Living in light of eternity

The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts. (Ro 13:12-14, NASB95) When we think of armor, what usually comes to mind is something thick, strong, and heavy- something that would be a good protector.   We would expect that it would be able to withstand a bullet, knife, or powerful impact.   So when we imagine an armor consisting of light, it makes no sense, unless we think a little deeper. In the warfare between darkness and light, light wins every time.   In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In h...

There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, And he who waters will himself be watered. (Prov 11:24-25) It is easy to think that we should hold tightly to what we have. We often think if we are generous, and give it away, we will be left wanting.   Nothing could be further from the truth. In God's economy it is the generous one who is himself enriched.   It may seem counterintuitive, but it is true, nonetheless. This is because everything ultimately comes from God…   What do you have that you did not receive? (1 Cor 4:7b)   And on the topic of generosity, we often consider only money.   But when Proverbs 11:24 speaks of "scattering", it addresses much more than money.   It speaks to all types of resources.   We have spiritual resources, personal experience, time, and energy to share- and much more.   We have love...

“Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, ‘Come at once and sit down for a meal’? Won’t the master instead say to him, ‘Get my dinner ready, and make yourself ready to serve me while I eat and drink. Then you may eat and drink’? He won’t thank the slave because he did what he was told, will he? So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’ ” (Lk 17:7-10) At first glance this story seems rather negative.   It appears the master is a bit harsh.   I believe the Lord Jesus told this story in this way to make a strong point.   He is clarifying for the listener the nature of the Master/Slave relationship.   But before we look at the Master, let's consider the Slave. The Role of the Slave "The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος) in that it...

  The Apostle John, who is sometimes called "the disciple that Jesus loved", had a front row seat in the earthly ministry of Christ.   He was the youngest of the disciples and brother to James.   James and John, along with Peter, were the "inner circle". They were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt 17:1-2) and with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt 26:36-37).    John leaned on Jesus' breast in the Upper Room (Jn 21:20) and took responsibility of Mary at the cross (Jn 19:26). C onsidering this very special and close relationship John had with Jesus during His earthly ministry, it is surprising to see what he wrote in 3 John 3-4:    I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth. I'm sure there are many things John could point to for joy.  Certainly, his relationship with the risen Lord would be at top of this list.  But alongside the many things he could rejoice over, he specifically mentions ...

  The doctrine of "rewards" is easily misunderstood.  Suffice it to say that we serve a fair and just Savior  " who WILL RENDER TO EACH PERSON ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS" (Romans 2:6) For those who trust Christ as their Savior, our sins are forgiven and we anticipate an eternity with God in heaven.  But at the "Judgement Seat of Christ" our lives will be evaluated and appropriate rewards given to the deserving. (2 Cor 5:10)   Various crowns are mentioned throughout Scripture for meritorious service, b ut another type of reward is frequently mentioned by Christ.  It is somewhat harder to understand.  When Peter asked about this issue Jesus gave a startling answer: Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thr...

The Lord Jesus introduced a topic in the Sermon on the Mount that many people misunderstand- the topic of rewards: “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great ; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Mt 5:11-12) Many have assumed that we earn our way to heaven by our good works- that heaven is a sort of reward for our righteous life.  Of course, nothing could be further from the truth, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Ro 3:23) On the other hand, once we trust Christ as Savior and become a child of God it is expected that we would do good works as a result. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared befor...

Consider the work of God: For who can make straight what he has bent? In times of prosperity be joyful, but in times of adversity consider this: God has made one as well as the other, so that no one can discover what the future holds.  (Ec 7:13-14) Prosperity Theology  teaches that financial blessing and physical wellbeing are always the will of God for His children.  Obviously, Solomon would disagree.  And he would be in good company.  Job held the same view: "Should we receive what is good from God, and not also receive what is evil?”  (Job 2:10) It would be nice to imagine that only good things would come to the person trusting God.  But this is far from what the Bible teaches.  In the New Testament we see trials and tribulation can be a big part of God's plan.  He specifically uses adversity in our lives to build our faith and develop our character. My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy  when you fall into all sorts of...