LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, April 26, 2022

In Ephesians 6:10 we learn that we are to be strong in the Lord. But being strong just for the sake of strength is not sufficient motivation for us to do what is necessary to become strong. We must be shown what we will be able to do with our strength. The Apostle Paul goes on to tell us why we should be strong. He says, “put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” I highlighted and underlined a phrase in that sentence for a very important reason. In several other translations of that verse it reads, “so you will be able.” That phrase is the translation of a Greek word that is the root word for “strong” in verse ten. In other words, being strong in the Lord has a purpose – to make us able to stand against the devil’s schemes. It is not enough for us to simply be strong. We are to be strong for a purpose, and that purpose is to stand strong, faithful, and true for the Lord no matter what the enemy does to us.

One of the most tragic events during the Reagan Presidency was the Sunday morning terrorist bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, in which hundreds of Americans were killed or wounded as they slept. Many of us can still recall the terrible scenes as the dazed survivors worked to dig out their trapped brothers from beneath the rubble. A few days after the tragedy, Marine Corps Commandant Paul X Kelly, visited some of the wounded survivors in a Frankfurt, Germany, hospital. Among them was Corporal Jeffrey Lee Nashton, severely wounded in the incident. Nashton had so many tubes running in and out of his body that a witness said he looked more like a machine than a man; yet he survived. As Kelly neared him, Nashton, struggling to move and racked with pain, motioned for a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote a brief note and passed it back to the Commandant. On the slip of paper were but two words—“Semper Fi”- the Latin motto of the Marines meaning “forever faithful.”

If patriotism and the cause of national freedom can produce such strength to stand in the midst of the horrors of war, how much more will the power of God give us strength to stand against the schemes of the devil? It is imperative that we make the connection between being strong in the Lord and being able to take our stand for the Lord. We are not called to be strong for the sake of strength. We are not called to be strong so we can stand in front of a spiritual mirror and admire our spiritual muscles. We are called to be strong so that we can take a stand for Christ and remain standing no matter what evil does.

Clarence Jordan was a man of unusual abilities and commitment. He had two Ph.D.s, one in agriculture and one in Greek and Hebrew. He could have chosen to do anything he wanted. He chose to serve the poor. In the 1940s, he founded a farm in Americus, Georgia, and called it Koinonia Farm. It was a community for poor whites and poor blacks. As you might guess, such an idea did not go over well in the Deep South of the ’40s. Ironically, much of the resistance came from good church people who followed the laws of segregation as much as the other folk in town. The town people tried everything to stop Clarence. They tried boycotting him, and slashing workers’ tires when they came to town. Over and over, for fourteen years, they tried to stop him.

Finally, in 1954, the Ku Klux Klan had enough of Clarence Jordan, so they decided to get rid of him once and for all. They came one night with guns and torches and set fire to every building on Koinonia Farm except Clarence’s home, which they riddled with bullets. They chased off all the families except one black family which refused to leave. Clarence recognized the voices of many of the Klansmen, and, as you might guess, some of them were church people. Another was a local newspaper reporter. The next day, the reporter came out to see what remained of the farm. The rubble still smoldered, and the land was scorched, but he found Clarence in the field, hoeing and planting.

“I heard the awful news,” he called to Clarence, “and I came out to do a story on the tragedy of your farm closing.” Clarence just kept on hoeing and planting. The reporter kept prodding, kept poking, trying to get a rise from this quietly determined man who seemed to be planting instead of packing his bags. So, finally, the reporter said in a haughty voice, “Well, Dr. Jordan, you got two of them Ph.D.s and you’ve put fourteen years into this farm, and there’s nothing left of it at all. Just how successful do you think you’ve been?”  Clarence stopped hoeing, turned toward the reporter with his penetrating blue eyes, and said quietly but firmly, “About as successful as the cross. Sir, I don’t think you understand us. What we are about is not success but faithfulness. We’re staying. Good day.” Beginning that day, Clarence and his companions rebuilt Koinonia.

The power to stand. It is God’s power, and it produces the ability for us to be faithful. God promises that His strength will carry us through to the very end. You’ll find that promise in the book of Jude, verses 24-25 where we read that God is strong so that He is able. To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present youbefore his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. Be strong for a reason – stand strong for Jesus.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, April 25, 2022

We come to the concluding remarks of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Ephesus.  I remember as a little boy in Sunday School having to memorize this entire passage from Ephesians 6 starting in verse 10. Today, as I read it again, I got hung up on the third word. I asked myself, “What does it mean to be strong?”

Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”

One of my favorite methods of personal devotions is to explore how a particular word is used throughout the Bible and try to capture the richness and depth of its meaning. For the last hour I have been doing that with the word “strong”. I wanted to see how the Greek word for strong, which in this instance means “to endue with strength”, could apply to my life. After all, the root of the word here is the word from which we get our English word “dynamite”, so I would like to know how my life could be explosively strong.

There are 10 occurrences of this word in the New Testament, and 5 of them specifically relate to areas of our spiritual lives where we can be strong. I was encouraged as I looked at them, and I hope you will be also. First, let’s make sure we understand that the strength in which we are to live is God’s strength, not ours. To fully realize the potential to stand strong in this life we must realize and accept our weakness and our need for the strength of the Lord. We have no power to overcome the trials, tests, and temptations of this world. Our strength has limited endurance against the storms of life. It is only in the strength of Jesus Christ, who suffered and endured all things without failing, that we will be able to also stand. This requires humility. We must not seek to defend what strength we can muster but must instead relinquish the control of every situation to the power of God. Then we will be strong in the Lord, and in His mighty power!

Here are the five things I learned about strength today, and how they apply to our lives. I have emphasized the identical word we are studying in each passage.

1. My faith will be strengthened by believing that God has the power to fulfill His promises, no matter how contrary to present circumstances those promises appear. In Romans 4:18-21 we read about Abraham, and Paul says, “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations…Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”
2. I will be strong enough to serve others who are undeserving when I consider how Jesus served me when I was undeserving. It’s called grace, and Paul tells his protégé Timothy, “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.”  (2 Timothy 2:1)
3. When I trust the promises of God, and dwell in His grace, I will be strong enough to be content with whatever situation in which God places me. Paul tells the people at Philippi, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:11-13
4. I know that whatever weakness I have, God can turn it into a strength when my heart is intent on obeying Him, serving Him, and fulfilling His purpose. Read carefully about these heroes of the faith from Hebrews 11:32-34.  “…whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.” WOW! Our weaknesses are turned to strength so we can do great things for God’s glory.
5. And finally, I can and will be strong because I know that I am never alone, and Jesus is always at my side. Paul tells Timothy, “At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:16-18)

Now we know what Paul means when he says “ be strong in the Lord.” It’s up to us to apply these promises and actually be strong. Why not start today!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Friday, April 22, 2022

After challenging employees to serve their employers with respect and to give them their best at all times, the Apostle Paul lays out clearly the responsibility of the employer to the employee. If the environment of the workplace is to be one of peace, prosperity, and fulfillment, the employer is urged to treat his employees in the same way he expects to be treated by them.

Ephesians 6:9 “And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.”

As I thought about that, I concluded that the workplace, when owned, operated, or managed by a Christian, should be a microcosm of the kingdom of God. What’s the kingdom going to be like? According to the teachings of Jesus…

• It will be a place of no favoritism and no discrimination. It will be filled with humble people – Matthew 5:3 – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” 
• There will be unity – Matthew 12:25 – “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined.” 
• It will be pure and righteous – Matthew 13:41 – “The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.” 
• According to the parable Jesus taught in Matthew 18 about the king who forgave a debt, the kingdom of God will be a place of grace and mercy.
• In Matthew 21 Jesus tells us that the kingdom will be productive.
• And according to Matthew 25, when Jesus tells the parable of the women waiting for the bridegroom, the kingdom of God is filled with people who are looking to the future and prepared for what it might bring. 

Now apply those highlights of the kingdom of God to the workplace. The responsibility of the employer becomes clear.

First, be humble. Consider others better then yourself. When I was in business I had a boss who trained me for management who taught me a very important lesson about leadership. He said, “Great leaders are people who surround themselves with people who are better than themselves.” It is not the role of the employer to be the best at everything. It is the privilege of the leader to bring the best out in others.

Second, create unity. Keep people on the same path. Establish goals that are clear and understood and keep everyone focused on those goals. Any dissention is immediately handled by clear communication of the objectives. Any dissenter is dealt with individually. This keeps the workplace pure and righteous.

Third, Godly employers treat their employees with grace and mercy. There is compassion. Threats don’t exist. Encouragement and understanding abound.

Fourth, the employer requires productivity. But before he enforces it, he models it. Employees respond to leaders who do what they say. 

And finally, great employers clearly present the vision for the future to the employees and provide them with the means to accomplish it. They anticipate change and prepare for it. Leaders in the workplace don’t get so wrapped up in managing the present that they lose sight of the future.

As an employer you have the privilege of representing Christ to your employees. Do that without favoritism, just as Christ did for you. 

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Slavery is offensive. It is the product of a Godless disrespect for all human life. Yet for many cultures it was and even still is a reality. The Apostle Paul addresses such a culture with a Christian perspective in Ephesians 6:5-8.

“Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”

Being a servant-hearted employee is the main point of emphasis Paul makes in today’s Scripture passage. As a former business manager during the 1970’s and 80’s, I watched as the work ethic of people deteriorated. I dealt firsthand with employees who demanded rights more than they fulfilled responsibilities. I dealt with staff who tried to take advantage of their positions for personal gain when they should have been sacrificing their objectives for the good of the company. I saw irresponsibility manifest itself in undependability. I was frustrated with negative attitudes expressed to customers because of some unfulfilled goal of the employee. I watched as life in general became more and more self-centered and it became harder and harder to find employees with a good work ethic.

I’m sure there are some of you today who are struggling with your current employment. I know there is temptation to become critical of your employer. I know you have higher goals. And I know there are times when moving to a different position is the right thing to do. But how we handle those situations is important because it is a key area where the Bible emphasizes our call to reflect the heart of Christ. There are Christ-hearted attitudes and actions that should prevail no matter what your fellow employees or your bosses are doing.

First, do what your told to do, unless it is a directive to sin, and do it with respect, fear, and sincerity. Respect and fear are irrevocably intertwined. They are both being lost in our modern culture. Respect for authority is almost gone, and with it the fear of any consequences. As Christians, we are to be the prime example of these two attitudes in our employment because it’s who we are. As born-again followers of Jesus Christ, our hearts have become His. Our hearts have been transformed so that all the old is gone, and as new creations in Christ all things have been made new. It is the sincere desire of our hearts to please our Savior because we have been overwhelmed by His grace. We don’t put on a show. We don’t do things because we have to, wishing we could be doing something else. We express in our actions and attitudes the true condition of our heart. We are sincere. That is how we are to work for our employer. Don’t just do a good job when they are watching so that they will reward you, but serve as an employee with sincerity, always doing your best, because God is always watching. It is the will of God for you to work this way.

One more thing about respect – it’s not just for the workplace. If our hearts are truly sincere so that we represent Christ all the time, then respect for your employer will carry over into your private life as well. The employee who speaks well of his employer while at work but then ridicules and critics that employer in the home or with friends is not sincere and is not representing Christ. It is imperative that as Christians we live sincere lives that express the heart of our Lord.

Second, do your job wholeheartedly. Do it with excellence. Don’t just get by with the minimum. Don’t just fulfill the job description. Excel! Push yourself to the limits. Learn more than you need to. Give your employer your best, because even if they don’t recognize it or reward it, God will. I should add at this point that this applies to positions you volunteer for in your church as well. I see a huge problem in most churches. People volunteer for a position, then complain about having to do it. They put in only the bare minimum required, and then claim to be serving the Lord wholeheartedly. YUCK! It is in the church of Jesus Christ where the greatest expressions of excellence should occur. I can understand the difficulty of some people to see their secular employment as a ministry to God, but I cannot understand the complacency that exists in the church when people volunteer for positions and then disrespect the Holy Spirit by quenching the full expression of the gifts He gave them. Every place of service in the church should be a place of excellence. There is something wrong with the heart condition of those who serve with critical attitudes and sub-standard effort.

So, evaluate your heart today before you evaluate your job or your boss. Ask Jesus Christ to teach you to be a servant. Ask Him to capture your heart with His love. Then serve Him wholeheartedly in every area of your life. It will be a joy to watch your attitudes change.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Here’s an important question. Whose responsibility is it to teach children to follow God? The answer may seem simple, but it is not lived out in our culture today. According to the Apostle Paul, under the direct and Divine influence of the Holy Spirit, the responsibility for the training of children to be followers of Jesus Christ belongs to the father. Not the mother. Not the church. Not the AWANA leader. Not their schoolteachers. The father!

Ephesians 6:1-4  “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.“

That’s why Satan has mounted a full assault on the institution of marriage and family. The Adversary of our souls makes it easy for divorce in our society. The Devil has convinced our society that single-parent families with moms being the parent are just as viable as traditional two-parent families. The Enemy knows that without dad, there can be no true teaching about authority and respect. Without dad there is no complete picture of God that can be presented to a child. Without dad, there will be an ever-increasing separation of generations from faith in Jesus Christ. (If you’re a single mom, may the Lord grant you the grace necessary to bring your children up in the training and instruction of the Lord, but may He also grant your children the influence of a Godly man through your church so that they can overcome the spiritual disability they will feel without one and fully learn to follow Christ.)

But just because a dad is present doesn’t guarantee the spiritual success of a child. Dads must be spiritual fathers to their children. Paul told the parents, “Don’t use your authority to abuse the child, but to encourage and build the child.” To the Colossians he wrote, “Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.” So it seems the opposite of “provoke” is “encourage.” Dads are to be the encouragers of their families. He is to be his children’s greatest fan, balanced with the loving discipline that trains.

Fathers can provoke their children and discourage them in a variety of ways. Here’s a list I found of the top ten things dads do that exasperate their children:

1. They are over-protective.

2. They show favoritism toward one of their children.

3. They compare the accomplishments or abilities of their children.

4. They push achievement, aims, and goals, and in so doing, put undue pressure on their children.

5. They do not reward or encourage their children.

6. They fail to allow childishness; that is, they do not understand that a child is a child, and not an adult.

7. They neglect their children’s needs: spiritually, socially, intellectually and physically.

8. They nag their children.

9. They abuse them with hateful, ugly, and bitter words.

10. They punish them cruelly by making the punishment too harsh or severe for the mistake that was made.

There’s one thing from this list that needs greater emphasis – they neglect the spiritual needs of their children. Dads, your first and highest priority as a father is to teach your children the truths of God – not only verbally but by your example. Godly dads don’t just tell their kids how to behave – they model how to behave. They model love and a servant’s heart to their wife – the mother of the children. They model sacrificial giving by putting the needs of mom and the kids ahead of their own, no matter how tired they are. They model personal devotion to Jesus Christ through a consistent daily quiet time with God. They model respect for and submission to authority in their church and in their careers. They transfer worth to their children by investing their time in the child’s interests. The instill a sense of security and value in the child by taking the time to truly teach them the things of God that will bring fulfillment to their life. It’s amazing what happens to the behavior of a child when he or she knows that dad cares enough about them to invest his best in them. Dads – Jesus Christ is the best you have to give them. Without you and without Jesus, your children will be exasperated.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

In Ephesians chapter 6 the Apostle Paul is continuing his instructions on how we are to be imitators of Christ as we live in our modern world. He discussed in chapter 5 the relationship between husband and wife that is to model love and respect for God’s authority and for one another. Then he gives us the instruction necessary to make sure all of society can succeed, and it starts with the family. There will be no respect in society if there is first no respect by children for the authority of their parents. God’s promise of social success hinges on this one commandment – “Honor you father and mother.”

This requires several things to be in place. First, the parents are to be “in the Lord.” It is imperative that for children to learn proper respect that the parents model it, and that begins with a surrendered and submissive heart to the will and purpose of God in their lives. Without Jesus Christ as the Lord of their lives, parents quickly become their own lords, and will become models of self-centered and self-serving authority. Self-help books, philosophy, and religion has not, will not, and cannot change this. Only Jesus can bring respect back and it starts with us respecting Him.

Second, children must be taught that there is a right and wrong. Paul’s command to them says, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. This assumes that the children both understand right and wrong and have a desire to do right. Parents, are you teaching your children the truth of right and wrong? Are you training them in righteousness? Are you consistently enforcing consequences of wrong choices so that they learn to respect the righteousness of Christ? Do your children and grandchildren see you humbly submitting to Jesus Christ and accepting the consequences of your own sin when you make a wrong choice? You can’t hide your sin from your children. They see it, and they talk about it. Do they see you modeling the respect for God’s authority that is necessary to teach them proper respect?

As Christians, we have a huge opportunity to change our culture. It begins in our own families. It extends through our personal ministry to neighbors as we model love and respect to them. It is one of the main areas of mission for our churches. We must learn, submit to, and model respect for the authority of God. We must live out that respect in our family lives. We are to be the source of people’s desire for a new society. In fact, the church is to be the new society – a society of people who love and respect God, and as a result love and respect one another.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, April 18, 2022

Respect. It’s being lost. I don’t know when it all started, but the right of an individual to respect only his or her own position has become the new social order of today. As I was researching this issue this morning, I came across an article written by J. Gerald Harris on The Christian Index in October of 2007. Here are some excerpts.

“I remember well the riots and demonstrations that took place on many college and university campuses in 1967-68. There was a crusade to “tear down the establishment.”

“This crusade carried over into the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Abbie Hoffman, a self-proclaimed communo-anarchist, was arrested and tried for conspiracy and inciting to riot as a result of his role in protests that led to violent confrontations with police during that fateful Democratic National Convention. Hoffman along with other individuals became known, collectively, as the Chicago Seven. In his autobiography Hoffman wrote: “Kids need to be educated to disrespect authority. Otherwise, democracy is a farce.”

“I would never recommend Hoffman’s book, but somehow his message, which was conceived by the devil and hatched in hell, has found a lodging place in the minds of many.

“I was in a restaurant last week and in the booth behind me a mother was eating lunch with her two small children. There was constant bantering between the poor beleaguered mother and the two very vociferous and rambunctious children.

“The children were apparently born in the objective mood and the negative case. They were not happy with the restaurant their mother had chosen, the color of Crayons they had received from the server, the food, or the surroundings. At one point the mother said to her son, “Landon, eat your chicken fingers.”

“He responded by shouting loud enough for the chef in the kitchen to hear, “I hate this food and I don’t have to do what you say!”

“If I had ever said that to my mother or father in public or private the wrath of Khan would have seemed like a walk in the park compared to the retribution I would have received from my parents. But then, my parents taught me to have a reverence for God, a respect for authority, and a reason for living.

“To me it is of little wonder that many children fail to respect the authority of their parents, because there is a lack of respect for authority on just about every level of our society. When adults fail to respect those in authority over them, why should we expect any less from children? Unfortunately, in our day we not only see authority disrespected, but demeaned. Americans have the right to dissent, but the protestations of some have reached a level of disrespect and dishonor that is shameful, even reprehensible.

“In the grand scheme of things I suppose that disrespect for authority is nothing new. In fact, in the first pages of the Bible we find that Satan entered the Garden of Eden and tempted Eve by challenging what God had said. The first sin was not a matter of whether the action was right or wrong; it was a matter of whether or not authority should be respected. Satan led Adam and Eve to believe that God was an inadequate authority trying to hide power from them and lying to them about the outcome of their choices. He convinced them to reach around God, due to His “inadequacy,” and reach for godhood on their own. Obviously, this same tendency follows us today. We have an enormous problem with authority and have been searching for a way to get authority for ourselves since Eden.

“Any time we disrespect the authority that is over us, it is a blatant attempt to reach around the authority God has established. People who fail to honor the authorities God has placed over them may ultimately get the leadership they deserve.”

Ephesians 6:1-3  “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise—that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

Think on the issue of respect today, and we will talk more tomorrow.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Friday, April 15, 2022

“Ignorance is bliss,” according to eighteenth-century English poet Thomas Gray. I think I agree with him in one specific area: I am glad I am ignorant of the details of the future. How many times would I choose to stay in bed with the doors locked if I knew every detail of what was going to happen to me in the coming day? Probably a lot. For me, not knowing what a day will bring adds to the adventure and tests my faith in the One who does know. I believe my trust in Jesus Christ to bring about God’s outcomes is strong enough to face just about anything on any given day. But before I get too close to the precipice of pride and risk a fall, let me pause for a moment and humble myself before Almighty God and thank Him for the grace He has granted to make this day possible and to make my life qualified to walk with Him.

“Jesus, I realize that I am nothing without you, and that it is your life in me that makes living possible. May I respond to every situation today with faith in your work that is being carried out in and through me, and may it all be for your glory. Amen.”

Being focused on God’s outcome is the key to surviving change, inconvenience, interruptions, and tragedies. We expect those things to happen; we just don’t know when they will and how severe they will be. But Jesus did. Tucked away in today’s Scripture passage is an incredible statement of mission and purpose. 

John 18:4-11  “Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.)  When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them, “Who is it you want?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” “I told you that I am he,” Jesus answered.”

“Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out…”

Every detail of His suffering and death were known to Him. He knew He would not sleep that night. He knew He would be dragged from one tribunal to another to face His accusers. He knew He would have to watch their hypocrisy as they refused to become ceremonially unclean in Pilate’s palace so they could eat the Passover lamb, all the while sentencing God’s Passover Lamb to death. He saw the scourging and flogging He would suffer at the hands of powerful Roman soldiers. He knew about the crown of thorns that would be placed on His head. He felt the pain of being rejected by the people who just days earlier had proclaimed Him as their King. He knew He would not be physically able to carry His own cross to Calvary because He had been so badly beaten. He knew He would be stripped naked and nailed to a cross until He was dead. He knew that for the first time in all eternity He would experience the presence, power, and punishment of sin in His own life. He knew that all of this was going to happen to Him on this day, and yet He went out to meet it and embrace it.

How could He do that? Because He was totally committed to God’s purpose, and He totally trusted God’s power to accomplish His purpose. For Jesus, knowing the future was not limited to just this day – Jesus also saw His glory after the resurrection. He knew more than just the outcome of today – He knew the outcome of forever. He chose to focus on the eternal and not the immediate. 

So must we! We may not know the details of today, but we do know the outcome of forever. We know the promise of God to rescue us from wrath and bring us into His presence for all eternity. We know His power to fulfill His promise. But we continue to choose to look at the present instead of the promise. Had Jesus done that He would have run to hide when the soldiers approached. Instead, He went out to them and gave Himself into God’s hand, not theirs.

O my friends, there is so much truth for us to discover in this. May the Holy Spirit bring to your mind and heart the treasures of these truths as you meditate on this today. May we have the faith to face the day, knowing that we are not at the mercy of the world but in the hand of the Father. Even though we are convinced we will suffer in the present, may our focus be on the Person who will resurrect us from it with the same power He used to resurrect His Son.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, April 14, 2022

For me, one of the most powerful verses in the entire Bible about the love of Jesus is John 13:1.

“It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.”  

It is the night before He was to be crucified and He is meeting with His disciples. Jesus has spent over three years with them, teaching them about God with His words and His actions. Motivated by love, He has modeled for them the attributes of God like grace, mercy, forgiveness, kindness, peace, joy, and justice. He completely manifested the reality of God to them.

By now His human heart is being wrenched with pain as His spiritual heart sees the reality of what He is about to suffer. I can only imagine what it must be like to have to accept the truth that these are the final days of life on this earth. I know how much it hurts to hear about those I love who are nearing death. The pain must be excruciating for those who are living it. Jesus was no different. He has called together those that He loves to give them the news and to spend whatever time He has left making sure they are prepared for the future. He looks back on His life with them and is satisfied that He has loved them completely and accomplished God’s mission to that point. But there is one more thing He needs them to learn. It is not an insignificant thing left until the end as an addendum or because of an oversight: it is the culmination of His teaching and the completion of His love. He intentionally modeled for them how to fully show love to others by being their servant.

Notice these important truths:

1.      Jesus was a servant to others even when He was under extreme emotional stress. How often do we use stress as an excuse to become self-focused? I did that yesterday, and it ended up hurting a sister in Christ. I accomplished what I wanted but at the expense of her significance. I have apologized, but the pain remains. Jesus modeled the fullness of love when He served others in a time when circumstances warranted others serving Him. I should have done the same.

2.      Jesus taught in this one action of washing His disciple’s feet that true love expresses itself by considering others better than our self. The full extent of love is experienced only when we look to the needs of others even when we have needs that seem bigger. How can we compare the needs of a person who is about to be severely persecuted and killed to the needs of people with dirty feet? How can we not be deeply touched by the expression of love as the One in the greatest need meets the lesser needs of others?

3.      Jesus knew that the acquisition of power, position, and prestige would lead most people to self-sufficiency. When the foot washing was complete Jesus asked the disciples if they truly understood what He had done. Before they could answer He told them. He reminded them of His rightful position as their Teacher and Lord. Jesus knew His status with them and with His Father, and so did the disciples. But Jesus made it perfectly clear that power and position are never to interfere with the expression of love to others. He modeled it so that we all could see it and do it. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 

Friends, my heart is overwhelmed right now with a desire to renew my commitment to showing the full extent of God’s love for me by serving others. Not just when it’s convenient or even appropriate, but in all situations, and with no concern for my own position, rights, or needs. Will you consider the same, remembering the model of Jesus who showed the full extent of God’s love by washing His disciple’s feet, even the feet of the one who would betray Him?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, April 13, 2022

When I was a boy, I was fascinated with the prospect of heaven. As a young man I studied everything I could get my hands on about prophecy. My grandfather, Dr. J.A. van Gorkom, was an evangelist who spent time in churches teaching prophecy, and I still have his big banners that he hung across the front of the church to depict the timeline of God’s future work. I think it is necessary for us to keep the return of Christ in the forefront of our thinking because it is the foundation of our hope and will keep us from discouragement while we live in a world that increasingly oppresses us. Just think, someday – maybe today – we will be living with Jesus forever!

But as I was growing up I don’t remember being taught the rest of the story very well. The emphasis seemed to primarily be on heaven and what was ahead, and how we needed to live pure lives in preparation for the coming of Jesus. I know this isn’t what was intended, but it almost seemed like we were responsible for keeping ourselves worthy of heaven by how we lived our lives. Any encouragement we received to repent of sin and correct our lifestyle choices seemed to be motivated by either forced obedience or by comparison to others. I don’t remember a balanced emphasis on the fact that we are already living with Him, and He lives in us.

1 Thessalonians 5:9 – 11 “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

I wish I would have understood this incredible truth a lot earlier in my life. A significant part of Christ’s mission to the earth was to make it possible for life with Him to begin immediately. But so many of us don’t really understand this – it stays a mystery to us. The Apostle Paul said this was a mystery once, but it is not to be now. In Colossians 1:25 – 27 he writes, “I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” 

The mission of Christ was more than to die for our sins so that someday we may live with Him. He died for us so that, whether we are alive or dead, we are living with Him because He is living in us now.

This is the sole motivator of how we live our lives. It is the basis for all encouragement and admonition as we build one another up in Christ. Our motivation for purity is not to be more spiritual than another person, nor is it to conform to a set of rules so we can be declared obedient. The only thing that makes Godly living possible is God’s living Presence. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

So as important as it is to be looking for the soon return of Jesus to take us into glory forever, it is equally important to know that Jesus lives in us already and we are able to experience His glory now. That’s why He died for us. He has appointed us to receive salvation as a present possession. Yes, it will be fully experienced when we are free from this sinful body – but it is only the body that limits the experience of the fullness of glory. Our spirits have no such limitation. So walk in the spirit, and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh and be governed by its influence: the flesh will have no power over you, because Jesus lives in you.

Pastor John