Archive: 2023

Today’s devotion is based on Sunday’s Message: Grace Relents (LISTEN HERE).

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Are boundaries good?

Honestly, sometimes they can be frustrating.  Ask the teenager who has a curfew at midnight whose friends can stay out as late as they want.  Ask the driver on the highway in the middle of the night with few cars around wondering why they have to drive at 55 mph.  Ask the child who is limited to two snacks when it seems like there is enough for every child to have 10.

Some boundaries can be challenging to understand and thus abide by.

But boundaries provide safety.

Ask the motorist who had a severe blow out on a bridge and lost control and hit the barrier that prevented them from plummeting into the waters below.  Ask the teenager whose friends who were arrested for vandalism done in the early morning hours when he left to be home by midnight.  Ask the customer at Home Depot who had to wait behind a safety strap as a worker was moving material…only to see a pallet of blocks come crashing down where they would have been shopping.

Boundaries provide safety.

While we may balk at some boundaries, the motivation in most cases is a heart that loves the person enough to keep them from unnecessarily harming themselves or causing harm to others.  Enforcing boundaries is done for two reasons.  First, it reinforces the importance of the boundary (if it didn’t matter, it wouldn’t be enforced.) and second, it provides a consequence that will deter or prevent the person from breaking the boundary and suffering perhaps worse than the consequence.

God sets up boundaries that he summarized in the 10 Commandments.  These ten guide individuals in their relationship to God and to others.  They protect our hearts, our relationships, our material goods and much more.  There are also consequences if they are broken.  Ultimately, breaking the boundaries of God sets up the justice of God to separate us from God forever.

But God doesn’t want this.

So he, in his love, calls us to repentance.  He points out sin in our lives, which can hurt and we don’t like, but he does it because he wants the best for us.  The Apostle Paul knew this as he was in a position to be called to repentance and also call others to repentance.  But the goal of bringing repentance was the salvation of souls.

2 Corinthians 7:8 Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— 9 yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. 10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Sorrow is not, “I’m sorry I got caught,” but rather sorrow that realizes I have broken the loving boundary of God and realize the spiritual danger I am in.  Godly sorrow leads to repentance, a change of mind and heart to what I was doing back to the mind and heart of God.  The result? Salvation and no regret.

And that is exactly what our loving God wants for us and its why in his grace he calls us to repentance.

 

Apply: What area of life do you hear God’s call to repentance?  How does it make you feel?  What blessing is God trying to have you realize?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the boundaries you place in my life to bring blessing to my life.  Thank you for pointing out sin in my life and calling me to repentance so I might have no regret and experience your salvation.  AMEN.

Today’s devotion is based on Sunday’s Message: Grace Relents (LISTEN HERE).

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“Here, try again.”

In golf we call it a “mulligan”…a “do-over.”  In life we call it a “second chance.”

Mistakes are easy to come by and often we wish we had a second chance, but don’t get one.  Ask the person who glanced at their phone and had an auto accident…I wish I could do it over.  Ask the person who chose to not study for a test and missed passing by one point…I wish I could do it over.  Ask the person who had one too many drinks and ended up in jail for DUI…I wish I could do it over.

Getting a second chance is a gift of grace.  Life doesn’t always afford a second chance, but God’s grace does.

God gives Jonah a second chance.  His first call sent him in the opposite direction of Nineveh, the cause of a violent storm, and a drowning experience in the sea.

The second chance began with God sending a great fish who preserved Jonah’s life, but then was confirmed in this way:

Jonah 3:1-2  Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”

Jonah didn’t waste the second chance.

Jonah 3:3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very important city—a visit required three days.

God certainly would have had every right to dismiss Jonah and move on to another prophet.  He could have banished Jonah from doing his work for running in the opposite direction.

But the grace of God gives a second chance…to Jonah…and to us.

The reality is he’s given us third chances, fourth chances, three thousand and fifty-sixth chances.

In the Fifth Petition of the Lord’s Prayer, we recognize our need for more chances, but that we don’t deserve them:

And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.

What does this mean? We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.

Even as we recognize that God has every right NOT to give us a second chance when we sin, it is very much in his nature to do so: 

Exodus 34:5 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

The opening of Jonah 3 is a powerful phrase…”The Word of the Lord came to Jonah a SECOND time…” 

Never forget the grace of God is willing to give second chances to you, just as he did to Jonah.

 

Apply: Where has the Lord in his grace given you a second chance?  How did you respond to another opportunity to obey and and walk with the Lord?

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for having a heart of grace that is willing to give me second chances when I know in my sin I don’t deserve them.  AMEN.

(Reprinted from Fathers’ Day – 2022)

We begin the Lord’s prayer with the words, “Our Father in heaven.”  Each of these words or phrases is so significant.  “Our” implies a personal relationship we have.  “Father” implies the role God plays in our life. “In heaven”…why is that so important?

This short phrase distinguishes our requests we present to our earthly fathers from our heavenly father.  It does not diminish the importance of our earthly fathers, but rather heightens the blessing of having a heavenly father.  Jesus highlighted one:

Jesus said 9 “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:9-11)

Our heavenly Father has perspective.

Earthly dads desire the best and want to give their best to their children.  Magnify that exponentially and one realizes they have a heavenly father who perfectly knows what is best for his children…and welcomes your request.

Our heavenly Father has an even larger and bigger perspective than our earthly fathers.  Sometimes our dads have or do withhold giving something because they know that it is not the best for their child.  As a child this can be frustrating, and perhaps only the perspective of time will allow us to see that dad really did know and do what was best.  How much more our relationship with our heavenly Father.  We can always trust that he knows and gives what is best…even if it doesn’t match what WE think is best.

Our heavenly Father is perfect.

This means a lot to me as an earthly dad.  I am not perfect.  My girls know that well.  I am grateful that I have a heavenly Father who is willing to forgive and restore when I fail.  I treasure that my girls always have a perfect heavenly Father to whom to look up when they see shortcomings in their earthly dad.

Our heavenly Father portrays pure justice and unconditional love.

No better example have I found to understand the balance God has of justice and love than to be in the role of a dad.  The two, justice and love, are perfectly compatible and one should not be overlooked for the sake of the other.  Justice can not exist without love and love without justice.  What do I mean?  It is loving to have boundaries and limits to life.  Justice from God is real because he gives us those boundaries in which to live so that we experience the greatest blessings on this earth and in heaven.  Just like a father tells his child, “Don’t run in the street” because he desires his child to not experience getting hit by a car.  In fact, if the child runs in the street, he may be disciplined to know the seriousness of the infraction and how much dad loves his child to ensure it doesn’t happen again.  Love from God is real because he desires the eternal blessing of his children.  Love is not a boundary-less grant to a child to do whatever they want.  Love desires to guide a child in the way of righteousness and to the eternal blessings of heaven.  I treasure that my heavenly Father is perfectly both and as an earthly dad can learn from his examples of justice and love.

Our heavenly Father is present…always.

Earthly dads get busy with work, hobbies, chores, and just life in general.  Sometimes we are not as present for our children as we would like.  Our heavenly Father is available 24/7…every day to listen to our prayers, remind us of his promises and guide us with his Word.

Earthly dads are great and a blessing from the Lord.  How much greater a blessing we have to be able to call God, “Our Father IN HEAVEN.”

Apply: What other blessings do you receive from your Father in heaven that is better and more perfect than from your father on earth?

Prayer: Our Father in heaven, thank you Father for your eternal perspective, your perfect love and justice, and your ongoing presence.  We treasure that you have thought enough of us to bring us into an eternal relationship with you! AMEN.

(This week’s devotions are based on Sunday’s message: Grace for All…Grace Pursues – LISTEN HERE)

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Jonah 2:8 “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.

Of all the parts of Jonah’s prayer, this verse jumped off the page. For a few reasons.

Why would Jonah make this statement?  Was this a self-reflective statement or was he reflecting on people with whom he had interacted?  Was it a reflection on the sailors who threw him overboard that tried crying out to their gods before turning to the Lord?  Was it a reflection of the wicked people of Nineveh who were throwing out the grace the Lord wanted to show them?  To be honest, I am not sure and could be all of the above.

Regardless of who Jonah had in mind, the statement is absolute truth.

Jonah finishes his prayer in this way:

         9      But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. 

         What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD.” 

Jonah realized that other idols promised worthless claims.  The only God who not only promises but provides salvation from our sins is the LORD.  The LORD is the only one who is full of grace and abounding in love and faithfulness.

So why do we forfeit grace by clinging to worthless idols?

Who, me?  Yes, you.

Because we think that the idol to which we are clinging can provide what only the grace of God can provide.  What do I mean?

We cling to the idol of material wealth because we think that in it we find peace and security for life and the opportunities that life brings.

We cling to the idol of reputation and fame because we think that in it we find our identity and significance.

We cling to the idol of relationships and friendships because in them we think we find true love and care.

We cling to the idol of self-reliance because in it we think we find freedom and independence.

Perhaps we do…and then we don’t because we realize our idol has become worthless.  

The now late Christian pastor and author Tim Keller wrote in his book “Counterfeit Gods” that eventually everything that is an idol will let us down.  Wealth can be taken away, relationships broken, reputation ruined, friendships separated.

So as Jonah said, “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.”

Having no other gods other than the Lord is not just the first commandment, it is the foundation of life.  The Lord is the one from whom all blessings flow not material wealth, relationships, reputation, etc.  The Lord is the only one who is gracious and compassionate and slow to anger and willing to forgive, not a man-made god or man himself.

Too often I have forfeited the full experience of God’s love and grace because I have clung to worthless idols in my heart.  Lord forgive me.  Perhaps you can relate.

When we see it first in ourselves, we see it in the world around us that people are forfeiting grace because their fingers are clutching idols they think are of utmost value, but are worthless.

The grace of God turns us from that which is worthless to that which is worthwhile.

 

Apply: Get a copy of Tim Keller’s book, “Counterfeit Gods.”  Enjoy the work through his words for the Spirit of God to release your clutch on that which is worthless and strengthen your grip on that which is worthwhile.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for shifting my heart from the worthless idols I love to cling to to you, the only one who truly loves, forgives and shows grace.  AMEN.

Note: You can find a sermon series on Counterfeit Gods from 2021 on our CrosspointGTX1 youtube channel.  Here’s the link to the first sermon of the series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbdvMHxEJGo

(This week’s devotions are based on Sunday’s message: Grace for All…Grace Pursues – LISTEN HERE)

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Sometimes we identify the wrong issue and so solve the wrong problem.

The surface, visible determination may come to one conclusion, but digging deeper may provide the real motive and the real issue that needs to be addressed.

For example, a child who is not doing well in school may not have any cognitive challenges, but may have relationship challenges in the home.  Getting extra tutoring may help a little, but until the safety and security in the home changes, learning is always going to be a challenge.

So it is spiritually.  I recall a conversation with an individual who had been attending for a while.  After a few months, she said that she was no longer comfortable coming to our church.  I asked for a visit and she was willing to share.  As we talked she said that she wasn’t comfortable how much I talked about sin and the consequences of sin in my written devotions or in my messages.  After about 40-45 minutes of talking, I asked, “Every person has a teaching of Scripture that is perhaps more challenging than others.  We have touched on a resistance to God pointing out sin and having consequences for it.  Why do you think this is a significant and sensitive teaching for you?”

The individual started to tear up.  As she wiped away the tears she said, “I was never good enough.  I got more than straight A’s, never got in trouble, and yet my dad was never satisfied.  I could never please him.”

We hit the issue.  She was wearied by a father who told her directly or indirectly she wasn’t good enough.  She couldn’t think that her heavenly Father would do the same.  It was a joy to share God’s love in Christ that makes us perfect in God’s eyes.  Unfortunately she hasn’t returned, but it was a rewarding conversation none the less and I pray one that comforts her soul.

The Lord knows our hearts and loves to get to the heart of the matter.  The issue for Jonah wasn’t the intimidation of Nineveh.  It wasn’t the storm on the sea.  It was the sinful nature lurking in his heart that didn’t want to do what God asked.  Like a 2-year old throwing a tantrum at having to pick up his toys, so our sinful nature throws a tantrum at what the Lord wants us to do.

As the Lord hurled Jonah into the heart of the sea and had him swallowed by a great fish, it was to save Jonah from Jonah.  If the Lord allowed Jonah to make it to Tarshish and beyond, the sinful nature in Jonah would have been emboldened to continue to defy the Lord.  The Lord cared too much about Jonah to allow this to happen.

So he rescued Jonah from Jonah.

Like all of us, the grace of the Lord turns us from our selves and our sinful desires to the Lord and his ways.  It’s a daily struggle…it will be today.  But perhaps the words of Jonah and the psalmist will encourage and remind us…the grace of the Lord is here to rescue me from me today!

Psalm 31 (David) In you, Lord, I have taken refuge;
    let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness.
2 Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue;
be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.

Jonah 2:6  To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever.

But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God. 

 

Apply: Where and when does your sinful nature get the better of you?  Perhaps memorize Psalm 31:2 and use it to seek the Lord’s rescue from the temptations of your sinful nature!

Prayer: Lord, thank you for loving me enough to rescue me from me and lead me back to you.  AMEN.