Coming Home

Psalm 32:1-5 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.” Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven. Sweet forgiveness, like a rushing wind blowing the dirt and grime out of our souls, relief from the bone deep decay and groaning that haunts us when we cover, minimize, justify, or deny our own sin. Such was the psalmist David’s state--his ‘vitality was turned into the drought of summer.’ The drought was only broken when he acknowledged his sin to God, confessing not hiding his transgressions. In Luke 15 the prodigal finds himself in a similar situation. After sinning against God and his father, ‘wasting his possessions in prodigal living,’ he came to his senses in a pigsty. Luke 15:17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! He recognized that his father was good and generous. Romans 2:4 says...’the goodness of God leads us to repentance. With a humble and contrite heart he determines to go and confess his sin to his father and to ask for help. Luke 15:18-19 “I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.’ The son takes action and turns his back on the far country and comes home to his father, where he is embraced, welcomed, and restored. When we first come to Christ and whenever we sin, we come to repentance in much the same way as did the prodigal son and David. Recognizing the Father’s goodness and generosity, with humble and contrite hearts, we turn our backs on the far country and head home to be embraced by our heavenly Father through Jesus, our Lord. Admitting that we can’t do anything about our sin, we seek His grace, His help in our time of need. Trusting Jesus’ promise that the one who comes to Him, He will by no means cast out. (John 6:37) And then...like a rushing wind... sweet cleansing. (1 John 1:9)

Beware of Covetousness!

When God laid down the Law at Mt. Sinai, His purpose was that His people would understand how to love one another and to love Him.
(1 Tim. 1:5, Luke 10:25-28) God’s top ten list begins "‘You shall have no other gods before Me. " (Deuteronomy 5:7) and ends "‘You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife; and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’" (Deuteronomy 5:21)
Covetousness is an unquenchable thirst for more and more in a search for true satisfaction. Deuteronomy includes the idea of jealously eyeing the things that fill my neighbor’s life. If our hearts were not covetous the commandments against stealing and adultery would become almost unneeded. Colossians groups covetousness with such sins as fornication and evil desire, even calling it idolatry, a violation of commandment number one. (Deut. 5:7) "Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry." (Colossians 3:5) Ephesians 5 instructs "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints...” "For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God." (Ephesians 5:3,5) Though we often think that having riches would be a nice addition to our godly lives and God does bless some in that way, however, the bible does not teach that godliness with great gain equals contentment, instead 1 Tim. 6:6ff says "Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." (1 Timothy 6:6-10) Though God does sometimes bless with abundant finances, we must take our Lord’s admonition seriously “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”" (Luke 12:15) 1 Tim. 6 gives instruction to those who may be considering a bigger barn because God has blessed them. "Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life." (1 Timothy 6:17-19, NKJV)
Yes! The real riches are eternal riches, so let us live looking to the end of the book!
(Rev. 22:20-21)

The Rocks Cry out

This Wednesday night we were confronted by several compelling questions concerning truth. What is truth? What is reality? Do you believe that what you believe is really real? This filters down into how we think (Prov. 23:7, Rom. 8:5), how we feel (Phil. 4:6), and what we do(Luke 6:46, Rom. 6:12, James 2:26 and all the rest of the Epistles).

As the Passion Week began, Jesus came as King, riding upon a donkey. The leaders of Israel were so blind to the truth of who Jesus was that upon hearing Jesus’ disciples praising God and hailing Jesus as King, they demanded that Jesus rebuke His disciples. But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” Luke 19:40 (NKJV) Even the lifeless hard stones were more aware of the truth than those devout men of religious learning. With all their study they had missed the truth! It is then no wonder that Jesus’ next words as He saw the city and wept over it were, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” Luke 19:42-44 (NKJV) Though we spend much time studying the scriptures we must not be dumber than a stone and miss the essential truth--Jesus the King of kings and Lord of lords is coming again! In light of that reality, what are you going to do tomorrow?

Advent

What is Advent?
The word Advent means “coming” and refers to the four weeks before Christmas.
John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (NKJV) Christ came in the flesh! Advent is a time of preparation and contemplation. It is a time to prepare for the celebration of Christ’s birth, and a time to remember when, how, where, and why Christ came among His people.
John 14:23 “Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” (NKJV) Christ came to each of us! Advent is a time of preparation and contemplation, a time to remember when, how, where, and why Christ came to each one of us.
Acts 1:11b “…‘This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.’” (NKJV) Christ will come again! Advent is a time of preparation and anticipation, a time to refocus on His imminent return for His beloved. The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”
During this season of anticipation, the Advent celebration seeks to focus our hearts on the Christ of Christmas through a remembrance of the hope, faith, joy, and love that God has given through His gift of Jesus Christ.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (NKJV)

When the Fullness of Time Had Come

When the Fullness of the Time Had Come, God Sent Forth His Son
In the first year of Darius the Mede, during the Babylonian captivity of the Jews (Daniel ch. 9), Daniel was praying, confessing his sin and the sin of his people Israel, when the angel Gabriel was sent to give Daniel “skill to understand.” Gabriel then related the prophecy of the “seventy weeks” (Daniel 9:24-27). At the heart of the prophecy is the revelation of the time until God would send Messiah. Daniel 9:25a “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks.” (NKJV)
In Ezra ch. 1, King Cyrus commands the restoration of Jerusalem and its temple. From that time forward, the time of Messiah’s coming could be calculated. Galatians 4:4-5 “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (NKJV)
When the time was full, right on time, Jesus, Messiah, came. In the fullness of time, He will come again. Luke 12:37a “Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching.” (NKJV)
In the last two verses of Revelation, our Lord says, “‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (Revelation 22:20-21 NKJV)