cross, He took upon Himself all of our sins, and in exchange He gives us all of His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of that great act of substitution, we can now enter into God’s holy, pure, and perfect heaven. Then, next in the sequence of changes that had to occur in order to usher mankind into the final age of human history, Jesus defeated death.

The resurrection of Christ has rightly been called the greatest event in all of human history. Ever since Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, humans have had to contend with a steadily deteriorating physical condition that ultimately results in physical death. Death is often referred to as a curse, and it is something humans fear. But when Jesus arose from the dead, He defeated death. When He demonstrated His power over death, He made it possible for those who have faith in Him to defeat death as well. That doesn’t mean that we will never die physically, even Jesus suffered physical death. But it does mean that just as Jesus had life after death, so will we (Mark 16:16; John 3:16; 3:36; 5:24: 6:47).

So at this point in the sequence of events, with the resurrection an accomplished fact, the groundwork had all been laid – all but two of the pieces were in place. All that was left before the last era of human history was fully inaugurated was for Jesus to ascend back into heaven, and for the Holy Spirit to come on the day of Pentecost. We will consider those two events next.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” John 6:44 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “The Holy Spirit draws us to Christ”

So far in our study of life on this side of the cross we’ve learned that when Jesus came to earth, He changed everything. He ushered the human race into the final age of human history and from that point on, we would be able to relate to Father God in a completely new, and much more personal way than was ever possible before.

Throughout His ministry here on earth – especially in the months before His crucifixion and then in the six weeks after His resurrection, Jesus promised that once He ascended back to heaven the Holy Spirit would be sent to earth to take His place. Jesus explained that the work of the Spirit would be to serve as our counselor and guide, and He would convict us of our sin.

Another role of the Spirit is to draw people to God through Christ. In John 6:44 Jesus said that no one would be able to come to Him unless the Father draws him. In John 12:32 Jesus promised that once He had been lifted up and glorified, returning to His place in heaven at the right hand of the Father, the drawing would then take place: “But when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to myself.” The drawing is actually accomplished by the work of the Holy Spirit. The Father and the Son are in heaven, the Holy Spirit is at work on earth. The Spirit draws us to the Son for salvation, and the Son presents us to the Father as His children to be adopted into the family of God.

The Holy Spirit draws us to Christ first of all for salvation. All throughout your life the Spirit works quietly behind the scenes creating situations to confront you with your sin and to show you your need for a Savior. Then, once you have placed your faith in Christ, His drawing power shifts to the work of discipleship. As your counselor and guide, and as the one who convicts you of your sin, it’s His job to draw you into an ever-deepening relationship with Jesus and the Father.

For the people of God on this side of the cross we are actually drawn to God – first for salvation through Christ, and then into serious and deep discipleship with Him. The Holy Spirit is the One who does the drawing.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do the things I say?” Luke 6:46 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Accept Him as Savior, and follow Him as Lord.”

Obedience has always been a problem for God’s people. Beginning with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and extending all the way through history to you and me this morning, living in faithful obedience to God’s commands has always been something of a challenge for us.

For the Old Testament Jews God provided detailed instructions which began with the Ten Commandments, and it eventually included the entirety of the Mosaic Law. The Scribes and Pharisees then took what God had given through Moses, and embellished it in extraordinary ways in an effort to give the people detailed instructions to guide virtually every aspect of life. But still, it wasn’t enough. The people still lived in disobedience and were constantly having to offer sacrifices to atone for their sins.

Even in the days when the human Jesus was walking among us, people disobeyed Him. That’s what He was referring to in Luke 6:46 when He asked, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do the things I say?” It’s no different in our day. There are plenty of people running around professing to be Christians, calling Jesus “Lord, Lord”, but then not doing the things that He says.

This is where the Holy Spirit comes in. As we learned yesterday, one of the things He does in our lives is to convict us of sin. Therefore, when we do stray from acceptable standards of conduct we have our personal mentor and life coach, the One who lives in our heart and who is with us 24/7, the One who whispers quietly into our heart “You’re not supposed to be doing that, you big dummy!” (Or words to that effect).  He then guides us to the truth, counsels us, reminds us of what we know to be right based upon our knowledge of God’s Word, and He nudges us back into the center of God’s will.

Sadly, there are many people who profess Jesus as Savior but who do not follow Him as Lord. A real and deep and dynamic relationship with the Holy Spirit will help us to avoid that pitfall. The Holy Spirit is the One who draws us to Christ for salvation (we will see this tomorrow), but He is also the One who enables us to follow Him as Lord. I encourage you to nurture your relationship with the Spirit and follow Jesus as Lord.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment.” John 16:7-8 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “The Holy Spirit plays a vital role in our lives.”

In yesterday’s devotional we read about Jesus starting to prepare His disciples for His departure from this world and for the coming of the Holy Spirit in His place. In today’s passage from John 16:7-8 He even tells them that they will be better off when He is gone and the Spirit has come. At that time, they couldn’t possibly comprehend how that could be. They didn’t understand that rather than having the human Jesus living with them, they would instead have the Holy Spirit living inside of them. That understanding still eluded them, but it shouldn’t elude us. The important truth about the nature of the Spirit’s work in the lives of believers pertains to our lives too, and therefore we must understand it and embrace it.

Yesterday, in John 14:16, we read that Jesus called the Spirit “The Counselor”. What that means is that the Spirit living in our hearts whispers wise words of counsel to us as we make decisions day-by-day and moment-by-moment. He guides us in big ways and in small. Jesus also called Him “The Spirit of truth”, meaning that the Spirit helps Christians to discern truth from lies – the ways of God from the ways of Satan. In John 16:13 He said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.”

In John 14:26 Jesus said that the Holy Spirit will teach us, and He will also remind us of the things we have learned. In other words, once you have made the effort to learn the important truths of God, and once you have memorized passages of Scripture, the Holy Spirit will bring those lessons and those passages to your mind at the times when you need them. (However, He won’t bring to your mind things you never bothered to put in there to begin with! So, study the Bible, learn the lessons, and memorize the verses so they will be there for the Spirit to remind you of.)

Finally, in today’s passage, in John 16:8, Jesus tells us that another function of the Holy Spirit is to convict the world of sin. By “world” Jesus meant the individuals who make up the world. In other words, you and me. The Holy Spirit will convict you and me of our sins. That’s one of the important roles He plays in our lives.

As Jesus was patiently working with His young disciples and building this body of understanding for them, He was helping them to understand that on this side of the cross, rather than relying on the Old Testament Law as our guide for living, or even on the human Jesus walking with us, we would have the Holy Spirit of God living in our hearts and working in our lives to convict, teach, guide, counsel, and remind. He is your own personal mentor and life-coach who is with you 24/7 and who never leaves you. How well do you know Him? How much influence are you allowing Him to have in your life?

We’ll continue thinking about this tomorrow.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “If you love me, you will keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. He is the Spirit of truth … I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.” John 14:15-17; 25-26 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “The Spirit is the key to successful living on this side of the cross.”

In recent days we have learned about the doctrine of dispensationalism and of progressive revelation. So now we understand that when Jesus came, He ushered the human race into an entirely new era of history that would be unlike any other. We also learned about the doctrine of substitution, and how it could be that the death of Jesus on the cross was sufficient to pay the penalty for our sins. When Jesus came, He changed everything!

So, try to imagine the shock and dismay of His closest followers as Jesus tried to explain to them that soon He was going to die on a cross (Mark 8:31). The Jews had waited so long for the promised Messiah to come! And now that He had finally arrived, after they had waited for a thousand years, they were being told that He was about to be killed, and that He would then arise from the grave after three days, but after that He would ascend back into heaven and leave them all over again! It was more than they could comprehend or accept. That’s why, in Matthew 26:33 and in John 13:37, Peter boldly declared that He would defend Jesus, and even die for Him, in order to prevent such a thing from happening. And it’s why, in the Garden of Eden when they came to arrest Jesus, Peter pulled out a sword and began to fight on His behalf.

Yes, His closest followers understood that Jesus was ushering them into an entirely new era of human history, and they were in awe of what was happening, but at that point they had little understanding of what the nature of that new era would be. They didn’t really understand who or what the Holy Spirit was and what a pivotal and vital factor He would be for life on this side of the cross. From the day of Pentecost onward, the believer’s relationship with the Holy Spirit would be the key to successful and victorious living in the kingdom of God on earth, but they didn’t understand that yet. That was a concept that was only beginning to be introduced in the days when Jesus walked the earth in His human body, but it is a fully-developed reality for us today.

In the passage we read today, Jesus began to develop in His followers a rudimentary understanding of who the Holy Spirit is and what His role in the lives of Christians would be. In the days to come we will explore this teaching in much greater depth, because the Spirit is the key to successful living on this side of the cross.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “We see examples of substitution at work in the world.”

In yesterday’s devotional we thought about the doctrine of substitution as described by the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:21. On the cross Jesus took our sins upon Himself, and in exchange He gave us His righteousness. That’s the doctrine of substitution, both sides of it. Our sins, not credited to us but to Jesus; and in exchange His righteousness credited to us, thereby making us suitable for eternity in heaven. On the cross God treated Jesus as if He had lived your sinful life, so that in eternity He could treat you as if you had lived Jesus’ perfect life.

We know it’s true and yet we’re still left wondering how it could be so. “How can God treat us as if we have not sinned, when He knows full well that we have? Isn’t He just fooling Himself?” And of course, the answer is “No, He’s not just fooling Himself.” God knows that we sinned but He has chosen to accept Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf as the payment for our sins, and then He chooses to simply remember our sins no more. They are in the past, they have been dealt with, and therefore they no longer need to be considered.

What took place on the cross is the ultimate example of the doctrine of substitution in action, but it’s not the only example. We actually see such substitution taking place in life all the time. I’m talking about the soldier who throws his body on top of a live grenade, using his own body to absorb the destructive impact of the explosion and thereby saving the lives of the other soldiers. He gave his life for theirs. They live because he died. Then there was the man who saw two boys being swept away by a raging river. He jumped in and saved them both, but lost his own life in the process. It was the ultimate sacrifice. He died to save them.

I once read a story about a group of Jews during World War Two who were hiding from the Nazis, but who were then discovered in an upstairs room of the house they were in. Among their group was a 14-year-old girl. One of the soldiers grabbed the girl by the wrist and began dragging her to a bedroom, followed by the other soldiers. They were going to rape her. But then a young adult woman in the group called out to them and said, “Wait! She’s only 14 and she has no experience with men. I’m a grown woman and I know how to please men. Take me instead and I will cooperate.” So they took her instead and she was repeatedly gang-raped by the five soldiers, but they left the girl alone. It was a great act of sacrifice that saved someone else from suffering that same fate.

So even in life we find many stories about extraordinary acts of sacrificial substitution where one person suffers, and sometimes even dies, on behalf of others. That’s what Jesus did for us on the cross. He died so you can live. He took your sins upon Himself and gave you His own righteousness in exchange. It was the ultimate example of the doctrine of substitution.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Jesus took your sins and gave you His righteousness.”

The greatest news the world has ever heard is that Jesus Christ came to earth, died upon a cross to pay the penalty for our sins, arose from the grave, and ascended back into heaven, and whoever will place their faith in Him for the forgiveness of their sins will have eternal life in heaven. That’s the Good News. But why was it even necessary for Him to do that? Why did He have to die for our sins? Why did He have to conquer death and arise from the grave? The answer is because we had a sin problem that we couldn’t solve for ourselves.

You see, God is holy and pure and perfect; and heaven is holy and pure and perfect; and no unholy, impure, or imperfect thing can be allowed into heaven or it would spoil it. Heaven would then contain something that was not holy, pure, and perfect. And since we have all sinned (Romans 3:23) our sin makes us unholy, impure, and imperfect and therefore not suitable for heaven.

But Jesus fixed that problem for us. In 2 Corinthians 5:21 the Apostle Paul explained how he did it. There he describes for us what theologians call “The doctrine of substitution”. Jesus had no sin of His own. He was holy and pure and perfect. But on the cross, He took upon Himself all the sins that would ever be committed by anyone who would ever place their faith in Him. That’s what Paul meant when he wrote, “He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us …” As Pastor and author John MacArthur once explained, “On the cross God treated Jesus as if He had committed every sin that would ever be committed by any person, when in fact He committed none of them. That’s the doctrine of substitution. The innocent dies for the guilty.” Jesus didn’t commit any sins, but God treated Him as if He had committed them all. So, the sin problem of the world had been dealt with. The sins had to be dealt with, and they were. But it was Jesus who was punished for them instead of you and me.

Then, Jesus gave us all of His righteousness. Not only did He take our sins upon Himself, but as verse 21 reveals, He then gave His righteousness to us, “… so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” That’s the other side of substitution. On the one side Jesus gets all of our sins. On the other side we get all of His righteousness. That’s why Jesus had to live here on earth for thirty-three years. He lived the perfect and sinless life that you and I aren’t capable of living. Then on the cross He swapped your life for His. He took your sinful life upon Himself, and He gave you His perfect and sinless life in return. That’s the doctrine of substitution. Both sides of it.

That’s how your sins were dealt with. Jesus took your sins, and He gave you His righteousness. We’ll think more about this tomorrow.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”

Our Bible verse for today: “Blessed are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but didn’t see them, to hear the things you hear but didn’t hear them.” Matthew 13:16-17 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Jesus changed everything!”

“Dispensationalism” is a fifty-cent theological word which refers to the understanding that God has interacted with the human race in different ways over the course of history, as His plan for redeeming humans after the fall in the Garden of Eden has unfolded. Dispensationalism is closely related to another theological concept known as “progressive revelation”. These two concepts, taken together, help us to understand that in each era of human history, as God’s plan for the human race has moved closer and closer to fulfillment, God has dealt with us in increasingly familiar ways, progressively revealing more and more about Himself.

In the pre-flood world there was little understanding of or interaction with God. During the time of Abraham God began to interact with humans more directly. Then in the time of Moses and the prophets God became much more interactive and directive, giving us the Ten Commandments, the written Mosaic Law, and eventually the writings of the prophets. Then, in the time of Jesus, God was present in the world in a human body in the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Then finally, after the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, followed by the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came to earth to reside in the hearts of the followers of Jesus, God ushered the world into the final stage of human history, which will end with the second coming of Christ. In this age we have the full disclosure of God about Himself, in the form of the completed Bible, and we have the Holy Spirit living in our hearts. This is an entirely new era and it is different from any other era that has ever existed. And, it is the age in which you and I live. This is the end-stage of the unfolding of God’s plan for the human race.

All this month, as we approach Easter, we will consider what life is supposed to be like for us on this side of the cross. When Jesus came into the world, lived among us, died on the cross, arose from the grave, ascended back into heaven, and then sent the Holy Spirit in His place, He changed everything! Our era is different in important ways from any other era there has ever been. What does that mean? How then should we live? We’ll spend this month before Easter considering those important questions.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Take care of each other”

Our Bible verse for today: “When Jesus saw her, he called out to her, ‘Woman, you are free of your disability.’ Then he laid his hands on her, and instantly she was restored and began to glorify God. But the leader of the synagogue (was) indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath …” Luke 13:12-14 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “People are more important than rules.”

Once, many years ago, in another church in another state, a young single mother came to see me who was a member of a different church. She had gotten pregnant out of wedlock and although she had been encouraged by friends and family to get an abortion, she chose to have and keep her baby. Now, as a new mother and as a Christian, she wanted to have her baby dedicated to the Lord in a Sunday morning worship service. She acknowledged that she was wrong to have had sex outside of marriage, but she did the right thing by having the baby, and now she wanted to do the right thing by dedicating her baby to the Lord and raising the child in church.

But, the Pastor and leaders of her own church refused. They were hardcore legalists, and they were determined not to do or say anything that could in anyway be perceived as possibly endorsing or winking at the sin that had led to the conception of this baby, so they told her they would not participate in dedicating the child to the Lord.

I disagreed with their position. Regardless of the circumstances that led to the pregnancy, here was a beautiful little baby and a mother who wanted to do the right thing for her child. Our job as the church was to help this young woman draw a line in the sand and go forward from there, honoring the Lord and raising her child well. So even though she wasn’t a member of our church, I invited her to come on a Sunday morning and we would gladly assist her in dedicating that baby to the Lord. The leaders and the congregation of our church all enthusiastically agreed, and that baby was dedicated to God.

In Luke 13:10-17 Jesus encountered a woman in the synagogue who had been crippled for eighteen years. Having compassion on her, he healed her and freed her from her long years of affliction, pain, and suffering. But when He did, the leader of the synagogue complained bitterly that the healing had been accomplished on the Sabbath, thereby (in his opinion), violating the law and tradition of not performing any work on the Sabbath. But Jesus informed all of them that this woman was much more important to God than any rule, regulation, tradition, or religious ritual, and that freeing her from her suffering was the right thing to do, regardless of any rules about working on the Sabbath.

The lesson here is that we shouldn’t let anything deter us in our efforts to take care of people, because taking care of people is more important than rules, regulations, traditions, religious rituals, or any other excuse we might come up with for not taking care of them.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Our theme for this month: “Take care of each other”

Our Bible verse for today: “If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” Romans 12:18 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Be a peacemaker”

As a child, teenager, and young adult, I had an anger problem. I had a simmering rage bottled up inside of me and sometimes it would erupt for little or no good reason. I was easily provoked and would sometimes explode over the silliest things. It made life difficult for my parents, for my brothers and sisters, and later in life, for my wife and children.

Fortunately as I got older I mellowed and my anger became less of a problem. And then, thirty years ago, when the Holy Spirit of God finally got ahold of me and started developing the fruit of the Spirit in me (Galatians 5:22-23), love and joy and peace and patience began to replace the anger and the offense.

I’ve discovered in the years since then that it’s a lot more pleasant (for me and for everyone around me) to live in peace than in anger and conflict. In fact, I’ve learned that one of the greatest acts of blessing I can offer to others is to be an agent of peace, to be a peacemaker. Instead of being easily offended or quickly angered, it’s much better to be the one who does not easily take offense and who is seldom angered. The truth is that most things aren’t important enough to get angry over or to be offended about. Even most things you disagree with aren’t important enough to risk a confrontation. I believe that how able we are to simply let unimportant things go is a measure of our spiritual maturity.

In Romans 12:18 the Apostle Paul encouraged us to strive for peace in our relationships with others. He acknowledged that sometimes it’s not possible to live at peace with everyone – sometimes there are issues that have to be addressed, and sometimes other people simply will not let you to be at peace with them. But if it is possible, then as far as it is up to you, work for peace.

When it comes to taking care of others one of the most helpful things you can do is to be an agent of peace, someone who brings peace and stability into relationships rather than anger and strife. I encourage you to help make everyone’s lives better by being the one who strives for peace. Be a peacemaker.

God Bless,
Pastor Jim