LifeLink Devotional

Friday, September 7, 2018

Ephesians 1:3-8  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 

 WOW! What a marvelous passage of Scripture that speaks of our reconciliation to God. He chose us. He determined to adopt us. He has lavishly bestowed His glorious grace on us through Jesus Christ. He has redeemed us. He has forgiven us. He has made His will known to us. How do we even find a starting point in all of that? Well, for me, it all starts with forgiveness. If we are going to truly understand the marvel of reconciliation, we must wrap our minds around the amazing concept of forgiveness. My heart is overwhelmed with joy as I think that God, based on the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, can and will forgive us when we humbly confess our sin, and will restore us to perfect relationship with Himself. That, my friends, is truly awesome.

One of my favorite writers and preachers is Charles R. Swindoll. In 1983 he published a book entitled Growing Strong In the Seasons of Life. It is copyrighted by Multnomah Press of Portland, Oregon. Chuck’s writing is powerful and expressive, and I want to share with you one of the passages from his book that deals with the issue of forgiveness. I pray that it will touch you as deeply as it has me.

It is quite probable that someone reading my words this moment is fighting an inner battle with a ghost from the past. The skeleton in one of yesterday’s closets is beginning to rattle louder and louder. Putting adhesive tape around the closet and moving the bureau in front of the door does little to muffle the clattering bones. You wonder, possibly, “Who knows?” You think, probably, “I’ve had it.. . can’t win.., party’s over.”

The anchor that tumbled off your boat is dragging and snagging on the bottom. Guilt and anxiety have come aboard, pointing out the great dark hulks of shipwrecks below. They busy themselves drilling worry-holes in your hull and you are beginning to sink. Down in the hold, you can hear them chant an old lie as they work: “The bird with the broken pinion never soared as high again…”

Allow me to present a case in opposition to these destructive and inaccurate accusers. It may be true that you’ve done or experienced things which would embarrass you if they became public knowledge. You may have committed a terrible and tragic sin that was never traced back to you. You may have a criminal record or a moral charge or a domestic conflict that, to this moment, is private information. You may wrestle with a past that has been fractured and wounded by a mental or emotional breakdown. Futile attempts at suicide may add to the previous scar tissue and increase your fear of being labeled “sick” or “nervous.” It is possible that you live with memories, covered now by the sands of time, of an illicit relationship or a financial failure or a terrible habit or a divorce or a scandalous involvement. You feel that any one of these things might mar or cripple your reputation if the dirty details ever spilled on the table of gluttonous gossipers.

But wait a minute. Before you surrender your case as hopeless, consider the liberating evidence offered in the Bible. Take an honest look at men and women whom God used in spite of their past! Abraham, founder of Israel and tagged “the friend of God,” was once a worshiper of idols. Joseph had a prison record but later became prime minister of Egypt. Moses was a murderer, but later became the one who delivered his nation from the slavery of Pharaoh. Jephthah was an illegitimate child who ran around with a tough bunch of hoods before he was chosen by God to become His personal representative. Rahab was a harlot in the streets of Jericho but was later used in such a mighty way that God enlisted her among the members of His hall of fame.

Still unconvinced? There’s more. Peter openly denied the Lord and cursed Him, only to return and become God’s choicest spokesman among the early years of the infant church. Paul was so hard and vicious in his early life the disciples and apostles refused to believe he’d actually become a Christian. . . but you know how greatly God used him. The files of heaven are filled with stories of redeemed, refitted renegades and rebels.

How magnificent is grace! How malignant is guilt! How sweet are the promises! How sour is the past! How precious and broad is God’s love! How petty and narrow are man’s limitations! How refreshing is the Lord! How rigid is the legalist!

Mark it—when God forgives, He forgets. He is not only willing but pleased to use any vessel—just as long as it is clean today. It may be cracked or chipped. It may be worn or it may have never been used before. You can count on this—the past ended one second ago. From this point onward, you can be clean, filled with His Spirit, and used in many different ways for His honor. God’s glorious grace says: “Throw guilt and anxiety overboard. . . draw the anchor. . . trim the sails. . . man the rudder.. . a strong gale is coming!”

Thanks, Chuck, for the great reminder that none of us lives beyond the reach of God’s grace, and that His forgiveness results in complete healing and reconciliation.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, September 6, 2018

2 Corinthians 5:18  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ…

We are more apathetic than we will admit. Especially when it comes to conflict resolution. I know all too well about the “sweep it under the rug” philosophy of problem solving. I grew up in a Scandinavian home. But we’re not the only ones who have adopted and promoted this attitude. Somehow the Biblical admonition to “be at peace with one another” has been misunderstood and misapplied. Being at peace with one another doesn’t mean pretending that the problem never existed. Being at peace means to resolve the problem so that it doesn’t matter anymore. Peace isn’t the burial of issues. Peace is the healing of the pain of issues. But we have been duped into believing that time heals all pain. If we would just set aside our differences for long enough we will eventually forget that they exist. We have become apathetic towards conflict resolution. We have created a false sense of peace based on a wrong understanding of reconciliation.

What if God had done with our sin what we do with the wrongs of others? What hope would we have if God simply swept our sin under the rug and ignored it, hoping that somehow it would go away so that we could relate to Him again? We would have to believe in a less than holy and less than just God. We would even have to minimize His love for us, because true love heals, not hides.

God didn’t hide sin until after it had been justly dealt with. He didn’t offer eternal forgiveness until sin had been publicly paid for. He didn’t provide healing from the pain of sin until it had been openly confessed by the offender. He didn’t invite us to a restored relationship until after the relationship with His Son had been forsaken. He didn’t reconcile us to Himself until He had first reconciled His Son to Himself by raising Him from the dead. He didn’t offer false peace based on ignorance of sin, but rather He offered true peace based on the knowledge and the forgiveness of sin.

Every necessary requisite to a reconciled relationship with God was initiated and implemented by God. When He saw our sin, He set in motion the strategy of salvation. He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:5-7)

Here’s how God taught me the incredible marvel of His work to reconcile my relationship with Him.

God’s Holiness Fought Me – I had to come to a place in my life where I knew that nothing I could ever do or offer to God would be able to change my nature. I had to know that I could never stand in the presence of God based on my qualifications. There can be no salvation from sin and reconciliation to God unless we first see God in His absolute holiness.

God’s Love Sought Me – He sent Jesus to pay the price for my sin – “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him should never die, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Jesus said, “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

God’s Justice Bought Me – Jesus paid the price for my sin on the cross of Calvary. “You are not your own, you were bought at a price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

God’s Mercy Caught Me – After the price for my sin had been paid by Jesus, and justice was no longer in the way, mercy came running after me. God chased after me. What an incredible lesson in reconciliation – the One in the right chasing after the ones in the wrong.

God’s Grace Wrought Me – Now that He has caught me, God is shaping me. Every day His grace molds me into the character of Jesus.

God’s Example Taught Me – “He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20) In the same way that God reconciled me to Himself, I am to go with the Good News and reconcile others to God and to each other.

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ…

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, September 5, 2018

2 Corinthians 5:17-19  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them.

Day 2 in our study of reconciliation.

One of the characteristics of reconciliation is restoration. It is difficult for me to consider the validity of anyone saying they have been reconciled to another person unless it includes the marvelous grace of forgiveness leading to restoration of the previous status of the relationship. But the grace of forgiveness is possible only if there is repentance and a change of heart resulting in changed behavior. Restoration to a previous state is not possible unless everything that damaged the relationship is removed and declared irrelevant.

Biblical reconciliation results in the restoration of our relationship with God to a former status. What former status is that? The status of intimate and secure relationship with God based on righteousness. We do not bring our sin with us into this relationship. Reconciliation requires the renouncing of anything that was responsible for the breakup.

There is tension between what the Bible says and what the world says is necessary for reconciliation. The world has declared war on the Biblical definition by stating that the only thing required for people to live in harmony with one another is tolerance. The biblical model of reconciliation challenges that philosophy by emphasizing the need for repentance and change.

In the Bible, reconciliation is all about change. In fact, the Greek word the Apostle Paul uses in his writings that is translated reconciliation in our language means simply “to change completely”.

There is an ancient and deceptive philosophy called Gnosticism. It teaches that God is only concerned with the spirit and cannot be involved with the physical. That belief is still prevalent today and forms the foundation of the philosophy of tolerance. It is held by those who support and pursue the gratification of the flesh and all its desires. Mainstream culture today believes that people can be reconciled to one another without a change in behavior or beliefs. Logically, then, those same people conclude that the spiritual can also be reconciled to God without change in belief or behavior.

This is contrary to what the Bible teaches about the saving grace of God in Christ Jesus. Saved people have the power of the Holy Spirit in them. He is creating the character of Jesus Christ in them. He is moving them toward holiness and the rejection of sinful behavior. True reconciliation with God requires repentance from sin. Unity and harmony with God is not possible when we intentionally continue in what God calls sin and reject the Holy Spirit’s transformational influence.

True reconciliation is based upon and results in change. Today’s Scripture passage reveals this to us.  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! What a fantastic concept! Every part of our lives that was once connected to and controlled by sin is gone when we are in Christ. We are a new creation, with a new purpose – to do the work of God. (Ephesians 2:10, we are created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God ordained for us to live in.)

Change. When we repent of our sin, we admit the need for change. God grants forgiveness, and there is a change in our spiritual standing before God. Our change in standing produces a change in our social behavior before man. When we are in Christ, we are to put off all the activity of the flesh so that our lives are lived in righteousness and holiness. (see Ephesians 4:17-24)

When we come to Christ for salvation, admitting to and repenting of our sinful nature, He changes us. The very life of Jesus Christ is created in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are new. Our minds are transformed. Our actions will follow our hearts. We are designed in our salvation to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

When we repent of our sin and believe in Christ’s righteousness that was made available to us when He paid our sin debt on the cross, we are reconciled to God and restored to our former relationship status. As a result, we renounce sin and live to reflect the glory of our spiritual condition. Then, one day, Jesus will return and finalize the reconciliation when He takes us into His perfect presence.

That’s reconciliation – restoration to God, complete and eternal.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, September 4, 2018

I have been captured by a word. It came up in a conversation I was having with two men the other day. I am going to study the word thoroughly. It is a word that has both secular and spiritual applications. In its most basic dictionary definition it means “to restore to balance.” It can specifically apply to the restoration of friendship, the balancing of finances, or the composition of music to create harmony. In the Greek language it means “to change or exchange so that favor is restored.”

Have you figured out what word has captured me? The word is reconcile.

Read this passage of Scripture where the word is found.

• Colossians 1:19-22  For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.

When we think of reconciliation, we probably think first of people who are restored to relationship after they have been separated by hurt and anger. But in order to understand the concept completely, we must begin with the ultimate act and example of reconciliation – God restoring our relationship with Him.

My mind is swimming with a multitude of ideas and insights into God’s work of reconciliation, and in the coming devotionals we will try to investigate them all. But let me lay the proper foundation for this study by sharing with you a story told by the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard.

A certain king was very rich. His power was known throughout the world. But he was most unhappy, for he desired a wife. Without a queen, the vast palace was empty. One day, while riding through the streets of a small village, he saw a beautiful peasant girl. So lovely was she that the heart of the king was won. He wanted her more than anything he had ever desired. On succeeding days, he would ride by her house on the mere hope of seeing her for a moment.

He wondered how he might win her love. He thought, I will draw up a royal decree and require her to be brought before me to become the queen of my land. But, as he considered, he realized that she was a subject and would be forced to obey. He could never be certain that he had won her love.

Then, he said to himself, “I shall call on her in person. I will dress in my finest royal garb, wear my diamond rings, my silver sword, my shiny black boots, and my most colorful tunic. I will overwhelm her and sweep her off her feet to become my bride.” But, as he pondered the idea, he knew that he would always wonder whether she had married him for the riches and power he could give her.

Then, he decided to disguise himself, drive to the town, and have his carriage let him off. Incognito, he would approach her house. But, somehow the duplicity and deception of this plan did not appeal to him.

At last, he knew what he must do. He would shed his royal robes. He would go to the village and become one of the peasants. He would work and suffer with them. He would actually become a peasant. He would give up his rights to the throne to win the heart of his heart’s love. This he did, and he won his wife.

This is what God did for us. To win the hearts of His heart’s love, He became one of us in Christ. He made himself of no reputation. He became a servant. He humbled himself. He became obedient, even to the point of death. The Apostle Paul says, “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself.”

God sought to restore favor between himself and man. To do so, he made an exchange that brought change. Not change to Him, for He never changes. His exchange brings change to us, which in turn changes our relationship with God.

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.

Amazing!

Awesome!

We have been reconciled to God.

This is incredible news. I can’t wait to see what else God is going to teach us in the days ahead.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, September 3, 2018

Philippians 4:20 – 23 To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. ²¹Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send greetings.  ²²All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. ²³The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

We have finally arrived at the end of the book of Philippians. I want to conclude this study with one key focus point. Tucked away in the middle of Paul’s greetings to the church in Philippi is a statement of Kingdom proportions. To get the full impact of what he says, let’s review.

Paul is in prison in Rome. He is under house arrest in the confines of Caesar himself. He had initially been arrested because he was supposedly subverting the Jewish faith with his testimony about the resurrection of Jesus. He was then charged under Roman law with worshipping someone other than Caesar as the supreme God. He knew what the consequences of his choice would be, but he also knew what it meant to be completely committed to his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Because of his public stand for Jesus, he suffered beatings, stoning, shipwrecks, and imprisonment. Yet when He writes to the church in Philippi he says, “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.” Paul understood that whatever consequences we suffer for our stand for Christ will be used by God to advance the Gospel and bring Him glory.

Here at the end of his letter he affirms that position when he writes, “To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever.” Then, in an amazing statement of fulfilled promise, Paul sends greetings to the Philippian people from all the saints in Rome, especially those who belong to the household of Caesar.

Not only had a church been started in Rome during Paul’s ministry there while in chains, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ had infiltrated the home of Caesar. Think about the history of the Roman Empire. For the next 250 years, Christianity would suffer severe persecution at the hands of the Romans. Then, in 312 A.D., Constantine would hear the Gospel message and become a Christian, and by the end of the century Christianity is the official religion of Rome.

Yes, much corruption to the original message of God’s grace would occur during that time, but the truth of Jesus Christ was allowed to freely be presented throughout the world. Today, we have the freedom of faith and the knowledge of the truth partly because one man chose to stand for Christ against all odds and in spite of all opposition and at all cost to personal liberty and safety.

Because Paul was willing to suffer for the cause of Christ, the Gospel became a part of the household of Caesar. These precious saints living for Jesus in the home of a man who demanded worship as God were encouraged by Paul’s example to stand for Jesus and speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.

My friends, there is no place on earth so corrupt and ungodly that the Gospel of Jesus Christ cannot infiltrate it and bring glory to God. But for that to happen it will take someone – maybe you – to take a stand for Jesus no matter what the consequences.

When the sinful people of the world see undivided love for Jesus Christ regardless of the human consequences, they will consider the claims of Christ as valid for their own lives.

When the people of God begin to love the people of the world with the love of God, the strongholds of Satan will be demolished.

It may not happen in your lifetime. It may take hundreds of years. But when God’s people live for God’s glory by courageously sharing the Gospel, then God’s glory will be realized!

Who will be the one to take a stand for Christ no matter what the personal cost? Who will be willing to suffer the rejection of family and friends so that the real heart issues of life can be addressed with the truth of Jesus Christ? Who will be the one willing to go into the prison of social shame for the glory of God? Will you be the one that opens the door into one of Caesar’s households so that the grace of God can begin a transforming work in a stronghold of Satan?

Be the one!

Be willing to stand for Christ anywhere He sends you, to the glory of God for ever and ever.

And like Paul, REJOICE while you do it!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, August 31, 2018

Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

WARNING! Do not read this devotional if you love your time.

This sounds an awful lot like yesterday. Let me explain. The context of Philippians 4:19 is that God will meet all our basic needs if we give Him the priority position in our financial management. But the principle of sowing and reaping applies to other areas than just money. What if we applied yesterday’s excuses people use to avoid giving money to the Lord to our decisions about using our time to serve the Lord?

1. “If God would give me more time I would give Him more time.” We are so busy in our fast-paced world. I think everyone should be required to take a trip to a third world country where there is limited access to television, movies, internet, golf courses, summer sports leagues, lakes, and campgrounds. If you are brave enough, do an inventory for the next seven days of all the time you spend watching TV, movies, or getting involved in some form of recreation or entertainment. Compare that to how much time you spent intentionally doing the work of Jesus to reach your community with the saving message of His love and forgiveness. Then ask, “Is my Savior and Lord satisfied with my commitment to Him?”
2. “But I have to take care of my own needs first, and that takes almost all of my time.” Maybe we need to reevaluate our priorities. Have we allowed selfishness to infiltrate our time management decision making process? We tend to give God only the leftover time we have, and usually there’s none left after we spend it all on us. There’s nothing wrong with relaxing and spending time refreshing yourself – Jesus did it. Life is about balance, but when a 2-hour commitment to a life group or Bible study each week cannot be fit into our “busy” schedule, then our lives are not balanced, are they?
3. “When I get more organized and my calendar cleared, then I will give more time to the Lord.” We will never get our calendars cleared so long as we manage our time that way. We may get our current issues solved, but without a change our belief system it will keep happening. We will continue to add more things to our schedule and stay just as busy, unless we choose to make every minute God’s first. At some point we must take a step of faith to put God first in our calendar and build the rest of our schedule around serving Him. Don’t give Him what’s left – give Him what’s right, and that is your best!
4. “But there have been so many unexpected demands on me lately.” Really? Is God the God of the good times but not the bad? God is ALWAYS God, and ALWAYS good. He is working even in the unexpected.  I understand interruptions. I bet I have more of them than any of you. But no interruption changes my commitment or my priorities. The real issue here is not inconveniences that interfere with our schedule, but about commitment to a cause that never changes even if we are interrupted. Don’t wait until you have more time to commit to something, because you never will have more time. Realize that the time you have is spent according to your chosen commitments. Make Christ and His purpose your first commitment.
5. “I’ll gladly give more time if it means I will have more for myself.” Major “Oops!” Selfishness has once again reared its ugly head. Serving that demands more for self is totally wrong. God honors people who serve sacrificially expecting nothing in return. In our minds it is so hard to separate this because we know that He also promised to bless us if we serve. But we must remember that He only blesses serving if it is done from a pure heart that demands no return on the investment. Serving God is a product of our love for Him, not a tool to get more from God. The true test of a servant’s heart is their commitment to the Master and their willingness to do whatever He asks no matter what the cost or commitment.

Well, there’s another load to chew on today. Here’s the heart of what I am teaching: that everyone who is a disciple of Jesus would use their spiritual gifts and abilities to serve Jesus wholeheartedly.

Are you?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, August 30, 2018

Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

 WARNING! Do not read this devotional if you love your money.

God’s eternal principle of financial management is this – “Do my work and I will pay the bills.” However, the world’s principle of financial management says, “Work harder for me so I can have more to spend on me.”

That last statement sounds so selfish that we would never consider that it defines our own life. But I want to challenge that defense mechanism. Please consider the following statements that I have heard over the years as people make excuses for their financial decisions.

1. “If God would give me more money I would give Him more money.” First of all, it’s not God’s fault that you don’t have more money, so stop blaming Him. God has promised to meet all your needs if you are seeking His purpose. However, we have changed the definition of need to be self-serving, not God-serving. The foundational principle of God’s Kingdom is this – “Whatever you sow is what you will reap.” Give God a greater portion of what you have already and then He will trust you to manage more.
2. “But I have to take care of my own needs first, and that takes everything I have.” For many years I have done counseling for people who are in a financial crisis, and I have yet to find one of them that was not able to give to the Lord if they made better decisions about how to manage their money.  I am amazed at the ways people have tried to justify their spending habits. I have seen people who are emotionally addicted to buying and I have helped people who simply never learned good money management skills. But the one common flaw in all their thinking is this – Take care of my own needs first and then if there is something left, give it to God. Guess what? There’s usually nothing left to give to God, and there’s usually not enough to satisfy every desire they have for themselves.
3. “When I get out of debt, then I will give to the Lord.” Believe me when I tell you that you will never get out of debt so long as you manage your money that way. You may get your current bills paid, but you will never change your belief system that has you convinced that every dollar you have is for you. You will continue to buy more stuff and incur more debt. At some point you must take a step of faith to put God to the test and ask Him to provide for you. Do you remember the poor widow that Jesus used as an example in Mark 12:41 – 44?
   1. Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts.  ⁴²But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. ⁴³Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.  ⁴⁴They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”  

This woman knew what it was to manage her money with God as the priority and with faith in His ability to provide for her. She knew the principle of Philippians 4:19 and Matthew 6:33, and she lived it.

4. “But there have been so many unexpected expenses and emergencies lately.” Really? Is God the God of the good times but not the bad? God is ALWAYS God, and ALWAYS good. He is working even in the tough times to bring the blessing of character development to us. The people in the prophet Malachi’s day tried to take away from God to meet their own needs, and God said this – “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me.” 
5. “I’ll gladly give more if it means I can get more.” Major “Oops!” Selfishness has once again reared its ugly head. Giving that demands more for self is totally wrong. God honors people who give sacrificially expecting nothing in return. In our minds it is so hard to separate this because we know that He also promised to bless us if we give. But we must remember that He only blesses giving if it is done from a pure heart that demands no return on the investment. Paul commended the people in Philippi for their gifts because they gave themselves to the Lord first.

Let me encourage you with a story of sacrificial giving. While I was eating lunch after the funeral for a 5-month old baby that died, I was approached by a young woman. She asked me if the family had insurance to cover the funeral expenses. I told her they might not, and they were waiting to hear from their health insurance company. She then said this – “I have an open checkbook, and whatever the need I will meet it.” I told her that it may be several thousand dollars, and she said, “No problem!”

The parents of the baby girl are the benefactors of God’s promise in Matthew 6:33. Those parents had prioritized their lives around serving Jesus Christ – they are CRU missionaries.  God met all of their needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus, thanks to a sister in Christ who also decided to put the kingdom of God first in her personal finances.

Imagine what God could do in the local church if we all managed our money that way.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Philippians 4:18 – 19  I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

We must not give up hope that all people have a desire to know that they please God. For most people, that desire has been crushed and buried under a load of socially fertilized dirt, so what is visible growing in their lives are the plants and trees of fleshly desires and self-serving motivations.

But in the fall and winter seasons of life, when the leaves have fallen off their trees and they sit in the barrenness of their garden searching their soul for the true meaning of life, they discover a place where life seems to make sense. They start digging down through the years of dirt that they have piled onto themselves by their sinful choices. When they reach what appears to be the bottom they discover a packet of seeds called Truth waiting to be planted. Looking around, they find that they are in a new garden that has already been prepared by Someone. The soil is rich and fertile and there is plenty of water. The light appears brighter than any sun they have seen before.

There is a Man standing in the garden who appears to be the Gardener. He instructs them to pick up the seeds of Truth and by faith plant them in the soil He has prepared. When they do, the Gardener begins to water them and they immediately begin to grow. The Gardener instructs them to let Him do all the work in the garden and simply rest from all their work.

A peace that transcends their understanding overwhelms them. As the seeds grow in this newly discovered garden of peace they produce plants and trees that do not lose their leaves nor go dormant after producing a harvest. These plants continue to bloom and produce their fruit year-round, even during seasons of cold and darkness. It seems that the weather and circumstances of life do not affect the growth of the plants and trees. There is always a place of rest and security under the shadow of the Almighty Oak.

Life totally changes for the people who dig deep enough through the dirt of their lives to discover the garden of God. No longer will they allow social fertilizer to be dumped on their soil because they understand it poisons the growth. They have allowed no space in their garden to plant the seeds of sin because they know that the plants and trees produced by sin will choke out the life-giving plants growing there. This would force the Gardener to turn the work over to us, bringing back the long winter seasons of dormancy and drought with no harvest.

People who chose to live under the direction of the Gardener have discovered a wonderful secret in their new garden. Previously, they protected what they thought they had for fear of losing it. They built fences around their gardens to keep others out and kept all they produced for themselves. But in this new garden it seems that the more they harvest and give away, the more they produce. The Gardener has given them the right to take anything they want from the garden so long as it is used to benefit others. As soon as it is harvested and given away the Gardener plants more seed and makes that place more fertile to produce an even bigger harvest. The Gardener is pleased and overjoyed to do manage His garden according to this principle.  Out of the abundance of good that now grows they continually harvest gifts of love to be shared with others. This results in the multiplication of plants and trees so that they never lack for anything.

They also find that the more they open their garden to visitors, the healthier and larger their garden becomes. The Gardener expands the size and productivity of the garden to accommodate all the needs of the visitors.

People who live in such a garden introduce every visitor to the Gardener. The visitors are given their own packet of seeds of Truth and shown how to discover their own garden in which to plant them. This pleases the Gardener even more, so more visitors are invited into their garden and more seeds are provided for planting. It seems that the supply of seeds never diminishes, and the Gardener never tires of preparing soil. This motivates the people to not grow weary in well-doing and to continue to invite visitors into their gardens and show them how to plant the seeds.

Life is good in the garden of God. Storms come, but the Almighty Oak still stands. Darkness surrounds the garden at times, but nothing extinguishes the light of the Gardener. Circumstances that would have wiped out crops in the garden of self have no effect on the harvest of righteousness in the garden of God. Storage units that once held barely enough to provide for personal needs are now overflowing with provisions to meet the needs of all who come to the garden for help.

Many who come to visit are still living in the garden of self and can’t make sense of life. The people who have found God’s garden have found the real meaning of life. They love visitors, because they know the Gardener’s greatest joy comes from planting new gardens.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Philippians 4:14-17  Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.

We all love good news. However, we tend to qualify news as good or bad based on how it benefits or hurts us. I have been challenged by this passage in Philippians to consider that news about what God is doing for others should have a deeper impact on my life.

Several years ago, people from our church responded to the needs of a young couple who lost a five-month old daughter to a serious heart condition. I saw them volunteer their time and resources to provide food and service for a meal to feed 300 people following the memorial service. One couple single-handedly furnished all the meat and potato salad. Then I watched as people responded to a request to help send this couple on a healing trip to Florida to be ministered to by another family that experienced a similar loss recently. Three people came forward to donate their frequent flier miles for the plane tickets. Two people were willing to pay for up to two nights each in a hotel. Cash gifts were received to help with meals. By the time they left the entire trip was paid for.

Let’s compare our response to news items that benefit us to news items that benefit others. Which one brings more joy to our hearts?  There will be joy for both, but why do we still find more joy in what we receive than in what God is doing in the lives of others?

That’s the context of Paul’s teaching today. The fleeting happiness we feel when we receive a blessing is not worthy to be compared to the joy that God brings when we sacrificially give to others. Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

True joy comes from being a part of the caring fellowship of God’s people who love one another sincerely and deeply.  James wrote about that in his epistle and said, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” The Father grants us the greatest measure of joy when we do his greatest work, which is to care for the hurting and needy people around us by sharing what we have with them.

Paul commends the people at Philippi for their generous spirits. Again and again they gave, and according to 2 Corinthians 8:1 – 5, they gave not from a position of prosperity but one of poverty. Paul says, “And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches.  Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.  For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.”

What makes this kind of giving possible? Paul says it’s because the people had given themselves to the Lord first, and then they had given themselves to Paul’s ministry. The reason the Philippian people shared so much was because they had first determined to care so much.

It is the caring and compassionate heart of Jesus that makes sacrificial giving possible. There is a huge difference between the joy that is experienced by giving out of our surplus and the joy we experience when we make a sacrifice on behalf of another person.

That’s what Paul means in Philippians 4:17 when he says “Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.”  Paul cared more about the heart of the people than he did the size of the gift. Paul knew that true joy in receiving comes not from the gift but from the heart of the giver. The caring that results in sharing is what is credited to our heavenly account, not the actual gift.

That’s what I saw in our church – God’s people caring deeply, then sacrificially giving to meet the needs of another person.

When I called the husband of the couple to inform him of how God’s people had responded, he broke down on the phone. He couldn’t believe that from our congregation, in addition to all the money that is currently being given to fund our church’s ministries and building project, that people would give so generously. He knows that we are not rich according to the world’s standards of financial wealth, but he now knows that we are rich in our love for Jesus Christ and for our brothers and sisters in the family of God.

The value of any gift cannot compare to the value of the giver when their heart is committed to Jesus Christ and expressing His love to others. That’s what fills me with the greatest joy – to watch God’s heart come through people as they care for others.

Keep it up!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, August 27, 2018

Philippians 4:11-13 … for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13 is one of the top ten quoted Bible verses in Christianity. I learned it as a young boy in the King James Version – “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” We have been taught to apply it to just about every situation we have been in that has brought us hardship, trouble, challenge, and risk. Whenever we are asked to step out of our comfort zones we use the encouragement of God’s strength found in this verse.

But the one area of life that receives minimal, if any, application of the truth of this verse is the very context of Paul’s application when he wrote it. He was speaking specifically about learning contentment with our current financial position.

Our materialistic society has so influenced us that we have lost the concept of contentment. Instead we work harder so we can spend more on ourselves and improve our standard of living. The Christian church of our western civilization is generally not content, and we have prioritized possessions above the purpose of Jesus Christ, which will always be to seek and to save the lost at any cost.

I once heard a touching story about a poor woman with two children. They had no beds, and very few clothes. In the middle of winter, the house they rented was cold and drafty. The mother took the door off the cellar and set it up across the corner where they crouched to sleep, so that some of the draft and cold would be blocked. When the mother complained about their conditions, one of the children whispered to her, “Mom, what do other children do who don’t have a cellar door to put up in front of them?”

Jesus had much to say to us about contentment and not focusing on things. When Jesus had been in the desert for 40 days and 40 nights without food, He must have been extremely hungry when Satan approached Him! He said to Jesus, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus did not respond to this temptation, so Satan attempted to touch His pride. When that failed, Satan “upped the ante” and offered Jesus greater things than food; He offered the world. He said, “All these things will I give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”

With this statement, Satan finally arrived at the real issue for all of us: “Fall down and worship me.” When sin is stripped of its glamour and laid bare, it’s true nature is revealed. Sin is the dethroning of God to make things, (living or non-living), a god in our life.

Satan can offer you only things; nothing more. But things cannot bring true life and peace. But we are foolish. We look for life and peace in things. But Jesus says that we can have life and peace and joy with or without things. Contentment is the product of faith and trust in the provision of God to meet all our needs. Jesus makes each one of us an incredible and unmatchable offer – perfect peace as a result of pursuing Christ’s purpose.

Paul accepted what Jesus had to offer and said of himself, “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.” Things are not the secret and cannot bring life and happiness, because they are temporary. Only a foolish person spends his life acquiring temporary things while neglecting the eternal life Jesus offers.

Jesus once told of such a man. The man acquired so many things that he had to tear down his barns and build bigger ones. With a sigh of relief, he said, “Soul, you have much goods laid up for many years; take it easy, eat, drink, and be merry.”  But God said of him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”

We continue to buy into the “buy happiness” philosophy of our culture. We spend far too much of God’s resources that He has entrusted to us on things that we are convinced will bring us more social status, security, and satisfaction. God has made us rich according to the standards of the rest of the world so that we can build His kingdom, not ours. If our day-by-day life is consumed by acquiring things, we have accepted the lie of Satan that somehow things will fulfill our life. Why do we strive to build treasures for ourselves in this life when all of them will be destroyed, and only what has been stored as a treasure in heaven will last? Why do we work so hard and spend so much to impress our neighbors and improve our earthly status when those same neighbors are dying inside to know that Jesus will save them? What kind of witness to eternal life are we being when we spend so much on this temporary life?

The secret to contentment is this – no matter what our situation or condition, we can know the strength of God to endure it if we are committed to the cause of Christ. This means not only in word and thought, but in activity as well. Of what value is a declared commitment to Christ if there is no determination to do the work of Christ?

Only fools say they believe but don’t act on it.

Be content!

Pastor John