Monday, October 15,
2012, 7:01 a.m. – the Lord woke me with the song “Search Me, O God” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, for your
servant is listening. I read Titus 2-3
(quoting 2:11-14; 3:3-8 NIV 1984):
For the grace of God
that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No” to
ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and
godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the
glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself
for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that
are his very own, eager to do what is good…
At one time we too
were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and
pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But
when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because
of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through
the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us
generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by
his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a
trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who
have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.
These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
Grace
of God
The grace of God is demonstrated to us in
many ways. Some people have defined God’s grace as “getting what we don’t
deserve,” and his mercy as “not getting what we do deserve.” I appreciate both!
And, I have been the recipient of both on numerous occasions in my lifetime, as
we have all probably experienced. In other words, the grace of God is not
limited just to our salvation, but expands a lifetime of experiences in which
we knew God was gracious and merciful to us through various situations in our
lives. God is always at work in our lives, even when we are not necessarily
paying attention to him.
Our salvation is a result of God’s grace to
us. None of us deserved having Jesus Christ die on the cross for our sins. Lest
we forget, this was no little thing he did for us. Sometimes when we say, “Jesus
Christ died on the cross for our sins,” so simply put, it can appear so trite. Not
only did he go through all the emotional and mental anguish, the physical
torture to his body and the pain of unjust suffering, but he took upon himself
the sins of the entire world. Can you imagine? I can’t! My own lifetime of
sins, if taken all at once, would be more than I could bear, and I am not
perfect like Jesus was.
Not only that, but he is our holy God! So,
God, who created the universe and under his command are all things, humbled
himself, took on human flesh, suffered as we suffer, and was even tempted in
like manner as we are tempted, yet without sin. Then he went through the pain
and anguish of his crucifixion plus taking upon himself all our yucky and
disgusting sins, so that our sins might die and be buried with him, so that
when he rose from the grave, he would also rise victoriously over our sin. None
of us deserved to have him do that.
Washing
of Rebirth
When Jesus Christ saved us from our sins, it
was because of his great love and kindness toward us that he did that. “He
saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” So,
what does that mean? First of all, washing involves cleansing, i.e. removing
the dirt from our bodies so that we are now clean, only this is not speaking of
being clean physically, but spiritually. In other words, when we believe in
Jesus Christ as our Lord (boss of our lives) and Savior (set free from slavery
to sin), he removes the dirt and filth of sin from our lives, he cleanses us
with his blood sacrificed on the cross for us, and he gives us new lives in
Christ Jesus, free from slavery to sin, and free to follow him in obedience to
his commands.
A few years ago I participated in a foot
washing. That was a miracle in itself, because I don’t like to touch people’s
feet or to have anyone touch mine. As I stood there watching other people do
this, not sure I wanted to join them, I prayed that if the Lord wanted me to do
this that he would let me know how to do it. He then put the scripture in my
head, Therefore,
if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and
gave us the ministry of reconciliation (2
Co. 5:17-18).
The picture the Lord gave me of salvation
that day was this: Before we washed people’s feet, we first of all removed
their dirty shoes and socks. This represents the removal of sin from our lives.
Then, we washed their feet. This denotes the washing of rebirth with the blood
of Christ in cleansing us from our sins. Then, we gave them new socks (white)
and shoes to wear. This symbolizes the renewal of the Holy Spirit in giving us
new lives in Christ Jesus. Jesus did not die for our sins just to clean up our
old lives. He came to give us completely new lives (new socks and shoes to
wear), i.e. we must be born again!
“No”
to Ungodliness
Ok, this is the part of the gospel
presentation that is often overlooked or is purposefully removed from the
gospel in order to make it more palatable to the listener. Jesus Christ did not
go through all that he went through just so we could go to heaven one day,
although that is a glorious hope that one day we will be with Jesus Christ
forever, our salvation will be complete, and we will no longer suffer or be
tempted in this life in which we now live.
Jesus Christ died on the cross so that our
sins (sinful habits; sinful behaviors; sinful thoughts; sinful attitudes;
sinful lifestyles) would be eradicated entirely from our lives, and so we could
walk with him in holiness and in obedience, in humility and with much resolve, and
with his direction and purpose for our lives. He came to give us full lives in
Christ Jesus, but not to please ourselves, but to please God in all we do.
God’s grace, which brings us salvation,
teaches us to say “NO” to ungodliness and worldly passions and desires. Do we
really understand what this is saying here? Do we regularly say “NO” to worldly
passions and desires? Or, do we give in to them? Do we even think about the
things we do each day, and what we take into our minds, and do we inquire of
the Lord to see if those things are pleasing to him or not? I admit that there
was a long period of time in my life when I watched the same things, acted the
same way, thought similarly and had common attitudes with what God calls “ungodliness
and worldly passions.” Yet, the closer I have drawn to God in my relationship
with him, the more sensitized I have become to those things that I once just
did because I wanted to “relax” or to be entertained. Yet, I have not yet
become perfect, but I forget what is behind (repent of sin) and I move ahead in
the grace of God and in obedience and surrender to what lies ahead for me in
his service and for his glory.
Godly
Lives
A common (false) teaching in evangelical
Christianity today is that one is saved merely by praying a simple sinner’s
prayer, inviting Jesus Christ into one’s heart, but that repentance and
obedience to Christ are not required; that God is pleased with us no matter what
we do, and once we have prayed the prayer, we are assured of our ticket into
heaven and no one can ever take it away. So, this is leading a lot of naïve “followers”
to believe that all they have to do is pray the prayer and they are guaranteed
heaven, but nothing is required of them while they are still on this earth.
And, they call that God’s grace.
Yet, all one has to do is to study the New
Testament, including the teachings of Jesus Christ, to realize that this is
false. Jesus said that if anyone wanted to come after him, he must deny himself
(his own selfish desires), take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and
follow (obey; submit to) him. Christ Jesus requires it ALL! Our lives are no
longer our own to do with what we want in order to please ourselves. We are to
say “No” to worldly passions and desires, and we are to live self-controlled,
upright and godly lives in this present age. John said that if we say we have
fellowship with God but we continue to walk (lifestyle) in darkness (sin), we
are liars and we do not live by the truth. He said that if we say we love God
but we don’t obey him, we are liars. He said the way in which we know we have
come to know God is if we obey his commands. None of us will do this perfectly,
yet lack of perfection should never be used as an excuse for willful sin.
Jesus Christ gave himself for us to redeem us
(buy us back) “from all wickedness, and to purify” (cleanse; refine) “for
himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” This is the
reason we are saved! We need to get this! We have so lost the awe and holiness
of God in today’s Christian culture here in America. We have become so much
like the world around us that it is barely distinguishable between us and the
world. God is calling us to radical living for him, not just this casual
approach most of us have had or still have toward Jesus Christ and our walks of
obedience to him. We are to live in the world, yes, but we are not to be like
the world or to love the world with its sinful cravings and desires. We are supposed
to come out from the world and be separate. Yet today’s churches, for the most
part, are encouraging more of a blending with the world in order to reach the
world, but for what? – So, they can become like us? But, how are we any
different?
God’s
Plan and Purpose
God has a plan and a purpose for every one of
our lives. In fact, the Bible says that all the days ordained for me were written
in God’s book before one of them came into being. He is the one who knit me in
the womb of my mother and placed me in the home of my parents, because he had
(and still has) a specific plan for my life to bring honor and glory to his
name.
We need to ask the Lord Jesus to search our
hearts, because he does know us inside and out, upside and down, and he can
show us what is in our hearts, what is displeasing to him, and he can direct us
in the way in which he wants us to go. So, I pray today that you will ask him
honestly to search your hearts, and that you will be willing to forsake the ways
of this world and the sins that so easily entangle, and that you will run with
perseverance the race God has marked out for us to run in his strength and
power and grace.
Search
Me, O God / An Original Work / July 12, 2012
Based off Psalm
139
O
Lord, You search and know me.
You
know all that I do.
O
Lord, You discern my ways.
I
put my trust in You.
Where
can I go from Your Spirit?
Where
can I flee from Your presence?
Where’er
I am, You are with me,
Guiding
me in love.
O
Lord, You search and know me.
You
know all that I do.
O
Lord, You discern my ways.
I
put my trust in You.
O
Lord, You made and formed me
In
my own mother’s womb.
Your
hands beautif’ly made me.
I
give my praise to You.
My
frame was not hidden from You
When
I was made in the dark place.
All
the days ordained for me
Were
written in Your book.
O
Lord, You made and formed me
In
my own mother’s womb.
Your
hands beautif’ly made me.
I
give my praise to You.
O Lord,
how precious to me
Are
Your thoughts, O my God.
When
I wake in the morning,
You
are still here with me.
Search
me, O God, and know my heart;
Test
me and know my anxious thoughts.
See
if there is any offense.
Lead
me in Your truth.
O
Lord, how precious to me
Are
Your thoughts, O my God.
When
I wake in the morning,
You
are still here with me.
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