Category: PASSION Reflections

Loving One Another

On By BrianIn All About Love, Church Life

Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also ought to love one another.
– I John 4:11

The more we grasp God’s love for us,
the more we will love God;
and the more we love God,
the more we will love his people.

As Jesus formed this new people for himself,
he gave them a new command:

 A new commandment I give to you,
that you love one another:
just as I have loved you,
you also are to love one another.
By this all people will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love for one another.
– John 13:34-35

We are to love as Christ loved us.
That is an incredible love!
And when we love that way,
people will see a difference in us.
They will be attracted to Jesus.
Oh, that God’s church would be known for its love!

What might this love look like? 
Romans 12:10, Galatians 6:10, and Ephesians 6:18
give us some pointers:

Brotherly affection.

Genuine respect.

Doing good to each other.

Praying for one another.

How would our relationships with one another change
if we consistently lived these out in our churches?

Loving God

On By BrianIn All About Love

Because of God’s great love for us, we will love God.

You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart
and with all your soul
and with all your mind.
– Matthew 22:37

We are to love God with all of our being, all that we are.  We should love God

with our eyes – what we do and do not look at

with our ears – what we do and do not listen to

with our tongues – what we do and do not say

with our hands – what we do and do not do

with our feet – where we go and don’t go

with our minds – what we do and do not think

with our hearts – what we do and do not desire

with our time – how we do and don’t use our days.

We are to love God with our entire lives. 

O God, you are my God;
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
  as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
– Psalm 63:1

Our love is shown in our desire for him.

We earnestly seek him.

We thirst for him.

We faint for him.

We long for him.

We hunger for him.

We pant for him.

  My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
  and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips.
– Psalm 63:5

And our desire for him is not disappointed.  In him we find

our satisfaction

our fulfillment

our meaning

our purpose

our identity

our lives.

And so in response:

we praise him

we bless him

we honor him

we glorify him

we worship him

we live for him

we love him.

Father, help us to grow in our love for you. 
In response to your amazing love for us,
may we love you with all of our being,
desiring and praising you 
who alone will satisfy our souls.
Amen.

Restore Us, O God (Remix)

On By BrianIn Revival

Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!
– Psalm 80:3

Enemies have invaded and ravaged the church collectively and each of us individually.  We need God to restore us, to turn us again to himself.  We need God’s face to shine upon us with grace upon grace.  We desperately need salvation from these enemies:

The Enemy of “Respectable Sins”

These are the “little” sins that we allow, excuse, and tolerate – anxiety, frustration, discontentment, unthankfulness, pride, selfishness, lack of self-control, impatience, irritability, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, judgmentalism, envy, jealousy, gossip, slander, hurtful words, and worldliness.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The Enemy of Idolatry

Idols abound all around us in our culture and continually call us to bow down to them.  And too often we do.  We treasure money, shopping, possessions, beauty, dieting, food, people, family, reputation, popularity, sex, sports, TV, sleep, comfort, or ease more than we treasure Christ.  We trust in these idols to bring happiness, fulfillment, and security rather than trusting in Christ and finding in him the true joy he offers.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The Enemy of Misplaced Priorities

Our priorities too often don’t align with God’s priorities.  We are to seek first the kingdomof Godand his righteousness (Matthew 6:33).  We are to hold the gospel as of first importance (I Corinthians 15:3-4).  We are to live for Christ and for his glory (Philippians 1:21, I Corinthians 10:31).  And yet we continually center our lives on other less important things.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The Enemy of Busyness

We have filled our lives with trivial matters that mean nothing in light of eternity.  We are too busy to spend much time in the Word, much time in prayer, much time in worship, much time with God’s people, much time in evangelism, much time in service.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The Enemy of Moralism and Legalism

We have lost sight of the gospel, replacing it with goodness.  We seek to be good, not godly.  And by example and teaching, we seek to make our kids the same.  We have resorted to graceless keeping of Biblical commands mixed with man-made rules in hopes of earning God’s continued favor, rather than dwelling in the gospel that empowers and motivates a godly life.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The Enemy of Lacking Passion

We have lost our first love (Revelation 2:4).  We have become lukewarm (Revelation 3:16).  We do not earnestly seek God with our whole heart (Psalm 63:1, 119:2).  We do not delight in His Word (Psalm 119:16).  We do not hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matthew 5:6).  We go through the motions with little emotions.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

Do any of these enemies ring true in your church?  In your life?  Then let us join together in repenting and looking to God.  Only he can restore.  Only he can save.  Only he can revive.  Let us long to have his face shine upon us.  Let us join together in crying out:

Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

God’s Love For Us

On By BrianIn PASSION Reflections

Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
 – Psalm 139:23-24

As God searches our hearts, what might he find?  Perhaps:

anxiety

frustration

discontentment

unthankfulness

pride

selfishness

lack of self-control

impatience

irritability

anger

bitterness

unforgiveness

judgmentalism

envy

jealousy

gossip

slander

hurtful words

worldliness

idolatry

As we find sin in our lives, we join David in crying out:

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
– Psalm 51:1-2

And the good news is that as we cry out for mercy, we find forgiveness.

 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
– 1 John 1:9

All this is because of God’s amazing love for us:

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.
– Romans 5:8

He died to pay for our sins so that we might be:

forgiven

clean

white as snow

pure

declared righteous

saved from God’s righteous wrath

reconciled

given new life

changed

transformed

adopted

given hope of resurrection

and so much more!

At the end of John Newton’s life he said he remembered two things:

I am a great sinner,
and Christ is a great Savior.

As we consider these twin truths,
let us give thanks to God for his incredible love
that reached out to save us undeserving sinners
through the death of our Savior.

Dwelling Place

On By BrianIn God & His Glory

…you have made the Lord your dwelling place….
– Psalm 91:9

Psalm 91 calls us to make the Lord our dwelling place, to abide in the shadow of the Almighty.  We can draw near and dwell with God.  We can abide in his presence. 

What a wonderful place to dwell!

Not only can we make God our dwelling place, but he has made us his dwelling place.  In I Corinthians 6:19-20, we are reminded that our bodies are God’s temples.  God’s Spirit dwells in us.  He is always with us.

God’s Spirit dwells in us, and we can dwell in him.  Indeed it is because God has drawn near to us, that we can draw near to him.  What an incredible opportunity!  Throughout each day, God is with us, and we can turn to him as our refuge in each trial.  We can praise him for each blessing he showers upon us.  We can commune with him each moment.  We can walk with him each hour.  We can draw near at any time.  We can draw near all of the time.

Father, open my eyes to your presence with me today.  Let me draw near and abide with you.  As you have made me your dwelling place, may I dwell in you today.  Amen.

Restore Us, O God

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer, Revival1 Comment

Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!
– Psalm 80:3

Three times with slight variations we read this refrain in Psalm 80.  What a great prayer for us to pray.  How much we need this today!

In the Psalm, a neighboring country has invaded and ravaged Israel.  Israel desperately needs salvation from their political enemies.  They need God’s face to shine upon them.  They need God to restore them. 

Today, enemies have invaded and ravaged the church collectively and each of us individually.  We desperately need salvation from our enemies.  We need God’s face to shine upon us.  We need God to restore us.

The enemy of idolatry has invaded the church and our lives.  We treasure money, shopping, possessions, beauty, dieting, food, people, family, reputation, popularity, sex, sports, TV, sleep, comfort, or ease more than we treasure Christ.  We trust in these idols to bring happiness, fulfillment, and security rather than trusting in Christ.  Idols abound around us.  And too often we bow down.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The enemy of busyness has invaded the church and our lives.  We have filled our lives with trivial matters that mean nothing in light of eternity.  We are too busy to spend much time in the Word, much time in prayer, much time in worship, much time with God’s people, much time in evangelism, much time in service.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The enemy of “respectable sins” has invaded the church and our lives.  Ungodliness, anxiety, frustration, discontentment, unthankfulness, pride, selfishness, lack of self-control, impatience, irritability, anger, judgmentalism, envy, jealousy, sins of the tongue, and worldliness are tolerated among us.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The enemy of moralism and  legalism have invaded the church and our lives.  We have lost sight of the gospel, replacing it with goodness.  We seek to be good, not godly.  And by example and teaching, we seek to make our kids the same.  We have resorted to graceless keeping of Biblical commands mixed with man-made rules in hopes of earning God’s continued favor, rather than dwelling in the gospel that empowers and motivates a godly life.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

Do any of these enemies ring true in your church?  In your life?  Then let us join together in repenting of our idolatry, our busyness, our respectable sins, our moralism and legalism.  Let us cry out together to our Shepherd and King.  Only he can restore.  Only he can save.  Only he can revive.  Let us long to have his face shine upon us.  Let us join together in crying out:

Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

Mine!

On By BrianIn Habit of Stewardship

I just finished re-reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis.  In one letter, the senior devil Screwtape instructs his subordinate Wormwood to encourage his “temptee” to have a sense of ownership.  He writes:

The sense of ownership in general is always to be encouraged.  The humans are always putting up claims to ownership which sound equally funny in Heaven and in Hell, and we must keep them doing so.

Screwtape discusses our sense of ownership of time.  We think and act like time is our own.  If someone or something intrudes on our time, we tend to get upset.  And yet Screwtape notes the reality that the time we have is clearly not ours.  God gives us so many hours to use.  It is not our time.  It is God’s time.  We are only stewards. 

As we think about this issue, we can go further.  We also seek to own things.  But “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” (Psalm 24:1a).  Certainly in one sense we can own things, in that something may belong to me as opposed to you.  But in the greater scheme, it all belongs to God.  They are God’s things.  We are only stewards.

We seek to own our own bodies.  And certainly in one sense my body belongs to me; it is part of me.  But in another sense: “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.  So glorify God in your body” (I Corinthians 6:19b-20).  By rights of creation and salvation, my body belongs to God.  Indeed all of me – my mind, my abilities, all of me belongs to God.  We are only stewards.

We seek to own people.  Not in the sense of slaves exactly, but in the sense of control.  But again, people belong to God, not us.  And here perhaps we come to the issue behind our desire to own things.  We want to control them.  If it is mine, I have the right to do what I want with it.  I can use my time, my stuff, my body, my family, my employees, my __________ in whatever way I choose.  And so we sin against God and people because we have bought into the deception that I have the right to act as I do because they are mine to do with as I please.  But if it all belongs to God?  The truth sets us free to be good stewards of our time, things, and bodies.  It sets us free to treat people as God’s image-bearers rather than our puppets.  It redirects all of life toward God. 

May God help us overcome the temptations and temptors that encourage us to cry out, “Mine!”  And may we look to the One who can truly claim ownership of all creation.

Coming To Worship

On By BrianIn Church Life, Habit Miscellaneous1 Comment

At the Pastor’s Conference I attended last week, Jim Grier discussed worship from Hebrews 12:18-29.  A few highlights to ponder as you prepare to gather with God’s people this Sunday to worship God:

As we gather for worship, we come into the very presence of our God.

It doesn’t matter if the worship is acceptable to us, but if it is acceptable to God.

Acceptable worship is worship with careful reverence, awe-filled fear, and incredible joy.

I wonder how different our Worship Services would be if we could just grasp and live out these three principles.

Perseverance Lessons

On By BrianIn Biography/History, Church Life

Last week I attended a pastor’s conference entitled “Don’t Lose Heart” at West Cannon Baptist Church in Grand Rapids, MI.  What an encouraging two days.  One of the speakers, Joel Beeke, shared several keys to perseverance from the lives of John Calvin and John Bunyan.  Here are some of the “keys” I found particularly helpful:

Love your people.

Remember that God has ways to bless us
even when the doors we would have chosen are closed.

Learn from one another.

God can use a God-fearing wife to help us persevere.

Don’t ignore the reality that we have physical limitations.

Have a pilgrim’s mindset.

Remember your hope of glory.

Oliver Twist

On By BrianIn Identity

In Dicken’s tale, Oliver Twist, Oliver’s mother dies far from home while giving birth to him.  Not knowing whose family he belongs to, he is raised in poverty in a work house.  His troubles and the shame of his poverty define him.  Eventually he runs away only to get caught up in a gang of thieves.  He is caught trying to steal something, and now society defines him as a thief – he is defined by his sin and guilt.  But the one he tried to rob turns out, as the story continues, to be his grandfather.  He is more than the sum of his troubles, his shame, his sin, and his guilt.  He is part of a wealthy family.

What is it that defines you?  Maybe it is your troubles.  Your trials are huge, and you have let them define your life.  Maybe it is shame for some past hurt done to you.  Maybe it is guilt for some past sin you committed.  Maybe it a sin that you wrestle with today.  But the one you sin against, it turns out, is your Father.  You are more than your troubles, your shame, your sin, and your guilt.  You are part of God’s family.

You are the beloved child of your Heavenly Father.  As his child you have a new identity.  You no longer have to be defined by your troubles, shame, sin, or guilt.  Your identity is now found in Christ.  Jesus suffered so suffering wouldn’t define you.  He bore your shame, so you wouldn’t have to bear it anymore. He bore your guilt on the cross so you could be called righteous.  And he defeated sin as he rose again so you could overcome it in your life.  God loves you.  You are his child.  Find your identity here.

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” – I John 3:1a