Seeking the Lost

Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”-

Seeking the lost is what Jesus came to do. Human nature seeks to fill the void in its heart, Christ puts the desire in each person to seek for purpose and meaning. We seek that the heart may be satisfied and that peace may rest the trouble heart from sin. Christ came to provide a way that we can be fulfilled. Sin does all it can to keep us from responding to the Savior’s call. We all like sheep have gone astray and need help from wandering our own way. It would appear that Zacchaeus went out to seek Christ. He climbed the tree because he sought to see Him, but Jesus already knew the heart of Zacchaeus, and made plans to have an encounter with him. God desires that we seek Him, for in the day we seek Him, we will find Him. For Christ is already seeking us, and desires to dine with us. Whether we realize it or not, we were all lost and headed in the wrong direction. The grace of God is reaching us where we are, and bringing us out of sin. He sought us, and bought us. He found us and knocks at our doors heart wanting to come in. He seeks to save the lost, but we must want to be saved. “Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wrench like me, I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see“.  This is why He came!

This Mountain

Joshua 14:12 “ Now therefore give me this mountain whereof the Lord spoke in that day,...”- God’s promises don’t always happen in the time we think they should. Caleb waited 40 years to receive the promise given to him. The promises of God are sure and they will come to pass. By faith, we can claim “this mountain”. We all have our own “mountains” that God has promised. It may be that our mountain is a friend or loved one that we have been praying for a long time. It may be that small struggling church that God has called you to help and carry the load. His promises are true, and will happen according to His will. There may be lots of things on our wish list that we have asked God for, but His promises to us go beyond the material things of this world. He has promise to meet all of our needs and many times He fulfills these things beyond our expectations. But the greatest promise we have is the assurance that He will always be with us no matter what we are facing or what we are going through. This mountain of grace is ours because He promised us never to leave us or forsake us. The Lord has spoken through His word and we can claim it by faith. Like Caleb, we can trust God to give us “this mountain” for His word never fails.

Stand Up For Jesus

Luke 22:57 “And he denied Him, saying, “Woman, I know Him not.”-

Standing up and being counted as a follower of Jesus is not always easy to do. We all like to be accepted and feel like we belong. Taking a stand against the crowd when it is not the popular isolates us and sets us apart as different and out of touch with the world. The world is not a friend of grace and the cross of Christ. Standing up for what is right will most often require us to be strong in the face of ridicule. When we take a stand for God that is not popular, people will often lash out and start calling us names that are derogatory and hateful. Those who  don’t take a stand for right, will think that we are intolerant and uncaring. In today’s world, saying that you are a Christian who will not compromise God’s word are called bigots and narrow minded. Saying that Jesus is the only way to God is not acceptable in today’s world. You are too old fashion and out of date with today’s world view and thinking.  We must not cater to the world’s thinking and have then silence the voice of Jesus. Jesus, the way, the truth, and life. The voice of Christ to cry out against sin and point people to the One who died for sinners. Let us not be Peter, who denied Christ and said, “I know Him not” May the Holy Spirit fill us and help us to boldly stand up for Christ, even so much more as we see the day approaching.

He Will Carry You Through

Isaiah 46:4,9 “And even to your old age I am He, and even to hoary hairs will I carry you. I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you. Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is none other; I am God, and there is none like Me”-

He will carry you through. As we become accustom to how to live a Christian life, we learn how to behave and act, we know all the right words to say, we discipline ourselves to do what is right. We make decisions that are wise and profitable. The danger we face is believing that we can handle this without any assistances. We should never arrive to a point where we think we can live a Christian life without depending on Him. In fact, It is a oxymoron to think that living a Christian life can be done without Christ living and being the one that is carries us through life. Living a Christian life style by following all the do’s and don’t in the Bible is good and profitable, but we cannot trust in our own works and strength to make it through. We need God, for there is none other that is able to carry us through. The older we get, the more we realize that without Him we are weak and helpless. There is none like Jesus who desires to walk with us and stay close to us even in the most difficult times of our lives. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, you will be with me.” As we age and death draws near, may we hold to His unchanging hand.  Our dependence is fixed on Him, let us not forget, and remember who He is and His desire to carry us through.

The Greatest Blessing

Psalm 32:1 “ Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.”- 

The greatest blessing and grace that a man can have is to know that their sins have been forgiven and they are covered by the blood of Jesus. The complete work of salvation was completed when Christ came to die on the cross to make the final provision for man’s forgiveness. Guilt is part of man’s nature that God’s uses it to alert man that they have done wrong. Not all guilt is from God, but action and behavior that is contrary to God’s law causes man to take notice of their sinful condition. The load of guilt can prick at the conscience and make life unbearable. To be free of guilt is a blessed state of mind and brings peace to the heart of all who will confess it to God. As Christian, we also can experience guilt even though we have not willfully sinned. In the human, our actions and behavior may not be sinful, but they may not always be constructive. It is sometime after the fact that we realize that we wrongful judged, or spoke harshly. The Holy Spirit is faithful to use our conscience and cause us to experience guilt. It’s mistakes like this that His grace is sufficient and greater to cover. Confessing our fault to one another and to God will bring the smile of God and His blessing. 

Broken Hearts

Psalm 34:15,18 “The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart,...”-

Having a broken heart can happen to anyone. Our hearts can break when we lose someone that is close to us. Hearts our broken when a relationship does not work out. Seeing those that are close to us going through a difficult time can also cause our hearts to break. Then our hearts can be broken when we see others who are lost or have lost their way spiritually. It is hard to know what to say when we see hearts broken. Most of the time it is best to say very little and be there to listen and pray that God will bring comfort. This is especially true when it come to losing a loved one or the breaking up of a relationship. Just being there to show support and to let them know that they are not alone in their sorrow. God is the master of healing broken hearts. He knows what others are facing and how to bring comfort. His eyes look on those who love and serve Him and He desire to listen to the cry of the heart that He may show His loving kindness. God is not the author of hurt, but is the author of healing. To the heart that cries out to Him, God will not turn away. In time of grieving and sorrow, we can ask God to be the comfort of all comforts to those we grieve with, and if we find that we are suffering from a broken heart, may we flee the place of refuge and cry to Him that He may draw near to heal the heart that is broken.

A Good Soldier

2 Tim 2:3 “ Endure thou therefore hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”-

Most of us have never served in the military, I greatly appreciate those who have chosen to serve our country in this manner. They have fought and preserved our freedoms. I understand that to be a good soldier, it requires endurance and perseverance to overcome the hardship of the battle. Soldiers are trained to withstand difficult times when things are against you and life is in the balance. They are trained not to give up, but to press on forward in spite of the situation or circumstance. The character found in a good soldier is one that God desires His followers also to have. As a Christian, we may encounter difficult circumstances, conflicts in relationship, financial burdens, or lose of a loved one. These are not easy to bare and like a soldier, we put on the armor of God, place our trust in Him to help us persevere. We have a choice to just throw up our hands and surrender, or to fight on even when it seems that all is lost. It is inevitable that we will face hardships in life. As much as we would like to think that everything will always be good, there will be days that the enemy will fight hard and bring discouragement. But, we serve a might God, who is our shield and defender, and He will give us the strength to stand and endure all things for the sake of Christ