Experience The Goodness Of God

Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

1 Chronicles 16:34 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.

Romans 2:4  Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

Every one of us has experienced God's goodness in their life to some degree and most of us have experienced a very high level of God's goodness in comparison to thousands of other people that have lived. But despite how good he is God's people always need to be reminded of this fact.

We have a difficult time appreciating the goodness of God, it goes all the way back to the garden of Eden, no matter how good we have it we always think there is more that we should have. Living in the garden was the greatest experience of God's goodness that mankind has ever known but that didn't guarantee the best outcome. 

If Adam and Eve can feel that there is something that they were missing then we are surely guaranteed to doubt the vast amount of God's goodness as well. In our social media world we have the ability to compare ourselves and the stuff that we have with a multitude of other people. We need a way to stay focused when we have the fear of missing out that causes us to doubt God's goodness.

Taste

Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

To focus on God's goodness you need to taste it and taste it again just like you would taste again and again a delicious food. Don't be satisfied with just the aroma, don't walk by the kitchen and catch a whiff, step in and grab a plate and have a taste!

The joy of tasting is a personal experience, somebody else can help you know a little bit about the taste but you must have your own taste. The flavor is something that you can know only through your own experience. A taste this good should motivate you to taste it again and again.

Trust

Nahum 1:7 The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him.

Thankfully the most powerful being is also the most good! Very few people with power are very kind, if you or I were powerful we would probably do like everybody else and use it for our own advantage, but thankfully the most powerful is perfectly good. 

If the most powerful was any less good we couldn't trust him enough to draw near, we wouldn't have a strong refuge that we can trust and draw close to.

We need to remember that we cannot measure the goodness of God with problem free living. The person with the most trouble in this life may be living the most in God's will. Just like the religious leaders that Jesus rebuked, we cannot accurately discern why they have the trouble so we should not blame them for their situation. Nobody in the Bible was rewarded with an easy life as a reward for obedience.

Isaiah 48:10  I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.

The goodness of God is always there, even in suffering, our holiness is usually becoming more perfect in difficulty. This is a reality that will change your perspective of "good" and "bad" circemstances. 

How can anything be bad if God is using all things for my good? (Romans 8:28, Hebrews 12:10) We all want the easy life but the most important thing to God is for us to be like him. 

A more difficult truth to accept is maybe the hard time you are going through has nothing to do with you?  Just maybe your country, your church or your family is being disciplined and you are affected by what God is doing in others. How much did good people suffer in the Old Testament because the rest of the group was being punished by God? 

A great example of this is Joseph in an Egyptian prison or Daniel and his friends in Babylon. We focus everything on ourselves but God's story is not all about us.

Treasure

Ephesians 1:7-8  He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.  8  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

To remember God's goodness we need to treasure the most important gift ever! God made the most extravagant purchase ever, what an incredibly high price for such lowly, undeserving creatures.

You may be so kind that you would die for your family or a small group of friends but God showed us perfect kindness by taking his perfect wrath upon himself, through his perfect son. God's awesome goodness could stop there and we should be eternally grateful but there is more goodness coming our way eternally if we accept Jesus sacrifice. (Romans 8:32)

1 John 4:9-10  God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.  10  This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

The greatest gift, the one that I really needed the most, is the reason we celebrate Christmas but his arrival was just the beginning of the story of God's plan to destroy the work of Satan so that everything bad can be made good. Don't take his kindness for granted.

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Perfect Gifts Series (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)

Redeemed To Live A New Way

God's children obey their father's commands for their good and his glory.

Exodus 20:1 Then God gave the people all these instructions.

Exodus 20:20 “Don’t be afraid,” Moses answered them, “for God has come in this way to test you, and so that your fear of him will keep you from sinning!”

 

Deuteronomy 8:5-6 Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you for your own good. 6 “So obey the commands of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and fearing him.

1 Peter 1:15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.

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In the previous post God's people learned about his holiness which affects everything about him. It is the supreme quality that affects how that he does but it also affects us as well. And since God is holy he cannot have a personal relationship with people that are unholy. the people that want to have a peaceful relationship with him must be holy as well.

Our world doesn't like to hear about a God that makes demands, the gods that are popular today allow you to make your own rules, you get to be the "truth" police. That may work for you before you die but the real God and his version are truth will ultimately take over.

God is holy and he tells us to strive to live up to a higher standard, the "you be you" generation sounds kind and loving but you don't get the final say, we have been told to imitate our father in our attitudes and our lifestyle. Like it or not, we will submit to his rules and authority, it is your choice to do it now or later on after it is too late.

God's rules are for our benefit, he is just like any loving parent that sets boundaries, God wants the best for his children and he wants them to obey some basic instructions to keep them from trouble, he saves us from evil and doesn't want us to continue our lives in it. 

God gave us 10 basic commands:

How to love God:

1. Worship no god but the Lord.

2. Make no images to worship.

3. Do not use God’s name for evil purposes.

4. Observe God’s day of rest.

How to love your neighbor:

5. Respect your father and mother.

6. Do not commit murder.

7. Do not commit adultery.

8. Do not steal.

9. Do not accuse anyone falsely.

10. Do not desire another man’s wife or what he owns.

We should love God and others extravagantly 

Looking at the theme of the Ten Commandments, it is clear that we were made for love, both giving love and receiving love to God and to the people we interact with. The first four commands tell us to relate to God and the other six tells us how to live with our neighbors.

1 John 4:9  God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 

1 John 4:11  Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

God didn't just demand love as a way of life for his children, he also gave us the ultimate example of how extreme we are too love. I was his enemy and with just cause, I was rotten to the core, the most unholy and undeserving of his affection but that didn't stop him from loving me extravagantly.

If I love God then it should show in how I live, Jesus told us that one of the ways to prove that we have experienced God's love is that we will love our neighbors, that's how the world will know who God's children really are and that's how he will get the glory he deserves.

RELATED ARTICLES

Christ Died for Our Sins That We Might Die to Sin (desiringgod.org)

Perfect Gifts: Love

Love is the best gift of all!

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8  But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Colossians 1:19  For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ,

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Have you ever thought about how amazing God's love is?

God's love is great enough to love a rebellious sinner that fails to acknowledge him as God and give him the love and respect that he deserves. I don't love him as well as he deserves and he doesn't love me how well I deserve to be loved either. He loves me far better than I deserve.

God loves me so much that he has done everything that he can do to give me the option of spending eternity with him. He left the splendor of heaven and come to earth to suffer and die just because of his perfect love.

There was not any other motivation for God to send us his son on that first Christmas night other than his love for us! After thousands of years of rebellion he is still loving mankind and offering us a path forward to live with him for eternity.

We can learn a lot about how to love better by following his example. God was willing to become a vulnerable little child whose life was threatened, born into poverty and used for selfish gain by the crowds around him.

He showed us how to love despite the reaction of the people that we are giving love to. So what if the love doesn't come back to you, according to our example, we are still supposed to show love, Jesus endured a lot of abuse and he never stopped loving us.

1 Corinthians 13:13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

There are a lot of gifts being passed around this time of year, some of them small and inexpensive, some of them are creating a lot of debt, but their is a gift that will top them all. The only priceless gift that creates a huge debt that you should be giving is the gift of love that we have received from God.

Thank you Lord for really loving us and giving us the definition of love so that we can know how to truly love others completely.

Help Us To Love

God help me to love the way that you love me.

Video: Tori Kelly - Help Us To Love

There's a love so high (that you cannot get over)

That same love's so wide (it'll take forever just to get 'round it)

But love died somewhere

Behind that cross you wear, you're afraid when you look at me

That ain't real love

Not the kind from above, hmm

But there's a friend of mine (that stays closer than a brother)

Oooh, love laid down his life (so why do we still fight one another?)

All this hate I see on the TV screen

In my country 'tis of thee

(God help us to love) to love the way that you love me

Hmmm, God help us to love the way that you love me, oh oh

This world is weeping, hurting, broken and begging for change

Oh yeah

But still we marching, praying, dying, and things stay the same

When will we see?

Till everyone's free

There'll never be peace between you and me

God, your love is the cure

For the rich and the poor

God, please will you open our eyes?

'Cause I want a love so high (that you cannot get over)

Ooh, I want a love so wide (it'll take forever just to get 'round it)

No, no, no, no, no

But it don't come cheap

It takes everything to make love more than a dream

God help us to love (God help us to love)

God help us to love (this world needs your love)

We need your love (what we need now is love)

Fill us with your love, Lord (unconditional love)

We need your love (rain down on us, your love)

Oh, we need your love (fill us please with your love)

God help me to love the way that you love me

God's Love Must Be Shared

2 Corinthians 5:14-15  Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.  15  He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. 1 Peter 4:8  Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. Hebrews 6:10-11  For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers, as you still do.  11  Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true.

Revolutionary

When did hate become so ordinary?

Video: Josh Wilson - Revolutionary

Maybe you're not like me

Maybe we don't agree

Maybe that doesn't mean

We gotta be enemies

Maybe we just get brave

Take a big leap of faith

Call a truce so me and you

Can find a better way

Let's take some time, open our eyes, look and listen, yeah

And we're gonna find we're more alike than we are different, yeah

Why does kindness seem revolutionary

When did we let hate get so ordinary

Let's turn it around, flip the script

Judge slow, love quick

God help us get revolutionary

I'm turning the TV down

Drowning their voices out

'Cause I believe that you and me

Can find some common ground

See maybe I'm not like you

But I'll walk a mile in your shoes

If it means I might see

The world the way you do

Let's take some time, open our eyes, look and listen

And we're gonna find we're more alike than we are different

What would Jesus do

He would love first

He would love first, hmm

What would Jesus do

He would love first

Yeah, He would love first

So we should love first

John 13:34-35 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.

Jesus, Friend Of Sinners

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers.

Video: Casting Crowns - Jesus, Friend of Sinners

Jesus, friend of sinners, we have strayed so far away

We cut down people in your name but the sword was never ours to swing

Jesus, friend of sinners, the truth's become so hard to see

The world is on their way to You but they're tripping over me

Always looking around but never looking up I'm so double minded

A plank eyed saint with dirty hands and a heart divided

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers

Let our hearts be led by mercy

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners, break our hearts for what breaks yours

Jesus, friend of sinners, the one who's writing in the sand

Make the righteous turn away and the stones fall from their hands

Help us to remember we are all the least of thieves

Let the memory of Your mercy bring Your people to their knees

No one knows what we're for only against when we judge the wounded

What if we put down our signs crossed over the lines and loved like You did

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers

Let our hearts be led by mercy

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners, break our hearts for what breaks yours

You love every lost cause; you reach for the outcast

For the leper and the lame; they're the reason that You came

Lord I was that lost cause and I was the outcast

But you died for sinners just like me, a grateful leper at Your feet

'Cause You are good, You are good and Your love endures forever

You are good, You are good and Your love endures forever

You are good, You are good and Your love endures forever

You are good, You are good and Your love endures forever

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers

Let our hearts be led by mercy

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners, break our hearts for what breaks Yours

And I was the lost 'cause and I was the outcast

You died for sinners just like me, a grateful leper at Your feet

Best Friend Ever
Luke 15:7  In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!

Who Is Your Friend

You need the best friend possible and he needs to influence your life.

Genesis 18:1-4 The LORD appeared again to Abraham near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. One day Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent during the hottest part of the day. 2 He looked up and noticed three men standing nearby.

When he saw them, he ran to meet them and welcomed them, bowing low to the ground. 3 “My lord,” he said, “if it pleases you, stop here for a while. 4 Rest in the shade of this tree while water is brought to wash your feet.

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It wasn't all that long ago that Abraham didn't know the true, living God but when God said go Abram trusted him enough to go. That was the beginning of Abraham's imperfect journey of faith, a trip that would take him to Haran with his dad, to Canaan and then to Egypt, a journey that was full of important lessons along the way.

It has been a bumpy road but Abraham has grown in his relationship with God, his love and fellowship with him has grown deeper and more intimate through the years, so much so that Abraham has became known as a friend of God. (James 2:23)

Because friendship is awesome. It’s always dangerous, because he or she who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will eventually suffer harm. Your friends will influence and possibly determine the direction and the quality of your life.

-Pastor Andy Stanley

Having the right friends is too important to ignore, so important that your parents may have forbid certain friendships or they may have moved to a different neighborhood just so you would have different friends.

We will see in Genesis eighteen and nineteen that friendships are powerful and have tremendous influence on your life so you better chose wisely.

Abraham is a friend of God

James 2:23  And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God.

There are so many people in our Bible that God had a personal relationship with but Abraham is the only one that the Bible tells us was God's friend. (2 Chronicles 20:7, Isaiah 41:8, James 2:23)

Abraham was a rich man and had many servants, when three men came by his tent in the heat of the day, he could have continued to rest in his tent but instead of having somebody else tend to these guest he ministered to Jesus and the two angels personally. (Genesis 18:1,22, 19:1)

Abraham ran to them and offered hospitality (Hebrews 13:2), he bowed down in humility and after they came to the shade trees outside of his tent, he served them quickly and gave them his best food. (Genesis 18:6-8)

After the meal, Abraham receives a revelation directly from the Lord about the destruction of Lot's hometown, the wickedness of Sodom had grow so bad that God is going to destroy it. Abraham has already been involved with helping the people of Sodom physically by going to war and now he will intercede spiritually.

As a friend of God, Abraham was trusted with God's thoughts, and as a result of knowing God so intimately he knew how to pray for the world and intercede for the lost people of Sodom. (Genesis 18:22-33, James 4:8)

Lot is a friend of the world

Genesis 19:15-16  At dawn the next morning the angels became insistent. “Hurry,” they said to Lot. “Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out right now, or you will be swept away in the destruction of the city!”

16  When Lot still hesitated, the angels seized his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city, for the LORD was merciful.

You might think that Lot would make some changes in his location after he was saved by Abraham. We don't have any indication in the Bible that Lot or the rest of the people of Sodom were thankful for Abraham's actions on their behalf. (Genesis 14:1-16)

Lot setup his tent near Sodom and eventually he moved into town and setup household. This doesn't seem to be a mission trip, we don't see any evidence that Lot had an influence on his own family, much less the rest of the city.

Lot's depraved state is seen in his offer to give his daughters to the evil men of Sodom that were trying to get to the angels. This is quite a contrast with the fact that Abraham would soon offer his son to the Lord. (Genesis 22:1-24)

Lot's family was so involved with local society that they were unwilling to leave, his wife had to look back, and not too long after that his two daughters got him drunk and had sex with him just because there were not any other men around their new neighborhood. (Genesis 19:30-38)

Jesus is a friend of sinners

Luke 12:37-38 The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! 38 He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready.

Revelation 3:20  “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.

Jesus waits at the door and draws your attention to answer his call because he wants to be your friend for this life and for eternity. Jesus wants to fellowship with you at the table, there will be the greatest feast that has ever been prepared right after we get to Heaven and he wants to serve you. (Revelation 19:6-10)

Jesus is as devoted to you as the shepherd that gives his life to save a lost sheep, he loves you so much that he will allow his reputation to be stained to get you from the darkest places, and he will celebrate when you return. (Luke 15:1-32, Mark 2:13-17)

Proverbs 18:24 There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.

Jesus came to earth to be your BFF so that you could have a peaceful relationship with his Father, this friendship should be full of joy and hope for this life and for eternity. What better friend could there possibly be? (John 15:13-15)

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Find Peace With God (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)
Is It Okay To Call God My Friend (crossway.org)

In Christ, I Am

Accepted, secure and significant.

In Christ, I am accepted …

John 1:12 — I am God’s child.

John 15:15 — As a disciple, I am a friend of Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 — I have been justified.

1 Corinthians 6:17 — I am united with the Lord, and I am one with Him in spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 — I have been bought with a price, and I belong to God.

1 Corinthians 12:27 — I am a member of Christ’s body.

Ephesians 1:3-8 — I have been chosen by God and adopted as His child.

Colossians 1:13-14 — I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins.

Colossians 2:9-10 — I am complete in Christ.

Hebrews 4:14-16 — I have direct access to the throne of grace through Jesus Christ.

In Christ, I am secure …

Romans 8:1-2 — I am free from condemnation.

Romans 8:28 — I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances.

Romans 8:31-39 — I am free from any condemnation brought against me, and I cannot be separated from the love of God.

2 Corinthians 1:21-22 — I have been established, anointed and sealed by God.

Colossians 3:1-4 — I am hidden with Christ in God.

Philippians 1:6 — I am confident that God will complete the good work He started in me.

Philippians 3:20 — I am a citizen of heaven.

2 Timothy 1:7 — I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind.

1 John 5:18 — I am born of God, and the evil one cannot touch me.

In Christ, I am significant …

John 15:5 — I am a branch of Jesus Christ, the true vine and a channel of His life.

John 15:16 — I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit.

1 Corinthians 3:16 — I am God’s temple.

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 — I am a minister of reconciliation for God.

Ephesians 2:6 — I am seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realm.

Ephesians 2:10 — I am God’s workmanship.

Ephesians 3:12 — I may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Philippians 4:13 — I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.

First Instructions

God's message to us in Genesis chapters one through eleven.

Genesis 1:1  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Deuteronomy 29:29  “The LORD our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.

Deuteronomy 30:10  The LORD your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul.

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It is difficult for a lot of people to understand the importance of the Bible to those that love it and obey it's teachings. This book receives a broad range of reactions, to some people it is totally irrelevant to our world today, to others the Bible is one of God's greatest gifts to man, and to others it is somewhere in between.

It is important for us to understand the amount of respect that Israel had for the contents of our Bible. They didn't always obey it but they were so sure that the Bible is God's word that they went to great lengths to preserve it so that we would have accurate information about God and how to please him.

It is amazing how much God reveals in the first eleven chapters of Genesis about our origin, meaning, morality and destiny. If we only had these first twelve chapters of the Bible we would have enough information about God, our world and ourselves to make life worthwhile.

 VIEW POST FROM GENESIS 1-11 

Important Lessons In Genesis:

God is real and we can trust him God is eternal, he is powerful and holy and his children can trust him to treat us excessively better than we deserve. God can force things to happen but he chooses to be worshiped by people that have a free will to choose to love him on their own. We live in God's creation God is the only un-created being in the universe, everything else was made and is being sustained by him, that's all that we need to know about how the universe began. The beauty of the universe is a picture of his glory and it's complexity reveals his power and wisdom. We are made in God's image The greatest thing about all of us and our most tremendous privilege is that we have been created in God's image. Mankind is the hands on part of God's creation, but that wasn't good enough, God breathed life into us and gave us a spiritual inner being with the ability to think his thoughts and chose to work out his purpose. Sin is our number one problem Every breakdown in our world is the result of sin, from our broken bodies to the difficulty in relationships, to the catastrophic weather events all around us. It is easy to look horizontal at what is wrong in this world but the root cause of our problem is the fact that our vertical relationship with God is broken. Satan is real and he tempts us to sin but he is a defeated enemy Satan has a special degree of hatred for us, every single one of us forces him to see the image of God, he is forced to constantly be with someone that he hates. His hatred motivates him to deceive you into believing that he is as powerful as God. Obedience is the key to usefulness, joy and blessing Our imperfect journey of faith and obedience will bring us to the place where we are useful to God and a joy and a blessing to him and to the world around us. When we align our desires with God's we will find our greatest joy in this life. We need a Redeemer so that we don't fear death God's response to man's sin reveals more of God's character and his love for the human race. God shows us our need for forgiveness and then he provides the way to be forgiven so that we can be accepted into his presence for eternity. We can be blinded by sin Incredible circumstances doesn't guarantee success in your relationship with God. Life in the garden wasn't good enough to keep sin away, having Adam and Eve for parents and hearing their warnings about sin wasn't enough for Cain, and even the children of the survivors of the flood went right back to sin. God created marriage to be one man and one woman God loves relationships, he maintained a close relationship with the first humans and he created a higher level relationship between a husband and a wife. Throughout scripture marriage is a metaphor for the relationship of God with his chosen people and for Jesus relationship with the church. No one is superior We are created equal and we all need the same gospel to change everything in us. The gospel will make your pride disappear as you realize that you are so bad that Jesus had to die to reverse the effects of sin. But at the same time you don’t have to live in fear because God loves you so much that he was willing to come and die for you. We are made to worship If you don't worship God then you will find a replacement, even if you are unaware that you have made a choice, you will find something or somebody. When you replace God, who is eternal, with gods that can be taken away, your whole life will be turned upside down. We need a Sabbath rest Physical rest is good but soul rest is our greatest need, without a peaceful relationship with my creator I will never have rest for my soul, I will never feel like I am good enough or that I will be okay when this life is over. I celebrate the Lord's day because his work on the cross is the only way to enter into his rest. God has a chosen people Man is naturally drawn to sin, God needed a new people that would not be like everyone else, he needed a people that would show the rest of the world how to please God and bring him glory. The lineage of the promised messiah had to be protected by God in order for Jesus to be born and live until his purpose was fulfilled on the cross. The life of faith God expects us to live on promises but we prefer explanations, our journey of faith and obedience doesn't have to be perfect, that's why God has given us plenty of examples of people that struggled to believe all of his promises all of the time.

God could have created everything and then stepped back and let it all go unattended but thankfully he had a purpose for creation and he let us know about it. It is a wonderful plan that includes a bright future if we decide to live by God's word.

 VIEW POST FROM GENESIS 1-11 

Choose Love

God's extravagant love is our example.

1 John 4:9-11, 19-21 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.

10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

19 We love each other because he loved us first. 20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.

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Love is one of the most over-used and most misunderstood words in the English language, I can love my corn flakes in my cereal bowl or I might love people that make me feel good, the word love must be very confusing to somebody learning English as a second language.

The Bible proves to us that God's love is a purposeful commitment to sacrificial action that isn't deserved. I wish that was an original idea but somebody thought of that definition and if you search the entire phrase it comes up all over the internet.

It is cool to think of the Bible as a love story from Genesis to Revelation we find that God is always pursuing his people that he chose to love no matter what. In today's scripture the apostle John gives us a picture of real love from God's example.

Love started with God, he lovingly made us and you might say we deserved his love at that point but soon after that he proved the depth of his love by continuing to love us after we became his enemy.

Ephesians 1:4-5 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

A great sacrifice was made so that I could have a peaceful and loving relationship with God. It is amazing to realize that I was so bad that God had to die for me but I am so loved that he wanted to die for me. How can you resist a love that made such an extravagant and willing sacrifice?

The natural thing for us to do would be to take the easy way out and choose hate but the Bible tells us that we don't have that option as children of God. Maybe hate is too strong of a word but we don't even have the right to withhold love.

If God chose love for me when I was so undeserving then I need to follow his example and do the same for everyone around me. I don't have a reason to not love somebody compared to the reason that God could have used to not love me.

Take a look all through the Bible and you will find God choosing to love people that disappointed him, people that turned their backs on him and chose to ignore him, that is the commitment that God made to me and I need to do the same.

Why God?

I don't understand, But I understand, Why God, I need You

Video: Austin French - Why God

Why God

Do people have to die?

A daughter or a son

Sudden and so young

Long before their time?

Why God

Do people fall apart?

A promise and a ring

Becomes a broken thing

A road that got too hard?

I don't understand

But I understand

Why God, I need You

It's, why God, I run to Your arms

Over and over again

It's, why God, I cling to Your love

And hold on for dear life

And I find, You are right by my side

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Psalm 10:1,17 O LORD, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide when I am in trouble? 17 LORD, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them.

Who Are You?

What defines who you are? What would you do if all that were taken away?

Video: Hillsong Worship - Who You Say I Am

Who the Son sets free

Oh is free indeed

I'm a child of God

Yes I am

In my Father's house

There's a place for me

I'm a child of God

Yes I am

What defines who you are? As a child of God, Satan knows who you are and how powerful your life can be, he just hopes that he can keep you from knowing it. Cheap substitutes is all that Satan has to offer you to keep you from living up to your full potential.

Satan will get you to define yourself in ways that involve your family, friends your career or good deeds but any of these things can be taken away and then what do you have to stand on?

If you lose the thing that defines you then your life will feel empty and meaningless when it is gone. You need to be defined by something eternal so that you won't be crushed when your circumstances change.

Overcomer - Hannah Scott Quote
I am created by God. He designed me, so I’m not a mistake. His Son died for me, just so I could be forgiven. He picked me to be his own, so I’m chosen. He redeemed me, so I am wanted. He showed me grace, just so I could be saved. He has a future for me because He loves me. So I don’t wonder anymore, Coach Harrison. I am a child of God.

The Problem Of Sin

There is vice in every virtuous thing that I do.

Genesis 3:9-13 Then the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" 10 He replied, "I heard You walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked." 11 "Who told you that you were naked?" the LORD God asked. "Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?"

12 The man replied, "It was the woman You gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it." 13 Then the LORD God asked the woman, "What have you done?" "The serpent deceived me," she replied. "That's why I ate it."

1 John 2:16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

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Nobody likes to talk about sin these days, even pastors and Sunday School teachers are less likely to talk about it, the response from society can be so severe these days that many people are unwilling to mention sin. God’s rules about creation, marriage, sexuality, morality are being replaced by the individual. Reality is optional. Truth is always changing.

You may think it isn't nice to mention sin, you may not want to make someone feel bad, but if you don't lovingly point out their sin then you are not doing them any favors, if nobody ever helps them see where they fall short then they may never be right with God.

Thankfully somebody started pointing out my sin to me from an early age but even with the most favorable circumstances I still played around with sin and wasted too much of my life doing what I thought was right.

Sin is doing anything for your own glory, even if it means good things. And righteousness is doing things for the glory of God, out of a sense of beauty for who he is.

-Timothy Keller

The assumption that there is sin implies the possibility and obligation for intervention but without sin you do not have the ability or the right to intervene when you see injustice, without sin we are powerless to make change.

Man always finds inadequate ways to deal with sin.

Denial has always been one of our most popular responses to sin, no fault theology is very popular, society says don't define sin for me, I can decide what is right for me.

Another popular response has always been to hide our sin. God came to visit man in the garden and all of a sudden hide and seek is a new game that has been created. First they hid from each other by making the first clothing and and then they hid from God.

As soon as they were confronted with sin they invent the blame game. Adam pointed his finger at God and reminded him that Eve was his idea and then Eve tries to put the blame on the snake.

Even in the most favorable circumstances, such a lovely place to live, creation wasn't marred by sin yet, they could interact with all of the animals without fear, their only neighbor was God yet they still could not be content.

What is your motivation to be good?

Most of us don't like to follow the rules if they don't make good sense, if you don’t give me a good logical reason then I won’t obey, but God doesn't need to give us a reason. If he did there is a good chance that we wouldn't comprehend it anyway. God says do it for his glory, his happiness and his agenda whether it makes sense to us or not.

Satan's biggest trick was to sell us on the idea that we would be like God, he didn't want us to realize that because we were already created in God's image, we were already like God. Instead of becoming like God we actually became less like God and more like Satan.

Theologian, author and pastor Jonathan Edwards first introduced the concept of common virtue and true (saving) virtue in his book "The Nature of True Virtue" back in 1755. Edwards says that common virtue is doing the right thing out of fear or pride and true virtue is doing the right thing simply because God is worthy of our total trust and obedience.

Common virtue says:

1. FEAR - be honest because it pays or be honest because God will get you.
2. PRIDE - be honest because you don’t want to be one of those people, those sinners.

Did you notice that our incentive to be good can also be our motive for sin? Fear and pride may be good incentives to not sin but they can also be the catalyst that creates in us the desire to sin. Think about it, fear and pride are the main reason for all of the evil in this world and yet my virtue is full of fear and pride.

Common virtue is rotten at the core, there is vice in all of my virtue, because of this my efforts to be good will never be good enough and they won't last for very long. Fear and pride will help me develop better filters but real change comes from the heart.

True virtue says:

1. Do the right thing because of who God is.
2. Because of what Jesus has done.

True virtue comes from a desire to honor and please God for his glory and because of his beauty and worth. I want to be generous, humble and loving because I love him and want to please him and be like him. God will be your greatest desire and the source of satisfaction above everything else.

If you realize how bad your goodness is then your point of view will change, Jesus won't be just a good example to follow, he will be your Savior that you cannot be without. You won't run to him when you need him to get you through something rather you will stay at his side because you need him always.

The Gospel: I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me yet I’m so loved and valued that Jesus was glad to die for me.

-Timothy Keller

The gospel changes everything, your pride will disappear as you realize that you are so bad the he had to die to reverse the effects of sin. But at the same time you don’t have to live in fear because God loves you so much that he was willing to come and die for you.

These realities should change your worldview, generosity, racial reconciliation and love will be what you are known for. Let's pray that this reality will come alive for every follower of Jesus so that we will be known for our love.

God's Not Done With You

He will finish the good work that he has started in you.

Video: Tauren Wells - God's Not Done With You

Standing in your ruins, feels a lot like the end
So used to losing, you're afraid to try again
Right now all you see are ashes
Where there was a flame
The truth is that you're not forgotten
'Cause Grace knows your name

God's not done with you
Even with your broken heart and your wounds and your scars
God's not done with you
Even when you're lost and it's hard and you're falling apart
God's not done with you
It's not over, it's only begun
So don't hide, don't run
'Cause God's not done with
You-ou-ou-ou-ou
You-ou-ou-ou-ou

There's a light you don't notice
Until you're standing in the dark
And there's a strength that's growing
Inside your shattered heart
Woah-o-o-o-o-oah

He's got a plan, this is part of it
He's gonna finish what He started
He's got a plan, this is part of it
He's gonna finish what He started
He's not done
God's not done writing your story
No, He's not done
God's not done with you!

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Our creator has gone to great lengths to prove his love for us but despite everything that he has done we still have difficulty remembering that he loves us and has a plan for our lives. A lot of our problem is that even though we are loved to such an incredible degree there is someone else that hates us just as much.

Satan hates you and wants to destroy you because you remind him of somebody. Can you imagine having photos of your worst enemy all over the walls of your house? It must drive Satan crazy to see so many humans all over the planet that have the image of God.

Good News For God's Children

Philippians 1:6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. 1 Peter 1:3-6 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance--an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. 6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.

The last thing that Satan wants you to believe is that God loves you and has great plans for your future. Satan doesn't want you to enjoy anything that God has done for you, he doesn't want you to know God's love and experience joy as you push through the trials of this life. 

Despite the difficulty that we face in this world we need to remember that we are just passing through to a better place!

Did God Really Say

The conflict begins when we question God's love for us.

Genesis 3:1 The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?"

Genesis 3:5-6 "God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil." 6 The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too."

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When I think about how large the Garden of Eden must have been, I have to wonder about Adam and Eve's choice of location, it seems like they must have set up household in close proximity to the tree with the forbidden fruit.

Think about this, if you had the most awesome garden in the world to live in and if it was large enough for so many animals to live in then would you hang out next to the tree full of forbidden fruit? Yes you would!

We are always attracted to what we are told that we cannot have, none of us should think that we would have chose a different neighborhood or handled the talking snake any differently. Satan used the same tools on Adam and Eve that he has used on everybody else that has ever lived.

Satan's has a short list of tricks to appeal to us:

• The lust of the flesh - it tastes good
• The lust of the eyes - it’s nice to look at
• The pride of life - it’ll make you wise 

Satan even used these same things to try to get Jesus to rebel against God. He tries to appeal to our senses and gets us to doubt God's love for us and question the rules that were given to protect us. Any loving parent that is concerned for their child's safety does the same thing that God did.

God's love for us is already obvious in the first few chapters of Genesis. It can be seen in his willingness to meet our needs. God created a friendly atmosphere to live in, he met our need for relationships with God and with other humans, and he gave us boundaries that any good parent would give for their child's safety.

God's love continues to be seen as he meets another need, it's a new need that had never existed before, a need that man would try to fulfill on his own but it certainly didn't measure up to God's standards.

They knew they were naked and they sought to fix the problem with their own wisdom by making clothes out of fig leaves but how long is produce going to last after it has been picked?

God's response to man's sin reveals some more about the character of God and his love for the human race. God meets another need for us, one that we couldn't adequately meet on our own, God sets the standard and then he fulfilled the standard as an example to us.

Later on there would be men that were set aside for the job but for now the first high priest is God. He would offer the first blood sacrifice and teach us how to receive forgiveness long before the law was ever given. Sin brought death into the world, first the death of the first animal, then the way of Cain brought death to his brother.

Man becomes his own executioner, and takes part with Satan, the murderer from the beginning.

-Expositor's Bible Commentary

God wasn't inventing something new, the old system of animal sacrifices and imperfect priest was a picture of the heavenly system that was on the way, a perfect high priest would come that would also be the perfect sacrifice and he would minister in the perfect tabernacle. (Leviticus 4:31, Numbers 15:25–27, Hebrews 8:1-7)

Hebrews 9:10-12 For that old system deals only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies— physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established.

11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world.

12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

The new covenant that God promised in Genesis was fulfilled in Jesus, the offspring of the woman became the bruised servant that has fatally wounded Satan and destroyed his plans, his sacrifice is perfect and final.

It is so easy to believe the lie that you are worthless to God and that he is holding back something good from you but in light of what Jesus did for you on the cross why do we listen to that snake?

Do you know what God said? The Bible is God's message to you that was preserved through the ages to show you how much you are loved and what you must do to restore your relationship.

RELATED ARTICLES

Faces Of Death (ligonier.org)
What was the Old Testament way of salvation? (gotquestions.org)
Why Did Jesus Delay So Long (desiringgod.org)

Talking About The Gospel

Stop sharing the gospel with the wrong people.

 

Psalms 40:9-10 I have told all Your people about Your justice. I have not been afraid to speak out, as You, O LORD, well know. 10 I have not kept the good news of Your justice hidden in my heart; I have talked about Your faithfulness and saving power. I have told everyone in the great assembly of Your unfailing love and faithfulness.

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It is a shame that we are so busy talking about the gospel with believers that we know and we avoid sharing the good news with people that don't know the good news. Conversations about the good news that Jesus saves are easy to have at church or when you are around other believers but they are not the people that we have been told to share the good news with.

The following quotes are from an article that is very convicting. The post ask the question: "Can we talk about the Gospel without telling it?"

Believers must guard against the temptation of talking about the Gospel to those who know it best without taking the Gospel to those who need to hear it most.

Whatever meaning believers ascribe to being "Gospel-centered" should incorporate an understanding that our conversations with unbelievers should center on the Gospel as much as, if not more than, our conversations with believers.

The true test of our Gospel-centeredness isn’t that we merely talk about the Gospel among sympathetic groups of believers; rather, it encompasses our telling the Gospel to apathetic, even skeptical, unbelieving audiences.

The victims of our failure to evangelize are the souls of unbelieving men, women, boys and girls on a trajectory toward hell. For this reason, we must evaluate whether we spend most of our time talking about the Gospel with believers or telling the Gospel to unbelievers.

It is sad that we talk about the good news in our safe little circle of believing friends and we are completely silent around the people that need it most. We don't like to stand out from the crowd as a radical, most of us live by the old saying "when in Rome, do as the Romans do," blending in is a source of security for us.

Red hot radical Christ followers is what we need to be. Pleasing God is impossible to do if you are lukewarm, Jesus said that he finds the lukewarm church to be repulsive, we must fight against our natural tendency to be safe and blend in.

QUOTED ARTICLE

Can we talk about the Gospel without telling it? (bpnews.net)

Celebrate The Day

I'll sing, I'll dance, my heart will overflow, from the day You saved my soul

I Am They - "From The Day"

When You found me, I was so blind

My sin was before me, I was swallowed by pride

But out of the darkness, You brought me to Your light

You showed me new mercy and opened up my eyes

From the day You saved my soul

'Til the very moment when I come home

I'll sing, I'll dance, my heart will overflow

From the day You saved my soul

Where brilliant light is all around

And endless joy is the only sound

Oh, rest my heart forever now

Oh, in Your arms I'll always be found

From the day You saved my soul

'Til the very moment when I come home

I'll sing, I'll dance, my heart will overflow

From the day You saved my soul

My love is Yours

My heart is Yours

My life is Yours

Forever

RELATED ARTICLES

Celebrate The Messiah (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)
What A Glorious Day (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)

I Am Loved Unconditionally

Praise God that I am his child and I am not defined by my mistakes.

Video: Jason Gray - "Remind Me Who I Am"

Ephesians 2:3-5 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God's anger, just like everyone else. 4 But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!)

Ephesians 3:17-19 Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

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Looking back on fifty plus years with plenty of wrong turns and mistakes, it would be easy to get down on myself, we all have a personal history that is full of things we wish we had never done and places we wish we had never gone.

The best way to keep from allowing my mistakes to define me is to remind myself of who I am in Christ. God's grace is so amazing because he knows us 100% and yet he still loves us 100%. How can you not feel loved and forgiven if you fully understand the gospel?

We can never measure up to God's standards but thank God he knows that I can't and he chose to love me anyway. God's infinite mercy came to my rescue and changed my standing in his eyes.

In saving us from his own wrath, God has done what we could not do, and he has done what we didn’t deserve.

-Joseph Scheumann (desiringgod.org)

My identity isn't about all of the good or the bad that I have done, I am identified as a child of God, I can put down all of the labels that life may hand me and take up the label that says "beloved child of God." Any other label that I try to wear will only bring me down and make me feel defeated.

Check out all of the things that God says about me.

Big, Big Love

The love of Jesus is too great to fully understand.

Ephesians 3:18-19  And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is.

19  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully.

1 Timothy 1:12-14 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, 13 even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief.

14 Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus.

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Most of us lose the excitement of new found love eventually. A few disagreements is all that it takes to realize that the newly loved person is truly a human that has flaws. Thankfully there is love that is so much more incredible than that.

God's love is so overwhelming that Paul prayer that we would be able to understand it, he never got over the big, big love that he experienced from God. A man that was going against God's will so aggressively by persecuting the people that were doing God's will.

The world that we live in doesn't understand big love that is perfect, we are used to small love that has strings attached and easily fades away, our imperfect minds cannot understand the extent of God's love.

God loves us so much!

John 3:16  "For God loved the world SO much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

There isn't a better lover in all of the world than God, he loved his creation so much that he was willing to be separated from his Son and watch him endure the difficulties that he faced on earth. Jesus was willing to be beaten and crucified so that Satan's plan would be destroyed.

That just blows my mind that I have that much value in God's eyes! I don't know if we can possibly know "how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is" and why it is that big. How could somebody that is so perfect love something that is so messed up?

Thank you Lord for putting such incredible value in me! I am glad that you have made it easy to experience your grace so that I can spend eternity with you!

What A Glorious Day!

You called my name and I ran out of that grave!

Video: Passion - "Glorious Day"

I was buried beneath my shame

Who could carry that kind of weight

It was my tomb

Till I met You

I was breathing, but not alive

All my failures I tried to hide

It was my tomb

Till I met You

Now Your mercy has saved my soul

Now Your freedom is all I know

The old made new

Jesus, when I met You

You called my name

And I ran out of that grave

Out of the darkness

Into Your glorious day

I needed rescue

My sin was heavy

But chains break at the weight of Your glory

I needed shelter

I was an orphan

But You call me a citizen of heaven

When I was broken

You were my healing

Your love is the air that I'm breathing

I have a future

My eyes are open

Celebrate Resurrection Day

Daniel 12:1-3 “At that time Michael, the archangel who stands guard over your nation, will arise. Then there will be a time of anguish greater than any since nations first came into existence. But at that time every one of your people whose name is written in the book will be rescued." "Many of those whose bodies lie dead and buried will rise up, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting disgrace. Those who are wise will shine as bright as the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever."