Thought of the Day !!

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"

On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

                                                                 Matthew 9:10-13 (NIV)

The Pharisees wouldn't have anything to do with those who had sinned.  Jesus would.

The Pharisees cared more about law than love and grace.  Jesus didn't.

The Pharisees condemned people for where they were at in their lives.  Jesus showed mercy by calling the people lost in sin to come to him.

Which will we be more like?  

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

"If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him."
                                                                          Luke 17:3-4 (NIV)

Forgiveness is not a suggestion in the Gospels.  It's a command.  As a matter of fact, in the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells us that if we don't forgive others, then our Heavenly Father won't forgive us. 

But this isn't what God wants for us.  He sent His only Son to die so that our sins would be forgiven and so that we would have a way out.  What He requires is that we show the same love and forgiveness to others.

Several years ago while I was still living in Memphis, a tragic event happened just across the river in West Memphis, AR.  Three young men were tried and convicted of brutally murdering three eight-year-olds.  It was all over the news. When the three guys were brought to trial, the father of one of the victims suddenly rushed at them screaming, “I’ll chase you all the way to hell!” 

It’s certainly understandable how the father had to have anger like he’d never had before in his life.  But there is something almost prophetic about his words.  If we allow our hatred for those who have wronged us to go unchecked, it will eventually destroy us. 

Forgiving each time is exactly what God does for us.  And so it’s what He expects from us too.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

                                                                        Romans 8:18 (NIV)

 

Paul was one who really knew what it was like to suffer.  He'd been beaten, flogged, imprisoned and even stoned (and miraculously survived the stoning).  So when he makes this statement, we hear it from one who's a pretty good authority on the subject of suffering. 

 

We all suffer to varying degrees.  Some of us are lucky enough to suffer relatively little while on this earth.  We'll never know what it feels like to go to bed for the 2nd or 3rd day without food.  We'll never know what it looks like to wake up in a war zone.  We'll never have to try to go home to a place that has been destroyed by a natural disaster.

 

Some suffer more than others.  But the fact is that we will all suffer.  And this should not be taken lightly.  I hate it when someone says, "I know how you feel" or "Well, everything will be better one day."  In actuality nobody knows exactly how another person feels and even though things WILL be better one day when we get to Heaven, it's normally said because the one saying it doesn't know what else to say.  And it doesn't change the fact that we're suffering in the here and now. 

 

So what do we do.  We realize that some sufferings can actually make us stronger.  They are the lessons of life that we learn from.  Some will break us down and make us more dependent upon the one who created us.  And some will seemingly not have any purpose.  Of course only God knows that for sure.  But the key is to lean heavily on your Lord to help you through any situation and know that He often uses others to help you.  And even though we don't just say that things will be better one day and leave it at that...the fact is that they really will be.  For God has so much planned for you and me who love Him and believe in His Son. 

 

So listen to Paul as he tells us that nothing compares to what is to come for you and me...not even our sufferings.

 

In the love of Christ,
greg

 

Thought of the Day !!

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.  God is love.  Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
                                                                                  1 John 4:16 (NIV) 

How do you think the Apostle John came to the conclusion that God is love?

I figure, being with Jesus for so long and knowing him so well, John saw the love that Jesus embodied.  He saw the love that Jesus had for his family...his friends...the children...the poor...the sick...the lame...the prostitutes...the tax collectors...and even his enemies.  Jesus was the true living-breathing-walking definition of love.  He spoke love.  He taught about love.  He showed love.

So if John were to do the math, he would come up with the simple algebraic formula that we all learned in high school math (if a = b and a = c then b = c also).  In other words, if Jesus = love and if Jesus = God, then God must also = love.

The gist of this is simply that Jesus' life equated to love in every aspect of it.  As Christians, we are supposed to have the desire to be like Christ.  So the real question is what are our own lives equating?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

As we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a godly life.

                                                                                 2 Peter 1:3 (NLT)

 

Knowing Jesus better means growing in our relationship with him.  We do that through finding out more about him and speaking to him constantly, while allowing him to speak back. 

 

When we do this, His divine power (being used through God's Holy Spirit) enables us to do things we couldn't do before we grew in this relationship.  For instance, before I had a strong relationship with Jesus, I was a follower.  In high school I would do just about anything to be accepted by others, even if it was something bad.  But now, I know I am accepted by my Lord and Savior and do not feel as though I have to do anything to be accepted by others.  And this has led to me living a more godly life.

 

This is merely one example of how the divine power of God gives us everything we need for living a godly life.  Jesus knows each and every one of us and sees where there are things in our lives that we can battle on our own, but will never win.  For the temptation to do them is too strong.  If we will only seek the help of our Savior, his divine power is enough to defeat whatever the devil throws at us.  It may not be all at once, but as your relationship grows, so will your ability to fight sin. 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Do not be like the horse or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.  

Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the LORD's unfailing love
surrounds the man who trusts in him.  

Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!                                  
                                 Psalm 32:9-11 (NIV)

First of all, we're told to not be like those who have no understanding.  Our understanding of God's ways, His will for our lives and His plan of salvation for us can be found through reading our Bibles and praying to Him.

Secondly, David makes it clear that the wicked have many problems.  Sometimes it may seem as though the worst people are the ones with all the luck or all the stuff.  But what they don't have are the things that only God can give.  Peace...Assurance...True Joy...Eternal Life.

Lastly, we find in verse 11 that we should rejoice.  Now I don't feel like rejoicing all the time.  Sometimes I get down.  But even in my worst moments I can always know that God is with me and that He is not going to let anything come my way that will completely sink me.  And that is something to rejoice about.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Sunday's Sermon "Amazing Grace"

(Sermon preached on Oct 12, 2014)

Amazing Grace                                                                      

Ephesians 2:1-7 (NLT)

 

I. Grace Defined

            Grace!  Just exactly what is the definition of grace?  It’s unmerited favor from God.  It’s His abundant love and forgiveness given as a gift to us who are incapable of doing anything to deserve it.  It’s love.  It’s forgiveness.  It’s free.  And it’s available for you and me. 

(Read Ephesians 2:1-7)

·      Paul tells us that there’s a diff between then and now for those of us who’ve accepted Christ.  We’re changed.  If we’re not changed then that means we don’t have Jesus in us. 

·      Vs. 1 – Dead because of disobedience (separated from the life of God)

o   Dead – living verses Zoe living

·      Vs. 2 – Do we literally obey the devil? Yes, when we disobey God – He is real.  He is here on this earth.  And his one sole purpose is to do whatever is needed to take bring you away from God.  He is a very jealous being and will do whatever he can to accomplish his goals.

·      Vs. 3 – Sinful nature

·      Vs. 4 & 5 – God’s grace leads to life (Zoe life now / eternal Zoe life later)

II. Why God loves us

            If you read the Psalms that David wrote, you will find a man who is desperate for God.  And if you read 1 John 4:19 you we see that we love because God first loved us. 

            But why is He so desperate for us?  It’s because as 1 John also says, “God is Love”.  It’s in His nature to love us and there’s proof of this ever since our existence. 

            He showed His love through the very act of creation.  He created the Garden and everything in it perfectly for us.  Then He created us out of love with freedom instead of into slavery.  Over and over in the OT He comes to His children’s rescue even though they continually turn their backs on Him.

            And then the ultimate show of love came in the person of Jesus Christ.   He sacrificed His one and only Son for us to show us just how great His love was.

III. The three-in-one Grace

            God’s love, or grace, is always given to us and is always the same.  But we speak of it in three different ways.  There’s prevenient grace, which is God’s love that comes to us before we even know God.  It woos us into a relationship with Him through His Son Jesus.  Then there’s His justifying grace, which is God’s love as we come to that know God.  You could call it the grace that brings about salvation in our lives.  And then there’s sanctifying grace that leads us towards sanctification, or perfection after we’ve been saved.

            So no matter where we are in our spiritual journey…or even if we don’t even know we’re on a spiritual journey…God’s everlasting grace (His love and forgiveness) is always with us…always readily available for us.

IV. Amazing Grace

            The hard part for people of our culture today is the fact that on the whole we’re taught that we deserve certain things.  We’re a privileged nation with many freedoms who’ve taken them for granted.  We’re taught from childhood that we can do anything that we set out minds too.

This leads to many people that they be good enough for salvation.  They feel that they’re not all that bad.  Christians time and again will say that they’re going to Heaven because they’re good people. 

And we can shirk at the fact that we actually deserve punishment for our sins instead of forgiveness.  Paul makes it clear that before we choose Christ it doesn’t matter how good or bad we are, we’re still dead in our sins.  (Read verse 1)

There is a way of believing called total depravity that teaches us that we are totally bad.  Nothing about our physical selves is good.  And since I’ve taught you before that David spoke of being born a sinner and that we are basically sinful since birth, I want to make sure that today I place this in perspective so that we don’t go down that road of total depravity. 

You see, we were created in the image of God.  We were created with the capacity to do great and wonderful things.  But we also have free will, which means that we are continually choosing between what the Holy Spirit leads us to and what our sinful (human) nature leads us to. 

All you have to do is read your bible and you will see where people so often choose the road of their sinful nature.  As a matter of fact, all you would have to do is look back at your own life and if you are honest you will see where you, yourself have chosen the road of your sinful nature over and over.  We all have.  It IS human nature.

            Then there’s God’s Grace.  It’s a gift given to us that we don’t deserve.  It’d be like us losing our jobs and the bank telling us not to worry, that they’d just write our house notes off.  It’d be like gas stations putting out a sign saying that since the cost of living had gone up so much, they’d give us our gas for free.

            Our God does even more than that though.  He says that we’ve turned our backs on Him and been selfish and overindulgent and at times pretty ugly.  In truth, the wickedness of this world (including our own selves who’ve sinned against God) is deserving of the punishment of hell, whether we want to admit it or not. 

But in spite of this God is willing to give us His love and forgiveness (and a ton of second chances). 

(John Newton)           

One such person that surely came to understand this is the man who wrote the song Amazing Grace.  His name was John Newton. 

From his late teens until around the age of 30 Newton had been a man who spit in the face of God.  He was a sailor that got kicked off of many boats because he couldn’t deal with authority.  He was spoiled and had been gotten out of trouble many times by his father.

He caused riots aboard his ships and taught others to disrespect the captain and God.  He became a slave trader and was a blasphemer and a true foul mouth devil. 

That was until one stormy day when his ship was coming back from the African Coast.  A storm came up that basically did the ship in.  More than once John Newton and the rest of the crew thought that their lives were over.  And something happened to John.  He later wrote in his journal regarding this event.

“about six in the evening (I heard) that the ship was freed from water, there rose a gleam of hope. I thought I saw the hand of God displayed in our favour; I began to pray.”

            And this began a process that changed John Newton’s life forever.  This change is written about in his most famous hymn entitled Amazing Grace.             

Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace!

How sweet the sound

that saved a wretch like me!

I once was lost,

but now am found;

was blind, but now I see.

            John Newton realized what a wretch he’d been as he remembered the days that he was involved in the slave trade.  John Wesley understood how much of a wretch that he’d been before God’s mercy was shone to him.  Your pastor stands before you admitting how much of a failure he was before he gave control of his life over to Christ.

            What about you?  When you sing this song for possibly the millionth time, does it remind you of what a wretch you’d still be without Jesus?           

            As John Newton was nearing the end of his lifetime he got to where he could barely see his hands before his face.  Ironically, even though he couldn’t see physically, he still sang this song and believed that he could see better then than ever.  He saw how the grace of God had literally saved his life over and over.  There were times in his life where for all intense purposes he should’ve died.  Even though Newton didn’t see at the time…he eventually did.

What is it that God might be trying to get you to see in your life?

V. Closing

            Just as God’s amazing grace called out to John Newton while he was still a heathen, saved him at just that right time, and worked in him perfecting him until the day he went to be with the Lord, it can do the same for each of us. 

            Some of us may be being called by God’s prevenient grace to come into a relationship with Him through His Son today.  Others of us might have experienced his justifying grace and have assurance of our salvation and are being urged by His sanctifying grace. 

            It’s up to us to choose though.  Will we allow God’s grace to cover our sins and change us?  Will we allow our eyes to be opened to our sinfulness so that we will see a better way in our Lord Jesus?

Thought of the Day !!

Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.") No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
                                                                       Romans 8:35-37 (NLT)

This life is but a fleeting moment of time.  Even if it doesn’t feel that way, it’s true.  We cannot comprehend eternity, and so these sufferings that we go through seem to be much longer than they really are.

But is all life suffering?  No.  There are joyful moments even as we go through pain.  There are the sunny days in the midst of what seems like a sea of dark clouds.  And for those of us who are lucky enough to have the heart and attitude of Christ (especially attitude), we will find the joy in the midst of a hurting world; the light in the midst of a darkened world.

Why?  Because Christ Jesus loves us that much.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.  So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death.  But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.
                                                                              Romans 8:5-6 (NLT)

Where will our minds go today?  We will think about daily things such as what has to be done at work or what to have for lunch or supper or what’s going on with the kids.  These things are necessary as we go through our day.

But our minds will go so many places today that have nothing to do with the mundane daily stuff that has to be done.  Will we think about sinful things?  If we are controlled by our sinful (human) nature, we will.  If we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, or if Jesus rules our heart, then we will think about things that please God.

Does this mean that if we’ve accepted Jesus then we’ll never have another sinful thought again?  No.  For we fight a battle with the temptation of sin on a daily basis.  Sometimes we lose this battle.  But if we have the Holy Spirit within us, we realize that the sinful thoughts are contrary to God’s will and it bothers us.  When the Holy Spirit is in us, we want to be better people who obey Jesus and live within God’s will.

And when the Spirit lives in us and controls our minds, we have a peace that cannot be found when we allow our sinful nature to control them.  So find peace in living in God’s will and thinking about the things of God today.  Praise Him, thank Him and walk with Him.  And your day will brighten.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

                                                                         Matthew 7:1-2 (NIV)

 

People judge others all the time.  We judge and are judged based on attributes such as sex, skin color, political beliefs, religious beliefs, and on and on.  If a person looks a certain way or acts a certain way or believes a certain way, then there must be something wrong with that person.  And judgments are often incorrect.  Nathanael judged a man because of where he came from..."Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?"  This judgment was not a very good one indeed.  For Jesus is the one he was talking about. 

 

When we judge others, we take on a privilege that has not been given to us.  For Jesus, the only perfect one to ever live, is the true Judge.  We may disagree.  We may argue about various things.  We may try and persuade others against a certain behavior.  But the difference in this and judging is when we start believing that we know the totality of God's will on the subject and that the other person (or group) cannot possibly be trying to listen to God.  In other words, believing something like "I know what's right and what's wrong, whereas you cannot since you disagree with me". 

 

Issues like homosexuality and abortion and the death penalty, along with environmental, economic or political issues can divide us because we believe so adamantly that we're right and the other side is wrong.  This can lead to believing that the person on the other side is a bad person.  And so we judge that person based upon his/her belief. 

 

You may be right on an issue.  And on the other hand you may be wrong.  For when two sides are so far apart from each other, one or the other side has to be wrong.  But never let the devil use these issues to convince you to break the second greatest commandment...love of neighbor. 

 

You may sense that God is calling you to stand up to support or go against a certain issue.  And if that's the case, by all means, do what God is calling you to do.  But even though you may find it your calling to make a stand for what you believe is God's will, never allow yourself to get caught up in judging someone else.  For the other person may honestly believe that they're just doing what God wants them to do as well.  And only God knows for sure what is truly right.  So let someone who's more qualified have the job of judging.  Allow Jesus to do this.  Anyway, we're supposed to be in the business of loving, not judging.

 

As for me, I ask for God's forgiveness where I have judged and will judge in the future.  And I ask that You, oh Lord, will be more lenient in judgment of me than I have been with others at times. 

 

In the love of Christ,

greg

Thought of the Day !!

Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.         
                                                                          Romans 7:6 (NLT)

We are not bound by the letter of the law and its penalties when we accept Jesus as our Savior.  He died to pay the penalty for us.

Instead we live in the Holy Spirit.  Or you might say that God’s Holy Spirit lives within us.  That’s what we mean when we say that Jesus is in our hearts.

This does not discard the law, however, because God’s moral law guides His Spirit, which in turn guides us.  This is, I believe, what Jesus meant when he said that he didn’t come to destroy the Law but to fulfill it.

If Jesus lives within us through the Holy Spirit, can we simply disregard God’s moral laws found in the Old Testament?  I don’t think we can.  We may not always remain faithful to keeping the moral law, or what’s right in God’s eyes.  But when we fail, we feel bad.  We are not penalized like in the Old Testament.  We are forgiven.  But we know we’ve done something wrong and don’t want to continue.  This is living in the Spirit.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

In one of the villages, Jesus met a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When the man saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground, begging to be healed. "Lord," he said, "if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean." Jesus reached out and touched him. "I am willing," he said. "Be healed!" And instantly the leprosy disappeared.
                                                          Luke 5:12-13 (NLT)

Notice that before Jesus heals this leper that he touches him.  Max Lucado, in his book Just Like Jesus has this great line that goes "Unworthy of the touch of man, but worthy of the touch of God."  I love that line.  It's so true about the leper and even about many people today. 

The fact is that we are all lepers before God.  We’re so far from being holy and worthy of even approaching Him. But Jesus seeks the unworthy.  He calls out to you and to me.  And through His own doing, He (not us) makes us worthy of a touch from God.

I speak quite often about how we are supposed to do this or that.  How we should be acting this way or that way if we are following Christ.  The fact is though, if we’re truly in love with the Healer, we don’t have to be told all this.

Instead of worrying about if you have to act a certain way or do a certain number of things, you should set your mind…and your heart…to truly getting in touch with Jesus. Those who are saved are changed.  If you haven’t been changed by being in the presence of Christ, have you truly experienced Christ?

Our words should be the same words of the leper.  “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”  For his response will always be, “I am willing”.  It is then that we’ll be so sold out to Christ that not doing His will won’t even be an option.

In the love of Christ,
greg

What Will Heaven and Hell be Like? (Part 2)

What Will Heaven and Hell be Like? (Part 2)

Revelation 21:1-7 (NLT)

I. Last Week (Part 1)

         Last week I told you that the question I was planning on answering for the sermon was “What will Heaven and Hell be like?”  But as I progressed, I found that it was simply too much for one sermon.  So last we shared about Hell.  Let me give a quick recap.

·      3 words for Hell (Sheol, Hades, Gehenna)

·      The view of Hell has progressed from everyone going to the pit to later a resurrection to finally with Jesus speaking of a temporary place called Hades to which he holds the keys to and will one day come back and judge the living and the dead.  From that point on people will be separated, some going to the eternal Hell and others to the eternal Heaven.

II. Heaven

         That brings us to Heaven.  I remember early on in my ministry I used to have a very different understanding of Heaven than I do now.  I used to believe, as many do, that the Bible doesn’t give us a whole lot of information about Heaven other than the streets are supposed to be made of gold and that there will be no more tears of sadness there. 

         In actuality though, the Bible does teach us much more.  There’s a book by Randy Alcorn simply titled Heaven in which he wrote 500 pages on the subject, all of which he gathered from reading the Bible. 

         Even if I had time, I don’t know 500 pages worth.  But allow me share just a few things this morning about what we can expect.  First let’s look at some common misconceptions of what Heaven is like. 

         Growing up how might Heaven has been portrayed?

·      Becoming angels, sitting on clouds and playing harps all day?

·      A perpetual worship service?  Worshipping God all the time like we do here on earth at the 11 o’clock hour?

·      Sitting at the feet of God forever?

Many have grown up with these pictures of Heaven and don’t really see it as a place they wanna be.  It seems kind of boring playing a harp all day.  I mean, at least let me have a guitar or something.  And many people feel like an hour’s worth of worship at 11am is enough boredom for one week.  So why would they want to do this for eternity?  Is this what Heaven is really like?  NO.  And I’m going to use the Bible to prove this.

         The first thing I’m going to say to you will blow some people’s minds.  There is not one Heaven.  There are actually two…two Heavens and two Earths.  Ok, I just lost some of you.  But let’s go to the book of Revelation and take a look to see if what I say is actually true.

Revelation 21:1-7

III. New Heaven & New Earth

·      (Vs 1) A new Heaven and new Earth means that there was an old Heaven and Earth.  Isaiah himself prophesied this when he wrote, “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore.” (Isa 65:17)  Peter acknowledges that this was the belief of the Early Church when he writes “But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness.” (2 Peter 3:13)

·      The sea represented the waters of chaos, or the abyss.  In Biblical times it was thought that there was a dome over the earth keeping out these waters.  What this means is that the barrier between Earth and Heaven has been removed.

·      The new Jerusalem came down out of the new Heaven to reside on the new Earth.  If we read the rest of the chapter we learn that God will come down into the new city but that there will be no temple because God, Himself will be the temple.

·      We also see from this passage that things will be perfect for there will be no more tears of sadness, no more pain.  And all will drink from the springs of the water of life and live forever. (Amen)

·      So what are the differences between the new and old Heavens and Earths? 

o   Sin in the old earth – not in new

o   God is with us here but through the Spirit.  We cannot see and touch Him in a physical sense. – We will be with Him in New.

o   Heaven – this Heaven is temporary.  People have a sense of what’s going on down on the earth.  They remember the things they went through.  In Rev. 6 John writes that he sees the souls who were martyred and they are asking when Jesus will avenge them.  This show us a couple things.  First, we can communicate with God/Jesus audibly.  Second, in the present Heaven we will have memories of what happened.  In the new Heaven we will not.  How do I know this?  Because there is no pain in Heaven, physical or emotional. 

·      One last thing I need to mention about the New and Old Heavens and Earths.  If you read the rest of this chapter and the next one it will become clear that our eternal home is not actually what we consider Heaven.  When we die we go to this present Heaven, which is awesome, but will not be perfect because we will still have the memories of the old sinful life.  There will come a day when Jesus comes back to judge the world and all the living and the dead.  When that time comes there will be a new Heaven and a new Earth.  Those who’ve accepted Jesus will live eternally on the new Earth, a physical place where we will have physical bodies doing physical things.

It will be much like the Garden of Eden before Adam and Eve sinned.  There were animals, trees, food, beautiful scenery.  It was an uncorrupted world. 

God’s gifts that we enjoy here will be so much better then.  Eating with friends and enjoying their company will be so much more fun.  Relationships will be so much more meaningful. Admiring Gods wonders like mountain ranges or the blue seas or the vast sky will make us more awestruck.  

And worshiping on this new eternal Earth will bring out more joy in us that we can even imagine.

IV. Worshiping in Heaven

         We are created to worship God.  When we’re truly experiencing worship, there is a quality of ecstasy about it.  So what will this be like when we get to Heaven and later the new Earth?

         Let me say again that there are those who believe that we will worship God 24hours nonstop when we get to Heaven and this bores them because sitting in a worship service for an hour is hard enough to get through.  Well, they are right in one sense.  We will worship nonstop in Heaven.  But we won’t be in a non-stop worship service. 

The Bible clearly shows us throughout scriptures that we will be doing things in Heaven.  Jesus has teachings about how different people will rule in Heaven.  Not the same as they rule here but rule over others nonetheless.  There are teachings about wedding banquets and feasting in Heaven.  These things will really happen.  Just as Adam and Eve were told to tend to the Garden of Eden, we will have things to do in Heaven/New Earth. 

The difference in now and then is that these things…all of them…will bring us joy, and all will be done for our Father, which will make it part of our worship. 

There will also be times that we come together, as found in Revelation, and praise God with exuberance.  No boring sermons or off key singing or other distractions, just pure joyful singing praises to God.  Randy Alcorn in his book “Heaven” says that people who love God can never be bored in His presence.

V. Aliens in a Foreign Land (Conclusion)

         I could go on all day talking about Heaven.  And to be honest, when I teach about Heaven it gets me a little depressed.  I get so excited that my desire for it to be here right now is so great that I can feel down about being in this sinful world right here and now.  I mean when we talk about true perfection it’s hard to go back to the reality of the here and now. 

         So what do I do?  First I realize that this life is not the end.  I am an alien in a foreign land.  So are you.  We don’t belong here.  But while we’re here can do all in our power to live out God’s will here on earth as it is in heaven.  We can remember what Paul wrote in Philippians, “To live is Christ, to die is gain.” 

         Living in this world is living for Christ and storing up treasures in Heaven, whatever that might mean. 

         Let us live our lives here on earth in light of eternity knowing that the best is yet to come. 

Thought of the Day !!

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.
                                                            Revelation 3:20 (NLT)

I've used this verse before when giving talks at spiritual retreats.  I'll knock on the podium and tell people that Jesus is knocking on the door of their hearts.  If we'll but open the door and let Him in, we will be complete.

Of course this verse was written not for people to invite Christ into their lives and be saved.  In its original context, these words were written to the Church of Laodicea in Asia Minor.  They had become a lukewarm church who had become indifferent to Jesus and his message.  And Jesus speaks these words to Christians, asking them to open the door and let Him back in.

Unlike other major religions like Islam and Hinduism and Buddhism, we Christians not only seek God, but also have a God that continuously seeks us.  Jesus seeks to be in relationship with the unsaved.  But He also seeks us when we become complacent or stray away from Him. 

If you've become complacent, indifferent, lukewarm, etc., Jesus is at the door of your heart.  And He's knocking.  All you have to do is open the door (again).  He's waiting to come in because He loves you.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism.  And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 
                                                                       Romans 6:4 (NLT)

Paul says that through baptism we go through a death.  I take this to mean that it's death to this world and its control over us. 

He also tells us that just as Christ was raised from the dead, so can we be raised.  We can have new lives.  These are changed lives that matter.  These are second chances.  And these new lives are gifts to each of us. 

Being born again with Christ is an opportunity to live life in a better way and to find unseen joys in Christ that we never thought possible before.  This gift is available to all and enjoyed by many. 

The problem is that when we accept Christ into our lives, we can squander this gift by still trying to find our joy and peace in how the world brings it to us.  And so before long our new lives look not unlike our old ones. 

I encourage you to think about this gift that you received when you were baptized (or when you accepted Jesus and were born again).  Are you living a new life with all its possibilities?  Or has the old life crept back in?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the LORD, both the morning and evening sacrifices.

                                                                         Ezra 3:3 (NIV)

The people of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) and the people of the Southern Kingdom (Judah) have been conquered and exiled into foreign lands.  The Babylonians, who conquered Judah, where Jerusalem and the Temple were, have now been conquered by a Persian king named Cyrus.  And just as Jeremiah had prophesied, he is allowing the Jews to go back and rebuild their land.

That brings us to Ezra 3:3 when they get to Jerusalem.  These people have come back to a destroyed city where the people of the surrounding lands are not faithful to their God and would love to have the riches that were brought back to Jerusalem to be used in the rebuilding process.  In other words, it's not necessarily safe there.

The first instinct might be to fortify, to build a wall, to make a means of protection for themselves and all the riches that have traveled back from Persia.  But instead, they do something else.  They build the altar.  They worship the Lord their God.

Our God should come first before all things in this world.  He is the one who can protect.  He is the one who can sustain.  He is the one who can provide.  But even though we're not in physical danger every day, there are many things that take precedence over our relationship with God through Christ Jesus.

Let us seek our God and His righteousness first.  Let us seek out Jesus as Lord of our lives each and every day.  And let us live our lives for Him.

In the love of Christ,
greg