Sound Principles

How many times have you asked for guidance? How often are you looking for advice to make a key decision? Do you ask others for their thoughts or what they would do? Have you thought you need to have a firm foundation of principles to guide your decisions?

We make many decisions each day from what we eat for breakfast to where we will get gas for our vehicle. We may have read books on how to weigh the pros and cons of each choice available to us. Yet, we seek someone we trust to provide advice.

I believe taking time to think through the options available to us is important. Using our imagination to look for every option is a good practice. As we look at those options, identifying the pros and cons of each is a sound practice. But how do we determine which one is the best option for us? We must rely on the best principles.

Where do we get the principles to base our decisions on? We should spend time looking at God’s laws. We often think of laws as being hard and fast. For instance, we know we are not to steal. Though some of Gods laws are very much hard and fast like this one, there are many others that are more akin to principles.

Principles are not hard and fast laws but are fundamental guidelines on which laws or other principles are derived. Doesn’t it make sense that we should live our lives on sound principles? What better principles are there than God’s?

As we read God’s Word, looking specifically for those principles, and we take them into our being, we build a firm foundation for making decisions. We also find that many of our decisions are insignificant when we look at them through the eyes of God.

As followers of Christ, we are expected to live by God’s laws and His principles. Sure, we are human and cannot do so perfectly. Otherwise, Jesus would not have needed to sacrifice Himself for us. Yet, that is no reason to stop trying to live by them to the very best of our ability. We are to constantly seek self-improvement by following God’s direction and guidance. This ranges from taking care of our environment to loving one another with the same love Christ has for us.

I pray we all read God’s Word to know His laws and principles. I pray each of us use them as our foundation. I pray each of us make every attempt to live by God’s laws and principles, making our world a better place. Read God’s Word. Seek to understand His laws. Build a firm foundation on His laws. Make your decisions easier. Base your decisions on sound principles.

Psalm 19:8

The precepts of the Lord are right,

giving joy to the heart.

The commands of the Lord are radiant,

giving light to the eyes.

Plan A Positive Impact

God put His plan in motion hundreds of years before Jesus was born. He prophesied of His plan through several prophets, including Jeremiah, Daniel, Micah, Isaiah, and even Nathan as He spoke to King David. It was written about in the book of Psalms.

Looking back 2,000 years after Jesus was born, walked this earth, died, was buried, and resurrected, we may take some of this for granted. Sometimes we look at history as mundane knowledge. Perhaps we would be better suited to attempt to put ourselves into the historic event.

In an attempt to gain a better understanding of what Jesus faced, we might think about what it would be like to be a prisoner on death row. The date has been set. We know there is nothing we can do to stop it from coming. All appeals to the courts have been exhausted. Short of the governor staying our execution, it will occur as scheduled. This is what Jesus had to look forward to. He knew the date He would be captured, tried, and crucified.

Can you put yourself in that situation? Can you imagine what it would be like to know the exact date and hour of your death—and have to live with it? I dare say most of us go about our lives without thinking of our coming death. We live on in ignorant bliss. I’m not suggesting we should ponder our death to the point of being morbid nor allow it to draw us into incomprehensible depression. Yet, if we truly want to understand how Jesus may have felt and why He sweat drops of sweat like blood in the garden, we need to attempt to put ourselves in His place.

Jesus did not allow the knowledge of His coming death to stop Him from continuing to perform the work He had set before Him. He had planned all He needed to accomplish beforehand and completed it right on schedule. He performed miracles, taught people what God really wanted from them, and set in motion the building of His church and kingdom.

We can learn a key lesson from how Jesus went about His life. We can plan out long-term goals and set intermediate goals to accomplish them. We want to make an impact; we must take time to think through what it takes to accomplish it and put a plan in motion. Jesus did this. Though there may have been some spur of the moment reactions, He had a 3-year plan to complete what He came to earth to do.

I pray we all learn from Jesus to plan our lives with God’s guidance. I pray we take time to determine how we want to be remembered. I pray each of us will put ourselves in Jesus’ situation, knowing death is coming and planning to make an impact in this life. Put yourself in Jesus’ place. Plan your life. Follow God’s guidance. Seek to make a positive impact.

Matthew 16:21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

One God

We have often heard there is one God presented in three different persons. That can be hard to understand. We may wonder why God is described this way. Today we take a look at just one of many Scriptures that provides some insight.

Philip asks a question that I’m sure all of us would ask. In our limited human understanding, Philip asks Jesus to show them the Father. Now, doesn’t that sound unreasonable. After all, Jesus has just told them He was going to the Father.

Jesus’ answer is very revealing, even if it doesn’t completely clear up the picture for us. He first asks Philip a question, asking how Philip can say he doesn’t know the Father. Jesus’ reasoning is that He, Jesus, has been with them for a long time. He goes on to state that by seeing Him they have seen the Father. Now, we might say “like father, like son,” but not mean they are the same person. We are simply indicating they are very much alike.

Jesus is not simply saying they are very much alike. He is saying they are the same. That is difficult for us to wrap our minds around. As humans, we know a father and son cannot be the same person. Yet, Jesus is saying they are, in the case of God.

He goes on to say the Father is in Him and He is in the Father. We might grasp a bit of understanding in the first half of that statement. It fits neatly in our statement of “like father, like son.” But the second half of His statement causes us to question. We wonder how the son can be in the father.

There is only one explanation—they are the same. If we look at the prophecy of Isaiah regarding the coming of the Messiah, we see Him being called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). When we pull together what Jesus said with the prophecy of Isaiah, we find that Jesus is the Father in human form, as the Son.

I know, it is still a bit confusing. But our faith must include believing there is one God who is presented to us in three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We are to accept it without reservation, even as we continue to struggle to understand.

I pray we all believe there is one God. I pray we accept that He is presented in three persons. I pray each of us accept this in childlike faith, without reservation. Believe God. Trust Jesus’ statements. Accept one God in three persons. Know that He is God.

John 14:9-10 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”

Choose Belief

What do you believe? Who do you believe in? Do you ever spend time pondering the answers to these questions? Have you wrestled with them for long enough to know without a doubt what you believe?

We live in a cynical world. Our attention is plied for from all directions. There are as many opinions as there are people we interact with. Each of them attempting to convince us to join them in their point of view. We hear opinions put forth as truth, then changed, and told there is a new truth.

We have become skeptical of just about everything we hear. Our guard is up as soon as someone starts relating a story to us. This is especially obvious when it comes to politics. Yet, it is also true in our everyday lives. If you don’t believe it is true, take a moment to think about your family, the stories different members relate to you and the amount of credence you put into their story.

This is not to say we should not believe anything. In fact, it is just the opposite. We are to believe in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. We are to know Him through His teachings, actions, and miracles to the point that we can base our belief of others on the truth of Jesus.

You may be wondering how we can base the truth of a story a family member is telling us against Jesus. It is very simple. When we have invested the time to know Jesus, we build filters or markers to determine what truth is. This then provides a means to determine the truthfulness of what we hear from others. We might call this determining the character of someone.

God sent His Son to be our Savior. Believing this is the first and most important belief we are to start with. Once we believe that, we expand our understanding and belief in the character of Jesus. If we believe there is one God who is presented to us in three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—we must believe all that Jesus taught. Believing Jesus is our Savior and loving Him for that, our belief is strengthened as we come to know Him better.

Those who believe in Jesus, trusting Him, is no longer condemned. We have no reason to fear this world. We know that we will continue to live forever, we simply change locations. How comforting is that? We transition from one location to another.

I pray we all decide to believe in Jesus. I pray we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. I pray each one of us will live in the truth of God’s Word. Know what you believe. Believe in Jesus. Trust God’s promises. Live without condemnation. Live in the truth.

John 3:16-18 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

Sacrifice of Praise

Do you work hard doing good for others? Are you constantly looking for opportunities to continue to do good? Are you under the impression that by doing good you can earn your way to heaven?

There are many who think the more good they do the better chance they have to spend eternity with God. We see them volunteering for all types of organizations. Perhaps we are doing this ourselves.

It is not that doing good for others should be ignored. But take a look at today’s passage closely. We are to offer a sacrifice of praise to God. We are to profess His name openly. He is to be at the forefront of our minds. We are to do this while not forgetting to do good and share with others.

What does this mean? It means our attitude toward doing good matters. Are we doing good to earn our way to heaven? Or are we doing good because we are praising God and know we already have heaven promised? If we answer yes to the first question, we will wear ourselves out, doing the work out of our own strength. If we answer yes to the second question, we will naturally do good in the strength God provides, not growing weary.

It comes down to our trust and confidence in God’s promises. When we trust God and the promises He has made, we have an abundance of strength, energy, and focus on the work He has prepared for us to do. We sing His praises and tell others about Jesus. That doesn’t mean we are obnoxious about it. But when asked, we state it is Jesus who is the genesis of our good works. We pray before going about the work. We give thanks for the good work when done. He has the stronger focus rather than the work.

Why is it considered a sacrifice to praise God? When we praise Him with all our heart, we set aside our desires to carry out His. We give up our preferences to serve Him. Our objections to getting messy in this world go away in order to serve those He wants us to serve. Our praise comes from both our lips and in our service. But we must first be willing to praise Him with our hearts and through our confessions of faith.

I pray we all praise God with our hearts, minds, souls, and words. I pray we surrender to His guidance. I pray each of us put God first followed by our willingness to do the good works He has set aside for us. Praise God. Praise Jesus. Put Him first. Follow His guidance. Do the works He set aside for you. Trust God’s promises.

Hebrews 13:15-16 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

Everlasting Kingdom

Do you question if the kingdom of God will ever come? Are you looking forward to that day with joy? Or, trepidation? Have you ever wondered how long ago it was predicted the kingdom will come to fruition?

As we have heard many times, God works on His time, not ours. His patience can appear to be everlasting. So much so that we may think He isn’t doing anything at all. Some people have waited for God’s kingdom to fully come into being and never seen it.

God’s kingdom has come near to us, as Jesus stated in Matthew 4:17. His kingdom is here and now, but not quite fully. This means we have access to His kingdom through the Holy Spirit. We are to spread the news of His kingdom and the King, our Savior Jesus Christ. This is part of growing His kingdom as Jesus stated in Matthew 13:31-32.

Daniel lived approximately 600 years before Christ. His visions, which included prophecy provided by angels, were both predicting the coming of God’s kingdom and the Messiah. The coming of the Messiah was the beginning of God’s kingdom being set up in this world. As Jesus stated Himself in Luke 20:17, He was the chief cornerstone for the foundation of the kingdom. This is the event, the rock, Daniel’s prophecy is pointing to. The Jews who heard, read, and knew of Daniel’s prophecy were waiting anxiously. His prophecy is one of the keys to why the Jews were looking for the Messiah at the time Jesus was walking this earth.

As we look at Daniel’s prophecy more than 2,500 years later, we can see how his prophecy came true. Yet, we also see that it has not been fully implemented. We look to the book of Revelation, reading the visions of John and his interaction with an angel, to understand the full implementation of God’s kingdom is still at some point in our future.

The most significant similarity between Daniel’s prophecy and John’s visions is that God’s kingdom will go on forever. It will never be destroyed. In fact, it will destroy all opposition to it. We see that all other kingdom’s will fall and Satan will be destroyed when God’s kingdom comes to fruition.

I pray we all choose to be part of God’s kingdom. I pray we hold firmly to His promises, not growing weary. I pray each of us choose to believe Jesus and the prophecies of His kingdom. Choose God and His kingdom. Hold onto God’s promises. Be strong in your faith. Trust God. Trust Jesus.

Daniel 2:44-45 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.”

King Forever

Do you want to be a part of something that will last forever? Would you like to live in a place that cannot be destroyed? How would that affect your anxiety and fear? Do you know that such a place exists?

We all look for security—financial, relationship, job, and more. Security in those may be fleeting or nonexistent. We strive and strive only to find we must continue to strive. We manage, budget, put in more effort, and yet we never feel like completely comfortable.

There is one place in which we can feel comfortable. The kingdom of God can never be destroyed. We are invited to be part of His kingdom, both today and forever. Isn’t it amazing to know God’s kingdom is available to us now?

As we look at today’s passage, we see the angel telling Mary that her son would reign over God’s kingdom forever. Can you imagine? What would it be like to be visited by an angel? How do you grasp the idea that your son would reign forever? Imagine, your son sitting on the throne as king, and it will never end. Most of us expect to live 75-100 years in this life. Yet we can be part of a kingdom that never ends.

I suspect Mary was awestruck and perhaps didn’t fully comprehend what the angel was telling her. Sure, she would have known the prophecies, but I’m not sure her mind could grasp the idea that she would give birth to the King of kings. She certainly didn’t know how His life would play out any more than we know how the lives of our children will unfold. Yet, if she took the angel’s word at face value, she had to be wondering how all this would take place.

Living roughly two-thousand years later we know how Jesus’ life turned out. We also know what the angel meant when he told Mary Jesus would sit on the throne of David forever. We know His kingdom will never end. Yet we still can’t fully comprehend forever, eternity, or living outside of time.

The good news is we don’t have to fully understand to take part in it. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are welcomed into His kingdom. We start living in His kingdom for eternity from that moment on. We simply need to understand that His kingdom cannot be destroyed, which means we cannot be destroyed.

I pray we all accept Jesus as our Savior. I pray we start living in His kingdom today. I pray each one of us finds the security of being in God’s kingdom. Be part of God’s kingdom. Look to Jesus the King. Accept Jesus’ invitation. Trust Him.

Luke 1:30-33 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Poor or Rich

Do you ever ask rhetorical questions? Have you used questions to make a statement? Have you heard a teacher or someone you work with use questions this way? We see these methods of questioning used in today’s passage very effectively.

James knows the answer to the questions he is asking. He also knows his audience knows the answer to the questions. When we take a look at how the questions are framed, we can quickly deduct the answer nearly two thousand years later.

Are these questions still relevant today? Are the answers the same? I believe we all know they are both relevant and the same. It is obvious the answer to his first question has not changed. God has certainly chosen those who appear to be poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in their faith. Those who are poor often must rely on God to provide. They subsist from day-to-day. James is restating what Jesus said in Mark 10:25, but from the opposite point of view. Jesus stated it is difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.

How true it is the rich are who exploit us, yet we put them on pedestals. Oh, we will quickly disavow it. We will state we don’t look up to the rich. And we are wrong every time we say it. Think not? Do you look up to movie stars, TV stars, sports stars, corporate executives, or even rich relatives? You don’t? Are you telling me you don’t buy name brand clothes to imitate those people?

Folks, the kingdom of God accepts who follow Jesus unconditionally. We cannot choose to follow Him only when things are going well or reach out to Him for help only when we are desperate. We are to be a follower of His at all times, in all situations. That is the point of James’ message to his audience. We are to be fully dedicated to God, rather than following the world, to inherit His kingdom.

I pray we all have a change of heart. I pray we decide to follow Jesus completely. I pray each one of us become rich in faith. Expose your heart to Jesus. Follow Him with your whole being. Dedicate yourself to Him. Increase your faith. Trust God in all situations.

James 2:5-7 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?

Heed the Warning

What will your inheritance be? Will you inherit from multiple people? Do you have a rich aunt or uncle you hope will leave you an inheritance? Do you know you have an inheritance that is much better than any earthly inheritance?

We often joke about hoping there is a long-lost relative that leaves us a large inheritance. But realistically, most us will receive very little inheritance on this earth. Most of our parents are not rich, and if what is left must be divided among multiple children, each share won’t be large.

We all have a wonderful inheritance available to us. Unfortunately, there are many misunderstandings about it. The message has been watered down to the point that many people believe they merely need to repeat a few words, get wet, and they are all set. Out of obligation they darken the door of a church a handful of times per year. It is also unfortunate that we joke about those folks rather than morning over them and praying for a change of heart.

We can look at multiple passages in Scripture in which the apostle Paul warned against living as the world lives and expecting to inherit the kingdom of God. He warned the churches in Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, and Colossae. It’s fair to say his warning is for us as well.

We see in today’s passage a laundry list of behavior, actions, and attitudes Paul warned against. He doesn’t simply say we shouldn’t demonstrate them, but there are serious consequences. An eternal inheritance is at stake.

It’s been decades since we regularly heard the “hell fire and brimstone” sermons in our churches. I don’t believe we need to go back to those days, attempting to scare people into doing what’s right. Yet, we can’t simply preach “God is love” giving the impression God will readily accept us into His kingdom no matter what we do. It is absolutely true that God will forgive us when we repent. It is absolutely true God loves all of us. It is also absolutely true that God is just and will dispense judgment. Because God loves us, He provides His Holy Spirit to guide us into a new way of living.

I pray we all recognize the need to turn from worldly ways of living. I pray we accept guidance from the Holy Spirit to make a change in our lives. I pray each one of us commit to follow Jesus’ example for life. Heed the warning. Accept guidance from the Holy Spirit. Follow Jesus. Trust God.

Galatians 5:19-21 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Welcome Home

What do you know about the kingdom of heaven? How long has it existed? Does it change over time? Is it ready for you today? Have you ever pondered any of these questions? Would you like to know the answers?

The answer is both simple and a little complex. It really isn’t all that hard to understand. Yet we may get confused at times by the tense used when Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven. In fact, we see Jesus change tense when He is speaking, sometimes in mid-sentence.

The first thing we must remember is Jesus is God. The second thing we must remember is God is outside of time. He sees past, present, and future all at the same time. Therefore, when Jesus is speaking of the kingdom of heaven, we must keep this in mind.

We see in John 14:1-3 Jesus state He is going to prepare a place for us. Yet we see in today’s passage below the kingdom of heaven has been prepared since the creation of the world. Which is true? Both. Jesus is speaking as God when He speaks of the kingdom of heaven in this way.

In John 14 He is speaking directly to the Apostles. Peter has asked a question about when Jesus will be glorified and telling them they cannot follow at that time. Therefore, He is addressing them on their timeline. It is future for them.

In today’s passage Jesus is telling a parable. He is teaching, not speaking to a specific question. He is talking of His return and the separation of the sheep and goats. You might call to mind other parables such as the wheat and the weeds in a field (Matthew 13:24-30). This is about separating God’s people from those who have chosen to oppose Him.

Isn’t it comforting to know that God has a place in the kingdom of heaven prepared for you? He has everything set up and He is overjoyed to welcome you home. We might compare it to a parent welcoming home a college student who has been at an overseas university for several months. Or a parent who is welcoming home a child who has gone to boot camp and is coming home upon graduation for a few days. As a parent, we are proud, and we have prepared a wonderful welcome home for the child. God has prepared an even better place for us.

Knowing this, we can rest easy. We can be at peace. We can be assured of a wonderful place to spend eternity. We know there is light at the end of the tunnel. The pain, suffering, sadness, trials, and troubles of this world will come to an end and we will live forever in wonderful bliss.

I pray we all find comfort in knowing God has a place prepared for us. I pray we look forward to eternity spent with Him. I pray each one of us find peace today in God’s kingdom. Know that God is waiting for you. Know He has prepared a place for you. Trust Him. Find comfort, peace, and joy in Him. God loves you.

Matthew 25:34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.’”