Have you ever found yourself running through the routines of life without much thought put into it? You know you hustle into class with your attention a mile away? Or with a thousand different things on your mind. You hope the preacher hasn’t prepared one of those long sermons. You have a softball game to get to, a picnic planned, a bike ride, or an afternoon at the lake. All good family activities.
I suppose we have all done that at one time or another. Life can be hard to leave at the door on Sunday mornings. Our minds are cluttered with distractions. But can I challenge you to take a moment and breath, and to slow down and ask God to help you prepare. Before you head out the door, or maybe in the car, ask God to help you get ready for worship. Simply say, Lord thank you for loving me. Thank you for carrying me when I couldn’t stand. Lord, thank you for saving my marriage, and thank you for giving me my job. Father, thank you for never giving up on me. Thank you for walking with me through the valley of death when my enemy was all around. Thank you for carrying the load when I couldn’t. These simple words will help you dump the things in life that aren’t really that important. And when you arrive at the doors of the building, you will be ready to help others see what God has done for them. If they need a shoulder to cry on, you’ll be ready. If they need someone to rejoice with, you got it. And your Father in heaven will smile down from heaven and accept your worship as a sweet aroma. Not because of perfection or imperfections, but because of an honest heart.
No God is not seeking perfectionist. Or those who think they can do it on their own. He’s seeking an honest and pure heart. In Matthew 15:8 we read of those whom Jesus said, “’These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me”. Church let’s check ourselves this morning, and make sure we are not just giving God lip service but that our hearts are fully engaged. Then our sacrifices will be acceptable and rise before Him as a sweet aroma. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
How long do you think a football player would last in a game today without a helmet or shoulder pads before getting injured? My guess is not very long.
The same is true for a Christian who enters the game today without being properly dressed. You don’t have to do anything to enter this game. If you’re a child of God, the devil makes it his mission to seek you out and to defeat you.
So, what can you do to prevent him from succeeding? I’m glad you asked. Like a football player you need proper equipment. In Ephesians 6:11-18 there are several things mentioned that can help us.
First, we must stand in the power of God’s might. We can never unplug from God. This is a supernatural battle, and we need supernatural power to defeat our enemy. We must put on all the armor of God. No single piece of equipment is going to win the battle for us. It will take everything God has given us to defeat the enemy. We fight with the truth. When Jesus was tempted, he fought back with the word of God when he said, “it is written”. We fight with righteousness. We have been redeemed. We are seen as righteous in the eyes of God. We are holy, a people separated unto God’s glory. Our faith shields us from the fiery darts of the devil. We know that nothing can separate us from the love of God. We fight with the Gospel of Peace. We have a peace that passes all understanding. We stay alert and we pray often.
Don’t be fooled, the devil seeks you every minute of every day, and you need the power of God to win this battle. You can never unplug from God. He is your power source. Suit up brothers and sisters, and stand.
How do we forgive when we have been seriously hurt or injured by someone we love or was supposed to love us? I’m not going to lie. This is a very difficult thing to do. But there is hope. With the help of God, all things are possible. And you may need to seek professional help.
But if you hear nothing else, please hear this. You are precious in the eyes of God. You were created in God’s image. You were woven in your mother’s womb. In other words, God formed your DNA. He wanted you to be born. You are not an accident. Your parents might have had an accidental pregnancy. But you were no accident. And your value isn’t determined by other’s actions. Your value is determined by your heavenly Father. Please know that sad isn’t bad. While it is very sad that you were seriously hurt. You are not bad. You are not guilty of their mistakes.
So how do you move on? How do you release your anger and resentment? One thing that might help is to remind yourself that as a child of God you are commanded to forgive. Not only forgive them, but in other verses were told to pray for them. This may seem ridiculous at first. But if you consider that God is a God that gave his Son for you, you know how much he loves you. He’s not asking you to do this for no reason. Obviously, there must be a better reason. But what could that reason be? Could it be that God knows what you need most is to turn your pain over to him. And let him carry it for you? Could it be through prayer you can speak directly to Jesus. Who knows what it is to be innocent and to suffer, even to die, having done nothing wrong.
I think another thing we must remember is that forgiveness is not acting as if what was done is okay. Or acting as if it never happened. Forgiveness does not remove any punishment they may have to serve for breaking the law. Forgiveness does not allow them to pull you down. It’s like trying to save someone who is drowning. If they try and drown you with them, you are not required to save them. That is not love. That is foolishness.
There is an old Chinese proverb that says, “He who seeks revenge should remember to dig two graves.” The longer you hold resentment and anger inside of you, you are burying yourself alive. In the first chorus of “Burdens are lifted at calvary,” it says,
Days are filled with sorrow and care
Hearts are lonely and drear
Burdens are Lifted at Calvary
Jesus is very near
Remember surrendering to Jesus at calvary is where your burdens are lifted. And as you grow closer to God, he draws closer to you. Jesus becomes near. I am very sorry others didn’t see the value in you or live up to their responsibilities. But the truth is, if you don’t release it, you will end up drowning in it. And if you’re not careful, you will pass down the same guilt to your children one day. To break the curse, you must learn to forgive.
What is your greatest accomplishment? Some interviewers love to ask this question. They want to hear from you what you believe is your greatest achievement as it relates to the position you are applying for. For a software engineer, that might be how fast they completed a software upgrade. Or the amount of money they saved their company while preventing cyber-attacks.
As a child of God what is your greatest achievement? If you’re like me, I don’t have any trophy’s setting on my desk for being some super-duper Christian. I haven’t written any books. And those sitting close by me on Sunday morning, can testify it’s not my angelic voice. So, what does God see as our greatest achievements? I hope it’s my love for Him. I hope it’s how much He knows I can’t live without him. And how sorry I am when I mess up.
Could it be that our greatest achievement is that we refuse to give up? That we aren’t who we once were. After all, all of us were once like the prodigal son. We were lost but we are found, we were blind, but now we can see. Maybe our greatest achievements don’t seem like much, but maybe they are everything to God.
Because we have changed, we care more for others than we care for ourselves. We are willing to sacrifice in order that others can have what they need. We meet on Sundays to encourage others to stay in the race. We make phone calls, send cards, and make visits. Why? Because we have changed. No, it won’t ever be printed in the local paper, but it means a lot to our Heavenly Father who calls us to be imitators of Him.
When Elijah was on the run from Queen Jezebel, God reminded him in 1 Kings 19:18 that “there were 7,000 who had not bowed their knee down to Baal”. We don’t know these 7,000 by name, but they made a difference in the life of a struggling saint just by remaining faithful. In Judges 7:7, God told Gideon he would defeat the Midianites with just 300 of his soldiers. These 300 men made a difference. God said to Abraham in Genesis 18:32, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it”. In Matthew 18:19-20, Jesus said, “I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” In Luke 10:1 we read that Jesus “sent them two by two”.
I pray today that you will know that you are needed. Not because you are famous or not famous, but because you are part of the family of God. You are the hands and feet of God. Your greatest achievements may seem small to some, but to God, you are one of the ones, whom Jesus said, “For as much as you have done it unto one of these, you have done it unto me.” Can I encourage you to remain strong and to continue to serve. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
Doctor’s estimate that about 40 percent of children go through some kind of growth pains. Parents often don’t know what to do. They will often rub their child’s arms and legs to help sooth them the best they can.
There is no clear answer on what causes growing pains. Some say it’s caused by bone growth. Others believe it might be discomfort caused by climbing or running throughout the day.
For the child of God, they too may have to face growing pains. In Psalm 139:23-24 it says, “23Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.24 See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.”
The Psalmist cries out to God and says, Lord please take a good hard look at me. Look deeply into my heart and see where I am lacking. And Lord, if you find anything wrong within me, test me. Wait, did I read that right? Did he say, “test me”?
I don’t know about you, but I’m not into asking God to send me trials. Are you? Isn’t there another way? I’m afraid not, to become mature in Christ we must grow up. We must experience growing pains. Paul said when I was a child, I reasoned like a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish ways. How bad do you want to become like Christ? Enough to ask God to look deep inside your heart, and to adjust as needed?
I wish I could say this is my prayer for every day of my life. But it scares me. I want to surrender, but then I read the story about Job and it scares me even more. Yes, I know in the end Job wins. But it’s the getting to the end that scares me. So how do we do it, I think we must become like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Lord, please remove this cup from me, but if there is no other way, then your will be done not mine.
Lord, hear my prayer. Please lead me in your everlasting way. Examine me and fix me so that I will grow up in Christ Jesus. Lord, I know you know what I need best, and I fully trust in you. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
In Colossians 3:13 Christians are told “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Forgiveness is neither easy nor clear-cut, as many of us have found out when we are deeply hurt. I have experienced murder in my family. It is hard thing to forgive the person who took the life of your loved one. I have been abandoned by some, laughed at by others and sold short by others. Many of you have experienced the same or worse.
Why does God command that we forgive others. If you know anything about God, it’s for our benefit. God only wants the best for you and me. I believe one reason is, because without forgiveness you can never be fully free. Hatred is of the devil. So, you will either choose to serve the devil or your heavenly father. The bible is clear, no man can serve two masters.
If you allow anger to build up inside of you, your enemy the devil has won. Your anger will turn to hatred, and as a result, all of humanity loses. The way a society goes will be determined largely by the grace it offers.
Forgiveness is the required step to a grace filled life. Does this mean we forget. No. Does this mean what they did was ok. Absolutely not. Does this mean we should seek their release from prison. No.
In his book The Prisoner and the Bomb, Laurens van der Post recounts the misery of his wartime experiences in a Japanese prison camp in Java. He writes, “The only hope for the future lay in an all-embracing attitude of forgiveness of the peoples who had been our enemies. Forgiveness, my prison experience had taught me, was not mere religious sentimentality; it was as fundamental a law of the human spirit as the law of gravity. If one broke the law of gravity one broke one’s neck; if one broke this law of forgiveness, one inflicted a mortal wound on one’s spirit and became once again a member of the chain-gang of mere cause and effect from which life has labored so long and painfully to escape.”
Why is our society so full of anger, and hatred? Why do we seem so divided? Could a large part of it be due to the lack of our willingness to forgive. Forgiveness does not come to us easily. We must work at it. It is a choice we must learn to make as painful as it can be. We have to see the necessity of it for the greater good of society. A society that doesn’t practice grace is a society that is doomed to fail. If the church wants to make an impact on the world, it must learn to practice forgiveness. How many of our churches have split over refusal to forgive. Where did that practice come from? I can surely say it did not come from God. For he commanded us to forgive. His Son dying words from the cross were “Father Forgive them”.
Will you take a step today to practice a grace filled life. A life of forgiveness. Ask God today to help you forgive. Lord, please forgive me when I allow anger and bitterness to fill my heart when I refuse to forgive someone who has hurt me. Teach me Lord to forgive as you have forgiven me.
Have you ever wondered why God’s first question to Adam after he sinned, wasn’t “What have you done now”? Or “Why can’t you stay out of trouble?” Or maybe something like, “I hate you; I never want to see you again.” Isn’t that sometimes how we respond when were angry?
But God’s first words to Adam were, “Where are you”. Do you believe God didn’t know where Adam was? I’m certain God knew exactly where Adam was. What God was indicating is, come here Adam. I’m looking for you. I want to talk to you. God was restoring a broken relationship.
God did a very similar thing with the second recorded sin in the bible when Cain killed his brother Abel. God said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother”. In James 1:15 we read, “Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” Like Adam and Cain, they first desired something. For Adam it was the fruit of the tree. For Cain it was jealousy of his brothers offering being accepted while his was rejected. The result of both their sins was spiritual death. This is true of all sin. For in Isaiah 59:2 it says, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” Can you hear from Isiah’s words how sin destroys our relationship with God. Words like separation, removed from His presence (face) and that God will not respond (will not hear). Friend this is a broken relationship that must be restored in order to function as it was designed.
This is why God came to Adam and said, “Where are you”, let’s restore our broken relationship. Let’s remove the separation.
In Mark 12:30-31 we learn that the greatest commandment according to Jesus is to love God with all your heart, and that the second is much like it to love others like yourself. Then Jesus sums up his teaching, and says, there are no greater commandments than these.
The kingdom of God is not made up of rules. Nor is God seeking a bunch of rule keepers. Is obedience important. Absolutely. Jesus said, those who love me will keep my commandments. But loving Jesus, and doing good, is not rule keeping. It’s evidence of a loving relationship.
God is asking you and me today, “Where are you”? I pray today you will take time to mediate on this very important question, “Where are you?” And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
How do we (mortal humanity) obtain Intimacy with an all-powerful God? I surely do not have the definitive answer. But for me, it helps to see Christ as my father. I know how a father loves his children. Especially since I am a dad. I know how much I love my children. How I would do anything for them. And how it hurts when they rebel.
God is not a force. He is a person. Jesus the Son of God in John 14:8-10 when asked by Phillip to show them the Father replied, Philip if you have seen me, you have seen the Father. Do you not know that I am in the Father and He is in me. Jesus also said in John 5:19, I can only do what the Father is doing. In a true sense, what Jesus was saying is that me and my Father are a mirror image. In John chapter 7, when Jesus saw Mary and the Jews weeping over the death of Mary’s brother Lazarus, he groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And then in verse 35, it says “Jesus Wept”. How can mortal man cause an Almighty God to weep? To be grieved in the spirit, and to be troubled. Because He cares. He desires the best for us, and he wants to be with us.
Then in 1 John 4:29, we learn that God loved us before we ever loved him. It’s as if he walked into the orphanage and picked me out as the best kid. I know he picked us all. But it’s personal, God picked me, and he picked you. He is your father and my father.
God is not seeking religiosity. What he is seeking is a relationship. The entire reason God created man was to be with him. To commune with him. God came looking for Adam. And he is looking for you as well. As unfathomable it is to me, God loves us and wants to be with us. He picked us to be on his team when others did not want us. It makes no earthly sense. We are full of flaws and wrinkles. Yet God loved us when we were unlovable. Will you join me today and thank God for selecting you to be a part of His family. I pray you will. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood, Church of Christ.
How well do you make plans? I’m not very good at it. I like to think I’m spontaneous. Which means, I’m not good at making a schedule and sticking to it. That’s something I need to work on.
But I know someone who is great at making plans. Do you know who that is? If you said God, you’re correct. Did you know the bible says that God planned to save the world through his son Jesus Christ before he whispered a world into creation. In Ephesians 1:4-5 it says, “4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—”
This plan was carried out in Galatians 4:4 where we read that when the time had arrived God sent his Son to be born of a woman and to redeem his fallen creation. Make no mistake about it, it wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t just a good guess. It was a well thought out, well-executed plan that was in the works before the beginning of time.
Why did God send his Son? In one word “love”. God before the beginning of time, choose to provide all who believe in Him a way back to Him through His Son Jesus Christ. This love was on full display on the cross when the Lamb of God carried away the sins of the world. God redeemed us (bought us back). There was no partial payment made. No loan taken out. He paid the bill in full. And he paid it with the blood of his Son, and 1 Corinthians 6:20 says, “God paid a great price for you and me.”
By sending Jesus, He showed, that there is no Caucasian, no gender, no race, or ethnicity, no rich or poor, no educated or uneducated, no protestant, no country greater than the next. Neither Jew or Gentile, neither slave or free, neither male nor female, we are all one in Christ Jesus. He speaks to the shady lady at the well, he works with the stinky fishermen, with the lowly IRS agents (tax collectors), and he healed the lame and the blind.
Lord you are holy. We will praise your name forever. Help us to remember your steadfast love never ceases, your mercies never end, help us to see how they are renewed every morning. For you are faithful. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
Many years ago, Jesus was asked, what is the greatest commandment. To which he replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30.
The Greek word for love that Jesus used is well known in the verb form of AGAPE. It is a love that is based upon choice. The child of God is to freely choose to love God and to love others. They are to delight in God’s holiness. And that love is to spread outward to others. Christians are to seek the best for others. Which means, we must be able to see the best in them.
We are living in times that can make this incredibly challenging. With the growth of social media and the usage of smart phones. Did you know in a study done in 2021, that 46% of American’s reported that they spend 5-6 hours a day on their phones. And for most it’s not just playing Candy Crush. Do you realize, for many that’s more time than they spend with their significant other. They hold their phone more than they hold their spouse. They talk to their phone more than they do their mate. Can you see where that is a problem?
As more and more Christians spend long hours online, they are easily caught up in today’s political wars. It would do Christians good to remember what the 9th Commandment says in Exodus 20:16: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” When you log online, and say something about others, are you spreading gossip? Can you be sure when you click the “like” button that it’s a true statement? When you share it, are you sharing the truth? Or is it partial truth? Is it just a little white lie? Is that okay with you? I urge you to be incredibly careful. Ask yourself honestly, how much of the news do you know to be true. I mean you heard it yourself, you seen it yourself. Were you present when what your posting, re-posting, sharing, commenting on, was said or done? Here’s an eye opener for you, (not really) you probably already know this, or should know this, all news agencies/outlets are formed to make money. Here’s a fact you should know too, controversial news makes more money. Controversial news posted online gets more clicks. Sells more adds. You get the picture. You’re not going to stand before God and say, but Fox news said, ABC news said. Jesus is going to say, I said do not commit slander. Next time you go to send out that email, to retweet that comment, you might want to listen to the word of God. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.”
But Lord when did I commit slander. When was I a false witness. When you reposted that article without researching thoroughly the facts. When you posted that nasty tweet about some politician you disagree with. When you sent out that email trail to all your friends making fun of someone’s disability. The rest of the story in Deuteronomy 19, is let it be done unto you about what you were hoping was done to the other person. In other words, may others tell stories about you. May they try and tear down your reputation. May they make fun of you. May you be stalked and sought out because of what your tongue so loosely spoke, or fingers so easily typed. Ouch!
What do you think God will do to those who are spreading misinformation? Is he going to wink at our failures? Is he going to give us a pass because we were so compassionate about our side of the story? Be careful, the Apostle Paul was full of conviction when he was having Christians killed. His conscience was clean. But he was dead wrong. And if he hadn’t met God, and repented of his sins, he would be rotting in hell.
But Jesus, what is the greatest commandment. “Love”. You mean it hasn’t changed in 2023. Come on Jesus, surely you know our times are different. These are drastic times that call for drastic actions. Yes, my child, you are correct. You should love even more. You should care even deeper. And remember, the greatest of these is love.
If you haven’t heard it yet today, may I be the first, I love you as a child of God is to love. I care about you. I want the best for you. Why? Because I love God, and he has told me to love my neighbor. How can I say no to that? Reminds me of Joseph in Genesis 39:9, “My master (meaning her husband) has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” The next time you’re tempted to spread that loosely typed article or make that ugly comment, ask yourself, is this done out of love? If not, how can you do such a thing and sin against God. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
