"Looking unto Jesus" (part 1)

Ash Wednesday was a few days ago.  This holiday marks the official beginning of Lent; and the anticipation of Easter Sunday, where Jesus gloriously conquered death itself.  Incidentally, I found good information on Ash Wednesday and Lent at got questions.org.  I would encourage you to look over the article yourself, but to give a little appetizer I will share these brief quotations.

The writer says, “Should a Christian observe Ash Wednesday?  Since the Bible nowhere explicitly commands or condemns such a practice, Christians are at liberty to prayerfully decide whether or not to observe Ash Wednesday.”  A little later on, it reads, “It is a good thing to repent of sinful activities, but that’s something Christians should do every day, not just during Lent.  It’s a good thing to clearly identify oneself as a Christian, but, again, this should be an everyday identification.  And it is a good reminder that no ritual can make one’s heart right with God.”

(Source: https://www.gotquestions.org/Ash-Wednesday.html)

As the days grew closer to Ash Wednesday, and Lent, the Lord laid on my heart to share something that I actually submitted back in December in my other blog.  I’ve decided to recycle and re-submit the material again in this blog.  

I do this for several reasons, but primarily because some of the feedback I’ve received for that content was that it was a little difficult to digest.  I went back and looked over it again myself; it does have a lot of information to process for just one blog.  So to help us set our minds on Jesus, I’m going to submit what I shared in December, re-package it a bit, and break it up into several installments here. 

Today is really just an introduction more than anything.  So let me conclude for now by speaking of the title of this upcoming series.  As you see, I called it “Looking unto Jesus”.  I got that phrase from Hebrews 12:2 which reads, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (New King James Version).  Stay tuned, as we embark on this journey together.

Kevin

Reflections on Ephesians 2 - part 5 of 5

We have been on a journey through Ephesians 2, a powerful passage of Scripture.  Today I  want to finish up this collection of blogs.  I want to conclude by looking at verse 10; it states, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (New International Version).

The New Living Translation renders the first part of the verse, “For we are God’s masterpiece.”  Why?  Context is crucial here.  We were dead in sin, lost, and hopeless, but God changed everything.  Remember that the previous verses read, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.  Not by works, so that no one can boast.” That’s why we are His masterpiece.  The Bible says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come!”  The Christian is a glorious new creation; transformed by His grace.

The next phrase says we were, “created in Christ Jesus to do good works.”  Picture a ludicrous scene with me as an analogy: imagine if Super Bowl 54 MVP Patrick Mahomes, when he was first drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs, had said (either verbally or through his actions), “I’m glad the Chiefs picked me to be on their team, but I really just wanted the security of knowing I was on an NFL team.  I don’t want to contribute anything.”  Granted, my analogy breaks down.  If this were true, Mahomes obviously wouldn’t have been on the team very long.

Conversely, God will never cut us from His team, as it were.  I like how Paul Asay puts it in his book on Batman titled “God on the Streets of Gotham”.  He says, “Nothing can separate us from God’s love.  We’re on our way to heaven.  Our sins are forgiven.  We’re in the club, and no one can revoke our membership.”  But with that important fact in mind, we can’t miss the fact that the Christian is supposed to do good works.  Not out of fear or guilt, but out of gratitude and love.  Becoming a Christian isn’t the finish line; it’s actually just the beginning of the greatest adventure imaginable.

The last phrase says that God prepared these good works “in advance for us to do.”  It’s amazing to think about how God works all the details out, to get us right where He wants us, so that we can do the good works He planned for us all along.  Let me give you an example of this from my life:

My mother and I have always enjoyed a close relationship.  But no one, except for God, knew that my healthy father was going to suddenly pass away at the young age of 60.  In hindsight, I can see that God recognized someone was going to have to be there for my mother, day in and day out.  While I have no doubt that my brother would have taken care of Mom, if he needed to; with his wife and family to tend to, this would have been challenging.  I enthusiastically accepted this sacred calling, or this good work which God had been preparing me to do from the beginning.

Kevin

"Nothing in my hand I bring" - Reflections on Ephesians 2 (part 4)

Last time, I shared how a pastor once used the analogy of a mountain climber reaching the apex of the mountain, when one gets to Ephesians 2:8-10.  Previously, we looked at verse 8: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.”  Let’s continue.  The passage goes on: “Not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:9; New International Version).  This notion is found all throughout the Word of God.  For just one example, Titus 3 says that God saved us, “not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy” (verse 5).

 

One resource states, “You don’t have to perform for God in order to win His favor.  The beauty and wonder of your life in Christ is that your initial and continuing connection with God is not dependent upon your conduct.  There is nothing you can do to make God love you more (so you don’t have to perform for Him like some trained circus monkey).  And, there is nothing you can do to make God love you less (so you don’t have to fret about the screw-ups you will inevitably make).  All you have to do to begin your new life in Christ is to believe and receive the free gift of salvation He offers you.”  (From God is Amazing by Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission)

There are those who get very nervous when this concept is presented.  They reason, “If you are saved by grace alone, what is to stop someone from going out and living a life of sinful debauchery?”  I could write an entire blog alone on why this is flawed logic.  But let me just give two responses today.

First, the Bible never teaches it!  Never once does the Bible declare that because salvation is by grace, you can just go out and live as immorally as you want.  To the contrary, you read just the opposite.  You read things like: “Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?  By no means” (Romans 6:1-2)!  Or consider these strong words in 1 Peter: “abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul” (1 Peter 2:11).  2 Timothy 1 says that God “called us to a holy life” (verse 9). 

Secondly, an important point in this argument is context.  You can’t just rip out a line or two from the Bible, and ignore the surrounding verses.  In the case of Ephesians 2, we go on to read that we are actually saved “for good works” (verse 10; English Standard Version)”.  Over the years, I’ve often used this quote from the late Dr. Adrian Rogers; he stated that we are not saved by good works, but for good works. 

The next phrase in Ephesians 2:9 is a significant one: “so that no one can boast.”  Works don’t save anyone because, if they did, a believer could take the credit and glory for their salvation.  Pastor Bill Oudemolen once gave the illustration of a person drowning, who is subsequently saved by a lifeguard; but then the rescued person brags on himself, rather than the lifeguard!  He went on to say that, in the same way, the man or woman can do nothing other than offer their gratitude to Christ for saving them.  The old hymn says, “Nothing in my hand I bring; simply to Thy cross I cling.”

Kevin

"The top of the mountain" - Reflections on Ephesians 2 (part 3)

A pastor once likened the book of Ephesians to someone climbing up a mountain; he went to declare that Ephesians 2:8-10 are, what he referred to as “the top of the mountain.”  That is well said.  They are indeed amazing verses.  They are so rich, in fact, that there’s no way I could adequately cover them all in one blog.  The way I plan to do this is to cover verse 8 today, and continue on with the other verses in future blogs.

Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” (New King James Version).  What is grace?  Grace is God’s unmerited favor.  Grace is God giving us something that we don’t deserve.

 

Earlier on in this chapter, we’re told that we were dead in sins, but God made us alive (verses 5-6).  A parenthetical statement is made there that is also given in verse 8, “By grace you have been saved.”  We were dead, but God made live.  We needed to be rescued, but God saved us.  Not because of any merit, work, or brownie points we accumulated, just because of God’s incredible grace.  In fact, verse 6 goes on to state that He “made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus”.  This amazing position of honor, once again, is only through God’s grace.

Ephesians 2:8 declares that we are saved “through faith.”  I like one of the definitions that the dictionary gives for faith: “complete trust or confidence.”  We are saved by God’s grace, through faith, or complete trust.  When it comes to the issue of salvation from sin, it is vital that our faith or complete truth be put in the right source.  Jesus the Christ is the only One who is worthy of that trust and faith; only He was sinless, fully God and fully man, and therefore qualified to pay for our sin.  Galatians 3:26 states, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”

“For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves” (italics added for emphasis).  Amazingly, even the faith given to us to believe in Christ in the first place isn’t something we’ve conjured up on our own; it is a gift from God.  A Bible teacher, evangelist, preacher, and yes even a writer of blogs like me, can declare the truth of the gospel as passionately and clearly as he can, but ultimately it is up to God to illuminate the heart, oil the words, and convict the heart.

Let me conclude with this.  Ephesians 2:8 says the grace and the faith to belief is all a gift from God.  But the question is this: have you taken the gift?  Unfortunately, it is possible for the heart to be convicted of the truth, and for the person to choose to reject the gift of God’s love and favor.  Some people may not like this thought, but the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant teaches us once again that life is fleeting.  We don’t know what tomorrow holds.  If you have been on the fence, or playing games, I pray that today would be the day that you would take the gift; say an irrevocable “yes” to the Lord’s unmerited favor, forgiveness of sins, and an exciting relationship with the God of the universe.

Kevin

The Valentine's Day blog installment - 2020 edition

Even though I briefly mentioned Valentine’s Day, I thought I would interrupt the recent blogs from Ephesians 2 and devote an entire blog to the holiday.  I do this primarily because my heart goes out to a large group of people: those who are single and unattached today.  They know the cultural expectation to have a significant other on this day, and to not have one weighs heavily upon them like a blanket.  How do I know this?  To be transparent with you, I know this because I am currently in that life situation.

I will never forget a TV commercial from years ago.  It began with a woman looking diligently in the greeting card aisle for the perfect Valentine’s Day card for her boyfriend.  She reads the line, “our love is like a beacon” aloud to herself.  After a lot of careful deliberation, she finds the right card.  By contrast, her boyfriend, as he is purchasing his beer at a grocery store, throws in the first Valentine’s Day card he sees in the checkout line.  The scene shifts to the couple reading each other’s cards.  “It’s perfect,” the girl exclaims to her guy.  The commercial (and more specifically the man) always irritated me.  This loving girl deserved more effort than that!

I tell you all that because I came across an article that I will be sharing portions of today.  And as I do, I wanted you to know that this wasn’t some apathetic exercise, without any emotional fervor, on my end.  As if it was just something I thought would be good for others to read for a Valentine’s Day blog; no, I needed this reminder.

Author Stacy Reaoch wrote a helpful article that she titled “Singleness Is Not a Problem to Be Solved”.  At one point, she brings up a quote from Elisabeth Elliot that changed her perspective.  Elisabeth’s quote was this: “If you are single today, the portion assigned to you for today is singleness.  It is God’s gift.  Singleness ought not to be viewed as a problem, nor marriage as a right.  God in his wisdom and love grants you either as a gift.”  Stacy goes on to write, “I was shocked and offended the first time my eyes rolled over those words.  But it was Elisabeth Elliot’s voice, along with the apostle Paul’s (1 Corinthians 7:7), that propelled me to not pine over a missing relationship, but to wholeheartedly pursue Jesus and the life he had give me to live.”

She then lists four ways to make the most of singleness.  I’m not going to list them all here (but the link will be below, and it is well worth your time), however, I am going to cite these words: “In whatever season of waiting God might have you in, choose to bloom where you’re planted.  Embrace the life God has called you to, whether single or married.  Trust that both callings are precious gifts of grace, both with painful and overwhelming hardships.  Happiness is not found through finding a soul mate, but through finding satisfaction in a loving Savior who has called you his own and made you a beloved son or daughter of the King.”

(Source: https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/singleness-is-not-a-problem-to-be-solved)

Let me conclude with this: one of my Christmas gifts was a book by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth and Robert Wolgemuth titled “You Can Trust God to Write Your Story”.  It is a wonderful book that I resonate with.  The proper response is always surrendering to the Lord and His ways.  Not that it’s always easy, but we can trust God; He knows best.

Kevin

"Amazing love" - Reflections on Ephesians 2 (part 2)

Children love to ask questions.  This is a good thing, it helps them to learn.  When we look at the beginning verses of Ephesians chapter 2, we see our helpless, hopeless sinful state; but God initiated a plan to rescue us from this condition.  There is a question that emerges: why would He bother to do this?  God doesn’t need friendship and fellowship with mankind.  He is complete in Himself, not lacking anything.  So why bother?  There are several answers given here in Ephesians 2 that I want to look at today.

#1: God is a God of mercy and grace

Look at Ephesians 2:4 again.  The verse says that God is “rich in mercy” (English Standard Version).  Mercy is not getting what we deserve.  If you are stopped by a policeman for speeding, and he (or she) decides to not give you a ticket, just a verbal warning, you have been given mercy.  You were guilty.  But you didn’t get the ticket you deserved.  Similarly, God is a God of mercy.  We have accrued a massive “sin debt”, as a pastor once put it, but God who is “rich in mercy” didn’t give us what we deserved.

Secondly, God is a God of grace.  At the very end of verse 5, after being told that God made us alive in Christ, this parenthetical statement is made: “By grace you have been saved.”  Grace is getting what we don’t deserve.  It’s unmerited favor.  God orchestrated a plan for Jesus Christ, God in human flesh, to die a criminal’s death on a cross to pay for our sin.  One resource puts it this way: “Grace is what God gives to undeserving people, while mercy is what He doesn’t give to deserving people.  We deserve judgment, but God freely pardons, if only we will accept what He freely offers” (From God is Amazing by Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission). 

#2: God is a God of love

How fitting that we would ponder God's staggering love us on the week of Valentine’s Day!  This was God's providence, I assure you.  Ephesians 2:4 reads, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us…made us alive together in Christ (italics added for emphasis).”  A companion passage is in Romans 5; “When we were unable to help ourselves, at the moment of our need, Christ died for us, although we were living against God.  Very few people will die to save the life of someone else…But God shows His great love for us in this way: Christ died for us while were still sinners” (verses 6-8; New Century Version).  The words of a praise chorus state: “Amazing love!  How can it be that You, my King, would die for me?  Amazing love!  I know it’s true.  It’s my joy to honor You.”

Why does God love us?  I submit that we human beings are not able to answer that question.  To quote from another song, the Christian group Avalon has this line in their wonderful song “Everything to me”: “I grew up in Sunday school; I memorized the Golden Rule, and how Jesus came to set the sinner free.  I know the story inside-out; I can tell you all about the path that led Him up the Calvary.  But ask me why He loves me, and I don’t know what to say.  But I’ll never be the same because He changed my life when He became everything to me.”

#3: God is a God of kindness

Ephesians 2:7 says, “That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (New King James Version).  God is kind.  Titus 3:4-5 tells us, “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared…He saved us.”  Once again, God didn't need us.  He could have left us in our sinful state, but in His kindness, He didn't.  I don’t know who said it, but I once heard someone declare that the child of God is “a trophy of His grace.”  Isn’t that incredible to contemplate?  God saved us to forever showcase that He is a God of mercy, grace, love, and kindness.

 

Kevin

"But God...made us alive" - Reflections on Ephesians 2 (part 1)

I want to begin with a personal note: I confess that the lack of blog content of late frustrates me.  I feel like I haven’t had the chance to spend time with a friend.  I have lots of things I want to talk about (for one thing, I didn’t even say a word about the Super Bowl), but my life is always so busy.  I’m hoping that I can get back into a rhythm of consistent blog posts.

As I transition to the main part of the blog now, let me share that Ephesians 2 has been on my mind recently.  Over the course of the next few blogs, I want to look at some verses from this chapter.  The beginning verses have a rather grim note: “And you were once dead in the trespasses and sins…following the course of this world” (English Standard Version).  Verse 3: “among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind.”

These verses are difficult to take in and digest, but the assessment is undeniable.  Every man, woman, boy and girl is infected with the curse of sin.  For example, have you ever seen a child emphatically declare that they didn’t eat the doughnut when the chocolate is right on their chin for all to see?  We may laugh at that, but it demonstrates that even a child isn’t perfect or without sin.  The Bible says a child is known by his actions (Proverbs 20:11).  In 1 Kings 8:46 we read, “For there is no one who does not sin” (New King James Version).

The text shifts in verse 4 with these glorious words: “But God”.  Humanity was immersed in sin, carrying out all sorts of sordid passions, guilty before a holy God, and we didn’t even know or care.  “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us…made us alive together in Christ” (verses 4-5).  In her helpful devotional book titled “Contentment: Seeing God’s goodness” Megan Hill writes, “Because of the work of Christ on our behalf – his life of perfect obedience, his death on the cross, his resurrection and ascension – we are no longer dead.  We are wonderfully alive!”

That’s what God did for me.  As a young boy, the Lord, by His Spirit, quickened my heart to show me that I was a sinner in need of a Savior, and that Savior’s name is Jesus Christ.  He shed His blood to atone for my sin.  I just needed to accept what He did by placing my faith, belief, and trust in Jesus.  When I was putting all of this together, I was reminded of a college paper that I wrote back in 2011.  We were instructed to write our own Psalm, like David did all those centuries ago.  In part, this is what I wrote:

“O Lord my God, I praise and thank You for all the marvelous works that You have done in my life.  Were I to try to recount them all it would take me hours upon hours.  I was a dead man and You resurrected me.  I was ill and sickly and You gave me my health back.  I was a guilty [lawbreaker] condemned to execution, because of my repugnant sin, but You took my place.

O Lord, what else is there for me to say in response but thank You?  All the glory goes to You and You alone.  I lift up my voice with a song of celebration to You, O God, because You have been so merciful, gracious, kind and benevolent to me in my life.”  All these years later, I can only add that God has been faithful, even to this very day. 

Kevin

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together in Christ Jesus” – Ephesians 2:4-5