January 6, 2020 KEEPING IT SIMPLE IN 2020
Romans 10:12 “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him.”
1 John 4:15-16; 5:2 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Psalm 145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.”
In the world in general, as well as in the world of Christendom, I believe we suffer from information over-load. For all too many, life is overly complex, complicated and burdensome. I often grow weary when I think about the multitude of books written on how to live the Christian life; the endless number of television ‘preachers’ asking for money; the idea that ‘bigger is better’ when it comes to church buildings, and in general, what I call the ‘commercialization of Christianity.’ I’m really not as bitter as I may sound on all of these things; I know that there are many churches and pastors who are doing a great job in their ministries, I know there have been many great books written, and I know that the internet can be a great tool in reaching people, etc. My point is that I believe for many, there is a longing in our hearts for simplicity and what is genuine. However, even though we live in such a time as we do, the word of God-the gospel-offers hope and gives us a healthy perspective by which we can live life as God designed. In the above verses we see the refreshing and simple truth that God ‘abounds in riches for all who call upon Him.’ It does not matter what your past is like, your economic status does not matter, your race or education does not matter, your IQ does not matter, your present circumstances do not matter-what matters is that God abounds in riches for all who call on Him! We also learn in these verses that salvation is not complicated-praise the Lord. When we confess that Jesus is the Son of God and we repent of our sins, God comes to abide in us, and we abide in Him. As God abides in us, we come to know that He IS love and that His love abides in us. Because God is love and He abides in us, and we have come to know His love, it only follows that we will love others. Loving others is one of the evidences that we belong to Him. As we begin a new year and a new decade, let us get back to the basics; let us make the choice to live in the simplicity of the truth of the gospel; let us choose to turn off some of the world chatter; let us put our hope and trust in our Father who loves us and cares for us; let us take time to enjoy the simple blessings; and let us make knowing Him in greater ways our main pursuit in life. Finally, let us continually be calling on Him and abounding in the riches He has for us.
2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”
Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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