IF

Have you ever noticed that God's promises are conditional.  There is always an IF attached to them.  What's really cool is that God gives us a road map for our salvation as well as His favor.  Here are a couple of verses to illustrate the point.

Leviticus 26:3-4(NKJV)

3    ‘If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them,

4    then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

Here is where God said to His chosen people that if they followed God and did things His way, life would be good.  So as you can see God's promises weren't without strings attached.  There was a cost.  In this case it was following all of the laws that God had put in place through Moses.

  

As Christians we have it much easier.  As I pointed out yesterday, the Apostle Paul says that we gentiles are not bound by the law.  We simply have to follow Christ. 

Galatians 6:9-10(NKJV)

9And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 

10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Here is another good verse.  Sometimes we can get a bit tired helping others.  What is the promise here?  That in the proper time we will reap.  What is the IF?  That we not lose heart.  Another way of saying that is that we need to keep our hope alive.  If we do than we will reap the reward.  Pretty cool!

Does our salvation come with an IF?  It sure does.  Do you know what it is?  The IF is that you have to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.  Why?  Because God said so.  His game, His rules.  Have you accepted Jesus into your life?  Why not do it right now?  Just say a simple prayer, something like this: "Dear Lord, I'm kinda new to this and I don't get it all yet but the one thing that I do know is that I want Jesus to now be the Lord of my life.  Thank you so much for Him.  Amen!"

Led by the Spirit? Not Under the Law!

I've been reading Leviticus lately in the OT and several of Paul's letters in the NT.  What a stark contrast.  Leviticus is 27 chapters of do's and don'ts.  Twenty seven chapters of the law.  And if I am understanding Paul correctly, not a bit of it applies to us gentiles who are saved through faith in Christ, unless we volunteer to have it apply to us.. 

Galatians 5:1-6(NKJV)

1Stand£ fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. 

2Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. 

3And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. 

4You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. 

5For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 

6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.

Galatians 5:18(NKJV)

18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

We are to live by faith first, foremost, and exclusively.  Maybe I'm misunderstanding this but it seems to be saying that if we try to conform to the law in any way we are then bound by the law in all things.  In essence we have thrown away the advantage we have in Christ.

Now Paul is very careful to say that our freedom in Christ doesn't give us the right to be lawless.  We just have a much simpler mandate from our Savior.

Galatians 5:13-14(NKJV)

13For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 

14For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” £ 

So from here on out, if in doubt, ask yourself one question.  Am I being led by the Spirit?  If so then listen to Him!

Children of Promise!

Things not going your way?  Life got you down?  Are you facing challenges in your life?  If so then I've got a great Scripture for you today.

Galatians 4:28(NKJV)

28Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. 

Once we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we become heirs in Christ.  We become Children of Promise.  God has made many promises to us.  All we have to do is learn what those promises are and then stand on those promises. 

What are some of those promises?  Let's list just a few.  Let's start with one of my very favorites.

Romans 5:3-5(NKJV)

3And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 

4and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 

5Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

 

If we will bear our tribulations with grace, there are many life changing benefits that will come out of it.  It clearly says that if we have hope in our hearts, God WILL NOT disappoint us.

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

God's plans for us are good.  They give us a future and hope.  And what did we learn about hope above?  That when God gives us hope, He doesn't disappoint. 

Now if you are thinking "ya but things really suck right now.  If God's plan for me is so good how come it sucks right now?"

Fair question.  There can be many reasons.  Sometimes its because God just needs you to go through some stuff to learn some new life lessons.  Sometimes we need to evaluate what we are doing right now and maybe change our approach.  Notice I'm not saying that what you are doing now is sinning and your not getting ahead just because of that (although that can sometimes be the case). 

What I'm saying is that sometimes we are just stalled because of our approach.  It may be something as simple as changing our thought patterns and speech patterns.  The great thing is that if you search for it, God will reveal the answers to you in His word.

Here are some others I find helpful.

Matthew 11:28-29

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Isaiah 40:29-31

He gives power to the weak

and strength to the powerless.

Even youths will become weak and tired,

and young men will fall in exhaustion.

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.

They will soar high on wings like eagles.

They will run and not grow weary.

They will walk and not faint.

John 14:27

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

The bottom line is that you are not powerless.  You have the ability to make your situation better.  It starts with accepting Jesus.  Have you done that yet?  If so then dig into the Scriptures with absolute faith that you are a Child of Promise.  God wants great things for you.  Take hope and let Him guide you, He will not disappoint!

Known By God

Galatians 4:9(NKJV)

9But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? 

It's one thing to know God, it's a whole different thing to be known by God.  Think about it.  God knows who you are.  Let me illustrate it this way.

Have you ever had someone that you and many others really look up to greet you or acknowledge you by name?  Maybe at a conference or something like that.  They know you by name and even stop to talk with you.  Feels good doesn't it. 

How much cooler is it that God knows who we are.  Wow.  Does God know you?  Would you like Him to?   Then simply ask Jesus to come into your life today!

Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer!

Leviticus 22:20(NKJV)

20Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf. 

I've been reading Leviticus lately and I've got to admit, there is a lot of stuff in there that seems to portray God as being very picky.  There are a lot of do's and don'ts that I just don't understand.  They conflict with my view of God the Father.

The verse above however, does not fall into that category.  I think it is just as applicable today as it ever was.  Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer.  That makes perfect sense to me. 

I don't know about you but God has done some incredible things in my life and I am very grateful.  Therefor, the things that I give to God to show my thanks should be the very best that I have to offer.  My first fruits so to speak.

In the OT, they would bring a male animal of some sort as a thanks offering, or a wave offering, or a sin offering, or whatever.  God was very specific.  Don't bring me any animal with a blemish on it.  It won't be accepted.  But we are no longer in OT times.  What is it that we bring to God to show our thanks?

Our very lives.  We are new beings in Christ.  It is therefore incumbent upon us to offer the very best of our lives to God.  The very best of our time, the very best of our efforts, and the very best of our fortunes.  In other words, the very best of all that we have.  Anything less is defective and unacceptable to God. 

Are you giving God the very best that you have to offer?  If not, there's no better time to start than the present.  What can you offer God today?

What Does Freedom in Christ Mean?

As we get ready to celebrate freedom and the 4th of July here in this country I was wondering what to write about.  One of the coolest things about writing this blog has been personally witnessing the many times God has just stepped in and taken over the keyboard.  Today is another such case.

As I wondered what to write, this headline came to me, as if out of thin air some might say.  Directly from God through the Holy Spirit would be my answer.  Then I was led to search the phrase "freedom in Christ" on Yahoo.  Then of the 117,000,000 results, the link I am going to provide was the very first one I clicked on, and no it wasn't the first one on the list.  I hope it blesses you as it did me.

As we celebrate the birth of America, please keep the guardians of our freedoms, our Armed Forces, in your prayers!  Happy 4th of July!!!

Freedom In Christ

You shall not be partial to the poor-Lev. 19:15

That sure seems contrary to what we have been taught in the NT.  What's the deal?  As I've said many times, the Bible is a book of balance.  Most people think of the verses in the NT that refer to the poor but they tend to ignore the OT verses dealing with the same issue.

Leviticus 19:15(NKJV)

15‘You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor. 

 It seems to me that over the years there has been a transition from trying to help the poor to turning being poor into some kind of a virtue.  I think that is reflected in the Social Justice movement of the church today.  But look at what the Bible says in Leviticus 19:15. 

We aren't to favor the poor and we aren't to favor the wealthy either.  For justice to be served we are to treat them equally.  We are to give each a fair hearing and judge only on the facts, not on their social standing. 

So the next time you hear any of the get the rich rhetoric this campaign season, think back to Leviticus 19:15 and recognize it for what it is.