Living with Boldness, Courage and Confidence

Romans 5:2

Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God's glory.

One of the greatest gifts that we receive through faith is the ability to approach our death beds with peace and joy, not with fear and trembling.  Through our faith, we know that what awaits us in heaven is beyond our imagination.  Through our faith, we know that at our death we will be set free of every pain and challenge that life has brought to us.  Through our faith we know that we will spend eternity in the presence of Almighty God and we will be worthy to be there.

This kind of faith is actually worked out in us on this earth.  This kind of faith by its nature must be tried.  This kind of faith is built up through all of the trials that we face seemingly alone.  This kind of faith is built up when we realize we were never alone.  We know we have this kind of faith when we can approach where we now stand with boldness, courage and confidence knowing that Jesus is always right beside us to carry us through.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the faith that brought us to receive Your Son, Jesus, as Our Savior.  We thank You for the faith to believe in Your Holy Word and reject all that contradicts it.  We praise the name of Jesus for standing by us as we enjoy all the blessings that You bring us and endure all the trials that life throws at us.  We pray, Father, for the grace and the strength to live every day of our lives in the conscious delight of who we are in Christ.  

My God is My Rock

Hebrews 11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Our faith comes into play whenever we encounter pain, conflict or disorder in our lives.  Our natural reaction is to try to fix everything ourselves.  All too often, we do not turn to God until we have exhausted all of our own failed initiatives.

God wants us to turn to Him first.  He wants us to grow into a place where we trust Him for everything, whether it be big or small.  We grow into this place through our relationship with Jesus.  The Psalmist David captured the relationship perfectly in Psalm 18:2

The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the endless fount of faith that you make available to us through Your Son, Jesus.  We praise Your name for the comfort that we enjoy because of the faith that we have in Your promises.  Lord, we ask for the wisdom to turn to You first in all things.  May You provide the grace for us to free ourselves from the need to try to fix everything ourselves.  We humbly ask that all that all of our earthly efforts be in obedience to Your will and plan for our lives.  Through the love of Jesus, may all that we do be as worship to You.

Living with a Renewed Heart

2 Corinthians 5:21

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The importance of Jesus taking on all sin is that all men can become worthy to stand before the Father in a righteous state.  By accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, all believers are eligible to do away with all that separates them from their eternal inheritance.

Through salvation, all the sins of the old man are gone - nonexistent.  All that remains before the Father is the new man in Christ without blemish.  The new man that stands before the Father is made in His own image.  The new man is now the essence of everything good and the absence of anything evil.  He is worthy to dwell with the Father for all eternity.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for creating us in Your image, heirs to Your kingdom.  We ask forgiveness for all those things in our lives that make us unacceptable to stand before You and accept our eternal blessings.  We praise the name of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who took on all of our sin so that we may become righteous in Your eyes.  We pray, Father, that You will provide the grace for us to live in accordance with the renewed hearts given to us by Jesus.  May we live by new principles, new rules, new ends and in new company.  May our outward reformation be living testimony to Your kingdom.  We pray that those around us will seek the One who knew no sin. 

White As Snow Forever

Romans 5:10

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

God is holy, holy, holy.  Sin cannot exist in His presence.  To have any type of sin remaining means eternal separation from the Father in heaven.  Thus, every person in heaven must be without sin.  There cannot be even the slightest stain.  In fact, there cannot even be the memory of sin.  Every person in heaven will be holy.

The Good News of the Gospel is that God provided the way for our complete cleansing through the death of His Son, Jesus, on the Cross.  It is the shed blood of Jesus that washes us clean and allows us to stand before the Father white as snow forever.  All we have to do is accept Jesus as Our Savior.  All the necessary work was finished on the Cross.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing us to have eternal access to Your heavenly kingdom.  We praise You.  We love You.  We bless Your name.  We rejoice in knowing that we will worship You forever.  We pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal to us all in our lives that is displeasing to You.  We ask for the grace to walk the perfect path of sanctification that You have set aside for us.  May we live in the fullness of the One who suffered and died for us.  May we surrender daily to our Blessed Hope and Assurance, Jesus Christ.

Jesus Did Not Issue a Quota

Matthew 28:19

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

How many did you win?  How many did you sell?  How much profit did you make?  These are the clamorings of men and women who trying to measure their success against their perceived plans.  

Sometimes it pours over into the things we do in service to Our Lord.  How many attended the 11am service?  How much did we collect at the offering?  How many responded to the altar call?  Man's desire to satisfy/gratify his own need is insatiable.  

Man's desire to convert God's work to his own plan is a common practice.  Our Heavenly Father has a different plan.  Almighty God does not call us to results.  Jesus did not tell His disciples to go out and win souls.   He asked them to go out and teach the people about having a relationship with Him.

Jesus did not give His disciples a quota, nor does He give us one.  He simply asks that we teach the world around us about the relationship that we have with Him.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we rejoice in knowing that it is Your will that no man shall perish.  We thank You for providing the way, the truth and the life that is in Your Son, Jesus.  We pray, Father, that You will use us to teach the world about Your wonderful salvation plan. We ask for the grace to set aside our own personal desires and plans so that we may fully submit to the perfect will and plan that You have for our lives.  Through the presence and power of Jesus in our lives, may we make disciples of others.