October 9, 2020 A PACKAGE DEAL
1 John 3:21-24 “Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight. This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this He bides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
We tend to complicate things-God does not. All too often believers have a narrow focus when it comes to the word of God, establishing their viewpoints on certain scriptures while ignoring others. Many debate and argue certain scriptures as though the scriptures contradict themselves. It’s to our own detriment if read and interpret God’s word from our own perspective. To illustrate, some believe that because we are saved by grace, works, or what we do does not matter that much; others say we are saved by our works. Some believe that a focus on keeping His commandments is legalistic. Others believe that praying and receiving from God has nothing to do with how we may be living because it’s all based on grace. And there are those who believe that even though we know the Lord, we are still sinners who continue to sin-they believe the old sin nature is alive and well. We could list other various beliefs and viewpoints that contradict what others believe-but you get my point. For today, let us take a step toward simplicity and do away with over-analyzing the scriptures and take them at face value. A basic truth is that our life, our actions, our beliefs, and our general view on life should be flowing out of our relationship with our heavenly Father. Enjoying a relationship with our Father is the main thing! Out of this relationship that is based on love between us and the Father, it is only natural to do the things that please Him and honors Him. Also, in this relationship, it is only natural to pray to our Father, and it is only natural to know and believe that God gives to us exactly what we need. It’s only natural to trust our Father because we know He loves us, and it’s only natural to have confidence and hope because our Father is God and He has given us magnificence promises. Abiding in Him makes all the difference; abiding in Him produces good fruit in us, and as we abide in Him, we will find ourselves living is such a way that He is pleased and we are blessed. We abide in Him by having our heart turned to Him, by seeking Him first, talking to Him, and by reading and meditating on His word that we may grow in Him. There are times when we ‘mess up’, or fall short; but God has grace for that and forgives us when we confess. The message for us is that God’s word is a love letter to us; He is not a distant God that we must fear, or a God that tells us to ‘shape up or ship out.’ Let us know that it’s all about a relationship with our Father; it’s not about rules and performance, but about knowing Him. Knowing God is the single greatest thing that a human-being can experience; knowing Him changes us at the core; knowing Him has the amazing result of making us like Him; and by knowing Him, His commands become our desire-they are no longer burdensome, but life giving. It is true that God is bigger and greater than our mind can conceive, yet He has chosen to reveal Himself to us through His word and through His Holy Spirit; God invites us to get to know Him. Let us see God’s word for what it is-a love letter to us inviting us to a relationship with Him. We will find passages we do not understand, and we may have questions, but that is ok-it does not change anything about our relationship with Him.
John 6:63 “The Holy Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.”
Colossians 2:9-10 “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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