We’re a Prize

In Jesus’ longest recorded prayer to the Father, he asks something so incredible. In John 17:24, Jesus says, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”

Jesus desires that we’re with him in heaven.

When I think of this truth, I’m blown away because I know how sinful I am. But, even though I sin, Jesus wants me in heaven with him. A lot of times I think we look at Jesus as being “stuck” with us when in reality, we’re his prize. You and I are the joy set before Jesus. You and I are the reason Jesus went to the cross. You and I are the reason Jesus got up from the grave. 

Oh the wonder of our Savior’s grace. 

Build Up

Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

Words are incredibly powerful. Proverbs 18:21 says emphatically, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” Our tongues can bring life or death. In the beginning, God spoke and created the universe. He brought life. Why then, when we have been given life by the very Creator of the Universe do we speak words that hurt our brothers and sisters? I know I don’t want to do this, but I do. I’m thankful for God’s grace, and I also know he has called me to use my words to bless people.

Today I got a text from a friend out of the blue, simply saying they appreciate me. It’s simple, but it really blessed me. We have been given the privilege of blessing people with our words and I hope we take advantage of that gift.

Let’s not steal a blessing from someone by refusing to speak life, but instead aim to use our words to build up all who listen.

Stand Firm

We live in a world that proudly proclaims, “what’s true for you is true for you and what’s true for me is true for me”. Truth is not relative, though. In John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'” Jesus is the truth, not a truth. You either accept him or reject him, there’s no other option. 

Numbers 23:19 says “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” and 2 Timothy 3:16 says “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness”. 

God has given us his whole truth in the Bible. When we try to invent new “truth”, we are saying God’s Word isn’t enough, calling God a liar. As believers, we need to stand firm in the truth of Scripture. We have a big God who has preserved the Bible for us through all these years and we would be wise to stand firm in it. 1 Corinthians 16:13 encourages us, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”

In a world that is trying its hardest to make us compromise, I challenge you to stand firm in Jesus and in the Word of God. Stop trusting the “wisdom” of man and start trusting the truth of God, the whole Bible.

Lead

The Calvary Chapel Worship Leaders Conference is going on here on campus and this morning I was blessed to worship with Phil Wickham and hear a word from Pastor Brian Brodersen. The theme of the conference is “Faithfulness” and this post started as I listened to the Holy Spirit speak through Pastor Brian.

John 15 talks about Jesus being the true vine. In verse 4, Jesus says, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.” 

This may be something we hear a lot of, but we must stay connected to Jesus if we want to see him move in and through us. We have been given different areas in which God has allowed us to be leaders. Whether as a parent, a sports captain, a boss, or just someone people look up to, we are called to lead. We as believers are salt and light. We are different from the world because this earth is not our home. Because we carry the name of Christian, and thus the name of Jesus, we have a great responsibility.

We represent Jesus in this world. We were created to bring God the glory he’s due. We are leaders. As a leader, we have a responsibility and the only way we can lead effectively is by spending intimate time with Jesus.

At the conference, Pastor Brian talked about how worship leaders cannot effectively lead others in worship if they are not living a life of worship. If “worship” is simply singing some songs on Sunday, we have it way wrong. Worship is a lifestyle, bringing praise and glory to God, not simply singing some catchy songs.

We can apply this concept to any area of our lives. Let’s give God a sacrifice of praise, staying connected to the vine so we allow God to live through us. Instead of worrying about how we’re going to lead others, let’s let God lead us and lead others through us. We cannot lead unless we are led.

Light of the World

I recently wrote a paper for class that I want to share. I pray it blesses anyone who reads this.

John 8:12 says, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life’”. Jesus says he is the light of the world. In considering this statement, a few things stand out to me. First, a light is bright and whenever a light is turned on, it extinguishes the darkness. In saying he is the light of the world, I picture how the whole world is lit up by Jesus. Whenever Christians enter a place, the atmosphere changes. In the same way, when Jesus entered the world, the world changed because the darkness couldn’t survive. When we accept Christ, we are infused with the very light of the world, meaning we carry the light of Christ everywhere we go. We no longer have to walk in darkness.

The Greek word for light in this passage is phos, meaning “to shine or make manifest”. In his commentary on John 8, David Guzik talks about how light was a very important thing during the Feast of the Tabernacles. When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they were guided by the pillar of fire at night. Guzik makes the connection, as Jesus is now that light. I love this picture because it paints Jesus as our guide. Just as the Israelites were dependent on the pillar of fire to guide them, so are we dependent on Jesus. So often, we want to know what God’s will is for our lives when in reality, God’s will is that we trust and follow Jesus. Just as the Israelites were dependent on the pillar of fire, so should we be dependent on Jesus to lead us each and every day. Jesus has made himself manifest; we see his glory all around. It’s our choice to live in the light or to go back to darkness.

Jesus is shining bright whether the world wants to acknowledge it or not. As the light of the world, Jesus had every reason to be prideful. Instead of choosing pride, Jesus chose to serve. This truth reminds me of the times we serve others. The light of Christ is so evident in and through us when we serve, and lost souls are drawn to Jesus. Jesus, the light, did not turn himself on by screaming to the crowds, but by serving. When Jesus died on the cross, many people thought they had defeated the light. They thought the light had been turned off. Thankfully, the light was just about to be turned on even brighter. When Jesus rose, his victory proved that light cannot be defeated by darkness. This is the glorious truth of the God we serve. We serve a living, shining God who loves the world so much that he revealed Jesus to us that all may come to know the grace of our God. 

Stop Comparing

We live in a culture consumed by social media. Many times each day, I find myself opening Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to see what is going on in the lives of my friends. While there’s a lot of good in social media, there is also something we need to be careful of.

When we open Instagram, we see pictures. In these pictures, most people make sure they look their best. On Facebook, we post pictures and update our status with things that make our lives look great. What I’m trying to get at is that we live in a culture where we want to look like everything is perfect. We want to look like we have it all together.

The reality is, we’re all messed up. We’re all sinful and we all make mistakes multiple times daily. We’re not always happy, but we want everyone to think we are. As believers, we have the joy of the Lord, but that joy does not always equate to happiness.

There’s great freedom when we recognize we’re all messed up. I know that’s a statement that may be hard to believe, but it’s true. I’m messed up, but I have a God, Yahweh, who accepts me anyway. God doesn’t accept me based on my goodness, though. He accepts me because of my faith is in Jesus and Jesus alone.

See, it’s easy to get depressed when we view social media and see how everyone else seems to have it all together. The reality is no one has it all together, that’s why we all need Jesus. So today, find freedom from comparison. Confess you’re messed up life to Jesus and let him restore you.

I’ll leave you with a quote from Pastor Steven Furtick, “The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel.”