Fire Can't Touch Forever

Heaven's Delight

The word "pleasure" can have both positive and negative connotations depending on the sort of pleasure we're talking about. But have you ever wondered whether God takes pleasure in anything, and if so, in what? There's a verse that, each time I read it, completely blows my mind. Here it is: Psalm 149:4 For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation. (ESV) How do you unpack that? How do you make sense of the fact that the God who created the whole universe takes pleasure in His people – fallible human beings like you and me who've made so many mistakes in our lives; who've dishonoured Him, turned our backs on Him … so many times in our lives. Imagine a guy gets fired—it's his own fault, too many no-shows. Weeks later, his old boss calls. "We're short-staffed. Want your job back?" No lecture, no probation—just a fresh start. He hangs up, stunned, grinning like a kid. That, to me, is this verse in real life: God delighting in the humble, lifting them when they least deserve it. And let me tell you, that expression, "takes pleasure in", is a really strong one in the Hebrew language in which that was originally written. It speaks of deep pleasure, acceptance and favour, not reluctant tolerance. God's love for you and me is active and joyful. And it's not in our human strength, or status or self-reliance, but in those who walk humbly with Him. So when you're perhaps feeling a bit down on yourself, know this: that heaven's applause is already yours, and He adorns you with His salvation. That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Fire Can't Touch Forever

To a lesser or greater degree, those who profess a faith in Jesus Christ will invariably suffer. For some, that may merely involve scorn or ridicule. But for countless others down through the centuries, it's cost them their lives. In the 16th Century, Anne Askew, a young English poet and Protestant reformer, was arrested and tortured for rejecting Catholicism. Offered freedom if she recanted she refused, answering her interrogators with clarity and even wit. Despite the brutal treatment, she spoke of her joy in Christ and her certainty of a heavenly reward. As she was burned at the stake, eyewitnesses recorded her praying aloud and quoting Scripture until her voice was silenced by the flames. She lived—and died—with the unshakable assurance that God's promise outweighed any earthly suffering. Said Jesus to His followers: Luke 6:22-23 Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. (NRSV) Over the last few days, we've chatted about fearless faith and bold belief. Too many of Christ's followers today have become all too shy about their faith, hiding their light under a bushel for fear of recrimination. Why, when Jesus, in the face of persecution, called us blessed? When the world turns up the heat, remember—no fire on earth can burn away the reward that awaits you, so rejoice in that day, leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven. That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Bold Belief

At the core of your being, let me ask you, what do you believe? Do you believe in the power of the Good News of Jesus to save you from your sin? Or is that a difficult, even impossible thing for you to believe? What … do you … believe? If all that feels a tad "in your face", I get it. And yet, I make no apology for it. Because sometimes I feel the need to be direct in cutting through the clutter, in slicing through the opaque veil of worldly self-interest that casts itself so readily over the human heart. Sometimes we need to be jolted out of our complacency, shocked into action. Life puddles along. The concerns of life fill our minds. And we forget, all too easily, that there's a powerful truth set before each one of us by God Himself - that He sent Jesus to save us from our sin; that by faith in Him and Him alone, we can be saved; that if we reject the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ, we will spend eternity separated from God in that place we call hell. For that reason, like the Apostle Paul back in the 1st Century AD … Romans 1:16-17 … I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, "The one who is righteous will live by faith." (NRSV) Your faith in Christ alone is what can save you, what will save you. With all my heart, I urge you today to believe. Believe in Jesus. That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Fearless Faith

We live in a world intent on rejecting Christ; rejecting the notion that there is a God of love and justice in heaven; rejecting this fanciful idea that He'd do anything so dramatic as to send His Son into this world, to die for us on a cross so that our sins might be forgiven, and to rise again to give us the gift of eternal life. Oh, in part, Jesus may still be tolerated, but not obeyed. For many, cultural Christianity has emerged as a safe alternative to biblical discipleship. Truth has been redefined, even by the church. Faith has been sidelined for comfort. The gospel has been rebranded while, all the while, persecution intensifies. And so, in response, some (many?) have perfected the art of nodding politely to Jesus while nailing the door shut in His face; wanting His comfort, not His cross; His blessings, not His Lordship. We've traded the narrow road for the wide one, repackaging Him into a benign mascot for our worldly ambitions. With all that going on … many have become ashamed of the real Jesus, of the power He offers us for our lives to be transformed, of the truth that our eternity lies in His hands. They've become timid in telling others of Him, in light of their own, watered-down faith. And yet, amidst not dissimilar circumstances back in the 1st Century AD, the Apostle Paul writes this: Romans 1:16 I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (NRSV) Friend, that's God's clarion call to you and to me to live out a fearless faith amidst a world intent on dismissing Jesus as irrelevant or foolish. Don't be ashamed of Jesus. That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

God Will Make You Strong

We each, inevitably, arrive at a point where all hope appears lost; where we can't see how we'll survive; where any faith we may have had in God seems so fragile in light of the terrible circumstances that confront us. Perhaps you've been there, perhaps it's yet to come. Vilhjalmur Stefansson was an Arctic explorer of Icelandic descent. In 1913, his ship was trapped and destroyed by pack ice, leaving him and his men stranded in one of the most inhospitable places on earth. Facing starvation, polar storms, and total isolation, Stefansson leaned on his deep faith and unshakable belief in God's providence. He adapted by learning from the Inuit, surviving entirely on local resources, and leading his team to safety after years in the Arctic. He later testified that it was the certainty of God's presence and strength that sustained him when all human hope was gone. Said God to His people Israel, close to the end of seventy years in exile as slaves in Babylon, when all hope appeared lost, when they couldn't see how they'd ever be saved, when their faith in Him seemed so fragile against the might of the Babylonian Empire … Isaiah 41:10 Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand. (HCSB). When every human resource fails, God's presence doesn't just comfort you—He gives you the strength, the wisdom, the resilience to walk out of the terror back into life once more. That's His Word. Fresh … for you … today.