Celebration-Week 16

This week, we celebrate the risen Lord with two songs. Comment below if you know who these folks are who are singing these songs (try not to look at the captions...lol.

Hope for Life

Yesterday, we talked about Biblical hope and how it is defined not as wishful thinking, but confident knowledge of guaranteed future events. I want to talk more about this hope because I want you to see that this very hope that we are talking about is hope that lasts.

In the Bible, hope is something that comes only when the Lord is at work. Hope came to Israel when they were in the wilderness when the cloud by day and the fire by night (both physical representations of the presence of the Lord with them) continued to lead them. Hope came to Israel again when their Messiah, Jesus Christ, came. Our hope is found in the fact that the grave is empty…Christ rose from the dead, and because of this, we no longer need to fear the grave, or death, or hell, or Satan, or anything else that seeks to dismay us.

God’s purposes for us include hope…guaranteed future blessings…that will help us to face even the most of uncertain times.

I remember when I had lost my job. The circumstances surrounding it were sketchy, but one of the things that I always knew is that God would honor my decision to do the right thing. And He did. I never lost hope, even when it seemed as if no one would give me a call back or another look. I was struggling at times when God made me wait, but the beautiful thing about it was that the waiting actually helped me to remember my hope.

So what are you dealing with today that is causing you to lose your hope? Remember that God has given you all the hope you need today because of what Jesus did on the cross, and in the power that God used to raise Jesus from the dead!

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Comment below about a time that you found hope in the midst of horrible circumstances!

He is Risen, Indeed!

Yesterday we celebrated the fact that Jesus Christ, God in flesh, died for our sins and then rose again from the grave (just writing those words gives me goose-bumps)! He is alive and well, and He’s coming soon for us!

But the cool thing about this whole deal is that because Jesus rose again, we now have hope that allows to no longer fear death. It has been said that human beings are the only creatures with an innate understanding that they are going to die. And for most people that fear of death is what drives them to do all kinds of things.

I heard of a guy who was so afraid of dying or of one of his family dying that he did everything in his power to keep them safe. He put up nine foot fences around his home, had the latest in home security, bought guard dogs to patrol the grounds, had his house monitored, put in an air-purification system in the whole house, filtered his tap water, and any other safety feature he could think of...he did it. He felt that his family was safe.

But one day as he was pulling out of the driveway to go to work, he didn’t notice his small boy had run out behind his car to get a ball that had gotten away. He ran over his son, and killed him.

We can do all we want to feel safe, but the fact of the matter is that we all know that one day we are going to die. There is nothing we can do to stop it, and there is nothing that will keep that day from coming upon us eventually.

But there is something that happened nearly 2000 years ago that does give us hope. Not hope in the classic definition of “hope” (which is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen), but a guarantee that this life is not all there is…that, like Jesus, we will rise again!

When Jesus rose from the dead, He did so by the power of God within Him that even the death of His earthly body couldn’t stop. And we are told that the same power that raised Christ from the dead lives in us through the Holy Spirit. Now, follow me on this: if the power that raised Christ from the dead is in us, why in the world should we be afraid of dying? Death isn’t the end. Even if this body made of dirt and dust should cease to function, there is something far more powerful at work in us…it’s the power that raised Christ from the dead…and it will raise our bodies at the proper time and we will be changed.

Changed? Yes. We will be changed. Look at what Paul said:

Philippians 3:21—“He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.” (NLT)

God’s power at work in us to give us a new body. He is risen, indeed! And we, too, will be risen when we go to be with Him in glory! I hope you know that power today. I hope you have the hope (guarantee) that this life is not all that there is. I hope that you will be so enraptured with Jesus that there isn’t a moment of your life that goes by that you don’t thank Him for what He has done.

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Comment below about how you came to know Christ and the hope that is in you! How have you felt His power changing you even now!?

Taxes

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

                      

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

So with Tax Day fast approaching, we need talk about this last paragraph in Romans 13:1-7. Paul says that we honor the government set up by God when we pay our taxes. We should give them because it is the right thing to do. We should pay our taxes because as God also tells us in verse 8, we should not owe anything to anyone. So we must pay the taxes so that our governments can function.

So in these days of struggle and confusion, make sure that you are making the right decisions when it comes to following God. God’s work for you may be to stand up and become a part of the system to effect change. Some of us may just stand up and speak our minds. But all of us need to treat those in authority with respect and honor. Let’s do that this weekend, and for the rest of our lives.

Think about that today, and God bless you.

Comment below on ways that we might be able to show honor to the authorities that God has placed in our lives.

Conscience

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

                                  

Why is it so necessary to honor our authorities? It is necessary because we are called by God honor the human authority that He has put in place. It’s a question of God’s sovereignty. If we truly believe that God is sovereign, then we realize that nothing that happens, no one who is elected, is not first approved by God. Now it doesn’t mean that all those in authority are godly people. We don’t have to look too far to know that this is the case. But if we believe in God’s sovereignty, then we must also believe that He has placed in those positions, those who are in authority over us.

With that said, we must honor them, not only to avoid being punished, but to keep our consciences clear. If we stand up for what is right, and we are punished for it, so be it…our conscience is clear when we honor authority.

A great example of this is in the third chapter of Daniel where the three Hebrew children, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah (better known to us by their Babylonian names, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were summoned before King Nebuchadnezzar when they refused to bow down to the king’s image of gold. Their first allegiance was to God, and they would not disobey Him by bowing before an idol. But when they were brought before the king, they were respectful of him. They didn’t defy him with threats, but they did tell him that their God was greater, and even if their lives were forfeit, they would still honor God over him.

We must respond like they did, and be willing to accept any consequences that may come our way for stating our position. We may lose friends or position or reputation, but we must always do what is right for the sake of our conscience.

So think about that today, and God bless you!

Comment on what you feel it is “out of bounds” for the government to ask of the citizenry, and what you would do if it came down to it.

Celebration—Week 15

Since we are talking about government this week, I thought it best to remind ourselves about this great nation we live in. Listen to these two great hymns that speak to who we are as a nation.

The first is our National Anthem (don’t forget to stand), and some of the verses that we don’t sing that shed light on what F. Scott Key had in mind as he wrote the poem.

The second is America the Beautiful, that speaks about this great land we live in and all that God has done to help us be the people we are called to be.

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Government’s Purpose

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

Sometimes on this blog, I will send you to another site to read a story, blog post, listen to a sermon or something of that kind. I want to do that today, because I think Chip Ingram gave a wonderful message on the Christian’s response to government. This was broadcast during the elections last year, so some of the content is specific to that. But his insights on the government’s purpose to the people and the Christian’s purpose are quite eye-opening. Please take the time to listen to this today.

Part 1 & Part 2 

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Honoring Authority

This week, I thought it might be good for us to look at some of the things that the Bible has to say about honoring our authorities. With Tax Day looming on the horizon, some of us may have a hard time looking at our government with the respect that we ought, so let’s see what God has to say about government, and what it means to us who follow Christ.

The first thing I want us to see is that God ordains the governments that are in existence.

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

There is quite a lot to unpack here, so let’s just jump right in. The first thing that we see here is that God is the one who puts people into places of authority. He is the one who gives us our Mayors, our Aldermen, our President, our Congressmen. While we may not see eye-to-eye with all of these people, it is true that God is the one who has placed them in their positions of authority and as such, they must be respected.

Now that doesn’t mean that we just accept what they say and do as gospel and do not stand up when we see them acting in ways that are contrary to the good of the people. These people are just human beings who are fallible and make mistakes. But we must always “disagree” in a way that is “agreeable”…meaning with respect for the position that they are in.

We must also do the right things to keep from being afraid from those in authority. Some would say that if the authority is corrupt, it deserves to be disobeyed. But I also believe that most governments (at least those in America) are not corrupt to the point of wanting to see people persecuted for no reason. I do believe that a time is coming in America when those of us who are Christ-followers might see that kind of persecution, but if and when that comes, then we’ll talk more.

But for now, we must submit to authority. We must do what they ask and not rebel. We must respectfully disagree when the opportunity arises, and we must always respect the opinions of others who may disagree with us. All of this will help make us better citizens.

More on this tomorrow, but for now, think about these things, and God bless you!

Comment below on ways that you feel you can be respectful of the government even when they make poor decisions.

Forgiveness

Proverbs 14:9—Fools make fun of guilt, but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.

             

Those whom the Bible would call “fools” are people who say things like, “It’s just a little white lie…it’s no big deal,” or “There’s no harm in looking (at another woman/man),” or “I can watch/read/listen to this…it won’t affect me at all!” This verse tells us that the fool makes light of sin. They don’t see it as a big deal.

We live in a culture that does this all the time. No, scratch that…we are a people who do this all the time. It’s not the culture, it’s us. WE are the ones who wink at sin. WE are the ones who find it to be no big deal. WE are the ones who take every opportunity to call everyone else out but ourselves. And in time, we’ll pay for that.

But those who are godly, those who are true Christ-followers, they recognize their sin for what it is. They are willing to confess their sin before God AND those around them. They seek out reconciliation (that means making it right with the one you’ve offended). The end of those people’s situation is restoration of their relationships with both God and those they’ve offended.

I think sometimes we think that if we just cover it up, it won’t be a big deal. But as the song we looked at on Wednesday told us, when we’re Honest there is a much deeper level to be reached in our relationship with God and with those around us.

Comment below about a time that you screwed up and sought true forgiveness and had a relationship restored.

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Words

Proverbs 10:14—Wise people treasure knowledge, but the babbling of a fool invites trouble.

How many times have you seen it? Someone starts talking about things that they have no knowledge about, and it invariably gets them into trouble. About 85% of all situation comedies have always been about someone claiming something that they know about, only to find out later, they were just trying to impress someone, and it got them into all sorts of trouble.

Well, long before the sit-com came God’s Word, and spoke the exact same truth. Far too often we get ourselves into so much trouble because we lie about what we know, or about what we can do, and then we’re called out, and we have to show our cards…and then we have to tell the truth.

This proverb tells us that we ought to treasure the knowledge that we have and not try to impress others by talking about things we have no real knowledge of.

So, while you’re going about your day today, why not try to speak only of that which you know. You might look more impressive that way, and you might learn something from all the listening you’ll do!

Comment below about a time when you boasted about knowing something or someone that you didn’t really know. And then tell us how it turned out.

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Celebration Week 14

Today we celebrate relationships, and not being fools. First up is Francesca Battistelli’s song Honest.

Up next is an old hymn entitled Praise My Soul, the King of Heaven!

Enjoy!

Think about that today and God bless you!

Discipline

Proverbs 1:7—Fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Only fools despise wisdom and discipline.

The fool…the one with no sense…the one that always seems to be doing the wrong thing. Why? Because they lack the ability to embrace wisdom and discipline.

Now this isn’t the kind of discipline that comes to us when we do the wrong thing, but rather, the training that helps us to do the right thing.

Here’s the issue folks: we are bent to do the wrong thing. Most of us, when faced with a situation that calls for a moral judgement, will always choose the option that best benefits us…regardless of whether the decision is right or wrong. For instance, when a child is faced with the option to take a cookie from the plate when no one is looking, they will more often than not choose to satisfy their own desires.

I remember a funny video that demonstrated this very thing. Kids were offered a marshmallow, and if they refused to eat it for about ten minutes or so, they were then given two marshmallows. The different kids all had a different response to the choice before them, but many of them just chose to eat the yummy treat now rather than wait for more later.

So here is the issue that we face. Those who are foolish tend to not want to go through discipline. They don’t want to put in the work to become better people. They’d rather just be who they are, and forget about the circumstances. In fact, the work to become better is just too hard for them to comprehend, and therefore, they despise it.

But you and I, Christ-follower, should always decide to take the time to be disciplined. In fact, as I write this today, I want to share with you that I, too, have been foolish in this area…opting to try and follow Christ on the “fast-track” and not put the time in that I need to. As a result, I have felt empty, distant and disconnected from Christ. But I am choosing to embrace discipline. I want to honor God with my life, my time, and the decisions I make.

How about you? Will you embrace discipline? If you will, you will be wise, and no fool.

Comment below about ways that you practice spiritual discipline.

Think about that today and God bless you!

Atheists’ Day

The story is told (and I must admit, that I do not know if it is true) of a man who was an atheist. He hated God, and everything there is to do with Him. He so desired to ridicule God that filed a protest with the powers that be to either disband all holidays relating to God (Christmas, Easter, Good Friday and the like) or begin a national holiday celebrating atheism. His crusade took him all the way to a high court in his state, and there he met a judge who really knew his Scripture.

When the atheist had presented his case before the judge, the judge looked at him straight in the face and said, “You make a very compelling argument, sir. But aren’t you forgetting that atheists already have a holiday?”

The atheist was taken aback by the statement, and puzzled, could only manage to say, “We do?”

Smiling the judge said, “Yes. April 1^st. For the Bible says very clearly in Psalms 14 verse 1 that ‘The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God!”’ So, sir, you already have April Fools’ Day to celebrate your atheism. Next case!”

Now I relate that story not to get the dander up of any and all atheists, but simply to introduce this week’s topic. Far too many times, we act like fools. We may not be like the fool in Psalm 14, boldly proclaiming that there is no God. But we may act like fools in other ways. This week, we’ll look at the book of Proverbs and see what Solomon and the other authors of that book had to say about those who are foolish, and hopefully be able to avoid some of the traps that lie ahead of us this week.

So please keep reading this week as we begin our new format. We will be introducing a topic on Monday, and then on Tuesday through Friday, we will be looking at it in more detail. So thanks for reading.

Leave a comment below on how you may have “pranked” someone on April 1^st!

Think about that today, and God bless you!