Focal Passage for 2010:
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him…Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will HE brought forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creation” (James 1:1-5, 16-17).
Over the past several months, God has revealed to me that I have not had a Biblical view of who HE is. HE has been so gracious to me and has taught me and continues to teach me to search His Word thoroughly and to trust in His sovereignty. In the past, I have tried to define God based on my rationale, understanding, wisdom, and fleshly desires (world view); however, God is faithfully changing my world view into a Biblical view (understanding who God is through the truth of His Word).
Satan is the Master Manipulator. Scripture tells us that Satan is cunning (Gen. 3:1), a murderer (John 8:44), the father of lies (John 8:44), a roaring lion walking around seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8), a thief (John 10:10), our adversary (1 Peter 5:8), and our accuser (Revelation 12:10). Satan’s tactics are designed to distract us from pure worship of the One True Living God. Satan will manifest his lies to fit our personality, circumstance, and vulnerabilities. That is why God’s Word warns us to “be sober, be viligant” (1 Peter 5:8) and to arm ourselves daily (moment by moment) with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). We must guard ourselves with truth and stand firm on that truth no matter what our circumstances are, what our flesh desires, and/or what the world offers us.
Satan uses lies to distract us from God’s Truth:
THE LIE: “God is NOT who HE claims to be.”
THE TRUTH: “Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer; the LORD of hosts: ‘I am the First and the Last; Besides Me there is no God.” (Isaiah 44:6)
THE LIE: “You are NOT who God says you are.”
THE TRUTH: “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father”…heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ…” (Romans 8:15 & 16b)
THE LIE: “You are not sinning, you are just doing things a little differently than other people. You are an independent person.”
THE TRUTH: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…” (1 Samuel 15:22-23a)
God reveals who HE is through His Word and HE faithfully uses every circumstance in our lives to draw us to Him. Our focal passage tells us that even the trials in our lives are “good and perfect gifts” from God. How can this be true? Trials can be hard, frightening, disappointing, painful, and sometimes fatal. Our flesh cannot comprehend how something that we find so difficult can be a good and perfect gift from the Lord God. My Friend, the answer lies within our view of God. If we view God through the truth of His Word, we will begin to understand how a perfect and loving God can and does use trials in our lives to produce spiritual fruit in us and a more intimate relationship with Him. When we view trials through the eyes of Scripture, we will see God’s hand at work, know that HE is working all things for our good and His glory, and we HE will cultivate in us a solid faith in Him!!!
A beautiful example of this is found in the book of Job. In Job 1:6-12 & 2:1-10, God’s Word records the conversations between the LORD God and Satan. Each time, Satan asks permission to afflict Job and the LORD God allows this. If we fast-forward to chapters 38 and 39, we learn that Job has asked God for a reason that HE allowed him to suffer, and these two chapters record God’s response to Job. How does God answer Job? God’s Word says that:
• God laid the foundations of the earth
• God determined the earth’s measurements
• God alone fastened the earth to its foundations and laid its cornerstone
• God set the boundaries to the sea and determined where they would flow
• God made the clouds and gave them their purpose
• God gives the dawn its time and darkness its place
• God alone has power over life and death and has appointed each person’s days
• God created light
• God created the seasons and each element with a specific and unique purpose
• God has given a thunderbolt its path
• And causes the rain to fall
• God has power over all the elements of the universe and each obeys His voice
• God gives wisdom and allows man to have intellectual thought and reasoning
• God provides for each and every animal and knows when a new creature is born
• God guides the birds of the air and the beast of the fields
In Job 40:3-5, we see Job’s response to the LORD God. “Then Job answered the LORD and said: “Behold, I am vile; What shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth, Once I have spoken, but I will not answer; Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.” God’s grace allowed Job to understand who God is, was, and always will be. God did not answer Job’s question about “why” HE allowed him to suffer but instead God answered the real question that Job needed answered. You see, it was better that Job understood “who” allowed his suffering. Why is this important for us today?
My Friend, God’s ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). God desires to draw us to Himself, reveal to us who HE is through the truth of His Word, and establish in us a pure relationship with Him. EVERYTHING God does, EVERTHING God allows, and EVERYTHING God withholds from us is for our good and His glory!!! Some of us today may be facing a trial and we may be questioning why God is allowing such a thing in our lives. May each of us be encouraged through the power and truth of God’s Word! God loves us and His purposes are perfect. I love what one of our pastors said in a message a few weeks ago, “Trials are God’s blessings in disguise.”
My Friend, do you have a Biblical view of the Lord God? Can you trust that whatever God is allowing in your life is for a divine purpose? Are you willing to allow God to use that trail to shape you more into His image? Trials are truly tools in the Master’s hands that HE uses to shave away the parts of us that are not glorifying to Him and prunes us so that we will produce the fruit of the spirit so that others may see Christ in us and be drawn to Christ through us!!!! We love as Christ loves when we surrender ourselves to the work of the Holy Spirit and allow Him to use us however HE chooses to minster to a dark and dying world. We may not even realize how our trials may touch the lives of other people as they watch us praise the Lord in the midst of difficult times.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Mnoday Morning Devotion #284
Focal Passage for 2010:
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We have spent several weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to “forgive one another.” We realized that God desires for us to forgive others REGARDLESS if they apologize to us!!! WOW!!! When we begin loving as Christ loves, then forgiveness is something that we will freely offer anyone who hurts us, harms us, betrays us, abuses us, rejects us, judges us, and/or refuses to forgive us. Forgiving others does not mean that we condone their sin. Forgiving others demonstrates God’s glory by freeing us from the bondage of sin and reveals Christ to that person. When we love others in a way that allows us to freely forgive them, then we are also ministering to their deepest spiritual need.
This week, we will conclude our study of Ephesians 4:32 by focusing on “forgiving even as Christ forgave you.” In order to forgive as Christ forgives, we must search Scripture to learn how Christ forgives. “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8). “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin” (Romans 6:5-7). “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). “And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations” (Isaiah 61:4-5). So, how does God’s Word promise us that Christ forgives? COMPLETLEY!!!
How can God forgive us completely? We are vile and sinful creatures and HE is a Holy God!!! Because “God is love” (1 John 4:8b), HE prepared a way for us to stand before Him holy, pure, righteous, sinless, and blameless. In the garden of Eden, we see the first sin (Genesis 3:6) and in Genesis 3:15, we witness the grace and mercy of the One True Living God being revealed as HE promises the coming Messiah!!! “So the LORD God said to the Serpent…I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; HE shall crush your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” God forgave us completely through the blood of Christ Jesus!!!
As Christ Jesus hung on the cross, HE cried out, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). Praise the Lord, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2). “For God so loved the world that HE gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17). God’s love for us set us free. When Christ hung on the cross, His blood bought our freedom from sin and death!!! We can “boldly approach the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16) and confess our sins to the Lord God and repent of those sins!! When we do that, we are totally and completely free. God’s Word promises us that “As far as the east is from the west, So far has HE removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12).
My Friend, we can stand before the Lord God completely forgiven through the blood of Christ and we CAN FORGIVE OTHERS COMPLETELY through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is hard to forgive those who hurt us but as a believer, we do have the same power living within us that raised Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20)!!!! If we desire to love others as Christ loves us then we MUST learn to forgive others as Christ forgives us!!! In doing so, we are again ministering to the deepest need of those people without Christ Jesus. When we love the way Christ loves, the Lord God is reflected in us and through us and others will be drawn to Him!!! We were created to bring honor and glory to the Lord God. When we forgive others as Christ forgave us, we are a testimony to the One True Living God!!!
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We have spent several weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to “forgive one another.” We realized that God desires for us to forgive others REGARDLESS if they apologize to us!!! WOW!!! When we begin loving as Christ loves, then forgiveness is something that we will freely offer anyone who hurts us, harms us, betrays us, abuses us, rejects us, judges us, and/or refuses to forgive us. Forgiving others does not mean that we condone their sin. Forgiving others demonstrates God’s glory by freeing us from the bondage of sin and reveals Christ to that person. When we love others in a way that allows us to freely forgive them, then we are also ministering to their deepest spiritual need.
This week, we will conclude our study of Ephesians 4:32 by focusing on “forgiving even as Christ forgave you.” In order to forgive as Christ forgives, we must search Scripture to learn how Christ forgives. “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8). “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin” (Romans 6:5-7). “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). “And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations” (Isaiah 61:4-5). So, how does God’s Word promise us that Christ forgives? COMPLETLEY!!!
How can God forgive us completely? We are vile and sinful creatures and HE is a Holy God!!! Because “God is love” (1 John 4:8b), HE prepared a way for us to stand before Him holy, pure, righteous, sinless, and blameless. In the garden of Eden, we see the first sin (Genesis 3:6) and in Genesis 3:15, we witness the grace and mercy of the One True Living God being revealed as HE promises the coming Messiah!!! “So the LORD God said to the Serpent…I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; HE shall crush your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” God forgave us completely through the blood of Christ Jesus!!!
As Christ Jesus hung on the cross, HE cried out, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). Praise the Lord, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2). “For God so loved the world that HE gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17). God’s love for us set us free. When Christ hung on the cross, His blood bought our freedom from sin and death!!! We can “boldly approach the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16) and confess our sins to the Lord God and repent of those sins!! When we do that, we are totally and completely free. God’s Word promises us that “As far as the east is from the west, So far has HE removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12).
My Friend, we can stand before the Lord God completely forgiven through the blood of Christ and we CAN FORGIVE OTHERS COMPLETELY through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is hard to forgive those who hurt us but as a believer, we do have the same power living within us that raised Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20)!!!! If we desire to love others as Christ loves us then we MUST learn to forgive others as Christ forgives us!!! In doing so, we are again ministering to the deepest need of those people without Christ Jesus. When we love the way Christ loves, the Lord God is reflected in us and through us and others will be drawn to Him!!! We were created to bring honor and glory to the Lord God. When we forgive others as Christ forgave us, we are a testimony to the One True Living God!!!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Monday Morning Devotion #283
Focal Passage for 2010:
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We have spent several weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to be “tender-hearted.” “Tender-hearted” in this verse means compassionate. If we are to be tender-hearted to those around us, we need to understand how God is tender-hearted to us!!! God ministers to our very core issue –our need for Him!! Then what are we to do??? We are to minister to the very core issue of those people God brings into our lives. We must love the Lord God with all our hearts, all our minds, all our strength, and all our souls so that HE is glorified through us. When others see Christ in us, they are drawn to the cross!!! We must be willing to love others enough to boldly share the Gospel of Christ, serve them as Christ serves us, and encourage them through truth so that they may come to know the Lord God as their personal Lord and Savior!!! There is no more perfect gift than the gift of Christ!! God reveals Himself to us through His Word and when we dive deep into His Word, HE will equip us with a Biblical view of Himself. HE will give us wisdom, discernment, understanding, and boldness to proclaim Him to a lost and dying world!!! Are you willing to be a vessel of the Most High???
This week, we will focus our study on “forgiving one another.” Forgiving in this verse means to “freely give.” This definition really got my attention. I began to think about how I forgive. I am ashamed to admit this but I do not forgive freely. Now, certainly, if someone apologizes to me, I accept their apology and forgive them but what the Lord has been revealing to me is that HE desires for me to forgive them REGARDLESS if they apologize to me!!! WOW!!! Don’t you love how God continues to reveal our sinful hearts?!?!?! At times, we may be tempted to become overwhelmed by the areas in our lives that God desires to change but God’s Word addresses this very issue and gives us hope!! “Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have domination over me. Redeem me from the oppression of man, That I may keep Your precepts. Make Your face shine upon Your servant, And teach me Your statutes” (Psalm 133-135). “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2).
God is so good to us!!! His desire in revealing our sin is to free us from the bondage of that sin!! When God commands us to forgive others it is because unforgiveness is a sin and refusing to forgive actually produces bitterness in our hearts. “Pursue peace with all people and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord; looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up causing trouble, and by this many become defiled” (Hebrews 12:14-15). Forgiving others frees us from the bondage of bitterness and it reveals Christ to those who have wronged us. Learning to forgive others requires that we first learn how Christ forgave us. Next week, we will be diving deep into Scripture to learn exactly how Christ forgives us!!
Reread this year’s focal passage once more. “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). When we forgive others, we are loving them as Christ loves them. “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, HE humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:3-11).
When we begin loving as Christ loves, then forgiveness is something that we will freely offer anyone who hurts us, harms us, betrays us, abuses us, rejects us, judges us, and/or refuses to forgive us. Forgiving others does not mean that we condone their sin. Forgiving others demonstrates God’s glory by freeing us from the bondage of sin and reveals Christ to that person. Last week, we learned that God is compassionate and HE demonstrates that compassion through ministering to our deepest need – our need for Christ Jesus. When we love others in a way that allows us to freely forgive them, then we are also ministering to their deepest spiritual need. God is so faithful to continually work all things for His glory and our good. Are you willing to let go of bitterness and to forgive freely? May the Lord continue to reveal our true heart condition to each of us so that we can confess and repent those things to the One who ALWAYS FORGIVES and ALWAYS LOVES!!!! Make us more like you, Lord Jesus!!!
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We have spent several weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to be “tender-hearted.” “Tender-hearted” in this verse means compassionate. If we are to be tender-hearted to those around us, we need to understand how God is tender-hearted to us!!! God ministers to our very core issue –our need for Him!! Then what are we to do??? We are to minister to the very core issue of those people God brings into our lives. We must love the Lord God with all our hearts, all our minds, all our strength, and all our souls so that HE is glorified through us. When others see Christ in us, they are drawn to the cross!!! We must be willing to love others enough to boldly share the Gospel of Christ, serve them as Christ serves us, and encourage them through truth so that they may come to know the Lord God as their personal Lord and Savior!!! There is no more perfect gift than the gift of Christ!! God reveals Himself to us through His Word and when we dive deep into His Word, HE will equip us with a Biblical view of Himself. HE will give us wisdom, discernment, understanding, and boldness to proclaim Him to a lost and dying world!!! Are you willing to be a vessel of the Most High???
This week, we will focus our study on “forgiving one another.” Forgiving in this verse means to “freely give.” This definition really got my attention. I began to think about how I forgive. I am ashamed to admit this but I do not forgive freely. Now, certainly, if someone apologizes to me, I accept their apology and forgive them but what the Lord has been revealing to me is that HE desires for me to forgive them REGARDLESS if they apologize to me!!! WOW!!! Don’t you love how God continues to reveal our sinful hearts?!?!?! At times, we may be tempted to become overwhelmed by the areas in our lives that God desires to change but God’s Word addresses this very issue and gives us hope!! “Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have domination over me. Redeem me from the oppression of man, That I may keep Your precepts. Make Your face shine upon Your servant, And teach me Your statutes” (Psalm 133-135). “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2).
God is so good to us!!! His desire in revealing our sin is to free us from the bondage of that sin!! When God commands us to forgive others it is because unforgiveness is a sin and refusing to forgive actually produces bitterness in our hearts. “Pursue peace with all people and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord; looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up causing trouble, and by this many become defiled” (Hebrews 12:14-15). Forgiving others frees us from the bondage of bitterness and it reveals Christ to those who have wronged us. Learning to forgive others requires that we first learn how Christ forgave us. Next week, we will be diving deep into Scripture to learn exactly how Christ forgives us!!
Reread this year’s focal passage once more. “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). When we forgive others, we are loving them as Christ loves them. “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, HE humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:3-11).
When we begin loving as Christ loves, then forgiveness is something that we will freely offer anyone who hurts us, harms us, betrays us, abuses us, rejects us, judges us, and/or refuses to forgive us. Forgiving others does not mean that we condone their sin. Forgiving others demonstrates God’s glory by freeing us from the bondage of sin and reveals Christ to that person. Last week, we learned that God is compassionate and HE demonstrates that compassion through ministering to our deepest need – our need for Christ Jesus. When we love others in a way that allows us to freely forgive them, then we are also ministering to their deepest spiritual need. God is so faithful to continually work all things for His glory and our good. Are you willing to let go of bitterness and to forgive freely? May the Lord continue to reveal our true heart condition to each of us so that we can confess and repent those things to the One who ALWAYS FORGIVES and ALWAYS LOVES!!!! Make us more like you, Lord Jesus!!!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Monday Morning Devotion #282
Focal Passage for 2010:
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We will be spending the next couple of weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to be “kind”. This week, we will focus on “being tender-hearted.” “Tender-hearted” in this verse means compassionate. What does Scripture tells us about being compassionate? Turn to James 5:11 “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord-that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.”
Now, this may seem like a strange verse to use to demonstrate compassion. This verse talks about perseverance and recounts the suffering of Job as an example of God’s compassion and mercy. Yet, the deeper we look into the truth of God’s Word, the more we begin to understand that the world’s definition of compassion and God’s definition of compassion are completely different! The world’s system teaches us to be independent thinkers. The world system supports the philosophy that man can be his/her own god and determine his/her destiny. But God’s Word is very clear that God alone established the foundations of this universe and HE alone is sovereign. No matter what we think, believe, hope, or expect, God is on the throne and EVERYTHING works according to His perfect will. In order for us to appropriately demonstrate compassion in a way that honors and glorifies the Lord, we must seek the Lord God and allow Him to teach us through His Word what HE expects from a compassionate heart!!
The Scholastic Pocket Dictionary defines compassion as “a desire to help someone who is suffering” (p.98). Yet, in James 5:11, God’s Word implies that the Lord’s allowance of Job’s suffering was a sign of God’s compassion. How can this be? Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” 1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” How was God compassionate and merciful in His allowance of Job’s suffering?
In Job 1, we see the conversation between Satan and the Lord God. Before Satan can do anything to Job, he must first get permission from the Lord. In His allowance of suffering in Job’s life, the Lord God reveals more of Himself to us!! God is compassionate because HE alone sees our deepest need and HE alone fills that need. If we fast-forward to chapters 37-40 in the book of Job, we will see this compassion revealed. In chapter 37, Job questions the Lord as to why HE had allowed him to suffer. In chapter 38-39, the Lord gives Job an answer. Now, it is not the answer Job was looking for BUT it was the answer that Job NEEDED!!!
What did God reveal to Job?
•God laid the foundations of the earth
•God determined the earth’s measurements
•God alone fastened the earth to its foundations and laid its cornerstone
•God set the boundaries to the sea and determined where they would flow
•God made the clouds and gave them their purpose
•God gives the dawn its time and darkness its place
•God alone has power over life and death and has appointed each person’s days
•God created light
•God created the seasons and made each element with a specific and unique purpose
•God has given a thunderbolt its path
•And causes the rain to fall
•God has power over all the elements of the universe and each one obeys His voice
•God gives wisdom and allows man to have intellectual thought and reasoning
•God provides for each and every animal and knows when a new creature is born
•God guides the birds of the air and the beast of the fields
How did Job respond to God’s revelation?
•“Then Job answered the LORD and said, “Behold, I am vile; What shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth. Once I have spoken, but I will not answer; Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.” Job 40:4-5
Job thought he needed to know WHY God had allowed his suffering but what Job really need to know was WHO God is, was, and always will be. God’s compassion is revealed in His utmost concern for our spiritual well-being. Giving an outline of “why” Job suffered would not bring Job into a more intimate relationship with the Lord God but allowing Job to experience the Lord God in His glory would bring Job to repentance and to a point of pure worship of the Lord God!!! My Friend, that is what ALL of us need!!!
If we are to be tender-hearted to those around us, we need to understand how God is tender-hearted to us!!! God ministers to our very core issue – our need for Him!! Then what are we to do??? We are to minister to the very core issue of those people God brings into our lives. We must love the Lord God with all our hearts, all our minds, all our strength, and all our souls so that HE is glorified through us. When others see Christ in us, they are drawn to the cross!!! We must be willing to love others enough to boldly share the Gospel of Christ, serve them as Christ serves us, and encourage them through truth so that they may come to know the Lord God as their personal Lord and Savior!!! There is no more perfect gift than the gift of Christ!! God reveals Himself to us through His Word and when we dive deep into His Word, HE will equip us with a Biblical view of Himself. HE will give us wisdom, discernment, understanding, and boldness to proclaim Him to a lost and dying world!!! Are you willing to be a vessel of the Most High???
When we become a vessel for the Most High, it is for His glory ALONE!!! No fame, fortune, recognition, or glory should be our goal. All that God does is for His glory and we are to offer that to Him as an act of worship. God is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Almighty God, the Great I AM!!!! Who are we to try to take any of His glory, honor, or praise for ourselves?!?! May our hearts be as John the Baptist’s!! “Then the next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is HE of whom I have said, “After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for HE was before me”…”It is HE who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal straps I am not worthy to loose…HE must increase, but I must decrease” (John 1:27; 29-30; 3:30).
“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV)
Weekly Passage:
“And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
This year, we are on a journey to learn to love as Christ loves. This week’s focal passage is Ephesians 4:32. We will be spending the next couple of weeks taking this verse apart and studying each portion of God’s command. Last week, we explored Scripture to learn what it means to be “kind”. This week, we will focus on “being tender-hearted.” “Tender-hearted” in this verse means compassionate. What does Scripture tells us about being compassionate? Turn to James 5:11 “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord-that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.”
Now, this may seem like a strange verse to use to demonstrate compassion. This verse talks about perseverance and recounts the suffering of Job as an example of God’s compassion and mercy. Yet, the deeper we look into the truth of God’s Word, the more we begin to understand that the world’s definition of compassion and God’s definition of compassion are completely different! The world’s system teaches us to be independent thinkers. The world system supports the philosophy that man can be his/her own god and determine his/her destiny. But God’s Word is very clear that God alone established the foundations of this universe and HE alone is sovereign. No matter what we think, believe, hope, or expect, God is on the throne and EVERYTHING works according to His perfect will. In order for us to appropriately demonstrate compassion in a way that honors and glorifies the Lord, we must seek the Lord God and allow Him to teach us through His Word what HE expects from a compassionate heart!!
The Scholastic Pocket Dictionary defines compassion as “a desire to help someone who is suffering” (p.98). Yet, in James 5:11, God’s Word implies that the Lord’s allowance of Job’s suffering was a sign of God’s compassion. How can this be? Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” 1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” How was God compassionate and merciful in His allowance of Job’s suffering?
In Job 1, we see the conversation between Satan and the Lord God. Before Satan can do anything to Job, he must first get permission from the Lord. In His allowance of suffering in Job’s life, the Lord God reveals more of Himself to us!! God is compassionate because HE alone sees our deepest need and HE alone fills that need. If we fast-forward to chapters 37-40 in the book of Job, we will see this compassion revealed. In chapter 37, Job questions the Lord as to why HE had allowed him to suffer. In chapter 38-39, the Lord gives Job an answer. Now, it is not the answer Job was looking for BUT it was the answer that Job NEEDED!!!
What did God reveal to Job?
•God laid the foundations of the earth
•God determined the earth’s measurements
•God alone fastened the earth to its foundations and laid its cornerstone
•God set the boundaries to the sea and determined where they would flow
•God made the clouds and gave them their purpose
•God gives the dawn its time and darkness its place
•God alone has power over life and death and has appointed each person’s days
•God created light
•God created the seasons and made each element with a specific and unique purpose
•God has given a thunderbolt its path
•And causes the rain to fall
•God has power over all the elements of the universe and each one obeys His voice
•God gives wisdom and allows man to have intellectual thought and reasoning
•God provides for each and every animal and knows when a new creature is born
•God guides the birds of the air and the beast of the fields
How did Job respond to God’s revelation?
•“Then Job answered the LORD and said, “Behold, I am vile; What shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth. Once I have spoken, but I will not answer; Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.” Job 40:4-5
Job thought he needed to know WHY God had allowed his suffering but what Job really need to know was WHO God is, was, and always will be. God’s compassion is revealed in His utmost concern for our spiritual well-being. Giving an outline of “why” Job suffered would not bring Job into a more intimate relationship with the Lord God but allowing Job to experience the Lord God in His glory would bring Job to repentance and to a point of pure worship of the Lord God!!! My Friend, that is what ALL of us need!!!
If we are to be tender-hearted to those around us, we need to understand how God is tender-hearted to us!!! God ministers to our very core issue – our need for Him!! Then what are we to do??? We are to minister to the very core issue of those people God brings into our lives. We must love the Lord God with all our hearts, all our minds, all our strength, and all our souls so that HE is glorified through us. When others see Christ in us, they are drawn to the cross!!! We must be willing to love others enough to boldly share the Gospel of Christ, serve them as Christ serves us, and encourage them through truth so that they may come to know the Lord God as their personal Lord and Savior!!! There is no more perfect gift than the gift of Christ!! God reveals Himself to us through His Word and when we dive deep into His Word, HE will equip us with a Biblical view of Himself. HE will give us wisdom, discernment, understanding, and boldness to proclaim Him to a lost and dying world!!! Are you willing to be a vessel of the Most High???
When we become a vessel for the Most High, it is for His glory ALONE!!! No fame, fortune, recognition, or glory should be our goal. All that God does is for His glory and we are to offer that to Him as an act of worship. God is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Almighty God, the Great I AM!!!! Who are we to try to take any of His glory, honor, or praise for ourselves?!?! May our hearts be as John the Baptist’s!! “Then the next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is HE of whom I have said, “After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for HE was before me”…”It is HE who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal straps I am not worthy to loose…HE must increase, but I must decrease” (John 1:27; 29-30; 3:30).
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