LifeLink Devotional

Friday, June 15. 2018

Philippians 3:13 – 14  … straining forward to what lies ahead…

1 Corinthians 9:24- 27  ²⁵Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.

Now that we have determined to be good runners in the spiritual race Christ has started, we’d better be committed to the training it takes to run well. There are two aspects to training that are vital: physical preparation and mental focus. Very few people attain perfection without practice, and even the best of athletes have bad days when their minds are not focused on the event.

In May of 2006, the father of professional golfer Tiger Woods died. After several weeks of absence from PGA tour events to mourn the loss of his best friend and mentor, Tiger attempted a comeback at arguably the toughest golf tournament in the world – the U.S. Open. For the first time ever, Tiger Woods failed to qualify for the last two days of play in a major tournament. His skills and abilities were hindered by an understandable change of focus.

Paul addresses both the physical and the mental aspects of training in his letter to the Corinthian church. You’ve already decided to be a runner, so put on your sweats and grab a water bottle – it’s time to exercise.

First, Paul says that everyone who wants to run to win goes into strict training. I can honestly say I have never physically done that. My natural tendency when it comes to physical exercise and sports is to do just enough to get by. I have some natural abilities, but I have never gone into strict training to perfect any of them, except maybe my golf game. I have probably treated my spiritual life the same.

In describing the type of training we should do for our spiritual race, Paul uses a specific Greek work that is translated “strict.” It means primarily to “exhibit self-government and self-restraint.” When it is used in relationship to athletics, it described a runner “who in preparing themselves for the games abstained from unwholesome food, wine, and sexual indulgence.”  (Thayer’s Greek Definitions – Third edition) Athletes are of the things that slow them down and keep them from running a perfect race. Paul says that we who are running the spiritual race should apply the same strict principles to our training. Paul is not specifically saying that we cannot eat junk food, have wine, or have sex (although all those things do have Scriptural limitations, regulations, and consequences), but he is saying that we must determine what things are hindering us from peak performance and then eliminate them. That is what the author of Hebrews stated when he wrote, “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”  Strict means strict, and I think we have not been strict enough.

Paul says he beat his body and made the flesh his slave so that Christ’s Spirit was in control at all times. He could then run the race without fear of disqualification. We are not to live under a spirit of fear, but at the same time we must recognize the reality that any moral failure has serious consequences at the finish line. We are not talking about the loss of salvation, but it is clear that the rewards we receive and the glory we share will be affected by our choices today.

Paul laid that foundation of truth for the Corinthian church in chapter 3 when he said, If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. So be strict about your training and run the race well.

Second, Paul says that we must maintain a clear focus on our objective. Paul uses two metaphors: we are not to run aimlessly, nor are we to fight unless we have a clearly defined opponent. How silly it would be for a well-trained runner to line up at the starting line of the Boston Marathon facing the wrong direction, and then run aimlessly around the city for 3 hours hoping to find the finish line. No, he follows the designated course. And how foolish it is for a boxer to go into strict training and then do nothing with it except spar with a mirror.

So it is with our training for the spiritual race in which we have been entered by Christ. There is a designated course to follow, and no matter how hard we train, if we do not actually get in the race and start running or get in the ring and start fighting, we have accomplished nothing of value. I see so many Christians doing so much training and so little running. They attend numerous Bible Studies and are at every event the church sponsors. They have consistent daily devotions and have taken their training totally seriously. That’s great, but when are they going to get in the ring and start fighting the good fight of faith? When will their training result in new runners being recruited for the team? When will they actually begin to put into practice everything their training has taught them?

Let’s do a pre-race check. You’ve gotten rid of everything that hinders your training and your performance in the race, right? You have your mind and heart firmly focused on the finish line, right? OK – start running. The race is on!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, June 14, 2018

Philippians 3:13 – 14  … straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

1 Corinthians 9:24 – 27  ²⁴Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.  ²⁵Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  ²⁶Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  ²⁷No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

I enjoy watching other people run. I used to be very fast when I ran, and even won some races in high school, but I never had the driving desire to run. My best friend in high school did, and he would get up early every day and run 5 miles to school. I thought he was crazy. I had a coach in junior high tell me he thought I would be a great distance runner. I thought he was crazy too. But I do enjoy the thrill of a race involving others, especially the finish. I love to watch the short races, and see the guy who is in the middle of the pack suddenly turn on the afterburners and in a final burst of speed lean forward into the finish line and beat everybody else. He is not distracted by the other runners, the crowd, or the coaches beside the track, but intently keeps his eyes on the goal and determines to finish strong.

That’s the imagery Paul uses to describe our walk with Jesus Christ. Paul uses athletic terminology in several places, and the passages we posted above are two prime examples. Let’s see what they say about our commitment to running the spiritual race in which we are entered.

First, everyone competes for a prize, and we need to know what it is. Paul says in Philippians 3:14 that it is a “prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus.”  In 2 Thessalonians 2:14 and in 1 Peter 5:10, we discover that the prize for which we are running is to share in the glory Jesus received for running the race perfectly. We run to receive glory as a winner as well. Just think, Jesus is the only one who is worthy of the prize because He ran perfectly and finished first. But He stands at the finish line and urges every one of us to keep running until we cross it, and when we do, he shares all the glory of winning with us.

Second, we all get the prize. In the Olympics, when they present the medals, the winner stands on the highest platform while the anthem of his nation is played. In an individual competition, only one person can stand on the platform. But we are not running in an individual competition – we are actually running a relay race. Jesus has finished His leg of the race and is already on the highest platform of heaven – the throne of God. The anthem of heaven is being sung by all the angels, giving glory to the One who was victorious. He has passed the baton to us, and when we cross that finish line, Jesus will invite us to join Him on the throne where all the attention of heaven will be on us as Jesus shares His glory with us. (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:4) All the other runners who have completed their portion of the race are already on the platform, and they are being cheered.

I am in awe of this truth. I have been recruited to join a spiritual relay team that is guaranteed victory. In most relay races, the fastest runner is saved for the last leg to try and insure victory. In our race, the Best Runner went first, and ran so well that when He crossed the finish line the Head Judge declared Him victorious. He then made another declaration – anyone who joins His team and runs the race will share in the glory of winning with Jesus.

So, I throw off everything that hinders, and the sin that so easily entangles, and I forget the past failures and successes, and I run with perseverance the race marked out for me. I fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith, and I follow His example by focusing on the joy of the finish line, and I endure any hardship as He did so that I will be invited to join Him at the right hand of the throne of God.  With our eyes so fixed on Jesus and our hearts determined to run His race, I will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3)

WOW! I am on Jesus’ team. I want to run well enough to be worthy of wearing His uniform and celebrating victory someday. I do not want to feel ashamed of receiving recognition as a member of the team when in my heart I know I did not do my best. I will train harder and run with greater determination. And the closer I get to the finish line, the more I will lean towards it, straining to cross it with full assurance that I gave it my all.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, June 13, 2018

Philippians 3:13  … Forgetting what is behind…

Luke 9:57, 61- 62  ⁵⁷As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, … “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.” ⁶²Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Yesterday we looked at one aspect of Paul’s challenge to forget what is behind us: to forget past failures and press on towards excellence. For some, being given permission to forget failures is refreshing and liberating. It comes as welcome news and is embraced with enthusiasm. Who of us doesn’t want to wipe the slate clean and be free of regrets?

But we must also consider all the other things we are to forget as well, and these are much tougher – things like past successes and things we love. Forgetting failures is highly desired, but please, can’t we carry our past successes with us?

When Paul was writing this passage, he was reflecting on all his past success as a Pharisee: success that became failure in comparison to the surpassing excellence of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord. But even that may have been easier for him to forget than our successes, because his were sin, and in our opinion, ours may not be. Who can call our success at raising our families a sin? Who believes that our career success is a sin? Who thinks that the skills and talents we have must be shunned and ignored because they are sin? I hope none of us does, because they aren’t…UNLESS they have become important enough to us to interfere with our obedience to Christ’s purpose for our lives. If any of the things we consider a success in our lives slow or stop our pursuit of the goal to win the prize of Christ-likeness, then they have become sin to us. This requires serious contemplation.

Consider carefully and honestly the following questions of analysis:

1. Has your love for your family and friends kept you from stepping out in faith to pursue the call of God you heard at one time to some form of Christian ministry?
2. Are your skills and talents in one particular area being used to promote a lifestyle choice you have made rather than to promote the Kingdom of God?
3. Has your career success become so comfortable to you that you would not give it up to do whatever God asks you to do and go wherever He asks you to go?
4. Has your current involvement in Christian ministry of any kind become sufficiently satisfying to keep you from hearing God’s call to some different form of ministry?
5. Is there anything in your life right now that you believe you must be able to take with you on your heavenward journey with God to win His prize?

My friends, I speak from a heart that struggles with this just as you may. I am the pastor of a wonderful church and it seems they love me as much as I love them. I am privileged to have my children and grandchildren all living within 3 hours of me. I live in an area of our country that is supremely beautiful and offers every opportunity for the outdoor activities I enjoy. I know that being a pastor is God’s call on my life. But has it become so comfortable that I would not consider forgetting it all to pursue God’s call somewhere else were He to beckon me?

Years ago, when I first contemplated the effects of my comfort zone on my commitment to Christ’s cause, I received an email from my one of my dear spiritual daughters in the Philippines. My heart was overwhelmed with the love I have for the people of that island. Now, many years later, still longing to go there, God has opened new doors of ministry in India, and I also long to be with them carrying the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of that nation. But there are two things I must consider:

1. Am I willing to put myself in danger of death to go anywhere God directs me? The dangers are real, but who am I to hang on to this life if Jesus says that for His glory my death would serve His purpose?
2. Am I willing to forget the success of past visits to those places and never go again if that is God’s purpose for me?

In the past when I have read Paul’s words to forget what is behind, I have only considered the ugliness of my past and been thankful that it has been forgiven and can be forgotten.

But now, I must also consider the good things of my past, and make sure they are not competing with Christ for a place on the throne of my life.

You must do the same. Let us press on towards the prize of the high calling of Christ, and once we have put our hands to the plow, may we not longingly look back at anything. Rather, let us fix our eyes on Jesus alone and the joy that we will experience with Him both now and forever more. The joys of all earthly successes cannot compare with the joy of knowing and serving Jesus.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Philippians 3:12-14 ¹²  Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³  Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

If the world were controlled by perfectionists, there would be no place for those who can never quite measure up to their standards. On the other hand, if the world were under the domination of people who wake up in a new world every day, we would probably suffocate in the accumulation of our own garbage within a week.

Fortunately, “practically perfect” people like Mary Poppins manage to get mixed up with the Dick Van Dykes of the world. A husband who is so organized that he can predict with a fair degree of accuracy when his next shoestring is going to break, inevitably gets paired with a wife who hasn’t the foggiest notion at 3 o’clock in the afternoon what she’s going to prepare for dinner. A wife, with such an obsession for cleanliness that she jumps out of bed at 1 o’clock in the morning because she suddenly remembers that she forgot to mop up a blob of spilled orange juice from the kitchen floor, marries a clod who comes in from a hunting trip and tracks mud all over the floor she just cleaned. So goes the struggle between perfection and the spirit of tolerance.

There is a certain amount of tension in every serious thinking Christian’s mind concerning the biblical call to perfection. In one compartment of the brain, there’s a tug to live up to all the standards of Christ. On the other hand, our attempts to measure up to those standards are always flawed. We respond to such conflict by choosing one side or the other to win out. We either become self-righteous in the pursuit of perfection or we settle for living beneath our privilege believing that any attempt at maturity will certainly bring disappointment.

Inevitably we end up with two groups of people in the church – the legalists and the lazy. The legalists may not be the largest group, but they are the noisiest, proudly proclaiming their perfection by pointing out the imperfection of others. It is a deadly game of self-vindication that rejects the grace of God. What a tragedy. How lost we are if we refuse to marvel at the grace of our wonderful God which makes it possible for “Jesus Christ to make us His own.”

But the larger group of lazies is also rejecting the grace of God. Far too many Christians live in the flawed attempts of the past. They excuse themselves from attempting to become like Christ, living instead by the philosophy “nobody’s perfect, so why try?” They are bound up by their previous failures and have decided the best way to not fail again is to not try. What a tragedy. How lost we are if we refuse to marvel at the marvelous grace of our wonderful God who gives us the freedom to “forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead.”

I know that I will not achieve perfection in this life. You probably know that about me better than I do. You see the flaws in my life every day, and with a gracious and loving spirit you accept me. How much more does our gracious and loving God accept us in spite of our flaws? Why? Because we have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. By His grace He took hold of us.

Therefore, in spite of past failures and the potential for future ones, we will press on to take hold of Him. We will forget what is behind and we will strain toward what is ahead – the prize that awaits us in heaven when we meet Jesus face to face. We will not tell Him that we made ourselves perfect, nor will we tell Him that out of fear of failure we settled for less than perfect. No, we will stand before Him and tell Him we are thankful for His grace that qualified us to run the race, and that we ran it well. We may not have cleanly cleared every hurdle, but we didn’t let any hurdle stop us. We may have stepped into someone else’s lane on occasion, but we didn’t let that disqualify us from the race. We grew weary, but we never lost sight of the finish line. Then Jesus, our King, will present us with the prize – the crown of glory – and will say, “Well done. You are a good and faithful servant.”

Oh, the marvelous grace of our wonderful Lord!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, June 11, 2018

Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

On one of our many church mission trips to the Bayou in Louisiana, we were only 6 miles out of town when someone in the back of the bus asked, “Are we there yet?” It was funny because we had 1200 miles to go.

Arrivals at intended destinations are a funny thing. We anticipate them, enjoy them momentarily when they happen, but then quickly set our sights on the next one. For most of us, life is all about the next destination. We hurry to get there so we can see what’s beyond it. But when we arrived on the bayou we were literally at the end of the road. The only way to go any further was by boat, and we didn’t have one. We had reached our destination and it felt wonderful. We were prepared to get to work and accomplish everything we had planned. Our arrival was fulfilling because there was nowhere else we wanted to be. This was the place to which we had been called, and we had prepared ourselves to arrive. We were going to make the most of this trip.

Six days later we were headed for another destination – home. We reflected on the work we had done and the impact it had on the people living there. We had worked hard and accomplished far more than expected, but when we left we saw so much more that still needed to be done. I had several people ask when we could go back. There was a sense of unsettledness in our hearts because we knew there was more to do. We were not able to fully rest knowing that there was still work to be done.

But there was a sense of relief to be home. The danger of mission trips is the return home to normalcy. We tend to not see the mission field in which we live every day and not work as hard to accomplish God’s work. While on the bayou, we knew people depended on us and the work wouldn’t get done unless we did it. Now that we are home, we are tempted to return to our normal lives where someone else will do the work if we don’t. We act as if getting home is our final destination. We can be enthusiastic about working hard out there somewhere, but at home it’s quite different. While on a mission, complacency is not a temptation. The trouble is that we don’t see home as a mission.

As I contemplate arrivals, I struggle to match my enthusiasm for travel destinations with spiritual destinations. Why are we so easily convinced that we have already arrived at our spiritual bayou? Do we really believe that this is the end of the road of our spiritual growth and that we have nothing more to learn or do? Do we really think we have arrived? Paul reminds us that we are not there yet, and we won’t be until we are in the presence of Christ. Heaven is the final destination. Heaven is our home, and our mission is not complete until we arrive there.

When Jesus Christ took hold of us, He called us to a mission. Throughout Scripture we are given the project list. We have been given certain skills and energy by the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s intended tasks. Each day the world offers us things that aren’t on the list, and the temptation is to switch priorities from God’s list to ours. We may get so sidetracked that we lose sight of the real destination. We may even stop asking, “Are we there yet?” What a sad day that is. May we never get to that point. Every day we rise we need to realize that we are on a mission trip for God. We must press on to take hold of God’s project list. It is why Jesus took hold of us. Just as we stayed focus on our purpose for the trip to the bayou, we must, now that we are home, continue to stay focused on God’s purpose for putting us in this place at this time.

“Are we there yet?”

NO! But until we are, we will press on to take hold of everything Jesus Christ wanted to accomplish when He took hold of us. Ask Him for your work assignment for today, and get to work! Someday, maybe today, you will arrive at your final destination. It is the place to which you have been called, and there is nowhere else to go once you are there. You will be completely fulfilled when you arrive because you have prepared yourself to be there. The work you do today for Jesus is your preparation for serving Him in eternity. Make the most of the trip.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, June 8, 2018

Philippians 3:10b – 11  …becoming like him in his death, ¹¹and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

I have seen the recent movie “I Can Only Imagine” two times now, and I could see it again. I can listen to the song over and over and never grow tired of it. It strikes a chord deep in my soul that expresses the longing of my heart to be with my Savior.

Have you tried to imagine what it will be like to be perfect? You should, because believe it or not, you’re not yet! Neither am I! But what an awesome thought to think that someday – maybe yet today – we will be made perfect in the presence of Jesus Christ for eternity.

The most incredible part of that whole idea is that I am so unworthy of it. I think Paul was feeling the same thing when he wrote that somehow he wanted to attain to the resurrection from the dead. After being overwhelmed with the privilege of knowing Jesus Christ intimately, and experiencing God’s gifts of righteousness, power, and fellowship, Paul is ecstatic that there’s still more. As if having all those benefits in this life were not enough, Jesus offers one more – eternal life beyond this one.

I think that of all the benefits of knowing Jesus, this should be the most exciting. However, for most of us it has taken an undeserved back seat to the others. It’s easy to become focused on the immediate and forget to consider the future. But as we said yesterday, when Jesus was on the earth, He kept his eyes on the future so He could make it through the present. Do you remember what we read in Hebrews 12? Jesus considered the joy that was set before Him so He could endure the suffering of the cross.

Likewise, it is the joy of the hope of glory that has been set before us that gives us the strength to endure what is set upon us. Unfortunately, we tend to get so busy trying to experience the most out of the immediate that we lose heart and grow weary. But just one glimpse of heaven can restore us. Just wondering what’s there and what it will be like stimulates me.

René Champion was a wanderer, looking for this world to satisfy his every need. The impulse that drove him to leave Johnstown, Pennsylvania in 1937 at age 16 kept him on the road for the next four years. René was born to an unwed mother in Paris in 1921. When he was eight months old, his mother placed him in a children’s home and emigrated to America. He did not see her again until she sent for him in September 1929.

Arriving in the United States on the eve of the Great Depression, René’s boyhood years were marked by want and poverty. When he left home he became a hobo, hopping boxcars to travel the United States. At the age of 17, he became a farmhand for a widow named Pearl, who took him to some revival meetings under a tent. He went forward and accepted Christ, and started to preach immediately afterward.

René says, I felt at peace with myself, even believing that this was what I was seeking in my life as a vagabond. But it didn’t last, because he didn’t stop seeking. He still thought this life had to have more. He couldn’t rest in the hope of heaven, and he soon returned to hopping boxcars and living the life of a vagabond, searching for what he thought only the world could offer. When asked what kept him going, he replied, I knew all about hunger, cold, and nights in jail. I was lonely all the time, sometimes to the point of being unbearable. What kept me going was the freedom of it — and my curiosity to see what lay on the other side of the mountain or beyond the next horizon.

That should be our attitude about heaven – curiosity to see what’s on the other side of the mountain of problems and beyond the next horizon of hope. Planning for heaven makes us want to live righteously so we look like we belong there. Living like we belong there brings the power of heaven into the present. And living in the power of God despite the current circumstances enhances our fellowship with Jesus, who lived that way for us. We have available to us all the things René Champion was looking for but never really found. We simply need to look beyond the immediate.

The hope of glory is where it all starts, and should be the starting point for every day of our lives. Somehow, someday, by the grace of God, we will see Jesus, and then we will be able to say, “It was worth it all, and it is more than I imagined!”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, June 7, 2018

Philippians 3:10  I want to know Christ…and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.

(Personal Note:  Happy Birthday to my daughter Rochelle. Please know that your birth and life have absolutely NOTHING to do with the opening line of this devotional.)

I wonder how much suffering I could endure? I asked myself that question over 10 years ago when I joined 19 other men and women from our church on a mission trip to Bayou DuLarge Baptist Church in Theriot, Louisiana. We were headed there to help them rebuild a couple of houses that were destroyed in Hurricane Katrina. We established a wonderful relationship with this church and its pastor at that time. He had an amazing heart for Jesus. But it is not an easy place to minister. The church is located in the last village on the road as you travel south toward the Gulf of Mexico on the Mississippi delta. Now you understand why the church has the word Bayou in its name.

But God has started a revival in this area, and the church is being blessed. I want to share with you a letter I received from Pastor Jerry prior to our mission trip.

Dear friends, members of God’s eternal family, and partners together with us in His work,

“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 right.” (Titus 2:11-15)

Indeed, we wait for that blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ… and as we wait for His return, we work in His field. Cindy and I are grateful to the Lord, for God has allowed us to see some fruit in His harvest of souls here among our bayou people. We are experiencing a season of harvest, souls saved, many turning back to follow the Lord, and a general expectation of God’s working like may never before have been experienced here.

Someone asked me what I attribute this to. I can only say it is God’s doing; He is working out His own will to save people from destruction, giving instead to them a sure and eternal hope. We have worked in this field, mostly just to keep our heads above water. We have not known any new or exciting evangelistic “strategy” or “program” to institute. We have simply tried to stay in place, to do what God leads us to do day by day, and to WAIT on Him to do that which we have been convinced is His will.

Many have labored here before. Many have prayed. Practically all have passed on without seeing the fruit of their labor or the answers to their prayers. Over the past few years sometimes life has been difficult, particularly for Cindy. Often, just living day to day is for her a challenge. In times of physical difficulty for both of us, I have sometimes wondered if we would live long enough to see God move as we have been led to pray for and ask of the Lord.

We feel blessed to see what we are seeing today. Others have worked; others have been faithful; and yet they have not seen… but by God’s grace we are living in the middle of the greatest days so far of God’s work here on Bayou DuLarge.

We need physical, as well as spiritual endurance. Pray for us, good brethren, that we may be alert and disciplined to take every advantage of the many opportunities that are being presented to us to serve people in Christ’s name and bear witness to God’s amazing grace.

May the Lord bless you richly as you serve Him. Thank you for your prayerful support.

Jerry & Cindy Moser (Cindy is now with Jesus in glory.)

That’s what Paul meant when he said, I want to know Christ…and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death. God uses suffering in our lives to bring us into a deeper dependency on Jesus, who suffered for us.

I have been deeply impacted by the phrase becoming like him in his death. What was Jesus like during His suffering? The author of Hebrews tells us – Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:2 – 3)

That’s what I saw in Pastor Jerry’s life. That’s what I want to be true of my life: to endure suffering because it perfects my faith, letting the hope of being in God’s presence someday be my strength.

Press on, my friends – there’s a blessing coming!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, June 6, 2018

Philippians 3:10  I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection…

All this week we are discussing the benefits of knowing Jesus. The third benefit will be the experience of God’s power.

Power means different things to different people. When I think of power I get several different pictures. I think of the 1979 tornado in Algona, Iowa that destroyed half of the town where we lived. I think of the devastation of Hurricane Katrina that I experienced firsthand when we travelled there with 20 people from our church to work with our sister church to rebuild homes. I remember the minor tremors of an earthquake I experienced in Alaska and wondered what a big one would be like.

My pictures of power usually come from nature, where power is mostly uncontrollable. Some of you may define power in terms of people, from powerful weightlifters to powerful politicians. For you, power is control – the control of things, the control of outcomes, and the control of people. Both concepts of power need to be considered and balanced. For power to be true power, it must be uncontrollable. For power to have any benefit to us it must be able to control things, outcomes, and people.

Paul writes that he wants to know Christ and the power of His resurrection. I believe he is asking to experience both the awesomeness of God’s power that cannot be controlled or duplicated by man, and the benefits of that power being at work in his life to control things, outcomes, and people – namely himself.  Consider for a moment all these aspects of God’s power:

1. Resurrection power is beyond our comprehension and control. God’s power raised Jesus from the dead. That alone would be significant enough, had it not been for the fact that by God’s power Jesus also raised other people from the dead. What makes the resurrection of Christ more powerful than the resurrection of Lazarus? Here’s one simple contrast – Lazarus was raised to his previous state. He would sin again and he would die again. But Jesus, after becoming our sin for us, and having been put to death by God as the total expression of God’s wrath against sin, was raised by God from that sin to newness of life, never to experience sin or death again but instead to reign over it. Praise be to God! God’s power is more than restorative power – it is transformational power.
2. God’s power is controlled by His purpose, and that benefits us by controlling things and outcomes. When Jesus came to earth as man He was still fully God, yet the fullness of His power was brought under the control of God’s purpose. Man had no power to crucify Jesus except that it was granted to them by God for the accomplishment of His glory. Jesus defined Himself as meek, and the Greek word He used means “to have power under control.” It is God’s glorious purpose that controls His power, so that all things and all circumstances are being controlled to accomplish His outcomes.
3. God’s power is able to control people. Our initial thoughts may not have been very pure when we first read that statement. We may have been guilty of thinking about other people and how they need to be controlled by God’s power. But we need to say what Paul said – “I want to know the power.” In other words, “How can the power of God control me?” If we fully understand and believe that the power of God is transformational as in #1 above, then we need to let His power transform us. We have not been raised with Christ to sameness of life, but to newness of life. We are not to identify with Lazarus in his resurrection, but with Jesus in His. When we seek to know Christ and His power in that way, then the flesh and all its sin is brought under the control of the power of God, we are empowered to accomplish the purpose of God.

The power of God that controls all things for His purpose also transforms us so that we become a part of His purpose. Every aspect of our flesh – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – can be controlled by the power and purpose of God.

Our transformation is not yet complete, as Paul explains a few verses later in Philippians 3 when he says, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” I’m sure we can all agree with Paul that we have not yet obtained all of God’s power, but can we also say with him that we are pressing on to get more of it every day? I hope so. It’s why Jesus took hold of us – so we could be completely transformed by His power.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Philippians 3:9  ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.

Happy Birthday to my brother Paul with GoServ Global. Check out their ministry at www.GoServGlobal.org

Profit is what’s left after all the expenses are paid. Whether it’s in your personal or business finances, the goal is to have as much profit as possible. We can increase profit by increasing income, minimizing expenses, or a combination of the two. But what works in the secular world doesn’t necessarily work in the spiritual world. Let’s look at what Paul says about profit in regard to righteousness.

To be righteous is to be declared right. For a long time in his life, Paul believed that if he worked harder spiritually he could earn the right to declare himself righteous. By obeying more of the law, he could improve his standing in comparison to other people. Even if other people didn’t declare him “right”, he was hoping that by personal effort he could somehow attain a level of self-declared “rightness” that would overcome his knowledge of his guilt and the shame of his failures.

Many people today are stuck in the same bondage. Some try to earn their righteousness by obeying the law, while others are rewriting the law so they are no longer guilty. But at the end of the day, the nagging of their eternal soul is not silenced, and they seek other forms of relief from the pain of guilt and shame. You see, the problem with self-declared righteousness earned by doing right things is that in our hearts we still know two things to be ultimately true: we are guilty of wrong things, and we must answer to a higher authority than ourselves.

Paul was introduced to a whole new concept of righteousness when He met Jesus Christ. Instead of God being a judge holding a balance scale in His hand on which he would weigh all our good against all of our sin and reward us accordingly, Paul discovered that as the eternal Judge, God had already imposed the sentence of guilt and its punishment on someone else on our behalf. Jesus Christ had willingly and lovingly accepted our sin as His own, and suffered the maximum sentence of death to pay for its guilt. The justice of God was completely satisfied by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, so that all who by faith receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord are declared righteous. We know we are guilty, but the Judge declares us completely innocent. There is no more condemnation left for those who are found in Christ Jesus. He suffered and paid it all for us.

I am so overwhelmed right now with the surpassing greatness of the righteousness of God that is mine in Christ Jesus. I know I am still guilty of sin, and everything in my flesh tells me to make up for it. My mind is filled with questions like, “What can I do to make it right?” and “What will be accepted as sufficient restitution?” The laws of our land and the judicial system have influenced me to believe that I must be on probation for a while so I can prove my rehabilitation by obeying the law. I begin to imagine that God is my parole officer and I am accountable to Him for every action and decision, and if I mess up He will throw me back into prison to suffer the consequences of my sin.

But then I see Jesus hanging on the cross, willingly taking all my sin and its punishment into His own body. I realize that God’s incredible love has designed a plan by which His wrath against my sin is completely poured out against an innocent party so that I can be declared innocent. I did nothing nor can I do anything to earn it. I simply ask for it by faith in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice, and it is granted to me absolutely free!

Never again will I have to prove myself. Never again will I have to measure up to a standard so I can declare myself right. Never again will I have to work to earn the favor of God or people. Never again will I have to fear that I haven’t done enough to tip the scales in my favor. In fact, instead of God being a judge holding a balance scale of justice in His hand, He is now a Father personally holding me in His hand. I will never have to walk into the courtroom of eternity, stand before the Judge, and await His ruling on my guilt or innocence. That trial has already been held, and my Savior, my Lord, and my King voluntarily became the Defendant. He was declared guilty, sentenced to death, and the sentence was carried out at Calvary. The Judge was so satisfied that absolute justice had been served that He raised the Defendant from the dead and restored Him to His original position. Then the Judge declared that any future defendants who admit their guilt and ask for forgiveness by faith in what the original Defendant did shall be declared innocent of all charges and immune from any future prosecution. Praise be to God!

Whatever I thought was to my gain in the past, I now consider rubbish that I may be found in Christ Jesus, having His righteousness and not my own. That is the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus as Savior and Lord.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, June 4, 2018

Philippians 3:10  I want to know Christ…

Years ago, when I was working in retail clothing store management, I would get monthly profit and loss statements from the home office. These statements became the basis for many of the decisions I had to make concerning expenses, especially payroll. If I was managing well, and sales were good, then employees could be given additional hours to handle all the responsibilities of the store, and my work load would be eased. My efforts at management not only profited the company, but there were benefits to me personally as well.

But there were other times when the profit wasn’t so good. Producing a profit was all that mattered to my district manager, and there were times when it hurt me to have to cut employees hours to make sure the bottom line was protected. No one was exempt from layoffs or temporary cuts in hours. As the manager, I was expected to pick up all the extra responsibilities of those who had been cut. I was to consider nothing so important that I wouldn’t lose it for the sake of the company’s profit. No matter how many extra hours I had to put in and how many department cash registers I had to operate, I was making sure that next month’s statement stayed in the black.

When Paul compares his efforts to earn the favor of God with the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord, he uses the same kind of accounting terms I just described. Everything Paul had done in the past had earned him some profit (Phil. 3:4-6), and he had enjoyed the social and personal benefits of his activity. But now he realized that the profit he had experienced from everything he had done in his own strength was rubbish compared to the profit he now received from knowing Jesus Christ as his Lord. He now considered all those efforts and benefits as rubbish compared to the new experience of knowing Jesus.

During this week, we will look at the benefits of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord. But before we do, we must make sure that we understand the three aspects of relationship with Jesus as Paul describes it. It is very significant that Paul combines three names for Jesus into one statement of relationship. Paul says that there is nothing that can compare to the surpassing greatness of knowing his Savior as Christ, as Jesus, and as Lord. This is significant because each name represents a different part of our relationship with Him.

I believe that the reason many of us are not more excited about our relationship with Jesus is because we have not appropriated the profit that is ours from having all three of these parts in balance in our lives.

There were three official offices in the Old Testament that functioned to bring profit to the people:

1. Prophet – the spokesperson for God who proclaimed His truth and the profit that would result from obedience.
2. Priest – the intercessor between God and man who brought forgiveness when there had been disobedience.
3. King – the arm of God’s justice to punish the unrepentant and bring peace and security to the people.

When Paul says that nothing can compare to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord, he is combining all three of these offices into one person, and is emphasizing that the real profit of knowing Him will only be experienced if we are surrendered to all three.

1. As Prophet, Jesus is the Truth, and we must be submitted to everything He teaches because He is the exact representation of the Father to us.
2. As Priest, He is the Way to forgiveness and eternal life because He made the perfect once-for-all sacrifice for sin on the cross.
3. As King, He is the Life, and brings peace and security to us as we humbly submit to His Lordship and control of our lives.

Unfortunately, many people only want part of what Jesus offers: they are willing to settle for partial profit. But to experience the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus we must surrender to all three aspects of relationship to Jesus, and when we do we gain all of the benefits. If we want to be able to say that knowing Jesus is greater than anything else in our lives, then we must be able to answer all the following questions with an emphatic “YES!”

1. Have we accepted everything Jesus said as truth? (Or do we toss out things that are socially, politically or personally unacceptable?)
2. Have we repented of every sin in our lives and brought it to the cross for forgiveness? (Or do we hang on to what I call sins of security because they have some personal benefit to us we think we cannot live without?)
3. Have we turned over the control of every aspect of our lives to the King and do we trust Him with the outcome of every situation in our lives?

If you answered any of these questions with a no or a maybe, then you are living beneath your privilege and not experiencing your full profit. It’s no wonder that you can’t say that your relationship is of such great value that you would give up anything else in your life to maintain it. Maybe it’s time to fix that problem. Submit your whole heart, mind, souls, and strength to Christ Jesus your Lord, and start enjoying the profits!

Pastor John