How can you repay Jesus?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” Romans 3:25

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

“Propitiation” is a big word that means “satisfaction,” as in payment for a debt. Because God is holy, His anger and justice burn against sin. He has sworn that sin will be punished. There must be a satisfactory payment for sin.

God said, “If I punish man for his sin, man will die and go to hell. On the other hand, if I don’t punish man for his sin, My justice will never be satisfied.”

The solution? God said that He would become our substitute. He would take the sin of mankind upon Himself in agony and blood – thus He provided both the righteous judgment upon sin as well as the Substitute who would pay the penalty for sin. This is our sin—your sin, my sin. Jesus, the sinless Son of God was your stand-in, your substitute.

God’s wrath burned out on the cross when His only Son died as man’s propitiation for sin. And this is love. “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10)

ACTION POINT:

Question: What can you bring Jesus today to repay Him for what He has done for you? Answer: Nothing. Nothing you or I could ever do would suffice. But “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Go Directly to God

In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” (John 16:26–27)

Don’t make God’s Son more of a Mediator than he is.

Jesus says, “I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf.” In other words, I’m not going to insert myself between you and the Father, as though you can’t go to him directly. Why? “The Father himself loves you.”

This is astonishing. Jesus is warning us not to think of God Almighty as unwilling to receive us directly into his presence. By “directly” I mean what Jesus meant when he said, “I am not going to take your requests to God for you. You may take them directly. He loves you. He wants you to come. He is not angry at you.”

It is absolutely true that no sinful human being has any access to the Father except through Jesus’s blood (Hebrews 10:19–20). He intercedes for us now (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25). He is our advocate with the Father now (1 John 2:1). He is our High Priest before the throne of God now (Hebrews 4:15–16). He said, “No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Yes. But Jesus is protecting us from taking his intercession too far. “I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you.” Jesus is there. He is providing an ever-present, ever-living witness to the removal of the Father’s wrath from us.

But he is not there to talk for us, or to keep us at a distance from the Father, or to suggest that the Father’s heart is guarded toward us or disinclined to us — hence the words, “For the Father himself loves you.”

So, come. Come boldly (Hebrews 4:16). Come expectantly. Come expecting a smile. Come trembling with joy, not dread.

Jesus is saying, “I have made a way to God. Now I am not going to get in the way.” Come.

John Piper 

What God sees when He looks at you

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” Romans 4:5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Justification is God’s act whereby He declares those who have trusted in Christ to be as righteous as His Son is righteous. Salvation is not based on our works.

Do you know what God sees when He looks at me today? He sees Jesus Christ. You may be thinking, “That’s arrogant, Adrian.”

No, it’s not. It is the Bible. I am in Christ and therefore God cannot see my sins. “But of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). He only sees the righteousness of His Son   when he looks at me.

Justification is more than just a pardon. It is a promotion. God doesn’t just forgive our sins, He makes us righteous. Only God can take someone who is guilty and give that person righteousness. It is the saving work of God. What is the basis of our justification? His grace.

ACTION POINT:

Do you see yourself today as defeated, wrapped in the guilt of failure and regret? Look through another lens: the Father sees you clothed in white—the righteousness of His Son.

LWF Adrian Rogers 

We Will Rule All Things

The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.” (Revelation 3:21)

What does Jesus mean when he says this to the church in Laodicea?

Sit with Jesus on his throne? Really?

This is a promise to everyone who conquers, that is, who presses on in faith to the end (1 John 5:4), in spite of every threatening pain and luring, sinful pleasure. So if you are a true believer in Jesus, you will sit on the throne of the Son of God who sits on the throne of God the Father.

I take “throne of God” to signify the right and authority to rule the universe. That’s where Jesus sits. “He must reign,” Paul said, “until he has put all his enemies under his feet” (1 Corinthians 15:25). So when Jesus says, “I will grant him to sit with me on my throne,” he promises us a share in the rule of all things.

Is this what Paul has in mind in Ephesians 1:22–23? “He put all things under [Christ’s] feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.”

We, the church, are “the fullness of him who fills all.” What does that mean? I take it to mean that the universe will be filled with the glory of the Lord (Numbers 14:21). And one dimension of that glory will be the complete and unopposed extension of his rule everywhere.

Therefore, Ephesians 1:23 would mean: Jesus fills the universe with his own glorious rule through us. Sharing in his rule, we are the fullness of his rule. We rule on his behalf, by his power, under his authority. In that sense, we sit with him on his throne.

None of us feels this as we should. It is too much — too good, too amazing. That’s why Paul prays for God’s help that “the eyes of your hearts [would be] enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you” (Ephesians 1:18).

Without omnipotent help now, we cannot feel the wonder of what we are destined to become. But if we are granted to feel it, as it really is, all our emotional reactions to this world will change. The strange and radical commands of the New Testament will not be as strange as they once seemed.

John Piper 

How do you handle suffering?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.” 1 Peter 4:19

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

First Peter 4 has a lot to say to us when we find ourselves in the midst of suffering. When you encounter suffering, what’s your first reaction? Here’s what it ought to be:

First, you are to rejoice in what God is allowing to happen. “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” (1 Peter 4:13).

Second, you need to review your life. Peter continues: “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God” (1 Peter 4:17).  If God is going to clean house, He will start first with those who are already His. Look within and ask: “Am I suffering because of something I’ve done?” If the Holy Spirit convicts you that your suffering is a result of your sin, then you need to repent.

Third, when you review your life and discover that your suffering is for the cause of Christ, then simply rely on Him. “Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator (1 Peter 4:19). It is not your problem. It is His problem.

ACTION POINT:

Peter uses the word “commit” (v. 19). That’s a banking term meaning to deposit something of value with someone else to keep it safe. Make your deposit to the One who can truly keep it safe. He will take care of you. You can bank on it.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Reasons for God's Judgement

Victory or defeat over sin.

You must accept that you are a sinner in need of a Savior.

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.

20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. - Romans 1:18-23

24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,

25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature;

27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. - Romans 1:24-27

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,

30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,

31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. - Romans 1:28-32

1. Inversion of God's truth v 18-23

2. Perversion of God's gift v 24-27

3 Depravation of the mind v 28-32

The wrath of God

The wrath of God and love of God are a two sided coin.

If you try to separate the two, God's wrath is purposeless. 

God's love rescues from the wrath of God.

We are hopeless without it.

Man denies the wrath of God.

You shall surely die in your sin.

The wrath of God is against all evil.

The root of sin is to deny God or try to change the truth of His word to suit your sin.

Half truth is sin.

Share the word in truth, being careful not to deny it.

God will give you more of what you want.

Is it righteousness or sin?

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. - Matthew 5:6

God alone gives man moral, intellectual and reasoning power.

It will either be light or darkness.

The love for other comes from God.

The day of reckoning is coming.

Love those who are caught in sin.

Pray for them.

Fast for them, asking God to forgive them.

Sinner, repent, God will forgive you.

You can not stay in your sin or God's wrath will be your fate.

Jesus says:

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. - John 3:36

Thank you Pastor Youssef!

The Anchor of Joy

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” (Matthew 5:11)

“Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20)

Jesus revealed a secret that protects our happiness from the threat of suffering and the threat of success. That secret is this: Great is your reward in heaven. And the sum of that reward is enjoying the fullness of the glory of Jesus Christ (John 17:24).

Jesus protects our happiness from suffering when he says,

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.” (Matthew 5:11–12)

Our great reward in heaven rescues our joy from the threat of persecution and reviling.

He also protects our joy from success when he says,

“Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20)

The disciples were tempted to put their joy in ministry success. “Even the demons are subject to us in your name!” (Luke 10:17). But that would have severed their joy from its only sure anchor.

So Jesus protects their joy from the threat of success by promising the far greater reward of heaven. Rejoice in this: that your names are written in heaven. Your inheritance is infinite, eternal, sure.

Our joy is safe. Neither suffering nor success can destroy its anchor. Great is your reward in heaven. Your name is written there. It is secure.

Jesus anchored the happiness of suffering saints in the reward of heaven. And he anchored the happiness of successful saints in the same.

And thus he freed us from the tyranny of worldly pain and pleasure — worldly suffering and worldly success.

John Piper