Has God called you to serve Him in a way that requires you to sacrifice something you own, or of yourself? Are you at a place in your faith that requires you to make a choice between believing and having faith in Him, or returning to where you once were in faithlessness? Well every believer comes to this fork in the road, and it separates the believers who go to the right, from the nonbelievers who turn back to the left.
Are we like children before God, or are we walking in our own independent self-righteousness? Do we say “I believe” and yet act like we are in control of our lives? Maybe we trusted God at one time, but have since taken those reins back from Him, and slowly, over time, found ourselves walking apart from Him. Do we know where we are spiritually? Are we uncertain how, and if, we can ever go home again? Well we can.
Do you deny the sin within you? Do you say to others that you are a moral man, a good man, and that you harm no one? Do you argue that your morality makes you righteous? My response to you is that you have no idea what sin truly is... or else you are deceiving yourself. Let’s look into this further.
Are we worthy of forgiveness? Are we worthy of the sacrifice that God made by giving His only Son to die for our sins? Are we worthy of an audience with the creator of the universe? Are we worthy of forgiveness? There are so many questions like this that most of us would answer with a resounding “NO!”, but is that really true?
This morning we celebrate the moment in time when God became man. On this day, those many years ago, Jesus Christ was born to a virgin in Bethlehem. I would say that this was the beginning of God’s plan to redeem mankind, but that plan was actually conceived long before the foundation of the world, even before Adam and Eve had gained the knowledge of good, evil, and knew of sin. His plan continues unfolding to this very day as we anticipate the second coming of Jesus.
On this day, Christmas Eve, we are in great expectation of a tiny baby’s arrival into the lineage of David... the Christ Child, Jesus, Emanuel, the Son of God. He will be born in Bethlehem, and a star will shine bright inside each of us to show the way to where He will be held to His mother’s breast. Are we ready to make the journey to where He will be born into the world; into each of us? Is the anticipation of His coming calling us even now to where Angels will announce Him?
Have certain things of the world died to you? Are you a different person today than you were the day before you first believed? Do you ask the Lord to forgive you for your sins and then take a deep breath of relief when they are lifted from you, or do you ask, but then refuse to allow His total forgiveness to occur in you? Let’s look at this ploy of Satan... our continued spiritual regret and conviction after being forgiven.
Are we struggling with whether we will give ourselves completely to Jesus, and fully believe in God? Have we been reasoning and reading scripture without moving an inch closer to believing? If so, then we should quit listening to your own intellect, calm ourselves, and then open our ears to the still small voice of God that calls us to “Come.” Hearing God isn’t a matter of intellectual reasoning on our part; it is being inexplicably drawn by the Lord.
Do you know Jesus? Have you developed a relationship with God? Are you confident in your faith and feel like you have a handle on it? If you answered yes to the first two questions, that is exciting and wonderful. If you answered yes to the third then you are in for some big surprises as you read on.
The world is five sunrises away from Christmas morning, and the day when we will celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Thank God Almighty we aren’t still awaiting His birth, but celebrating that which has already come! As with the birthdays of my own children, we like to reminisce, and think about that day Jesus was born; it brings the same tears of joy to our eyes. Now He is with us always, every minute, day, and week... so join me in praising Him... listen to our week with Him...
As we move towards a godly state of righteousness we shed one sin after another until at last we are down to our pet sins... those we consider insignificant, and that give us personal pleasure, or reduce the pain of life. When we reach this point, and we refuse to let these hidden sins go, then our relationship with God stalls, and we feel a growing separation from Him. This can happen early on in our walk, but usually it occurs once all of the low hanging sinful fruit has been plucked from us. These deeply imbedded sins that we pray over time and time again will require spiritual surgery to extract them.
Do you trust God enough to allow yourself to be used unconditionally to accomplish His good will? Do you believe that He brings bad situations upon you, or, do you believe He uses you amidst bad situations for His good purposes? These are questions that can influence, or define our faith.
Hearing the gospel of Jesus (that He was born, lived, suffered, died, and was resurrected to redeem us from sin and death), and having this message fall on that fertile spot within us, creates a need for it that is unquenchable. Are you one of those in whom the gospel of Jesus Christ has found a slight furrow into which its seed has fallen and taken root? If so then despite the season you are in, you will be called to tend it... time and time again, day after day, you will nurture it until it bears sweet fruit. For all the others there will be only darkness, and a withering drought.
Are we completely dressed and ready for the day, or have we professed our belief in God and Jesus Christ, but not clothed ourselves in those things they provide us that will protect us against the world? On top of that, are we ready to wrestle with the issues pertaining to God’s will for our lives that require us to be more than unthinking creatures?
Do you read a simple devotional each morning? Is it one that speaks God’s Word to you in an interesting new way, or alternatively, is it one that takes what is comfortable and bends God’s Truth to fit it? Finding the right author who doesn’t caudal your humanity at the peril of your spirituality is the challenge. Either an author who shows you God’s word in a new and challenging way, or one who might be doing harm to God’s Word, can affect your faith… one increases it, while the other can mislead you and do your faith great harm. Who do you read?