Category: Virtue Miscellaneous

Thanking God for Himself

On By BrianIn Book of Isaiah, Habit Miscellaneous, Virtue Miscellaneous

Today I want to thank God that he is:

A Saving God – Isaiah 1:18

Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.

A Soon and Coming King – Isaiah 9:6-7

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

A Sovereign Lord – Isaiah 14:24

The LORD of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned, so shall it be,
and as I have purposed, so shall it stand.

A Solid Rock – Isaiah 26:4

Trust in the LORD forever,
for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

God Is Greater

On By BrianIn Book of Isaiah, Virtue Miscellaneous1 Comment

In Isaiah 33, God reminds us that he is greater than all the things that come against us.

He Is Our Strength (v2) – He is our arm of strength for daily life. He gives us strength in the midst of those things that come against us. Indeed he gives us strength every morning. Each day there is a fresh supply of God’s mighty powerful strength to help us through our trials and struggles. He is our strength.

He Is Our Stability (v5-6) – He is the stability for our times – times of trouble, times of distress, times of difficulty. He is a sure foundation on which we can stand. He is a solid rock when the tempest blows all around us. He is exalted and dwells on high; he is not shaken by all that comes against us, and so we anchor ourselves to him. He is our stability.

He Is Our Salvation (v2-4, 6-12) – God not only gives us strength and stability in the midst of our trials, but in his perfect times he will save us from those trials. When God arises in our lives, all that comes against us scatters. He gobbles up the enemy. His judgment is like a great fire against all that comes against us. He is greater than those things that oppose us, and he will save us in his perfect time. He is our salvation.

And so we wait for him (v2). We don’t need to freak out about trials, threats, dangers, and struggles. We wait for Him with patience – resting in his strength and leaning on his stability. We wait for him with longing for the salvation that he will bring. This week, may we wait for Him who is greater than all that can come against us.

We Can Have Great Peace in a World of Things

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous

Paul tells us that he is content whether he faces plenty or hunger, abundance or need (Philippians 4:11-13). He is at peace with a lot or a little. And we too are called to be at peace whether we have a lot or a little. We too are called to be content in a world where there is always more to have. God wants us to be content with what he gives us instead of always chasing, craving, and seeking more and more.

Of course this flies in the face of our culture and our entire economy built on chasing material things. In our country money is god – it is what we trust and what we treasure. Our coins say: “In God we trust.” But for many the god they trust is the coin in their hand, and it is also what they treasure. How can we overcome? How can we find peace in a world filled with things? The answer is that we must learn to trust in and treasure something other than material things. In short, we must learn to trust in and treasure the Lord above all.

First, we must trust in the Lord. Verse 13 is essentially a statement of trust. I can be at peace in all circumstances as I look to him to give me strength. I’m not going to trust in my wealth for security. I’m not going to worry about my lack of wealth. I have a God who is mighty, who is powerful, who is strong to get me through, whether I have a lot or a little. He will give me what I need. I will trust him.

Second, we must treasure the Lord above all. This is found in the entire context of the book of Philippians. To live is Christ (1:21). Life is all about Christ. Knowing Christ is the number one priority – everything else is like rubbish (3:7-11). Christ is the greatest treasure. And if Christ is your greatest treasure than material things won’t mean so much to you. We can be at peace with a little or a lot because we already have the greatest treasure – we have Jesus.

We can have great peace in a world filled with things as we trust in the Lord and treasure him above all.

We Can Have Great Peace in a Life Filled with Trials

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous

A lot of circumstances can lead to anxiety – that unsettled feeling in the pit of your stomach, that fear in your heart and your mind. But God calls us to peace (Philippians 4:6-7). Indeed he calls us to a peace that surpasses all understanding. He calls us to a peace that guards our hearts and minds, our feelings and thoughts. Through Christ we can have great peace in a life filled with trials. But how can we know this peace? How can we apply this peace he offers to our lives? Our passage gives us three important answers:

First, we must remember the presence of the Lord. Right before we are instructed to be anxious for nothing, we read that the Lord is at hand. We need not be anxious because the Lord is with us. We need not fear even in the valley of the shadow of death because God is with us (Psalm 23:4). We can be strong and courageous because the Lord is with us wherever we go (Joshua 1:9). God Almighty is by your side. Remember his presence.

Second, we must bring our cares to the Lord. We are to bring our requests to God (v6). We cast our cares on Him, knowing that he cares for us (I Peter 5:7). The Psalms are filled with prayers to God in the midst of trials. A regular pattern is that as the psalmists cry out to God, they come to a place of trust, of rest, of peace. Psalm 55 is a good example. The first five verses are a cry to God for help. But as the Psalmist looks to God, he finds a God who hears him (v17), sustains him (v22), and answers him (v16). And so he closes the psalm with a declaration of trust (v23). As we pray to the one who is greater than our problems, one who hears us, sustains us, and answers us, we can trust him and find peace.

Third, we must give thanks to God. In the middle of Paul’s instructions to pray, he drops the phrase “with thanksgiving.” In your trials and struggles that tempt you to worry, count your blessings. Remember the countless ways God has been and continues to be good to you. And give thanks. Our minds can get so stuck on a trial that we forget our blessings. We replay the trial over and over again in our minds like a broken record player. We dig a rut of woe and anxiety. But step out of the rut and get some perspective. The trial is real, and you bring it to the Lord. But the blessings are also real. Remember to give thanks.

We can have great peace in a life filled with trials as we remember his presence, bring our cares to him, and give thanks to him for his continuous blessings.

We Can Have Great Peace in a Church Filled with Differences

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous

In Acts 16, we get a glimpse of the planting of the church at Philippi. The first members include a wealthy woman, a jailor, and possibly a slave girl. These are very different people – hardly people that would have associated with each other until they came to Christ. But now in spite of their differences, they are part of the same church. And Paul admonishes them to stand firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side, and again to be of the same mind, the same love, in full accord, of one mind (Philippians 1:27, 2:1-2). Paul calls the Philippians to oneness, to unity, to be at peace with one another.

Our own churches include some very different people (I hope). There are different backgrounds, different types of employment, different seasons of life, different opinions, different ideas, and on the list goes. And God calls us to stand firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side. He calls us to be of the same mind, the same love, in full accord, of one mind. God calls us to oneness, to unity, to be at peace with one another.

How is this possible? How can we live in peace together in midst of all of our differences? Philippians provides us with two very important answers:

First, we must center on the gospel of the Lord (1:27). We are to strive side by side for the faith of the gospel. It is the gospel that unites us. The gospel is what brought us together. With all our differences, we became one in Christ. And we are to strive side by side for faith of the gospel. We cling to that faith together. We encourage one another in that faith. We proclaim the faith together. We live that faith together. As soon as we elevate our differences above the gospel, we have problems. As soon as we start chasing after our own pet projects, we have problems. As soon as we come to church expecting things to follow our own opinions, we have problems. The gospel brought us together and it is the gospel that will keep us together as we strive side by side for the faith of the gospel, as we keep the gospel central.

Second, we must walk in the humility of the Lord (2:3-8). There is to be no rivalry among us – it is not about getting my way. There is to be no conceit among us – thinking we are better than others. Instead we are to humbly put others first. We are to look beyond ourselves to the good of the others. It is not about you…or me. Strife is hard to have when we have this kind of attitude. We are to have the same attitude that our Lord had as he humbled himself, coming down from heaven to be born as a little baby and ultimately die on the cross. This is God we are talking about! The King of Kings humbled himself! The only one who can honestly say it is all about him chose to humble himself. And he calls us to follow.

We can have great peace in a church filled with differences as we center on the gospel of the Lord and walk in the humility of the Lord.

We Have a Great Hope to Be Resurrected With Jesus

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous2 Comments

Today we look at the last of our great hopes from the book of Philippians. As we have already seen, we have a great hope to be with Jesus and to see his return. Today we consider that:

We have a great hope to be resurrected with Jesus. In Philippians 3:20, we read that Jesus will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body. We all have lowly bodies. They are perishable and mortal, but one day we will have bodies that are imperishable and immortal (I Corinthians 15:53). They will not get sick, injured, grow old, or die. We will live forever with our Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 3:10-11 also speak of attaining the resurrection of the dead. Today we will share in the sufferings of Christ, but one day we will be raised with Christ. This is our great hope.

But until then, we must press on toward Jesus. Paul wants to know Jesus (v8-10), and he presses on to know him more (v12-14). He is like a runner straining forward toward the goal – which is Jesus. He is not content with what he has already attained. He wants to go deeper and further into a relationship with Jesus. What about us? Are we pressing on toward Jesus? Are we seeking to grow in our relationship with him each day?

We have a great hope to be resurrected with Jesus. Until then, press on toward Jesus.

We Have a Great Hope to See Jesus Return

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous

Yesterday, we looked at one of Paul’s three great hopes in the book of Philippians. Today we want to consider the second great hope:

We have a great hope to see Jesus return. In Philippians 3:20-21, we are reminded that our citizenship is in heaven. That is our address, our destination. And from there a Savior is coming. The one who died and rose to save us from the penalty and power of sin is coming again. And this Savior is also our Lord. He is our King whose power enables him to subject all things to himself. He is coming to reign with peace and justice and righteousness (Isaiah 9:7). Image a world with no more strife or wars or crime – a world of peace and justice and righteousness. Jesus is coming, and he will bring such a world. This is our great hope.

But until then, we must stand firm in Jesus. This is Paul’s instruction in the following verse (4:1). Because Jesus is coming, we are to stand firm in him now. As the following verses make clear, that means:

• We ought to strive for unity in the Lord (v2-3). Paul instructs two ladies to agree in the Lord. We are going to agree in heaven, we may as well start learning to agree now. Are you? Do your words and actions enhance or discourage unity in your church?

• We ought to rejoice in the Lord (v4). If our hope is found in him, then he is the place to find our joy. Are you rejoicing in the Lord? Or are you looking for joy in all the wrong places?

• We ought to point to the Lord (v5). We are to be known for our reasonableness or gentleness, our being more concerned about others than ourselves. We aren’t pointing at ourselves. And when the Lord returns, it is clear who we will be point toward. In a world where everyone is pointing at themselves, who are you pointing at?

• We ought to set our gaze on the Lord (v6-7). As we wait for him, we can bring our cares to him. We can keep our gaze set on him in the midst of the trials of life. Where is your gaze?

• We ought to think like the Lord (v8). We are to set our mind on good things – things above instead of earthly sinful things like the rest of the world (3:19). What is your mind set on? What are you putting in your mind?

• We ought to imitate the Lord (v9). Paul says to imitate him, but he can only say that because he is imitating the Lord. Are you following Christ’s example of love and humility and service and…?

We have a great hope to see Jesus return. Until then, stand firm in Jesus.

We Have a Great Hope to Be With Jesus

On By BrianIn Books of the Bible, Virtue Miscellaneous

In the book of Philippians, Paul gives us three great hopes. I want to look at one of those hopes each of the next three days. So today we want to consider that:

We have a great hope to be with Jesus. In Philippians 1:21, Paul says to die is gain, and v23 makes clear why death is gain: because we go to be with Jesus. That is Paul’s hope: to be with Jesus. He says it is better than life, echoing the Psalmist who said of God, “Your steadfast love is better than life” (Psalm 63:3). Paul desires to be with Jesus. Is that your desire? Does your heart resonate with this great hope to be with Jesus? To be with the one who took on flesh as a little baby for you? To be with the one who died a cruel death on a cross for you? To be with the one who rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and reigns as your King? One day we will be with him. That is our great hope.

But until then, we must live for Jesus. Paul desires to be with Jesus, but until then he says: “to live is Christ” (v21). And as the verses progress, it becomes clear that this means fruitful labor for Christ in serving God’s people for their growth and for the glory of God (v22-26). In other words, until the day we go to be with Jesus, we have work to do. Each of us has gifts and abilities God has given to us to serve God’s people for their growth and God’s glory. Some will teach. Some will lead. Different ones will be involved in different ministries. All of us in our own ways can care for, encourage, and help one another. And we can pray for one another, even when our age and health allow us to do nothing else. Don’t coast into heaven. If you are here, God has a purpose for you. And at least part of that purpose is to live for Jesus serving God’s people for their growth and God’s glory.

We have a great hope to be with Jesus. Until then, live for Jesus.

Growing in Generosity

On By BrianIn Book of Acts, Virtue Miscellaneous

We see the generosity of the early church in Acts 4:32-37.  People were selling what they had and giving it to the church to meet the needs of their fellow Christians.  Our churches too should be marked by generosity.  How might we grow in this area?  Four suggestions:

  • Look for opportunities.  Each Sunday after church, ask yourself some questions:  What needs did I see or hear about today.  How might I respond with generosity this week?
  • Remember that generosity takes many forms.  You might generously give of your money as the early church was doing.  You can also generously let others borrow items that you have.  You might also generously give of your time.
  • Do what you can.  If you become aware of a need for $100, but you can only give $20, give what you can.  Even the little you can give will be an encouragement.  And God may be leading several others to give small amounts that will add up to meet the entire need.
  • Follow the Lord’s leading.  If God impresses upon your heart that you should meet a need, do it.  You can’t do everything, and God doesn’t expect you to do everything.  But when God moves your heart to give, do it.

How To Persevere

On By BrianIn Virtue Miscellaneous

God wants us to persevere in trials.  God wants us to persevere in doing good.  So how can we persevere?  Four words from God’s Word:

  • Grace (II Corinthians 12:9) – His grace will be sufficient for us.  In our moments (or days) of weakness, he is our strength.  We are insufficient to persevere on our own, but we can persevere as we lean on his grace and strength.
  • Group (Hebrews 10:24-25) – We need one another to spur us on to do good.  We need one another to encourage us through the trials.  We were not designed to run this race alone.  We need a group of believers to help us persevere.
  • Gaze (Hebrews 12:1-2) – We run this race with endurance as we look to Jesus.  We are to look to the Lord who can help us (Psalm 121:1-2).  Our gaze is not on the group who can fail us, but on the One who will never fail us.  Our trust is in him.  Our cry is to him.  We can persevere as we keep our gaze on Jesus.
  • Goal (Philippians 3:14) – Paul persevered as he remembered and pressed on for the goal.  Jesus persevered as he remembered the joy set before him (Hebrews 12:2).  When we grow weary and tired, we remember the goal, the prize, the finish line.  We remember the joys of heaven, our great inheritance.  We remember our sure hope of being with the Lord forever.  We can persevere as we remember the goal.

How might you need to apply these four words to your life today?