LifeLink Devotional

Thursday July 4, 2019

It’s not up to me! Those are liberating words when it comes to seeing results from witnessing. For a long time, I thought I needed to measure my effectiveness as a witness by the results. If no one was repenting and coming to Christ, then there had to be something wrong with my method or my message, or so I thought. Then I was reminded of this simple truth – I am not the Holy Spirit, and He alone is in charge of conviction and conversion. I am simply the vessel through which the gospel of Christ flows in word and deed. I am only responsible for making sure the vessel is full and overflowing to others. The vessel is not filled with itself but with God.

Isaiah 61:11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

It is good for us to critique our methods of witnessing and to sharpen our communication skills, but none of that can compensate for the ineffectiveness caused by a loss of intimacy with Jesus Christ. If the vessel of my life is primarily filled with methods, techniques, and strategies then I will be constantly looking for improved methods, techniques, and strategies. My focus will be on improved methods for increased productivity, rather than the Person of Jesus Christ. There is no power in process. There is power in the Presence of the Holy Spirit.

When we maintain an emphasis on personal spiritual health we become the fertile soil in which God can cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations of the earth. You and I are to be living and growing testimonies to the power of the gospel. That will happen when we are determined to be filled with the Presence of God through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit so that the life of Christ is confirmed in ours.

When that happens, witnessing becomes an expression of God’s activity in our lives rather than a technique to tell others what God should be doing in their lives. What a refreshing approach to evangelism – stop telling people what’s wrong with them and start telling them what’s right with God. Let the world see God’s righteousness in how we live, and let them hear God’s praise in how we talk. Then, release the responsibility for conviction and conversion to the Holy Spirit.

Try it! Instead of trying so hard to witness and “win” someone to Christ, include statements of praise to God in your conversations with people and let the Holy Spirit “win” them over. When we empty our ourselves of our methods and our determination to be a success there will be more room for the Presence of God, which is what people really need to see.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, July 3, 2019

When I was in high school I always disliked other schools that had chosen black as their primary school color. It is the color of fear for me. No matter how good our team was, and no matter how bad the other team was, there was something intimidating about the attitude of a team that wore black. They appeared more united in their cause and more energized to accomplish their goal. They always seemed to have no fear of the opposition, and that meant I should be afraid.

We as Christians are not to intimidate the unsaved like those teams intimidated me, but we are to be the ones who have no fear!

Philippians 1:27-28 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.

There is a direct connection between the strength of one’s beliefs and the presence of fear. My dad used to tell a true story of a man who had strung a tight wire across Niagara Falls and to the amazement of the onlookers would walk across the wire pushing a wheelbarrow. When he would return he would ask the crowd if they believed in his ability to not fall. They would all applaud loudly and shout their belief in him. Then he would approach one of the cheering people and state, “Then get in the wheelbarrow.” No one ever did. Their belief in him was not strong enough to overcome their fear.

It is the same way with us as Christians when we consider our witness for the gospel. We claim to believe in the power of God to save, protect, and provide, yet we are frightened by the opposition we may face.  We claim to stand firm in the Spirit of Christ, but we fail to witness about Christ to the lost.

Paul gives us the key to overcoming that fear – unity with other Christians to accomplish a common goal. There is safety in numbers.

When the whole body of believers comes together to contend for the faith of the gospel, we become the team that has no fear. When we stand strong during opposition and persecution we display the power of God to protect.

Paul does not state that opposition will be eliminated. In fact, in the very next verse he states, “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him.” No, persecution will actually get worse as we stand more united for Christ in a world that is ever-increasingly rejecting Him. However, our hearts are not to be building treasures in this life, but in eternity. Our personal fulfillment is not to be found in the acceptance of this world. Our need for immediate gratification is to be replaced with the promise of total glorification. We must not fear what the world will do to us because our belief in Christ is so complete that we are focused on His cause and not ours.

My friends, get intimately involved in your local church, and surround yourself with people who boldly and proudly wear the team colors of Christ. Discover the wonderful truth of God’s love that conquers all fear because the punishment for sin is gone.

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love (1 John 4:18).

Then you will be prepared to be the kind of witness Peter describes when he writes,

“Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened.  But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have (1 Peter 3:13-14).

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

I love the word “partner”. It is so much more meaningful to me than “friend” or “co-worker”. It conveys to me the idea of a common goal and a shared commitment. A partner doesn’t have to have the same talents or abilities, and in fact the best partners are ones that compliment my weaknesses with their strengths. Partners have a long-term approach to a big picture purpose and don’t get hung up on the short-term setbacks or inconveniences. I love having partners, and I love being a partner.

There once was a church that understood partnership with God in the big picture of His purpose. This church was willing to sacrifice its own short-term comforts and security for the sake of accomplishing a long-term God-honoring purpose. They were convinced that their highest calling was to build the universal kingdom of God to His glory, not to build a local church to their own glory. Yes, their church was a part of the big picture, but their focus was on the bigger kingdom and not on themselves. This was a church that modeled sacrifice for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are commended in a letter from the Apostle Paul.

Philippians 1:3-6 I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

I saw this modeled in another church recently. This church had faithfully proclaimed the truth of God’s Word. They were steadily growing, forcing them to look at a new facility in which to carry on God’s work. From the very beginning of the process the goal was to create a ministry center where partnerships with other ministries could be established so that the whole kingdom of God was growing. A faith decision was made that God had a unique and wonderful plan in place, and the first step of the plan was to sell their current facility. Human wisdom and logic said they were nuts, but the wisdom of man is foolishness to God, and He knew what He was doing. Within five weeks the church had an accepted offer on their building and 22 days later it was done.

Human reason raised questions about the wisdom of their decision, because they now had no building of their own, and no immediate prospects for one. The only option was to rent back their own building from the new owners and work out a worship service schedule. This would seem to be a huge predicament if it were not for the partnership mentality of the people of the church. You see, the new owners of the building were a congregation of Christian people of another culture and language, and the gospel of Jesus Christ would be preached to a whole new segment of the community that the previous church did not reach.  The kingdom of God would grow, and that is worth any sacrifice or inconvenience.

God had His purpose and perfect timing for every decision that was made by this church, and because they are partners in God’s kingdom purpose they willingly obeyed His call to action. Just think of the incredible partnership that is going to be developed between these two congregations in the days ahead. People from the first church training people from the second church to use modern technology to enhance their ministry outreach by sharing their equipment until they have a new home for it. People modeling humility with a servant attitude by being willing to make any sacrifice necessary to see this new congregation accomplish God’s purpose for their ministry. It was all possible because they understand what it meant to be partners with God and to be called by God to a long-term vision.

It would have been easy for them to become focused on the short-term needs and inconveniences. But that was not the heart of these people. They had a kingdom mindset, and God would honor that by carrying out to completion the work that He had begun in them. They knew the day was coming when God would provide for their ministry needs. In the meantime, they focused on providing for the ministry needs of others, and that attitude reflects the heart of God with Whom they are partners.

As God’s partner in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with whom are you partnering to accomplish His redemptive purpose for the world?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, July 1, 2019

Twenty-six years ago, I received a call from a member of the church I was pastoring at the time. He told me to come out to his house because 4 weeks earlier his registered Yellow Lab had puppies and he wanted me to see them. I grabbed the kids and we headed out to his house. When we arrived, there was a flurry of activity as 8 rambunctious puppies all tried to get our attention at the same time. Then the owner of the dogs turned to me and said, “Which one do you want when they are ready?” I was overwhelmed. He was allowing me to have the pick of the litter and he was giving me this very well-bred and expensive hunting dog absolutely free.

The kids and I starting watching each puppy carefully, looking for the best blend of strength, form, hunting instinct and personality that we could find. When we found him, we told the owner which puppy it would be, and he put a mark on him, sealing him as our dog until the day we would come back and pick him up. He had some growing up to do, and we had some preparations to make at his new home. We quickly got to work to make sure everything was ready for the day we would get the call and be able to go get our dog. We made sure that everything from food to play area to sleep area was going to be perfect for him. But most importantly we chose a name for him – a name that described him and fit him – a name that became his identity.

This event in our lives serves as an analogy of the story of our salvation in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1:13  And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

We are like that nameless puppy, seeking to befriend and please any visitor so that they might accept us. One day we are visited by Jesus Christ and He chooses us to be His. When we believe the gospel of truth, we are marked as His permanent possession with the seal of the Holy Spirit, guaranteeing that we will receive our inheritance, which is to live in the place He has prepared for us for all eternity. Then we are given a new name – a heavenly name – that becomes our identity.

Jesus says this in Revelation 2:17.   I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

In Revelation 3:12 Jesus says, Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.

God Himself gives us our identity. How special is this identity? Look at Revelation 22:4 – They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

We are identified as God’s forever. Hallelujah!

The world is filled with unselected puppies with no identity. They are seeking to please anyone who will pay attention to them. The challenge for us as we wait for our Master to come and take us home is to visit as many of those puppies as possible and tell them the Good News that Jesus Christ has redeemed them, and they can have a new and meaningful identity in a permanent home where every need is supplied.

I’m sure you know a couple of puppies who need to hear that.  Go visit them.

Pastor John