Christ’s Blood Not Only Covers, It Cleanses  

When I recently received by first dose of the Covid vaccine, I was also given a card testifying to that fact. I was told that I might want to keep it with me or even take a picture of it to have with me on my phone at all times because it’s possible I might be required to show it for entrance into certain places or to participate in particular activities. Whether we agree with the practice or not, it could become a pass we may be required to produce.

As we enter into Holy Week and especially commemorate what Christ did for us on the cross, some people tend to view the blood He shed for us merely as our free pass. It testifies that we’re in good standing with God. It’s our ticket to get into heaven one day – showing that our sins have been covered. And that is certainly true, as far as it goes. We can’t point to anything we’ve done or any goodness on our part as the reason for us to merit favor with God or entrance into the glorious place Jesus is preparing for His people. It is only through faith in what Jesus did for us as the sacrifice for our sins that we can enjoy the blessing of fellowship with God and the gift of eternal life.

However, if all we see in the blood of Christ is our “approval card” or “free pass” then we’re missing a vital part of the picture. I didn’t get my vaccination simply in order to get that card. I took the shot primarily in order to protect myself from this virus that is infecting people. Similarly, what Jesus did at the cross doesn’t only cover our sins, provide forgiveness, and get us on the road to heaven. It provides a remedy for the spiritual malady that infects the hearts and lives of fallen humanity. It not only covers – it cleanses. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (I John 1:7). Jesus gave His life not only to get us to heaven, but also to prepare us for living for Him and serving Him as His holy people in this life. “How much more shall the blood of Christ…cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:14).

I like the old gospel song, “There Is Power in the Blood”. Some of us wholeheartedly sing the first part of that song – “Would you be free from your burden of sin? There’s power in the blood.” We depend on Christ’s sacrifice to free us from the guilt, shame, and condemnation of sin that has weighed us down and separated us from our Heavenly Father. But if that is the extent to which we view the power of Jesus’ blood, we’re falling short in our understanding and losing out on all the Lord wants us to experience as His followers. Other parts of that song ask, “Would you o’er evil a victory win? Would you be free from your passion and pride? Would you do service for Jesus your King?” And the repeated answer is, “There’s power in the blood (of the Lamb)”. Jesus shed His blood so that we can not only be free of sin’s condemnation, but also so we can experience a life of victory over sin’s power in our lives. The blood of Christ cleanses and changes our hearts - empowering us to overcome the evil from without and the sinful tendencies from within. 

Don’t underestimate the power of Christ’s blood. It’s more than our free pass into heaven. It’s our source of cleansing and enablement to live for the Lord and serve Him now.

 

Trust in the Lord and Rest in Him  

Last weekend when we changed over to Daylight Savings Time, I faithfully went through the process of adjusting the various clocks in our house. I moved them all forward the appropriate one hour, except for the clock radio situated beside my bed. It is supposed to automatically adjust itself whenever we go through these twice-a-year time changes. I always feel a little uneasiness about going to bed without manually regulating that device. After all, this is the one clock I depend on to wake me up at the proper time. If it doesn’t sound its alarm at the correct moment, it could get my day off to a rough start.

So when I woke up during the night and glanced over to view the time on that clock radio, I realized that it was past the official hour when Daylight Savings Time was supposed to have kicked in. I wondered, “Did my clock switch over?” So I actually crawled out of bed to check the time on my watch which was setting on the nearby dresser. Sure enough, it matched up with the reading on the clock radio. So with that confirmation, I was able to go back to bed and rest peacefully for a while longer, knowing that I would be awakened at the proper time.

As I had a hard time trusting that clock, sometimes we find it difficult to trust the Lord to take care of matters in our lives. He assures us that He’s got it under control, but it’s hard to let go of it ourselves and depend on Him to do what He says. Even when we are trying to patiently wait on Him, we are often guilty of doing it with anxious hearts rather than with the peaceful assurance that our Heavenly Father will come through at the right time and in the right way. We keep wanting to get our hands on it. It’s hard to relinquish control in the first place, but even after we do, it’s so tempting to try to take it back again. However, even if we refuse that temptation, do we wait on the Lord with a sense of quiet confidence or with nervous apprehension?

I’ve always appreciated the way the psalmist encourages us along these lines. He says, “Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass…Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret…” (Psalm 37:5-7). First we’ve got to commit our way to the Lord. Put your situation in God’s hands. Pray and cast your care upon him. Realize your inability to handle it and give it over to God. Secondly, trust Him with it. Know that the Lord who loves you and wants what is best for you will accomplish what needs to be done. Trust that He’ll do it according to His wise timetable and in the way that will be best for all concerned, including you. And then comes what may be the most challenging part – rest in Him. Don’t just wait while nervously watching the clock or the calendar. Don’t fret about if, when, or how God is going to do it. Simply rest and wait. Know that the Lord has got this. Remind yourself of how He has been faithful in the past and how you know you can trust Him yet again today. Ask Him to bless you with a sense of peace and confidence in Him.

Even though I may struggle with trusting a clock to do what it should, I certainly ought to be able to trust God to do what He says. And you can too. Whatever our situation may be today, let’s commit, trust, and rest in Him.             

 

Don’t Be Afraid to Live by Faith in Christ  

Recently one of our young grandsons came over to our house to show us that he was learning to ride his bicycle without training wheels. Admittedly, he had made some progress toward achieving that goal. He demonstrated that he could ride along without any assistance – as long as he went in a straight line and didn’t go very far or very fast. He did need a little help to get started. He wouldn’t try to make any turns. And when he got ready to stop or felt like the bike was going to tilt over, instead of putting his leg down to catch himself, he virtually hopped off the bike so as to avoid taking a tumble. It was clear that while he might still require a few pointers about riding, more than anything else he needed to build up his confidence to overcome his fears of falling.

Similarly some of us could probably use more confidence when it comes to our journey in following Christ – not more confidence in ourselves or our abilities, but more confidence in Him. We often think of it more in terms of trust or faith. We may have begun a life of traveling along that pathway with Him as our Savior, but we still tend to be very tentative about pedaling down those roads in which He leads us. We often feel incapable of obeying God’s guidance when it comes to making any significant turns or changes from the direction we’re accustomed to going. We move along very slowly, even when the Lord is encouraging us to press ahead more urgently. We’re hindered from making more progress because of our fear of stumbling and falling.

The Bible tells us that our journey through life is one of faith. “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). We need to trust that the Lord will help us to navigate those twists and turns we encounter along the way – and we’ve been facing many of those over the past year. When the Lord urges us to move forward, we don’t have to hold back. We can trust that He will be with us as we shift our lives into a new gear. And all along the way we can have faith in the One whom the Bible says is able to keep us from falling (Jude 24). We can trust that when we have to thrust our leg out to steady ourselves that He will uphold us and keep our feet from slipping. However, even when we do take an occasional tumble, He’ll be there to pick us up and help us get back on the road again.  

When some people consider the idea of “living by faith”, they imagine a life filled with constantly taking high-risk leaps of faith. They see it as being like a spiritual Evel Knievel, the famous motorcycle daredevil. Granted, there may be times when the Lord will not only get us out of our comfort zones, but challenge us to do things that seem difficult, if not impossible. He may call us to jump over some Grand Canyon in our lives. However, most of the time living by faith will simply involve the low-risk pedaling along in our everyday lives as we trust the Lord to help us maneuver over the little bumps in the road, successfully make those turns in a different direction, and climb those challenging hills – to keep faithfully following Him through our course in life.

Let’s not be afraid to follow wherever the Lord is leading us. Let’s take off our training wheels and trust Him to help us go whichever direction and at whatever speed He desires. Let’s live by faith in Him.          

 

God’s Rescue Plan for Us Involves Repentance  

You’ve probably heard about the piece of legislation Congress has been dealing with recently. It consists of an economic stimulus package of $1.9 trillion. I’m not going to use this space primarily to debate the wisdom or effectiveness of such action. You can go to the editorial pages or the blogs of political pundits to read those discussions. What I would like to focus on here is related to the official name of that legislation. It’s called “The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021”. That’s a rather ambitious title for what some people think this law will accomplish if enacted. It might provide some temporary relief that will be helpful to some people, but it certainly won’t rescue America as a whole from the main issues our nation is facing today. No amount of money and no political action will be sufficient to address our deepest needs. I believe those are spiritual, which is why I’m addressing them here.

 First of all, God has a much more effective rescue plan not only for Americans but for all people. His plan isn’t some new proposal for 2021, but it’s the same one that has been around since the beginning of time. Each one of us needs to be delivered from our sin, as well as from the condemnation, guilt, and other consequences which follow our having chosen our way over God’s will. This spiritual problem is the root of most of the other issues we’re facing. God sent His Son into this world to take our sin and its fallout onto Himself so that we who put our trust in Him as our Savior could have eternal life. God’s plan hasn’t changed. Faith in Jesus and what He did for us on the cross is still the only way for us to experience the needed deliverance.

 Therefore the main “act” that would truly rescue individuals and our nation is the same one which both John the Baptist advocated (Matthew 3:2) and Jesus Himself proclaimed (Matthew 4:17) as the remedy in their day for those who were facing the wrath of a holy God. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” If we’re on a destructive pathway, then we need to turn around. We need to change course. That’s what repentance entails. It’s a change of mind that results in a change of direction. We need to forsake our own way and start going God’s way.

For our nation we would do well to follow the plan of rescue that worked so well for the people of Nineveh in the time of Jonah. Although warned of coming judgment, they were spared. Why? The Bible says that they believed God, proclaimed a fast, and the people were encouraged to “cry mightily to God” and to turn from their evil ways (Jonah 3:5-8). Maybe similar actions on our part would bring similar results.

It’s not just an ungodly society that needs to repent today but also those who profess to be Christians. Much of the church needs to repent of having turned away from God and the teachings of His Word. We need to repent of depending more on political leaders and government actions to save us rather than looking to God as our source of help. We need to repent of our lack of prayer, our complacency, and of letting our fears keep us from standing up for what’s right. We need to repent of our inaction and of not being a better channel of the Lord’s light and love in this dark world.

God has a way to rescue us, but we have to submit to Him and follow His plan. So let’s repent, earnestly seek God, and surrender to His will.       

 

The Lord Is Able to Make Us New  

Recently my wife was using our microwave oven when she noticed a little piece of plastic sticking up around the keypad. It turns out that it was one of those clear coverings used to protect a new appliance. When we first purchased and set up our microwave, we had evidently overlooked that protective piece of plastic and had failed to remove it. It had fit so well and was so transparent that we hadn’t noticed it up until now – and we’ve had this oven for several years. So when my wife peeled off the plastic, it resulted in that part of the appliance looking brand new again.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could peel off a layer of our skin every so often and become like new? Our faith in Christ doesn’t offer us such a physical renewal. If it did there would probably be crowds of people flocking to Christianity for all the wrong reasons. However, the Bible does assure us that there is a definite newness provided for those who put their faith in the Lord. Our bodies may not suddenly become young-looking again, but our spirits and our hearts can be made new.

Even in the Old Testament it looked ahead to a time when God would do such a work of transformation in His people. “I will cleanse you from all your filthiness…I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you…I will put My Spirit within you” (Ezekiel 36:25-27). The New Testament affirms the reality of such a change made possible for those who enter into relationship with Christ. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (II Corinthians 5:17).

 Through what Jesus did for us at the cross, He can peel away all the filthiness associated with our past sins, including the shame and guilt. No matter what we’ve done, He can cleanse us of it. We may still have some consequences of past actions that affect our lives, but we can look brand new spiritually to God. We can have clean hearts and a new spirit as the Holy Spirit comes to live within us.

However, this transformation goes beyond simply our appearing to be new in God’s sight. He actually changes us and makes us new in certain respects. The Bible declares that we “should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). There should be a difference evident in some of our actions and in how we live our lives. The Lord can not only change our behavior, but He can begin to peel off some of the layers of selfishness and ungodly attitudes that have plagued us. He can replace our self-centered desires with the greater desire to please Him and to do His will. Rather than primarily looking out for ourselves, He can instill within us a love for Him and a love for other people that will rise to be the main motive behind our actions.

This is good news. No matter how we may have messed up in the past and regardless of the extent of our moral filthiness, faults, and weaknesses, we can be cleansed and made new through faith in Christ. Too often we begin to think, “This is just how I am and nothing can be done about it.” Don’t believe it. There is a newness available in Christ. He can peel away what’s bad and replace it with His righteousness. He can put a new spirit within us that will empower us to live for Him. Let’s put our trust in the One who can make us new.

 

Can We Get Too “On Fire” for Jesus?  

For some of us our mouths start watering whenever we pass by a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop with its “hot now” sign lit up. It lets us know that some of those warm, melt-in-your mouth treats are ready and available. Recently I woke up one morning to the news that one of those long-standing bakery stores in our area had caught fire and burned overnight. I couldn’t help but wonder if the iconic “hot now” sign was turned on at the time. Obviously something in the building got too hot on that occasion.

It’s not unusual at times to hear references to the idea that people need to get “on fire” for the Lord. It’s a concept conveying that we ought to become more dedicated, passionate, and enthusiastic about our relationship with the Lord and our service to Him. It stands in contrast to those who are simply going through religious motions, complacently following their rituals and traditions, and those whose love for the Lord has grown cold. It expresses the need for a personal revival, a stirring of our hearts, and a deepening of our relationship with God.

While many of us might agree with the idea of pursuing such spiritual fire in our lives, others might be hesitant to do so. They want to have some degree of a warm relationship with the Lord, but not go too far. They don’t want to become a fanatic or be labeled as an extremist. It raises the question – can we get too hot in our pursuit of God and in our relationship with Him?

Jesus affirmed that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He insisted that we can’t love anyone, not even our own family, more than we love Him. He told His followers to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. In certain parables Jesus indicated that one’s relationship with God is worth making every effort to pursue and that nothing is more valuable. He describes it as a hidden treasure and a pearl of great price which is worth selling everything else you have in order to possess it.

None of that sounds like it’s compatible with some carefully measured response out of a fear of going too far. We don’t give God a little of our love. It’s with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength. We don’t welcome Jesus in as simply one of the many parts of our life. We put Him first. We don’t see our relationship with Him as one of the things we do, but as our main pursuit. When it comes to living for the Lord, we shouldn’t just be sticking our toes in the water to test it out or settle for cautiously wading in the shallow end – we ought to be diving in.

I don’t believe we can get too “on fire” for Jesus. Certainly we can get off track if we’re not careful. If we stray from God’s Word along the way, if we let our emotions override the work of the Holy Spirit, or if we by any means let ourselves get in the way of God’s fire in our lives, it can turn into a destructive wildfire. However, if we let the Holy Spirit, God’s Word, and godly wisdom guide us, that growing fire in our lives can be a powerful force the Lord can use to provide light, life, and inspiration.     

Some of us need to stop being concerned about being labeled “extreme”. Let’s go all out for Jesus. May the “hot now” sign always burn brightly in our hearts and lives.

 

Jesus Is the Perfect Giver of Love  

As we observe Valentine’s Day this weekend, are you looking for love? Or are you celebrating a love that you’ve already found? In either case, I would like to point you to the perfect person for the occasion. And I do mean perfect. He outshines any of the characters in those Hallmark love stories. As you may have guessed by now, I’m referring to Jesus.

Jesus knows absolutely everything about you and still loves you anyway. He is aware of your strange little quirks as well as your more admirable qualities. He knows all about your past, including any skeletons lurking in your closet. He is familiar with your weaknesses as well as your strengths. He has witnessed your proud achievements and He knows all about the times when you’ve shamefully faltered. Nothing about you, even in the inner recesses of your heart and mind, are hidden from Him. Yet He still loves you.

At the same time, Jesus loves you enough to inspire you to be better than what you are. Although He loves you as you are, He wants you to be the best you can be. He desires what is good for you and will encourage you and enable you to possess it. He not only guides you to follow the best paths in your life, but He makes you better as you walk in intimate fellowship with Him. The more you’re around Him, the more you become like Him. He can actually transform your character and impart His own wonderful qualities to you. You won’t ever be perfect as He is in this life, but you can keep growing to resemble your greatest of loves.

Jesus also loves you enough to tell the truth. He will be honest with you about the way this world really is, as well as about yourself. He will let you know about the reality of sin in order than you can experience the joy of salvation. He will point out your personal sin and guilt so that you can see your need to receive forgiveness and cleansing. He will give you the hope of a glorious eternal existence with Him in heaven, but will also warn of the reality of the awful prospect of hell. He won’t tell you that you’re safe and good when you’re not. He’ll love you enough to reveal the issues in your life which need attention so that He can help you deal with them. He’ll love you enough to discipline you when you need it, not simply to punish you, but to correct you and to get you back on the right track.

 Jesus’ love for you is more than a warm feeling which may come and go over time or depending on the circumstances. He is fully committed to you. He will truly love you forever, even if you fail to receive His love or reject Him altogether. If you refuse His love and face the consequences in this life and in eternity of doing so, it will break His heart. He would do anything for you. He would give His very own life for you. And that’s exactly what He did. “Walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). “Christ died for the ungodly…God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6, 8).

No one loves you more than Jesus. So if you’re looking for love, look to Him. And if you’re already receiving and experiencing the blessings of His love, rejoice in it, be grateful for Him, and share His love with others.