Do You Have Your Ticket to Life in Christ?

A few members of our family were disappointed last weekend. They had hoped to go to one of those farms that offer special fun activities during the fall season. However, due to our current societal situation, many of those venues are limiting the amount of people they allow in at any one time. They are requiring patrons to purchase tickets for a certain time period. When our family members checked into getting those tickets, they discovered that they were already sold out for the day.

Aren’t you thankful that God doesn’t limit the number of people who can enter into the blessing of eternal life in His Son? We don’t have to worry about the possibility that when we respond to His invitation to come to Him that we’re going to be turned away due to there being no more space for us. Or when we get to heaven, we can be assured that we won’t come up to the gate and find a sign reading “Full – no vacancies”. I love the old song that reminds us that although millions may have come to the Lord over the course of time, there’s still room for one more. There’s room at the cross for you and me.

Among the many divine invitations recorded in scripture is the one issued through the prophet Isaiah. “Everyone who thirsts, come…” (Isaiah 55:1). It’s made clear in this passage that anyone who has a thirst and hunger for the spiritual life God offers them can come to Him and find an open door to receive what they’re seeking. “Come to me. Hear, and your soul shall live” (v.3). Life in Christ isn’t reserved for a select group or for the ones who get there first. Every person who comes with a humble, repentant heart and with faith in Jesus will be granted access into the joys of eternal life.

While we’re on the subject of tickets, after the Braves won the National League championship last week, I heard that World Series tickets were going to be offered at quite a premium price. I saw one fan being interviewed who was hoping to come back to attend one of those games but was uncertain whether or not he would be able to afford the price. What about us? Abundant tickets may be available for us to enter the wonderful life God has invited us to participate in. The opportunity is there. But can we pay the required price?

That passage in Isaiah delivers the good news about that issue too. “You who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price” (v.1). Our entrance into new life in Christ is free. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not without cost. However, out of His great love for us, Jesus has already paid the price. He purchased our ticket at the expense of His own sacrificial death on the cross. Therefore we can freely receive it as a gracious gift from God. As a matter of fact, that’s the only way we can obtain it. We couldn’t purchase one or earn one, even if we tried. Unfortunately some people try to do so. Maybe they don’t think they can buy their way into heaven with money, but they have the mistaken idea that they can earn their way there through their good works. However, seeking salvation through works doesn’t work. Eternal life is God’s free gift to us through Christ. We can only receive it by grace through faith.

Do you have your ticket to eternal life? It’s available. It’s free. And it’s even more valuable than one of those World Series tickets.  

 

Trust God for Less Failings and More Victories

Our almost-two-year-old grandson enjoys having a certain book read to him. It helps him learn his colors as it pictures various items of apparel such as “red shirts” and “blue pants”. However, what he enjoys most is that every couple of pages it shows a certain character misusing a piece of clothing, such as putting a pair of pants on top of his head or covering his nose with a sock. One word is repeatedly written on those pages – “oops!” My grandson seems to take great delight in coming to one of those pages and gleefully joining whomever is reading to him by shouting “oops!”

We all have our “oops” moments. We make mistakes, we experience accidents, or we face the consequences of our momentary carelessness or weakness. We probably don’t take pleasure in those occurrences, but we tolerate them and have learned to expect them as faulty human beings. But what about our “oops” moments when it comes to doing what’s right and following God’s will for us? What about when we slip up when temptation comes our way or when we fail to do what we know God wants us to do? I doubt that any of us joyfully shout “oops” on those occasions. However, are we experiencing them so regularly that they don’t bother us anymore? Do we just consider it to be the norm that we will have those spiritual stumbles and falls on an everyday basis as we go from page to page in our lives?

Some people point to Paul’s experience related in Romans 7 to suggest that we can’t expect anything better than to have constant struggles about doing God’s will and to regularly succumb to willful disobedience. After all Paul writes, “For to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice” (v.18-19). So this is describing the situation in which even though we may want to do the right thing, we often find ourselves unable to do it. We keep saying “oops” over and over and over again.

However, Paul’s description of this condition doesn’t stop there. He doesn’t just give in to it or begin to take it lightly. It deeply disturbs him. He cries out, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me…?” Then he provides the wonderful answer: “I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (v.25). The good news is that through Jesus we can be delivered from constant wrongdoing. We can even find relief from that ongoing struggle within us between our will and God’s will if we will surrender ourselves completely to Him. Not that we won’t ever face that battle, but it will be less frequent and not as difficult if we’ve settled in our hearts that we are committed to pleasing the Lord and serving Him above all else.

Yes, we have spiritual weaknesses. As Hebrews 12:1 indicates, we have sins that easily ensnare us and faulty tendencies that can weigh us down. But it also declares that we can lay those aside and can run the race the way God wants us to do so. We can determine to make better choices. We can surrender ourselves fully to Christ. And we can trust Him to deliver us and give us power to overcome those weights which hold us back.

So let’s trust God for less “oops” moments in our lives and for more victories as we seek to faithfully follow Jesus.

 

The Lord Is Searching for Those Who Are Lost

Recently my mom lost her wallet. Some of our family members were with her at her home when she realized it was missing. They immediately got involved to help do a thorough search of the house, her car, and even the garbage. She called the store where she last remembered having the wallet and making use of its contents to see if anyone may have turned it in. Unfortunately, in spite of all the diligent seeking, the item in question failed to turn up.

It reminds me of the story Jesus told about the woman who lost one of her silver coins. He suggested that in such a situation a person would light a lamp, sweep the house, and otherwise search diligently until she found her valuable missing piece of money. When she did find it, she would rejoice, tell others her good news, and invite them to celebrate with her (see Luke 15:8-10). Jesus related this parable, along with several similar ones, in response to the Pharisees and scribes complaining about His allowing certain individuals whom they despised as “sinners” to be welcomed as part of the group who drew near to listen to Him. Through these stories Jesus seemed to be emphasizing the value He and His heavenly Father placed on the soul of any individual who was lost or had wandered away from God.

 This truth should encourage us. There is a God who loves us, no matter who we are. And if we’re not where we should be in a relationship with Him, He will come seeking after us. He doesn’t just ignore our absence or immediately write us off because of our wandering ways. He doesn’t consider us expendable in light of all the other “coins” he has in His pocket or all the other sheep in His fold.

Most of the items that were in my mom’s wallet can be replaced. It may take a little effort to do so, but we can get her another driver’s license and credit card. However, the Lord considers each one of us to be irreplaceable. We are that important to Him. You are a one-of-a-kind creation of His. And He doesn’t take that lightly. He will keep searching for you as long as there’s hope of your recovery.

The problem is that some of us don’t want to be found. We hear God’s voice calling out to us, but we choose to ignore it. We sense His hand reaching out toward us, but draw back farther into our hiding place. We see His efforts to get our attention, but we turn our backs on Him. As Jesus stated elsewhere, too many people willingly choose the darkness over the light. They don’t want to have to deal with the truth about themselves and the way they live their lives. They aren’t willing to make the changes God would require of them if they let Him find them.

Jesus pointed to this necessary turnaround by those who were lost in his concluding statement to this story about the lost coin. He said, “Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (v.10). We often emphasize the heavenly celebration pictured in this remark, but don’t overlook the responsibility of the one who is lost. In order for the rejoicing to occur, in order for the lost to be found, a sinner must repent. A person must admit their need, forsake their sin, put their trust in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for forgiveness and cleansing, and humbly submit to God.

God loves his lost ones and is diligently seeking them. If that includes you, repent and let Him find you.  

 

How Do We Pray without Ceasing?

If you’re reading this, you probably believe in and practice prayer to some extent. Maybe you even have a specific time set aside each day for such communication with God. I heard another minister recently preach a message on our need to find a place and a time when we can read God’s Word and pray. He mentioned one man he knew who got out on his porch in his rocking chair every morning for that purpose. After he started practicing that regular, quiet time with the Lord, it changed this man’s life.

However, the Bible goes further than simply advocating prayer as an activity we practice at a set time on a daily basis or even several times throughout the course of our day. It instructs followers of Christ to “pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17).  How do we fulfill that divine expectation? Most of us can’t sit in that rocking chair all day. And even if we could, I don’t believe that’s what the Lord is wanting us to do. We have work to do, family responsibilities, kids or grandkids to watch, household chores to do, and errands to run. So how can we be praying without ceasing or without stopping? How can we continually be in communication with our Lord?

Have you watched a TV show where someone in trouble had called for help? She’s speaking to a 911 operator, policeman, or other first responder. Maybe this person is trapped or is in some other situation in which rescuers are trying to find her and help her.  At some point in this process, the comment is made, “Let’s keep this line open.” In other words, “Don’t hang up. And I won’t hang up. I’m going to be right here available to you at all times.” There may be moments when the two individuals are talking to one another, but there may also be times when they aren’t saying anything. Nevertheless, the line is open and they know the other person is right there.

I see that as one of the ways to picture this idea of praying without ceasing. It doesn’t mean that we’re consciously talking to God every moment. Neither may we be aware of always hearing His voice speaking to us. But we know He’s there. We’re aware of His presence. We keep that line to Him open. Yes, we have our time when we can sit in our rocking chair, open up the Bible, bow our heads, and talk to our loving Father. But afterwards when we’re working, driving down the road, taking care of kids, and fulfilling other duties throughout the day, the line is kept open between us and the Lord. Therefore whenever we need to or can, we whisper a prayer, reach out to Him, and are assured that He is still there. Whenever He wants to say something to us, we’ve got out hearts ready and our ears tuned to listen to whatever He says.

This also means that we don’t get so wrapped up in other activities or give them such importance in our lives that they get in the way of our communicating with the Lord. We don’t hang up on Him because our football team is playing, our favorite TV show is on, or we’re participating in something He might not like. It means that we keep ourselves free from any sin that would cause us to lose that connection with the Lord.

So pray - not only at a set time in your day, although we do need those times. But let’s also seek to fulfill that command to “pray without ceasing.” As we go throughout our daily activities, let’s constantly keep the line open between us and the Lord.

 

God Points Us to His Hidden Treasure

The latest obsession of my three-year-old grandson is with pirates. He likes to dress up in his pirate costume, say “Arrgh”, and otherwise act the role. So when I was at his house recently, he and I played as if we were finding hidden treasure. One of us would hide the valuable cache of fake jewels and coins, then the other person would have to look for it. Whenever my grandson hid the treasure for me to find, I have to admit that it wasn’t a very difficult search. He would often linger in the vicinity where he had concealed the precious loot, often glancing in its direction. On top of that, the “clues” he provided me virtually told me exactly where the treasure was located. I tried to pretend I was having a hard time finding it, but he made the search quite easy.

It reminds me of Jesus’ description of the kingdom of heaven as a hidden treasure which a man found (Matthew 13:44). Certainly the good news of the salvation God has provided us, the fact that we can have a right relationship with Him, and all the blessings that comprise God’s gift of eternal life is a precious possession which we should treasure. In a subsequent parable Jesus compared it to a pearl of great price for which a man sold everything he had in order to be able to purchase it. Experiencing the truths of the gospel in our lives and knowing Jesus as our Savior and Lord is truly a valued gift we shouldn’t ever take for granted.

However, let’s not get the wrong idea about this hidden treasure. God isn’t trying to conceal it from us. The one who is attempting to keep us from discovering this precious jewel is Satan. He blinds our eyes to the truth. He deceives us into trying to find our treasure in the cheap counterfeits this world offers us. And all too often we are our own worst enemies, refusing to accept the truth and to receive the real riches, while gravitating toward those imitations which inevitably fail to satisfy and lead to disappointment.

In the meantime, God has done and is still doing everything He can to point us in the right direction. He speaks to us through creation, clearly directing anyone with an open mind to the truth that there must be an intelligent, wise, and powerful Creator behind it all. He has given us a reliable written revelation of Himself and of His actions throughout history. The Bible tells us who God is, what Jesus did for us in dying on the cross as the sacrifice for our sins, and how we can find this great treasure through repentance and faith. Jesus Himself is the greatest indicator of where our treasure lies. He is the one way to God and to eternal life. Jesus is the “X” that marks the spot on the map. Through His life, death, and glorious resurrection, He is standing right there, pointing us to the location of what we’re seeking. “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). God isn’t hiding this precious treasure from us – He’s doing all He can to show us exactly where to find it. As the old hymn asks, “What more can He say than to you He hath said?”

The problem isn’t that the treasure is well-hidden. The problem is that too many of us are unwilling to receive it. The good news of Christ is right there waiting for us. God has put up neon signs all around it saying, “This is it!” Let’s accept God’s wonderful gift. It’s a treasure we can’t afford to miss out on.