Category: Thoughts and Meditations

“But the king said to Araunah, ‘No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.’ So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.” – 2 Samuel 24:24

In rejecting Araunah’s kind offer to supply everything needed for his sacrifice, David expressed a seemingly obvious principle that’s worth our attention today. Simply put, a sacrifice to God must actually be personally costly. A sacrifice must actually require us to sacrifice something we value. It should impact us. If it doesn’t impact us, it isn’t actually a sacrifice.

Why would this be relevant to Christians today? After all, we don’t sacrifice animals on an altar (thank you, Jesus!) It matters because we have been saved from our sins by the most costly sacrifice in the history of the universe – God’s sacrifice of His Son Jesus on the cross. Because of His sacrifice, everyone who trusts in Jesus is forgiven their sins and raised to new, eternal life. We are then called to respond to this mercy by presenting ourselves to God as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1).

The proper biblically commanded response to God’s amazing grace and abundant mercy is to devote ourselves every day to living holy lives that represent and advance God’s Kingdom on earth by making disciples of Jesus. Every day should represent your personal sacrifice to Jesus. Not to earn anything from Him but to express love and gratitude toward Him. Every day should be filled with the joy of the Lord AND costly personal sacrifice. Life as a sacrifice must be costly to us – in terms of time, energy, and treasure.

Simply put, the practice of our faith in Jesus, while an incredible source of strength and joy should also be inconvenient for us. We should not limit our devotion and service to Jesus based on what’s comfortable, convenient, or easy to do. The way we serve the Lord should constrain us, limit us, and in some way have a notable impact on our lifestyle and free time. If it isn’t, we simply aren’t offering ourselves as living sacrifices. A sacrifice to God must be personally costly. Are you living sacrificially every day as a response to God’s mercy? #FollowJesus

“When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
I was brutish and ignorant;
I was like a beast toward you.
Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.”
– Psalm 73:21-23

Sometimes our ongoing frustration with the visible injustices of the world can make us bitter. Our own experiences of pain and suffering can make our hearts bitter toward people, the world, and the Lord. When awful people seem to thrive while good, kind, humble people are abused and crushed by them, our righteous outrage can gradually turn into unrighteous bitterness. That’s a bad place to be.

Bitterness is a poison that only hurts the person who drinks it. And yet, bitterness happens. It happened to the psalmist. Perhaps it’s happened to you. The psalmist was eventually blessed with a deeper understanding. In seeking God, he finally caught a glimpse of God’s eternal perspective. He came to realize that ultimate justice isn’t about what happens in a few short years on earth but in what God does for eternity. The wicked WILL be punished for their sins FOREVER! The people of God WILL dwell in God’s comfort and presence FOREVER!

There’s no need to become embittered by the evils of the world or our lives, because God’s good and just will is going to be accomplished for His glory. His very nature guarantees it – He is perfectly just, all knowing, and all powerful. With that glimpse of God’s eternal justice, the psalmist was embarrassed to realize that his bitterness had made him like an animal. Bitterness poisons our relationship with God as we respond reflexively out of our pain, scars, and wounds. Bitterness turns us against God as we doubt His goodness, awareness, kindness, and power. We miss out on the blessings of close companionship with God because we choose bitterness toward the world and toward Him.

Fortunately, God doesn’t reject us, even in our brutish attitude toward Him. God is gracious and never leaves or abandons us in our dark season. He is close at hand, fully aware of our pain and wanting to comfort us. When we’re finally ready to let go of the bitterness, trust His goodness and justice, and lean into His comfort rather than our self-absorbed anger and bitterness, He’s right there, as He always was. Learn from the psalmist – don’t hold on to bitterness. Embrace God and His grace to enjoy His comfort and blessing today while waiting for His eternal justice to unfold. #FollowJesus

“And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?’” – Acts 8:36

After having Isaiah explained to him, the powerful government official from Ethiopia asked this seemingly simple question… He believed the good news of Jesus Christ. He knew the first act of obedience for a believer should be to get baptized. Did anything prevent him from being baptized?

There’s more behind that question that we might imagine. For all his obvious wealth, power, and love for the God of Israel, this man was also a eunuch. As a eunuch, the Old Covenant Law of Moses prevented him from fully participating in the assembly of God’s people. He loved God but hadn’t been permitted to draw near to Him in the Temple. The Law required that he permanently be on the outside looking in.

Having heard the glorious Gospel of Grace, the eunuch was rightly concerned that he might still be stuck as an insider looking into God’s Kingdom. Was there a limit to God’s grace? Was there a limit to who would be fully welcomed into God’s Kingdom? NO! God’s Kingdom is for everyone! On the spot, the eunuch was baptized into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

God’s Kingdom welcomes everyone who submits him or herself to Lord Jesus, believing in His sinless life, sacrificial death, and physical resurrection and repenting of their past sins. No matter their past or present reality, forgiveness, abundant new life, adoption by God, and union with Christ is freely available to everyone who believes in Jesus. No deformity, no defect, no trauma, no disaster can separate you from God’s love in Jesus Christ! #FollowJesus

P.S. If you’re a believer in Jesus but haven’t yet requested baptism like this Ethiopian eunuch, stop waiting! As you read through Acts, believer’s baptism is the first thing each person does after trusting in Jesus. Baptism isn’t necessary for salvation but in baptism, we identify with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus (Romans 6). Don’t hold off on that joyful identification with your Savior!

“But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had nearly slipped.”
– Psalm 73:2

Do you ever feel like giving up on doing the right thing? Do you look around and see the seemingly perfect lives of people who aren’t serious about God as they present themselves in public and online? Does it frustrate you when those living in ways opposed to God seem to suffer no ill effect? And when they seem to prosper and “win” at life? Do you ever grow weary of trying to be holy in public and private to honor your most Holy God?

The Psalmist did, as he admits in this verse. He nearly forgot why he lived a holy life. Thinking only in terms of earthly benefits and blessings, he was upset by the seeming prosperity of those living in rebellion against God. He began to think that if God wasn’t striking them down, then perhaps he should imitate their greed, lust, cruelty, and selfishness. He almost forgot that the blessings of a life glorifying to God aren’t material. They’re spiritual and eternal.

Followers of Jesus are called to live holy lives – not just in public but in every moment of our private lives. We don’t do this to earn God’s favor but because God already favors us and Jesus earned that favor for us on the cross. We must remember that we pursue holiness not as a way to work the system and dispense health and wealth upon ourselves. We pursue holiness to more deeply experience God and because of his presence in our lives. We must pursue holiness because God has already declared us holy by grace through faith in Jesus. We are to live holy lives because we will spend eternity in the presence of the One who is Holy, Holy, Holy. Don’t give up! Don’t get frustrated by appearances and earthly outcomes. Be holy for the Lord your God is Holy and you are His beloved child in Jesus Christ! #FollowJesus

“But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven…” – Acts 7:42

This verse highlights one of the most frightening things God ever does…. He removes His restraining hand and lets people simply do whatever they feel like! “You do you.” Most of the time God, in His great mercy, restrains our worst, most sinful personal and cultural impulses. But not always. Sometimes, our debauchery, sin, and love for sin becomes so powerful, God removes His restraining hand (what we might call our personal or societal conscience). When that happens, God permits us to fall into the most terrible, powerful depravity imaginable. The Bible would say that God gives us over…

When God gives us over to what we want, we see whole countries go wild with lust, greed, hatred, indulgence, or violence. As bad as we often are, we become far, far worse when God removes His restraining hand of mercy. People chase after and celebrate false gods, indulging in profound sin, and doing “whatever is right in their own eyes.” God does this both as punishment and to eventually shock a faithful remnant back to its senses. As people sink into the depth of depravity, some recognize the sub-human status they have sinned themselves into and cry out in repentance, begging for forgiveness and revival.

Is this where we are today? Has God already removed His restraining hand which explains why so many, including people who claim to follow Jesus, chase after and loudly celebrate false gods of power, money, sex, and pleasure? Are we are already part way into this hellish situation? It certainly seems possible! Pray for God to revive His people, turning Christians away from earthly things and toward Him. Pray for God to awaken our neighbors who don’t know Him. Pray for people to find forgiveness and new, higher, holy life in Jesus Christ, decisively rejecting the rampant depravity into which they have fallen. #FollowJesus