Inside Out Living

The theme this week is grace. And as you may be able to tell, I had the lyrics to the wonderful hymn, Amazing Grace, running through my head as I wrote these devotional thoughts for you this week. Grace is a multi-faceted concept in Scripture and I hope that you thoroughly enjoy considering how God’s grace impacts our lives, both as human beings in children and redeemed members of God’s family.

Today's Devotional:

“I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see” – Amazing Grace

The beggar Bartimaeus received the gift of sight in today’s reading. While Mark is the only gospel that names the beggar, all three of them consistently show that the original request was for mercy. Why the connection between mercy and the receiving of sight? I think it is because the healing not only involved a physical need, but a spiritual one as well.

Without God’s intervention in our lives, we are spiritually blind and lack an awareness of our sin and we do not see our need for God. Until the Holy Spirit opens ones’ eyes to his or her spiritual need, they will not come to God for forgiveness and grace.

In His ministry, Jesus restored physical sight, but more importantly, He also restored spiritual sight. The Spirit continues on in this ministry, and our role is to direct those in whom the Spirit is working to the light of Christ that they might follow him as did Bartimaeus.

F.B. Meyer has been credited with saying that “when we see a brother or sister in sin, there are two things we do not know. First, we do not know how hard he or she tried not to sin. And second, we do not know the power of the force that assailed him or her. We also do not know what we would have done in the same circumstance.”

Judging someone in haste, and without full knowledge or consideration of the facts, generates tremendous hurt and damage. Jesus knew this full well when He extended grace to the woman caught in adultery in John 8.

Authentic Christian living requires an awareness of sin in our life. I believe that the more aware we are of our sin and our propensity to repeatedly sin that we are less likely to judge others who are caught in sin. It is those among us who assume that their struggle with sin is done that are often the ones who are so quick to judge. We all must remember that we are all sinners who are equally in need of grace and mercy from a holy and just God.

“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” – James 4:10

In 1973, Senator John C. Stennis was mugged and shot outside his home. When Senator Mark Hatfield received word of the incident he drove straight to the hospital. Upon arriving, he observed that the hospital staff was overwhelmed with the high volume of incoming calls. Spying an empty switchboard, Hatfield sat down and helped field calls through the night and into the next morning.

It was genuine humility that led Senator Hatfield to assist the hospital staff that night. He was unwilling to view himself as too important to do the mundane task of answering the phone.

Authenticity leads to humility, because when we are willing to see ourselves as we truly are, we learn that we have no greater intrinsic value than the next person. Understanding this lesson allows us to fulfill the command to consider others as more important than ourselves (Phil. 2:3).

Jesus modeled transparency to us in how He lived His life. Jesus opened himself up to His disciples and allowed them to know certain things about Him and His purpose. I do think that it is important to note that He was more transparent with some of his disciples (Peter, James, and John) than He was with the rest.

Part of living an authentic Christian life is the practice of transparency with a trusted brother or sister in Christ. Like Jesus, we need not be as transparent with all as we are with some. Transparency involves giving someone else a window into our soul where our deepest thoughts and emotions lie. Transparency leads to authenticity because, when we allow others to know us fully, we can no longer fool them with our external behavior. They know when we’re faking it because they know the real us.

Like an overhead transparency that is revealed when the light is switched on, may your life become transparent when you encounter the light of Christ.

I have long struggled with the overabundance of denominations that we have within Christianity. Certainly there have been valid reasons involved that led to some of these divisions. Taking a stand on issues such as the deity of Christ or salvation by grace alone through faith alone is never wrong.

That being said, I am often bothered by the attitudes that I sometimes encounter as a result of denominationalism. Accusing someone of not being truly saved because of a disagreement on a secondary or tertiary theological issue is not our place and yet it happens. I hear some accuse people of other denominations of having an insufficient view of God because they are not five-point Calvinists.

Jesus didn’t give the Gentile woman a theological pop quiz to see if she had all the right answers. He recognized her faith, as simple as it may have been, and accepted her for it. Like the thief on the cross, this woman’s salvation was not dependent upon right theology, but an authentic faith in the right One.

“The purpose of my instruction is that all the Christians there would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.” – 1 Timothy 1:5

Jesus turned the religious system of first century Judaism on its ear. He was able to look through their traditions and recognize that they were attempting to gain acceptance before God by following extensive lists of rules and regulations governing their external behavior.

Living an authentic life for the Christian means that our heart and our actions must match. To practice the externals of religion without a heart that has been changed by God does not make us acceptable before God.

Our acceptance before God is dependent entirely upon the change of heart that occurs when we trust in Christ for forgiveness and salvation. It is this step of faith that allows the Holy Spirit to change us so that our actions will be born out of a heart that beats for God.

The court of public opinion is a powerful force, especially for those who live and work in the political arena. When you read about Herod’s dealings with John the Baptist, you quickly realize that this court of public opinion, or more commonly known as peer pressure, has been influential for 2,000 years.

Peer pressure can make authentic living very challenging. Authentic living can be understood as remaining true to one’s own character when faced with external pressures. When faced with the external pressures, Herod gave up John’s life in spite of his genuine respect for him. Jesus too was confronted with a variety of pressures from both his followers and adversaries. However, unlike Herod, Jesus’ actions were always consistent with His character. In John 6:15 we read that He turned down the opportunity to lead a political coup, choosing instead to remain true to His commitment to do the will of His Father who sent Him (John 8:28-29).

May you, like Jesus, be able to live authentically in the face of peer pressure.

The theme for this week is authenticity. As you read about the life that Jesus lived, I hope you are able to see how authentic He was in His dealings with the people around Him. Whether they were friend or foe, He did not deceive or mislead anyone and always acted authentic.

Today's Devotional:

If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. – Matthew 5:46

In the gospel of Matthew, right before Jesus sends out the 12 disciples, He told His disciples to ask the Lord to send more workers to gather the harvest. In that passage (Matthew 9:35-38), Jesus reveals to the disciples His heart for the lost. As He taught and healed among the people, His heart was genuinely burdened for those people whom He described as a sheep without a shepherd.

A heart for the lost is not easily feigned. This is because the lost are not going to be receptive to the message of Jesus, or the messenger for that matter, most of the time. It is so easy to love those with whom we are comfortable. What about those who have hurt you or persecute you? A heart for the lost means that we must respond with grace and mercy to those who don’t deserve it, but desperately need it.

May you, like Jesus, have an authentic heart for the lost.

“If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” – Romans 8:31b

Three times in the seventh chapter of Ezra, the text says “the gracious hand” of the Lord was upon Ezra. Also in 7:28, Ezra states that this was a great source of encouragement for him in knowing that the hand of the Lord was on him.

There is a similar source of encouragement for us today as New Testament believers and partakers of a new and better covenant. Paul picks up on this theme in Romans 8:31. As believers who have been adopted into God’s family (Rom. 8:15), we share in his treasures (Rom. 8:17) for we are co-heirs with Christ.

So take courage believer! As one who is now adopted by God, know that there is nothing that can separate you from his love (Rom. 8:35). There is no greater source of joy or encouragement for us than to know that the One who created us has also redeemed us and has secured our salvation.

A few years ago there was a movie titled Independence Day. Having an affection for action-adventure movies I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. On of my favorite scenes is when the President, played by Bill Pullman, encourages a rag-tag band of fighter pilots who were about to face an invading alien force. Speaking to a group who faced certain death and the potential destruction of the human race, he inspired them to victory.

Facing a similar fate of total destruction and annihilation because one man didn’t like the Jews, God’s people had lost hope. That is until they received the king’s edict from the hand of Mordecai giving them permission and encouraging them to band together and defend themselves.

Mordecai was an encourager. He encouraged Esther to take full advantage of her station as Queen of Persia to help her people. Then he encouraged his people to defend themselves in the face of certain destruction

May you like Mordecai encourage the people around you.

On March 11, 2007 Morgan Tsvangirai, founder of Zimbabwe’s Movement for Democratic Change, was forced to cancel a prayer meeting because the attendees were in grave danger from riot police. Tsvangirai himself was beaten and jailed later when he attempted to visit the 40 some supporters who were arrested at the prayer gathering. Reflecting on that experience, Tsvangirai said, “Far from killing my spirit, the scars they brutally inflicted on me have re-energized me…”

For men like Tsvangirai and Mordecai, whom we read about today, the courage to stand against oppression and persecution, does not merely come from ones own internal fortitude. Rather it is in God that they find the courage to take a stand when governing authorities are in conflict with God’s will.

When you face potential persecution or humiliation for your Christian faith, may you have the courage of a Mordecai who stood up to Haaman, or of Peter and John who stood up to the Sanhedrin (Acts 5:29).

We are all familiar with the concept of a doomsday prophet, who attempts to strike fear in the hearts of people to bring about repentance today. I remember first seeing them as a child in such movies as Ghostbusters and Superman.

Well today I want you to consider the possibility that courage is also an appropriate response to the coming events in the Day of the Lord. How is it that a description of those events can be an encouragement to us? It is only because of the victory that we have in Jesus.

Zechariah 14:9 says, “And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—his name alone will be worshiped.” Wow! Now that is something to get excited about. What an encouraging picture. The Lord reigning on earth and He will be the only one receiving praise and worship from His creation. I don’t know about you but that seems far more encouraging to me than the political corruption and idolatry that I see in the world today.

Support and encouragement can come from many different sources and sometimes it can be a little surprising to us. I would imagine that God’s people experienced some anxiety and discouragement when the governors of neighboring provinces began to investigate the work they were doing on the temple. There was no guarantee that Darius would honor the edict of the Babylonian King Cyrus who had gone before him.
However God saw it fit to encourage his people by showing that King Darius fully supported them and included instruction for the governors in the area to support the effort.

It can be very encouraging when our efforts are validated by those who are in authority over us. I am sure that you have experienced this kind of encouragement from parents, teachers, or bosses in your life. So the question is, when was the last time you encouraged someone who has to answer to you?

May you be a surprising source of encouragement for someone today.

I don’t know what it is about human nature that makes us nostalgic. I have observed that in just about every area of life there is something about ‘how it used to be’ that we view as better. And as we read in Haggai this can be a discouragement to us in the present.

As the people began to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, they soon realized that it would not be nearly as impressive as the temple Solomon built. Instead of disregarding that fact, the Lord acknowledged it (Hag. 2:2-3) and then encouraged the people to press on in spite of that fact (2:4-5). His message was, that regardless of how less impressive of a building it was, the people were to continue on in the building of it.

No matter what task God has given you to do, whether it is business, ministry, family, whatever it is, you are to take courage and do it regardless of how much better or more successful the past may have been.

May you take courage and fulfill your tasks, know that God is with you.

This week’s theme is on courage. In the readings this week we will read about the courage of people like Esther and Mordecai whose actions saved the Jewish people. We will also examine the courage of the Jews who began to return to Jerusalem after the time of captivity to rebuild the temple of the Lord

Today's Devotional:

In the past few years I have watched Dr. Phil on a number of occasions. I appreciate his bluntness and what I call ‘drphilisms’. One of my favorite ‘isms’ is when he asks his guest ‘how’s that working for ya?’. Having read Haggai again I realize that he didn’t come up with the question. Apparently God used that question as an effective tool to show his people that they were not meeting his standard (Hag. 1:5, 7).

This question is a tool to help someone see the deficiency in tier own actions. Once that objective has been accomplished the real work of change begins. Zerubbabel and the remnant of God’s people responded in obedience and had the courage to change.

We all will realize at some point that either our actions, beliefs, or thoughts will need to be changed because they are in conflict with God’s will. The question you are faced with is do you have the courage to change. To make a change requires admitting mistakes and humbling ourselves to see that God’s way is best.

May you have the courage to do just that.

In our town, the paper has a section called News of Record, which reports every 911 incident and arrests or violations of the law. And when appropriate the names of those involved are listed in the paper. You would think that because people in this town know that they face public humiliation for breaking the law, even traffic laws, that they wouldn’t have much to print, however the section never seems to shrink.
So the thought occurred to me that merely knowing about the consequences of our actions is not sufficient to prevent us from engaging in destructive or sinful behavior. While it is true that knowledge of the consequences can be a strong deterrent, many of us will choose to sin in spite of those consequences.

God’s people diligently studied the Scriptures and knew about the warnings in Deuteronomy about the consequences they would face for covenant unfaithfulness, but that didn’t stop them from abandoning the Lord.

May you recognize the consequences of you actions before you are forced to endure them.

Before the invention of modern fire suppression systems it was required for a hotel of significant size to employ a watchman during the night hours to alert guests in the case of fire. One such hotel in Omaha, Nebraska had a fire on January 23, 1911 and the watchmen failed to notify the guests of the fire. Therefore, a guest who was forced to use a rope fire escape sued the hotel because of injuries resulting from his escape. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court where the court upheld the decision to hold the hotel responsible for its negligence in alerting the guests to the fire.

Ezekiel was given a similar charge by God, a responsibility to warn people of God’s judgment. It is important to note that Ezekiel wasn’t responsible for the peoples response to his warning, he was merely responsible, as the watchmen, for sounding the warning itself.

The same is true for our sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are not responsible for the consequences one faces for rejecting the gospel, but we are responsible for delivering the message.

In the movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, the lead character George Bailey, played by James Stewart, makes the statement that he wished he had never been born. Those of you who know the movie know that George was given a glimpse of what his family, friends and whole town would have been like if he had not been born. Even though George Bailey hadn’t led a charmed life or accomplished all he had hoped for, he had made a difference in many lives. He realized that life was in fact worth living and was given the opportunity to make things right.

That movie strikes a chord with all of us because we all wonder at times if our life has amounted to anything, if it would change the world if we weren’t there.

As we think about consequences, we must recognize that they come in both good and bad varieties, that even the smallest action can be used by God to bring about a positive consequence in someone else’s life. If you ever doubt the significance of your life, just think of George Bailey and the lesson he learned.

Forgiveness is a really curious thing. All this week we have been thinking about consequences in life. Now, forgiveness is like the exact opposite of consequences. When we are forgiven, the one who forgives decides not to bring about potential consequences against us. For example, some insurance companies offer what is called accident forgiveness. It used to be a guarantee that your rates would go up if you were in an accident, but if you have accident forgiveness, you don’t have to face that consequence.

While Israel did endure consequences and discipline from the Lord for their actions, they did eventually experience restoration. The restoration was based on God’s sovereign decision to forgive and to bless His people on account of His covenant faithfulness. It wasn’t as if their consequences had changed because they had changed.

In the same way, we can experience forgiveness for our sins because of Jesus’ atoning death on the cross. Because of God’s sovereign decision to forgive and extend grace, we are freed from the guilt and consequences associated with our sin.

“The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice” – Proverbs 12:15 (NIV)

Have you ever found yourself asking for advice and yet you have already concluded in your mind what you think should be done? This is precisely the situation that the leaders of Israel were in. When Jeremiah gave the answer from the Lord, they concluded that Jeremiah must be lying since it didn’t match what they thought the Lord would say.

Seeking wisdom and counsel does absolutely no good if you don’t listen to it. Routinely we are instructed in Proverbs to seek and listen to counsel.

While none of us can know exactly what the future will hold, it seems that a principle in life is that you will suffer consequences if you ignore wise counsel. It was true for Solomon’s son Rehoboam who lost control of 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel because he ignored wise counsel. It was true for the remnant of Israel who ignored Jeremiah and suffered their fate in Egypt.

When hurricane Katrina leveled the gulf coast and nearly destroyed the entire city of New Orleans, I heard someone comment on how they felt the city was being judged because of the excessive sin it promotes. Now I do not pretend to know why God allowed that hurricane and the massive damage that resulted, but I do know that it is not our position to sit back and gloat or to pass judgment even if God is using the disaster to judge or discipline.

This was precisely what Edom did to Israel when God’s judgment was carried out by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Because Edom refused to act with compassion towards Israel, God communicated His judgment on them through Obadiah.

So, even if someone is enduring consequences brought on by their own actions, our response is still to extend compassion and mercy.

The reality of the exile has set in and life as the Israelites knew it is gone. They are now living with the consequences of their idolatry and disobedience to the Lord’s covenant. Thus, our theme for this week is consequences. Whether we want to admit it or not, we all live with consequences. As we will discover, some consequences are good and some are bad, and all of them are real.

Today's Devotional:

“Why should we, mere humans, complain when we are punished for our sins?” – Lamentations 3:39

A sign of maturity in the process of human cognitive and emotional development is the ability to accept consequences for our actions. As a parent of young children, I am fully aware that this is an ability that children must learn as opposed to being born with it.

In the reading today it seems as though the nation of Israel is still learning this lesson. Like a spoiled child who has never been disciplined, Israel responded to the Lord with shock and dismay that He would pour out His anger on them.

In the New Testament, Peter picks up on this theme in 1 Peter 2:20-21. Peter says that you will be rewarded for suffering if you suffer for doing good. However, if we suffer for doing wrong there is no reward.

We all must deal with the consequences for our actions. It doesn’t matter if we were right or wrong, every action will bring about some consequence.

“All our righteous acts are like filthy rags” – Isaiah 64:6

In Ezekiel 14, the Lord patiently reveals to His people that they have no hope of avoiding His judgments. The point that He is repeatedly making is that your righteousness cannot save you from God’s judgment. He further strengthens the point by declaring that even the righteousness of Noah, Daniel and Job would not spare the people of judgment. This statement rings true for us as well because our righteousness is not sufficient to save us in the face of God’s judgment.

Praise be to God that the story does not end there, for we have a glorious hope in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Because of the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus we can, through faith, have His righteousness credited to our account. This is the only way we can know and experience the hope of salvation. Attempting to avoid God’s wrath by our own righteousness is as futile for us today as it was in Ezekiel’s day.

At the start of this week, we read about the coming of the new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-34. In God’s expression of hope to Israel through the prophet Ezekiel, we read more details of the coming covenant (Ezekiel 11:14-21). As part of the new covenant, God will do a heart transplant in His people, removing the old heart of stone and replacing it with a heart of flesh that obeys God. This is a picture of what happens in the lives of Christians today. When we come to faith in Christ, God regenerates that life and puts in them a new heart and his Holy Spirit, who now enables them to follow God.

Another element of the new covenant mentioned in this passage is the emphasis on personal relationship with God. “Then they will truly be My people, and I will be their God” (11:20b). While Israel belonged to God as His covenant people, whom He had redeemed, under the new covenant the personal connection we have with the Lord is stronger because of the Holy Spirit, who indwells each believer.

“For I am the LORD! What I threaten always happens.” – Ezekiel 12:25

Ezekiel paints a very bleak picture for the fate of God’s people. But for those who have been reading the Scriptures closely, it should come as no surprise, because Moses informed Israel as to what would happen if they refused to listen to the Lord (Deuteronomy 28:15-68). Even though God is pouring out His judgment on Israel, there is hope in knowing that He is fulfilling His promises by doing so. This is because there is more to God’s promises in Deuteronomy than just words of destruction. Two chapters later in Deuteronomy 30:1-10, Moses prophesies concerning God’s promise of restoration when those who remain repent and return to the Lord.

While many of us make idle threats, the Lord doesn’t. His promises are real and trustworthy. Reading about God fulfilling His promise of judgment reinforces our hope of salvation and the promises that we have in Christ.

Those of you who know me, know that I love baseball. The game is a wonderful gift from God, in my opinion. Someone once said that the great thing about baseball (professional baseball that is) is that every team goes into the season knowing they will win sixty games and lose sixty games and the rest of them are up for grabs. This gives each team hope in Spring Training.

Ezekiel received a similar statement of hope in 3:27. The Lord told Ezekiel that, when he delivers a message from the Lord, “some will listen, but some will ignore you.” What a comfort and hope to know that some will listen.

We too can share in that hope and comfort Ezekiel had when we share the gospel message. Scripture teaches us that God indeed has elected some to believe in Him. So, while everyone with whom we share the gospel may not repent and believe, we can have the confidence that some will. And since we do not know who God has elected we are to obediently move forward with the command to preach the word, knowing that some will believe.

Leaving home for an unfamiliar world can indeed be a frightening experience. It will be an experience that will be repeated thousands of times in the coming weeks by young men and women heading off to college. For the Christian, it is helpful and comforting to know that God is there with you in that new and different place.
This is also a truth that God’s people who were living in exile in Babylon needed to know. Because the Jewish system of worship was centered around the temple in Jerusalem as the dwelling place of the Lord, it was especially difficult for these exiles to understand that God is omnipresent and is not limited to a single physical location. The vision Ezekiel received served to accomplish just that. The wheels moving in every direction speaks to God’s ability to be present in every situation everywhere.

All of us have that place where God feels especially present and that place where we always feel like we are home. However, we can know and have confidence that, no matter where we are, God will be present with us and our relationship with Him is not dependent upon a location or building.

Ever since the kingdom of Israel became divided under Rehoboam (1 Kings 12), the kings of both Israel and Judah led God’s people through a downward spiral of idolatry and disobedience. This had resulted in Israel no longer being a major player on the world political scene as it had been under David and Solomon. We see in Jeremiah 37 that the only relief Israel had from the Babylonians was when Egypt threatened to attack. While this gave Judah some hope, Jeremiah was quick to point out that trusting in Egypt was a false hope.

False hope can be quite devastating. As we see in the Old Testament, anytime God’s people trusted anyone or anything other than the Lord, it resulted in a false hope. I think this is a key lesson for us to glean from the Old Testament. Anytime we trust someone other than the Lord, including ourselves, for our salvation or for the strength to battle temptation, it will result in tragedy.

The readings for this week will deal with Israel in exile. While there are still some who remain in Jerusalem, the main shift of the Scriptures has been on those who are living in exile in Babylon. Particularly we see this in Ezekiel, whose ministry was directly to God’s people living in exile. Because they were dark days for God’s people, both those left in Jerusalem and those in exile, there is a recurring theme of hope that we will be looking at this week.

Today's Devotional:

The days in which Jeremiah ministered were certainly dark days. Judah as a nation was falling apart and God’s covenant people, the Israelites, had essentially abandoned God at this point. However, as you read today, because of God’s faithfulness there is still hope.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 delivers the promise of a new covenant. It is the covenant that Jesus spoke of during the last supper (Matt. 26:28). It is the covenant that was sealed with the shed blood of Christ. And it is this passage from Jeremiah that was quoted by the author of Hebrews as he contrasted the new and the old covenants (Heb. 8:8-12)

It is a better covenant (Heb. 8:6) because it involves an internal change. Instead of being focused on external obedience and works, Jeremiah says that God will write His word on their hearts. We, as members of this new and better covenant, have the word of God emblazoned on our hearts through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

It was this promise of a future covenant that gave hope to the faithful few in Jeremiah’s day and it continues to give us hope as well.

“He will remove all their sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For the old world and its evils are gone forever.” – Revelation 21:4

Hezekiah’s poem (Isaiah 38:10-20) is a beautiful response of praise to the healing that he experienced from the Lord. In verse 17, I think we see a foreshadowing of the experience we will have when God totally does away with sin and death.

This is the third level of our salvation experience. Not only are we saved from the penalty and the power of sin, but we will also be saved from the presence of sin. And it is at that point that we will no longer have to deal with the curse of sin, for that will have been done away with and all things will be made new.

What it will be like when that curse is lifted is impossible to fully know. But what we can know is the hope of salvation that comes from knowing Jesus Christ.

May you with great anticipation long for that day when we will finally experience the fullness of our salvation.