Tag Archives: children of God

MASSIVE CHANGE IS COMING!

Bible Study, ,

I wish I could say that massive change is coming to our country. For us, our lives in South Africa are teetering on the brink of disaster. From our human perspective, it all depends on who can shout the loudest, those who made the mess but think they can still rule, or those who think they can do better. Some are proving they can do better. Others think they can but have neither expertise or experience to do it.

For us who have a hope far greater than what our fellow humans can offer, we know that massive change is coming. When? We hope soon but have no idea when.

What is the source of our hope? Not the empty promises of fickle humans. Not the grandiose words of fools. Not the nauseating repetition of hot air by lying, thieving politicians. Not even the well-meaning hopes of fallible men.

We pin our hopes on the infallible word of a faithful and all-powerful God. How do we know that His promises are reliable?

He said it and He proved it.

Numbers 23:19 NLT
[19] “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”

This claim has been tested and answered innumerable times both in His Word and in human experience.

His Word has promises, from beginning to end, that He will restore what was broken and defiled. Included in that promise is the coming to earth of the person on whom all our hopes are pinned.

This person, Jesus, came exactly on time and in the way God had predicted, and did precisely and perfectly everything that God said He would do. Jesus has spoken God’s final word. He set the entire universe on a new course to restoration, which will happen instantly when He returns to set up His eternal kingdom on earth.

Peter warned his readers that some people would laugh and scoff at this promise. Why should they believe that anything will change, they say, when nothing has changed in thousands of years? Of what value are the words of the scoffers when we measure them against God’s words?

2 Peter 3:3-7 NLT
[3] “Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. [4] They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.” [5] They deliberately forget that God made the heavens long ago by the word of his command, and he brought the earth out from the water and surrounded it with water. [6] Then he used the water to destroy the ancient world with a mighty flood. [7] And by the same word, the present heavens and earth have been stored up for fire. They are being kept for the day of judgment, when ungodly people will be destroyed.”

Ungodly people think that God is as fickle as they are, that His Word is empty and unreliable. Trouble is that they don’t understand that God measures time differently from the way we do. He is outside of time and views every event in our timeline as “now”. When He has said something, it’s as good as done.

2 Peter 3:8-10 NLT
[8] “But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. [9] The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”

However, time will run out, just as He has said.

[10] “But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.”

Did you get Peter’s point? There is mercy in God’s delay! He is giving people as much time as possible to repent and turn to Him but…

Even God’s patience will run out because He has a goal to reach and a purpose to fulfil. Finally, time will end. Massive change will happen in an instant. Man has taken thousands of years to mess the earth to the state it’s in now. God will fix it faster than we can blink.

1 Corinthians 15:51-52 NLT
[51] “But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! [52] It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.”

Not only will we shed our mortal bodies and be clothed in immortality, but the universe itself will also be transformed.

His Word, like a fire, will consume every thought, word, and deed that belong to this world system, extinguishing, in an instant, every philosophy, world view, and belief that is based on th devil’s lies since he is NOT God.

Satan and his minions, together with every person who has bought into his lies will be summarily removed and banished forever from God’s realm.

Revelation 20:1, 10, 12, 15 NLT
[1] Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven with the key to the bottomless pit and a heavy chain in his hand.
[10] Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever…
[12] I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books…
[15] And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

Unlike “hope” in human experience, hope in God’s promises is secure and infallible. Look at the end result of the massive change that is surely coming.

Revelation 21:1-5 NLT
[1] “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. [2] And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. [3] I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. [4] He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” [5] And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”

Did you get that? John saw, in a vision, everything that God said He would do. DONE! From heaven’s viewpoint in eternity, it’s already finished. From earth’s perspective, God said it will be done so, it will be done.

Revelation 21:6-7 NLT
[6] “And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. [7] All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.”

What of us, God’s children,
who struggle with our imperfections in this life. How can we ever be perfectly holy as He is as long as, we are by our old sinful nature? We have God’s promises, first, that He is working in us to prefect His holiness and, second, that He will complete the process in an instant when we see Jesus. Imagine that!

1 John 3:2 NLT
[2] “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.”

Instant transformation!

What should our response to these infallible promises be?

1 John 3:3 NLT
[3] “And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.”

Oh yes! Massive change IS coming. We can lean on God’s promise, we can pin our hopes on His Word, we can live in this mess knowing that, without a doubt, God will press the “reset button” and begin again. How we revel in this hope!

PRAYER WORRIER, PRAYER WARRIOR, OR TRUE WORSHIPPER?

Prayer,

There is a movement in the world-wide church that has inadvertantly divided prayer into what I call “prayer worriers”,
“prayer warriors”, and the rest of us.

“Prayer worriers” make up the bulk of Christians who treat prayer either as a kind of spiritual 911, a 60-minute delivery service, or a repair and maintenance workshop! Prayer is the way to save the situation, get what we want, or fix or get things done. Crises, needs, or concerns drive us to ask God for help. Once the crisis is over and the situation back to normal, we settle down to continue living until…we need God again.

“Prayer warriors,” on the other hand, are those people who have a special calling to engage in spiritual warfare against the devil and his works. They are highly esteemed in the church. They are the intercessors who do the work of prayer for the rest of us so that we can live in relative peace and comfort. They identify and “come against” the powerful spirit beings who rule on earth and mess with God’s people. They do “prayer walks” and “Jericho marches” to “pull down strongholds” which loose the Holy Spirit to do His work! When trouble arises anywhere, we must call in the intercessors! There are even international organisations and prayer houses set up to teach people how to be “intercessors”.

How ridiculous this sounds and what an insult to the Lord and His Word!

What does the Bible teach us about prayer in contrast to this imposition of human nonsense?

First, the church is primarily God’s family on earth. They are sons and daughters of God who have been born again into His family through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus. They have been made alive and are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit in them.

Hebrews 2:10-14 NLT
[10] “God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation. [11] So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters. [12] For he said to God, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise you among your assembled people.” [13] He also said, “I will put my trust in him,” that is, “I and the children God has given me.” [14] Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death.”

There is no hierarchy in God’s family. Jesus is our elder brother and we are all one in Him. There are functions in this family for the benefit of one another, not for anyone to lord it over the rest. Its leaders are servants, not overlords, sacrificially serving its members for the good of all.

Second, God is our heavenly Father who has given us all equal access to Him through Jesus. There are no superior pray-ers in His family.

Hebrews 10:19-22 NLT
[19] “And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. [20] By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. [21] And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, [22] let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.”

From the lips of our supreme model and mentor,
Jesus, came this instruction…

Matthew 6:9 NLT
[9]”Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.”

No earthly father restricts access to himself except to special family members. All God’s children are privileged to approach Him personally and individually. He calls us all to draw near to Him. The only qualification is through Jesus.

John 14:6 NLT
[6] “Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

James 4:8 NLT
[8] “Come close to God, and God will come close to you….”

Third, prayer has a much higher purpose than dealing with the devil, which Jesus did at the cross…

Colossians 2:13-15 NLT
[13] “You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. [14] He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. [15] In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”

… or meeting needs, which the Father does for us because He knows…

Matthew 6:8 NLT
[8]… Your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!”

Matthew 6:31-33 NLT
[31]“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ [32] These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. [33] Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

God is a good Father. He takes care of all our needs without our nagging and pleading.

What is God’s deepest desire for His children?

1 John 1:3 NLT
[3]”We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.”

Fellowship!

John 4:23-24 NLT
[23]”But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. [24] For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

Worship!

Through His plan of redemption, God has opened the circle of His divine family, the Godhead… Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…to allow us to participate with them in their love and unity. Through His mercy and by His grace, He calls us to come in.

Needs are only triggers to the greater purpose of fellowship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit which leads us to worship God in all the wonder and beauty of His person.

Consider these profound expressions of God’s way.

2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”

2 Corinthians 1:20 NLT
[20]” For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.”

This is the way of the true “prayer warrior”, putting everything that happens in this life into its true perspective.

2 Corinthians 3:16-18 NLT
[16] “But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
[17] For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. [18] So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.”

This is the goal of prayer…not getting things done, or meeting needs, or defeating the devil, or even establishing God’s kingdom on earth. These are all stepping stones and peripheral to God’s one great goal. Worship! God accomplishes everything He plans in the universe and takes care of all our concerns by His sovereign power and wisdom as we worship Him.

Why is worship paramount in every detail of our lives, even to the simple things like eating and drinking?

1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT
[31] “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

Worship is not something we do. Worship happens when we do something! Worship happens when we honour God in everything we say and do.

Colossians 3:17 NLT
[17]”And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.”

Paul stated this truth simply and clearly to the pagans in Athens…

Acts of the Apostles 17:28 NLT
[28] “For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’”

The more we recognise this truth, as Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing,” the more we acknowledge God in all our ways, the closer we come to true worship.

And the outcome? Moving in harmony and oneness with the Lord, He lives His life and accomplishes His will through us. As Jesus did on earth, our lives become prayer and worship happens!!!

Matthew 4:4, 7, 10 NLT
[4] But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
[7] Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’”
[10] “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’ ”

SECURE!

Christian Life, ,

There’s a channel on my Openview decoder called People’s Planet which is essentially dedicated to conservation and animal programmes. “Monkey Helpline” airs the work of a rescue centre near Durban that cares for injured and orphaned vervet monkeys who fall victim to dogs and vehicles in the urban area.

This facility cares for and raises many orphaned baby monkeys because they are left abandoned through the loss of their mothers in the dangerous urban areas. One gets to see just how well equipped they are for life in the trees from birth by their life in the care of a surrogate mother.

Baby monkeys are born with strong fingers with which they cling to the underside of their mother’s fur. She puts a protective arm around him now and again as she moves on the ground or leaps in the trees. Very seldom does a baby monkey fall except when mother is injured or killed.

I am constantly amazed at God’s intimate provision for every creature He has made so that they fit perfectly into the life and habitat He has made for them.

So carefully has God also planned and created us for now on this earth and for eternity with Him.

However…

Eternal security is often debated among theologians and the rest of us. Once saved, always saved? Can we lose our salvation? Can we be lost if we have been saved?

Like the never-ending debate on election and free will, there are two seemingly irreconcilable sides to the story. The Bible is full of reassurances that He will keep us safe on this earth until we enter our eternal home. Yet, there are also stern warnings against falling away. So, how is it possible that anyone can fall away who is being protected by God’s power in this life?

Once again, there is no easy answer since both sides are true although unexplained. Like the issue of election and free will, we are to believe the truth and leave God to be God in His sovereignty and wisdom.

Deuteronomy 29:29 NLT
[29] “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.”

So, let’s look at what God’s Word has to say so that we can obey rather than question His wisdom.

Firstly, we have every reason to believe that those who trust God and obey His word to the end of their days will be received with joy into His eternal kingdom. The assurance we have is that God holds onto us.

John 10:27-30 NLT
[27]” My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. [28] I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, [29] for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. [30] The Father and I are one.”

What can be more secure than that! God holds us with such a firm grip that no outside force can separate us from Him.

Colossians 3:3 NLT
[3] “For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Romans 8:35, 37 NLT
[35] “Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?”…
[37] No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

No earthly circumstance, however dangerous or threatening, can ever drive a wedge between us and God’s love.

How much more reassurance do we need than this?

Now, let’s look at what Scripture says about the possibility of being lost.

2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT
[10] “So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never FALL AWAY. [11] Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Does this mean that we can fall away?

Hebrews 6:4-6 NLT
[4] “For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, [5] who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come— [6] and who THEN TURN AWAY from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame.”

It seems that people can fall away by deliberately turning away.

There is a bridge between being secure and not falling away.

“DO THESE THINGS , and you will never fall away.”

What “things” is Peter referring to?

2 Peter 1:3-9 NLT
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us GREAT AND PRECIOUS PROMISES. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. [5] IN VIEW OF ALL THIS , MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO RESPOND TO GOD’S PROMISES. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, [6] and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, [7] and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. [8] The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. [9] But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins.”

Although God’s promises are powerful and true, they are only effective when we believe and apply them to our own lives. Baby monkey is only safe when she clings onto mommy’s fur. Faith is only faith when we activate that faith by clinging to the One who promised.

Galatians 5:19-21 NLT
[19] “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, [20] idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, [21] envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life WILL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD.”

Can you see the picture now? We declare the sincerity of our faith in Jesus by our attitude to His Word. He will hold on tightly to those who love Him enough to do what He says.

John 14:21 NLT
[21]”Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”

Forget theology and theological debates!

Our security, then, depends on faithfulness, God’s faithfulness to us and our faithfulness to Him. In partnership, we are assured of a “grand entrance” into His eternal kingdom.

So, again…

2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT
[10] “So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. [11] Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Election and free will are not contradictory but work in partnership… God chooses us and we choose Him. So also, our salvation is secure because God holds on to us and we cling by faith to Him.

There is a another aspect we need to consider. Salvation is also a two-way street. Although God chose us before time, when we turn from sin to the Lord in faith, He responds by restoring us to sonship. He makes us alive, forgives our sin, cleanses us from unrighteousness, gives us His own nature, and adopts us into His family as true sons and daughters.

Is it possible, in this new standing with God, that a son or daughter of God, once born again, can never be unborn? That child may become estranged from the Father through his rebellious behaviour but he will always be a son.

Scripture seems to make a distinction between “sons” who live sinful lives, obeying the dictates of the flesh, and children of God who live in obedience to the Holy Spirit. The former will not inherit the kingdom while the latter will receive a grand welcome into the kingdom.

Life in the kingdom includes the promise of rewards for faithfulness, i.e., positions of authority and responsibility in God’s kingdom. Does this mean that God’s children, though saved, will receive no reward in eternity if they persist in sin? We can only ponder these things.

However, John gives us yet another angle to our assurance of eternal security. He makes a case for those who do not sin as a way of life. First, he says that those who walk away were never part of us.

1 John 2:18, 19 NIV
[18] “Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.”
[19″These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.”

Apparently, “these people”. refers to those who were “antichrist” because they denied the true humanity of Jesus.

1 John 4:2-3 NLT
[2] “This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God. [3] But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.”

John’s test is simple…

1 John 3:7-9 NLT
[7] “Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. [8] But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. [9] Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God.”

…and his test is…

1 John 3:10, 14 NLT
[10]”So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God….
[14] If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.”

Since the “law” of the New Covenant consists of two commandments in place of the 613 laws of the Old Covenant,

1 John 3:23 NLT
[23] “And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us.”

we can easily recognise those who are God’s true children. These are those who cannot live habitually in sin because…

  1. They have been born again through the Word of God.

1 Peter 1:23 NIV
[23]” For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”

  1. They cannot continue in sin because God’s Word (seed) is in them.

1 John 3:9 NIV
[9] “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.”

As a young man, David learned this truth.

Psalms 119:9-11 NIV
[9]”How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. [10] I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. [11] I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”

So, for John, the case is closed.

Those who believe and receive God’s Word are born again into God’s family. They have God’s Word in them which keeps them from habitual sin. They will not fall away.

Those who do fall away show that they were never born again. They left because they were never part of God’s family.

So, we have the assurance, if we have truly been born from above by the power of God’s Spirit,

1 John 3:1 NIV
[1] “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!…”

How do we have this assurance?

Romans 8:14-16 NIV
[14] “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. [15] The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” [16] The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”

The lives we live either corroborate the witness of God’s Spirit in us or deny that we are truly God’s children.

WHAT IS A PEACEMAKER?

Christian Life, ,

Matthew 5:9 NIV
[9] “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

Who are the peacemakers? Why are they called “children of God”? Who are the children of God? How can they be peacemakers?

Jesus’ simple statement raises questions. It’s no use reading that God is happy with peacemakers if we don’t know who they are and why and how they are to be pacemakers.

There is only one true “peacemaker” in all of Scripture and, outside of His work to make peace, any affort to bring peace between alienated humans is futile. Without a change of heart, reconciliation between people at war is temporary and only skin deep.

Humanity is at war with God and has been since the moment Adam chose himself over his Creator. This alienation from God is the root of all the forms enmity between humans. Until our rebellion against God is removed out of our hearts, we will always be in conflict with one another. Why…because our hearts are tainted with self-centredess which clashes with everyone else’s self-centredness.

God stepped into time with a risky plan to reconcile Adam’s alienated race with Himself. Through Jesus, He dealt with the root of sin that robbed humans of peace with God, and brought together not only humans and Himself but the two alienated religious groups that split the world, Jews and Gentiles.

Ephesians 2:11-13 NIV
[11] “Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— [12] remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. [13] But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”

“Done and dusted!” God and mankind reconciled forever through the death of His Son! Mission one accomplished!

Ephesians 2:14-18 NIV
[14] “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, [15] by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, [16] and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. [17] He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. [18] For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.”

“Done and dusted!” Jew and Gentile reconciled! Not only that, but all religious distinctions obliterated by lifting the two groups onto a new level…a new species called “children of God”. Jew and Gentile labels no longer apply.

Mission two complete!

However, with God’s intervention comes a new distinction… believers in Jesus versus unbelievers. The separation between these two groups is far greater and more sinister than the rift between two religious factions because it stretches beyond the grave, two different and eternal destinies depending on one fact. Did you avail yourself of the reconciliation God made possible through faith in Jesus? God’s intervention is a matter of life and death.

Since Jesus is the only true “peacemaker”, His children are under obligation to intervene between God and His alienated humans through His message of peace. Then, and then only, can the “children of God” be real peacemakers.

So, peacemakers are those who, through Jesus, are, at peace with God and with all fellow believers around the world regardless of colour, clan, or country. They are now a new species, called “children of God”. Their role is to spread the message of peace through Jesus, to bring about reconciliation with God and with fellow believers.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called, “children of God”.

NEED DRIVEN OR SPIRIT LED?

Christian Life, ,

NEED DRIVEN OR SPIRIT LED?

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14

Today I have a word for Christian leaders.

One of the buzzwords among pastors today is the word “burnout” because many of them seem to be teetering on the brink. There may be many reasons for burnout but perhaps one of them is simply the difficulty of differentiating between the urgent and the important. In other words, how do we move from being need driven to being Spirit led?

Have you ever taken time to walk with Jesus through the Gospels? They may not provide a biography, but they are a treasure store of glimpses into an amazing man!

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for Him and, when they found Him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else – to the nearby villages – so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So, He travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.” (Mark 1:35-39, NIV).

This incident happened at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and reveals His strategy from its inception. How did He know how to balance work and rest, busyness and timeout, the clamouring demands of the crowd and the times apart with His disciples? How could He walk away from the pressing needs of sick and tormented people and not feel guilty?

Jesus not only shows us but tells how He could maintain His serenity and sanity in the same kind of world in which we lose our way.

Firstly, what He did was always linked to His mission. His priority was not to meet every need but to announce the coming of God’s kingdom and to demonstrate how it worked by healing the sick, raising the dead and casting out demons. He always made sure that what occupied His time fitted into the bigger picture.

Secondly, He functioned in perfect tandem with the Father through the Holy Spirit. He spent so much time with the Father that He was aware of His presence and of what He was doing all the time. He could say with honesty and confidence, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can only do what He sees the Father doing, because whatever the Father does, the Son does also. For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does.” (John 5:19, 20, NIV)

Since every believer has received the same Spirit that indwelt Jesus, we have the same potential to live as He did. So says the Apostle Paul, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25, NIV).

Is our frantic busyness somehow connected with the idea that we must “work for God”? God has called us into His rest so He can work through us! We are too blessed to be stressed!