God's Not Fair

"He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities." - Psalm 103:10

Have you ever heard someone make the statement that God is not fair?  I have often heard people ask questions about why God has allowed something to happen in their lives or why God did not stop something from happening.  I have even heard people make the statement that they were not getting what they deserved, and they were not happy about it.  

"Those who would like the God of Scripture to be more purely ethical, do not know what they ask." - C.S. Lewis

I don't know about you, but I am so thankful that God is not fair!  I am also thankful that God does not give me what I deserve!  If God was fair and gave us what we deserved, we ALL would be Hell in this very moment because of our sin and rebellion against Him.  You and I deserved the judgment and wrath of God, but instead He gave us forgiveness, redemption, and sanctification when we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation.  I am so thankful that God gave me what I DID NOT deserve, mercy and grace!

The reason why most people think that God is not fair is because they start with a false premise; they naturally assume that they are a good person.  Have you ever heard someone ask the question of why bad things happen to good people?  The truth is, according to God's Word, there are NO good people (Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:10,23).  A better way of stating it would be that good things happen to bad people.  When we look at it that way, it will change everything!  

We are so quick to ask why something bad happens, but we hardly ever stop and ask why God might bless us with something good.

"Fairness is an excellent principle when we're good, but an unfortunate principle when we're not so good.  And when it comes to God, we are pretty much always going to be on the no-so-good side of the fairness equation. But we can be glad that God is not fair; we don't get what we deserve.  Instead of punishment we get death-defying grace.  And we get God with us, especially in the midst of life's most difficult and painful experiences." - Craig Groeschel

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, I am so thankful that You are not fair!  Thank You for not giving me what I deserved, but instead You gave me mercy and grace.  Father, help me to remember that You are good all the time!  In Jesus name, Amen!

In My Place

"Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed." - 1 Peter 2:24



Since today is Good Friday, I want to take a few moments to reflect on what Jesus did for me and you on the Cross over 2,000 years ago.  I know most all of us understand and know what Jesus did on the cross, how that He took our place and died for our sins.  However, I do think that far too many Christians don't fully grasp the reality and the true implications of the Cross.  It has become too familiar to us.

‎"The Cross is the point where God and sinful man merge with a crash and the way to life is opened—but the crash is on the heart of God." - Oswald Chambers

‎"Never tolerate the idea of martyrdom about the Cross of Jesus Christ. The Cross was a superb triumph in which the foundations of Hell were shaken." - Oswald Chambers

When Jesus went to the Cross, He was literally taking our place.  You and I are the ones that deserved to be crucified and suffer like that because our sin and iniquity.  We deserved the brutality of the Cross that Christ endured.  While He was on the Cross, every sin that had ever been committed or that was to be committed, was poured upon Jesus.  God the Father turned His back on His only begotten Son because of your sin and mine.  Mere words cannot even begin to describe the reality of what Christ did for us or how much love He has for us.

I would like for you to read the words to this song "In My Place" by Michael Bleecker.

In my place, He stood condemned

He Who knew no sin became sin for us

That we might become His righteousness

Bearing all my sin and shame

The punishment and blame

He conquered the grave

That we might become the heirs of grace

In my place, Jesus died

The spotless Lamb laid down His life

The wrath of God was satisfied

In my place, Jesus died

Nail pierced hands, bleeding side

His body bruised; my God crucified

A crown of thorns, dying cries

His flesh was torn; my God crucified

Hallelujah, what a Savior!

Today, I want to encourage you to spend time reflecting on what Christ did for you on the Cross.  Just have a quiet or silent time where you worship Christ.  Just stand in awe of what Jesus Christ did on the Cross!  He took our sin, our iniquity, our wickedness, and the punishment that we deserved.  In return, He gave us forgiveness, righteousness, redemption, sanctification, and most of all what we did not deserve: mercy and grace!

Thank You Jesus for taking my place!

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for Your mercy and grace!  Thank You for coming to this world in the Person of Jesus Christ and taking my place on the Cross!  Thank You for taking the punishment that I deserved and giving me what I did not deserve: mercy, grace, and forgiveness.  In Jesus name, Amen!

The Source Of Our Problems

"Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom." - Proverbs 13:10



A preacher friend of mine quoted this Bible verse in one of his posts this morning on Facebook and I decided to go read it and meditate on it for a little while.  As I thought on this verse, the Lord began to speak to my heart about writing something on it today.

It is so sad to see that there is much contention in many churches today and in the lives of many Christians today as well.  Why is that?  What is the reason for it?  The answer is pride, it is the root of all contention.  Pride is at the root of the problems and contentions that we have with others, whether it be in the church or outside the church.  Pride comes natural to us because of our flesh and our lusts.  We don't want to be wronged, we don't want to be corrected, we must have things our way, we are going to give someone a piece of our mind.  We manifest all of these attitudes because of pride.

The Bible tells us that God resists the proud.  In Proverbs chapter 6, we find that a proud look is something that God says He hates.    In contrast, the Bible tells us that God gives grace to the humble.  It also says that God is near to those of broken heart and a contrite spirit.  In light of this, there are several questions that come to mind.  Where is our humility?  Where is our brokenness?  Where is our spirit of contrition?

The solution to this problem is simple; if we want to get rid of contention in our churches, our homes, and our individual lives, we must get rid of our pride.  If we are dying daily to ourselves, our flesh, and our lusts, then there is no reason for us to have pride in our hearts.  However, in "American Christianity" the problem is that we do not die daily to all of these things.  Is it any wonder that we lack the power of God in our churches, pulpits, and our individual lives?

If you look to the middle of the word "Pride" you will find "I" and that says it all!

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me today to die to my flesh, my desires, and my lusts.  Help me to deny myself and to surrender all to Christ.  Forgive me for my sin of pride in my heart and cleanse me from it.  Give me a spirit of humility, brokenness, and a contrite heart.  Lord, help me to remember, it isn't about me but rather it is ALL about Christ!  In Jesus name, Amen!

Spiritual Transformation

"And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you; for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in the earth beneath." - Joshua 2:11
 

Last Sunday night at FBC we began a series of messages going through the book of Joshua.  Most of us know that Joshua is a book of transition.  There is a transition in leadership from Moses to Joshua as well as many other transitions.  As we come to chapter 2 we find in one of these transitions a spiritual transformation.  This is what God desires for us all!  This coming Sunday night at FBC we are going to delve deeper into this transition and transformation.  I would like to share just a brief thought with you concerning this transformation.

The conversion of Rahab, the harlot, is a wonderful illustration of the transformation that God desires for us to experience in our lives.  First, we are radically transformed when we repent of our sins and place our faith and trust in Christ.  Second, we are to be radically transformed each day to look more like Christ and for our lives to reflect Him.  The life of Rahab illustrates how amazing the mercy and grace of the Lord is toward you and I. In the book of Joshua she is referred to as a harlot, however when you come to the book of Hebrews, she is referred to as a woman of faith.  Only God Himself can produce that kind of transformation in someone's life.

The thought I want us to ponder today is: are we allowing Christ to transform our lives in a radical way just like He did in the life of Rahab?  You might say, "I am saved, my life has already been transformed."  I am referring to salvation, but rather to allowing Christ to radically transform you and I to look more like Him each day.  Each day we must allow Christ to mold us and to make us more like Him.  Are we allowing Him to have His way with us to bring about this transformation?

I don't know about you, but I desire for Christ to work in my life in such a way that each day I am seeing a radical transformation in my life to be more like Him.  Just think about the Lord saved and radically transformed a woman who was a harlot and through her is the lineage of Christ.  Jesus Christ, our Savior, the Creator of this Universe, and God in the flesh, is descended from the a woman who was a harlot at one time.

Jesus Christ can radically transform any life, will you allow Him to transform yours?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, thank You for You mercy and Your grace.  As You radically transformed and worked in the life of Rahab, it is my desire that You would transform and work in my life.  Conform my life each day to look more like Jesus.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Growing In Christ

"When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." - 1 Corinthians 13:11


I would like to share a few thoughts about growing in our walk with Christ.  As I read through Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth I cannot help but think of how spiritually immature they were in their walk with Christ.  From the very beginning they were split into factions, one saying that he was of Apollos and another saying he was of Paul.  It is very similar to what we see today in Fundamentalism.  People are so quick to identify which camp they are in and then they want to know which camp you are in.  Of course, if you are in what they perceive is the wrong camp, then they will want nothing to do with you.  Before I run too much of a rabbit trail here, the point I am making is that we must get past our spiritual immaturity and grow in Christ to be spiritually mature Christians.

Our journey towards spiritual maturity will last a lifetime.  That means that we are never going to arrive at complete spiritual maturity on this side of eternity.  Each day that God gives us to serve Him we must continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  This does not mean that we just accumulate more head knowledge about Jesus Christ, it means that we are to become more like Christ each day.

I'm afraid that there are many in our churches today who have ceased to grow spiritually.  There are some who are not faithful to their church services so they miss out hearing God's Word preached and they miss out on growing with the body of that local congregation.  There are others who never have a time of daily worship with Christ.  While it is VERY important to be faithful to all of the church services, it is also EQUALLY important that you have a time of worship with Christ EVERY day.  This means you must set aside time each day to spend in God's Word, pray, and fellowship with Jesus Christ.

Many of us have become stagnant in our spiritual walk with Jesus Christ.  Why?  It is because we fail to spend time in God's Word, we fail to have a prayer life, we do not obey His commandments, we are not faithful to our local churches, and we are not cultivating the relationships with other believers that are necessary for our spiritual growth.

John Maxwell said, "Every great company, every great brand, and every great career has been built in exactly the same way: bit by bit, step by step, little by little."  How are you going to grow in Christ and be a spiritually mature Christian?  You must do it bit by bit, step by step, and little by little.  You can start by being faithful to your local church, then you must determine to spend time EVERY day in God's Word, develop a prayer life and not just a prayer time, and cultivate relationships with other believers in Christ that will further your spiritual journey.

Examine your heart and spiritual journey today.  Are you growing in Christ or has your spiritual walk become stagnant?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me as I continue on my walk with Christ to grow in Your grace and knowledge.  Help me today and each day to become more like You and reflect more of You in my life.  Help me to put away childish things that would hinder the work of Christ.  May I reflect your grace in my life today.  In Jesus name, Amen!